This entry had a very long gestation period. I initially listened to the recording, and I loved it from the start. It comes from the most interesting period of Prince’s career. I then looked further and found that I also had a copy of this gig on DVD, so I decided to write as I watched it. Unfortunately, the first time I watched it I got awfully distracted by Mayte and her hot pants (I am, after all, a red-blooded male), and found that I wrote not a single word as I watched it. I watched it again, and then once more just to make sure I didn’t miss anything.
Someone pointed out to me the other week, that at this stage of Prince’s career he was reborn, and was an entirely new artist. It really did seem as if Prince was dead. He played nothing from his back catalog, only concentrating on the music he created under the symbol name. And the music itself was fierce, the pop songs were gone (with the notable exception of The Most Beautiful Girl In The World) and the focus was on funk, with a capital F. Many people compare Michael Jackson to an alien sent to live among us but watching this I was struck by the thought, that it was this reborn Prince that was the alien. His freakish look and funk-fuelled music wiped any thoughts of the 80’s global superstar from my mind. Watching this DVD the comparison that was uppermost in my mind was Parliament-Funkadelic, with his look, sound, and style.
This period was my wilderness years, at this stage it was hard to follow him and what he was doing. There was a huge amount of new music, but not a lot of it was available. I walked away for a few years, and only came back on board with Rainbow Children (that’s a long walk, I know) But now, I look back and think “What, I must have been crazy!” This was the most interesting part of the trip, and the music is some of the best he ever made. I must have been mad not to pay closer attention. Recordings from this era are some of my absolute favorites, and I wonder how I didn’t ‘get it’ earlier.
This recording is another birthday gig, June 7, 1994. The one-year birthday of The Artist formally known as Prince. Played at the Glam Slam club in Miami, and live simulcast to the Glam Slam in Minneapolis and L.A, it’s ambitious and funky. Prince looks to be having a great time, and the funk is hot. Hold on to your wigs, we’re going in!
8 June 1994, Glam Slam, Miami Beach (am)
The show opens with the roar of the guitar as Prince slays us with the opening riff of “Endorphinmachine.” A roar from the crowd, and a scream from Prince, and in a blaze of lights and lasers it's all on. Old Prince is dead, The Artist looks like he has a second lease on life and the energy of the music reflects this. The band and music are rowdy, and yet incredibly focused. Prince is playing with fire in his belly once more. With his elfin hairstyle and pale face, he tears it up right from the start. The song is lacking the annoying cowbell from the recorded version that followed later (I’m putting my line in the sand now about where I stand on the cowbell). The keyboard has a great whammy-loose sound to it and stands up well to the guitar.
How did I not love “Space” right from the start? “Space” played here is beautiful. I hear his vocals so well here, and it’s very soothing and inviting. Tommy Barbarella plays piano all over this one, and the song itself has a space about it. With Tommy wearing a big furry hat, the keyboard draped in the US flag, and Mayte dancing, the whole thing very much has a Parliament/funkadelic feel to it. Prince comes in with some stinging guitar near the end and closes off the song nicely. Even after it’s finished I find myself singing “space, space, space”
Prince takes the time to talk to the crowd, acknowledges that it is his birthday, and then lets them know that he is one year old, following his life changes of the last year. I thought he was going to say more about the whole drama, but he chooses to let his music speak, and they play “Interactive.” “Interactive” feels a little light and throw away, but is saved somewhat by Prince’s guitar solo. The song feels short, and I think the gig loses momentum.
“Hold on to your wigs” and we all know what’s next. “Days of Wild” was his theme song at this time, and for me captures exactly what he was about in the name change era – all funk and attitude, especially the attitude. The attitude is in his flow and the music. The bass sounds so heavy and squashy here, there is a lot about this I love. Like most, I love it when he picks up the bass guitar and works it for a bit. The song is long and drawn out as you might expect, and the band rumble on as Mayte presents Prince with a cake mid-song – with a single candle I might add. With plenty of Prince on the bass, and Mayte shaking it, the song is as much a visual experience as an aural one.
A brief pause and then “Now” introduces itself with Prince imploring the crowd “Jump up and down South Beach” I have a love/hate relationship with “Now,” but at the end of the day, it's a fun song. He sings it with a lot of character in his voice, and every verse comes to us with a fair dose of personality. One of the things I enjoy about Prince is not just the quality of his singing, but also the personality and character he injects into his singing. Technically he is very good, but also he has a lot of himself in it too. There is plenty of nice organ grooves to enjoy in this song, and the drummer also gets a moment and a shout-out. There is a moment of Prince humor when he asks the crowd “How many of you got babies, take care or they will turn out like me” There is also a couple of funny moments when Mayte stage dives into the crowd- not very ladylike at all!. There is some very fine squeaky guitar from Prince, seriously, and the song fades out with Prince and the crowd singing “Ain’t no party like a new power party” The song stops with “On the one, you in the house”
A nice beat and organ chords slowly bring us into the relaxed Mustang mix of “The Most Beautiful Girl In the World.” Yeah, it’s a favorite of mine. It has more music to it than the single that hit the charts. The single was all about the melody and Prince, whereas this version has a couple of layers that I enjoy too. There’s not a huge amount more, but I prefer it. It seems strange to me that this was his big hit when at the time it wasn’t representative of where he was musically. This live version takes its time, and there is a very long fade out. The main song finishes but the music continues with Prince singing and talking. It’s well worth a listen. He sings about taking his time, and the overall vibe is very sensual rather than sexual.
There is a pause in the music as Prince checks on the other Glam Slams in the simulcasts. It’s fine at the time, but it breaks the mood and flow for us watching at home. Plenty of live technical problems as they try to hook up to LA, a lot of “Can you hear me, can you hear me?” It was uncomfortable listening on CD, but a little better when I could see Nona Gaye on the DVD, if you know what I mean.
There is more pointless chitchat, and Prince tells Sonny to “play something, but I don’t want it to sound like a bass” There is some playing, and then Prince begins slowly jamming on the guitar. Then things take a bluesy turn and the band plays “The Ride.” Prince asks if it’s a blues crowd, and for the lights to be turned blue. Prince sings “if you like it fast, I can’t help ya, if you like it slow, I got days” As you might imagine it is very laid back before it gets hotter with a typical Prince guitar break that gets better with repeated listens. Take it from someone who knows! The song does indeed feel like days as the last few minutes are just the slow groove as Prince toys with the crowd and has them singing “Ooooooo, ooooooo” over and over.
As is common for this period, Prince talks of his battle with Warner brothers between songs and reminds the crowd that it’s all about the music. He doesn’t dwell on it too long here and moves on to talking about his time in the city.
Prince tells the crowd that the next song was written by Sonny, and it’s a slow mellow song, and then as he puts his bass playing to the fore they play “Get Wild.” The bass playing is solid during the verses, but it’s between that that Prince steps back and shows us what he’s got. He certainly looks like he is having a lot of fun, it’s a shame he doesn’t play bass more often in main shows. As you might expect there is plenty of time for Mayte to do her dancing, and for most of the song it seems like there is just Mayte, Prince, and Sonny having fun together. The casual chat and fun between them are very natural and are reflected in the nice relaxed groove of the song. I get the feeling that despite his troubles, Prince was extremely happy and comfortable about now.
The next song begins, but Prince says he’s got “more presents, I stop for more presents” The beat continues and Prince goes on to say “I got funk that’ll kill ya”, and I based on what we have heard so far, I fully believe it. “Acknowledge me” has a nice long funk intro and I enjoyed it, even more, when I watched the DVD and saw the dancers. Whoa!
If you asked me to name my favorite Prince songs, “Acknowledge me” would never be one that springs to mind, but listening to it here it hits all my sweet spots. Maybe because he makes it all sound so effortless I don’t rate it as highly as I should. But it is a good song, and this performance does it justice. Unfortunately, the song is a little ruined for me, when the breakdown comes and the MC encourages the crowd to sing “Happy Birthday.” It’s not the gesture I dislike, it’s her whiny voice and forced delivery. Thankfully after an awkward couple of minutes, Prince comes back on the mic and things instantly pick up. Sure, he’s rapping, but anything is better than the last minute. Despite criticism of his rapping ability, I like his little rap here. Then things slip into the Parliament-Funkadelic realm with a long distorted vocal ramble by Mr. Hayes.
The pace quickens again with “Race.” Sharing the mic with Mayte for the chorus it’s actually pretty good. Like all songs it quickly moves beyond the recorded version, we are familiar with and into a danceable groove and jam. I practically like it when Prince moves to the keyboards and with his head, shaking plays for a couple of minutes. Then with the briefest of “thanks, we out” the song ends. It feels short, but again clocks in at seven minutes.
There is another interlude with MCs wishing Prince happy birthday (or should I say the artist). It’s something I could do without, and thanks to modern technology I can easily make it vanish and move on to the next jam, which is just that, a jam. It sounded good on CD, with every band member getting an intro and a moment to play their thing, and on DVD was the bonus of seeing Mayte shaking her thing, something I missed on the CD! Again the chemistry of the band is very apparent, and they feel like a gang.
The pace changes again with the show closing with “Shhh.” It’s not a song I would choose to end a show with, but that in no way detracts from the song itself. It’s played smooth and sexy, and even the jarring line about “I’d rather do you after school like some homework” slips by me without too much bother. Prince serves a nice clean guitar break mid-song, but it’s his final guitar solo that gets pulses raised, the classic Prince wailing guitar. I think I prefer the earlier guitar break, but that’s just me being contrary. Hold that thought, I just watched it again, and I love the second guitar break just as much. The song finishes, and the show itself with Prince thanking the crowd and telling them they are always welcome “My house is your house”.
It’s very difficult to condense my thoughts about this one. This stage of his career is just extraordinary by any measure. The creativity, in not just his music, but every aspect of his life rivals, and indeed in some cases, exceeds anything he did in the Eighties. This gig is an excellent snapshot of that, and although I didn’t truly appreciate it at the time, I certainly do now. I am reluctant to call anything essential in the Prince canon, but to better understand what he is all about, this is a must-listen.
As the man himself might say -Peace and be wild
.png)
No comments:
Post a Comment