Hollywood 23 February 2009 (am)

 This week I am listening to another release that recently came to light, an aftershow played after the Oscars in 2009. I am unsure about this release, looking at the band and the setlist it all seems bland. The band is a thin version of the NPG, with only Prince on guitar and Morris Hayes holding the keyboards, the Dunham backline combination, and Liv and Shelby on vocals. The band lacks firepower, at least on paper, and the setlist reads like a cross between a hits package and the usual aftershow suspects. However, it is new to my ears, so I appreciate that aspect of it. And of course, I love bootlegs, so I am itching to give this one a listen. 

23rd February (am) 2009,  Avalon, Hollywood California 

It sounds like a party right from the go, there is the hum and hubbub of a party before the opening strains of “Purple Rain” cut right through. It’s a Trojan horse of a beginning as Frederic Yonnet as his harmonica is heard and we cut into a very interesting take of “Ol’ School Company.” It gets the full aftershow treatment, and there is plenty of time for Frederic to play over the extended intro. Normally I wouldn’t give much time to this song, this one has me sitting up and taking notice as Prince claims the song and the stage. There are times when I find the harmonica piercing, Prince makes these feelings disappear with a ‘take no prisoners’ vocal performance. The challenge is thrown down from the start, and I am beginning to think I was too quick to judge a book by its cover (by the way, the cover is very cool). Shelby joins the fray as the song climaxes and we have a couple of lines from other songs tossed in for good measure. 

“Frankenstein” has Prince warming up his guitar licks, before things kick off properly with a sharp cover of The Cars – “Let's Go.” I do like Prince’s cover of this song, it harkens back to his sound in the early Eighties, especially with the synth and clean guitar sound. I am surprised by how clean and fresh it sounds, and I am impressed that Prince chose to cover it for a few years. 

We stay on this nostalgic trip as Prince looks back with another cover, this time “Crimson And Clover.” I find it reminds me of my Father, he used to play the original on the record player when I was a child, but it never sounded as guitar-heavy as what Prince delivers up. Don’t be fooled by the soft-sounding intro, when Prince hits the chorus and cranks the guitar it turns into another beast altogether. He does of course do his “Wild Thing” cover at the chorus and he does a fine job of channeling both the Animals and Hendrix. The guitar solo for the last couple of minutes is however all his, and it is undeniably the sound of Prince doing what he does best. 

 

As good as “7” is, the recording doesn’t do it justice, and I get the feeling that something is missing. Prince's vocals are good, it’s the rest of the band that seems to be lacking, and I can’t quite pinpoint if it’s the band, the mix, or the recording. That said, I do enjoy hearing it, as it is a song I would rarely listen to otherwise. 

The segue into “Come Together” is predictable, and the recording is less than perfect for the first minute. On the positive side, we do have more harmonica, and the band gets a chance to get loose and jam. It plods for a while, but things look up as Prince calls for his guitar to be turned up on stage and we hear some nice rhythm work from him. Asides from that I find it overly long, although I can see it has its place as the crowd sing and enjoy the party. We are rewarded with some guitar work from Prince that threatens to burst out but stays neatly in its box. 

I was beginning to drift, “Shhh” has me well and truly back in the moment. It does miss the powerhouse drumming of Michael B, but Prince’s vocals remove any other negative thoughts from my mind. Prince owns every aspect of this song, when it’s not his vocals commanding my attention it is his exquisite guitar playing. He does call for the drums, but they are nowhere near as powerful as his guitar playing. The band is good, but it’s not one of his great bands, and that becomes very apparent through this song where Prince is on another level to everyone else on the stage. 

His guitar sound holds center stage as we build into the next song. First a guitar groove into Mother’s Finest “Baby Love.” Mother’s Finest is a fantastic band that doesn’t get nearly as much credit as they deserve, and it’s great that Prince pays respect to them with a cover of this song. It’s fierce but criminally short as he slows things down into “Brown Skin.” 

  

“Brown Skin” is, as always, Shelby’s moment to shine. She seizes the opportunity and does a fine job, even though Frederic almost upstages her with a harmonica solo, and I never thought I would be writing about a harmonica solo, but there you go. 

And oddly enough it’s the harmonica that leads the band into “Stratus” before inevitably Prince takes control with his guitar. The song swirls and shakes without ever hitting great heights. Prince's guitar playing is nice, although that’s not a very strong word, and Frederic’s harmonica is interesting, if not somewhat grating by the end of the song. Of interest to me are the keyboard break and a drum solo that plays out more on the side of interesting than powerful, and all the better for it. 

Things stay interesting for us with a cover of “Miss You.” I do always like Prince's vocals on this song, and having Frederic on harmonica adds another layer to the song. It’s not as funky as perhaps I like, but I find it irresistible. Asides from Prince's vocals it’s his funky guitar playing that I am drawn to, and the last minute is a treat as he plays. 

Normally dismissive of “Cream,” tonight it gets a pass from me. It’s shorter, and it seems to have an extra push to it. The band is sounding lighter on this song and yet gives it a stronger sound. It’s at this stage that there is a real fun sound to it, and the mood in the music is much brighter. 

Back with another Stones cover, Prince and the band lurch into the herky-jerky groove of “Honky Tonk Woman.” Shelby’s vocals feel like a good fit for this song, as do Prince's guitar and the ever-present harmonica. The spirit of the Stones is definitely in the music and the band seems to capture the swagger and strut well. 

I have always enjoyed “When Will We B Paid,” and tonight is no different with another fine performance. Prince dials it back for this performance, with only his guitar, Liv’s vocals, and the harmonica. It does the song justice, and the lyrics are all the more powerful in this setting. 

I don’t recall ever hearing Prince cover “The Middle” before, and hearing it now has me scrambling for more information. I am of course familiar with the original, I just never expected to hear Prince covering it, and after the last few songs, it comes out of the left field. You got to love Prince and his setlists, you never know what might come next. As for the song itself, well it sounds fresh and bright and I happily sing along as Prince and the band belt it out. There is an opportunity for Prince to solo near the end of the song, and he dishes up a short and sweet guitar break. 

Again we get another stylist jump as the band strikes up “The Bird.” The opening synth riff is irrepressible and when the main groove hits I am well and truly sold on it. As you might expect Prince does a mighty Morris day, and the vocals are sparkling throughout. You can hear the band warm to their work here, and over the next three songs, Prince reclaims compositions that he gave to others in the 1980s. The sound levels are uneven through “The Bird,” but despite that, I can hear an uplifting performance. 

 

Naturally enough “The Bird” turns into “Jungle Love,” a song that sounds like it is filling the dance floor. I had been hard on the band earlier, they seem a lot more on top of this music and the performance is lively. The song sounds classic 80s with all the synth happening in the right places. It follows the original blueprint until midsong when there is a breakdown and some audience participation. Prince does take a minute before he plays his guitar break, a break that should be a highlight but instead sounds a little quiet in the mix, or perhaps I need new speakers. 

Prince telegraphs “The Glamorous Life” long before he sings it. He teases with the title for a minute before we get the familiar riff. I like the performance, though if I am honest with myself it’s not a patch on the original. That said, there is a charm to it, and it does only go for a couple of minutes before we spin into the next song. 

“Play That Funky Music” has the crowd whooping, but when the singing begins it’s a let-down. I am not sure who is initially singing, it sounds like some people out of the crowd. Prince saves the day with a guitar solo that has a lot more focus than anything else that is heard in the song. 

The next song is rather appropriately “Hollywood Swinging.” It doesn’t grab me and shake me by the collar, and I don’t know if I’m losing enthusiasm or the band is. The song warms up later in the piece and the harmonica gives it a warmer feeling. Asides from that I can take it or leave it. 

There is a false ending to the show, it sounds as if it is finishing up, only to return with the classic “I Feel For You.” The harmonica plays the lead line, and that’s a cool sound. The rest of the band also jump on board, and having it sung by the girls is a nice touch. I am enjoying it until the Shelby “put your hands up”. I was loving her until then. She gets away with it though, because at this point the band segues into “Controversy.” 

“Controversy” is the final song of the evening, and it leaves me with a good taste in my mouth. Prince's vocals are playful, yet funky. He does plenty of squawks and yells, and especially good is his “people call me rude” talk in the middle. Normally I am not for the jump-up and down calls, this time it doesn’t seem as grating and for a few minutes the cynical, jaded me takes a backseat and I enjoy it for what it is. This is a party, and this is the song to get them moving. As the show finished I feel it has gone by very fast, and it didn’t feel like two hours at all. 

My first impressions of it being bland never came to fruition. Sure, it’s not the strongest of his bands, but what they did, they did well. The recording was uneven, I can’t deny, and there were moments when I wasn’t as fully engaged as I might otherwise be. The good moments were good, and there was enough of them to make a worthwhile listen. This one will never be on a top 10 list, and maybe not even a top 100, but it is a decent recording of a decent show. It’s good enough for the car, but I don’t think I will be playing it for more than a few days.