"How was the Prince live album? Worried it wouldn't match my memory and/or just make me miss seeing him in concert again."
That is a comment left by our friend Michael Giltz over on the Now Playing blog. On Sunday, I listened to almost all of the just released live set from Prince & The Revolution, recorded on the legendary "Purple Rain" tour of 1984-1985 and the only reason I did was because of two others comments posted by friends on Instagram.
The first:
"We saw this tour, Thanksgiving night, 1984. It was amazing. I’ve seen hundreds if not thousands of live shows and this is one of the best. The guitar playing is sublime and then you remember, he was dancing and doing splits while he was tearing it up on the fretboard."
The other:
"The more I listen to this behemoth the more convinced I am that The Revolution are the Greatest American Rock and Roll band of all time. Sure, The E Street Band has had the greatest career, but these guys for their 6 or 7 years were better than all comers as a band - better than the Allmans (this album is so much better than Fillmore East... It's not even a competition) better than The Dead, the Eagles, the Ramones, the Velvets (yes! I did!) The Family Stone, the Stooges, even the JB's! I mean name a better American band than the Revolution. The proof is right here on triple vinyl. You won't name one, because you can't."
Whoa! Actually, I won't name one because I'm scared!
But let me start with why I hadn't planned on listening to this set. It's not because I don't love Prince. I do. I saw this tour at the Nassau Coliseum and my memory of that night is a good one. But unlike the rest of the Universe, I don't love "Purple Rain." There are five Prince records I love more. And though "Purple Rain" as a whole knocked me out when it was released, I don't ever want to hear "Lets' Go Crazy" or the title song ever again. Just the words "Dearly Beloved" make me want to toss a shoe at the turntable.
That being said, how could I not listen after those comments? As a matter of fact, I went ahead and purchased the LP set. The vinyl freak in me was thrilled to see the concert had been remixed and remastered by Bernie Grundman.
To be frank, I think this set is a mess.
Let's begin with the performance.
I have seen Prince a dozen times, the first being The Ritz in 1981 or 1982. I have never been a fan of Prince's setlists. The relentless snippets of songs, audience participation, and the "gimme one time, two times, three times" nerve-shredding James Brown band instruction, is not my cup of tea. Just play a damn song through. When you are there, it is admittedly, a whole other ballgame. You can't help but play along. But it makes for a choppy and unpleasant home listening experience.
After a promising opening run of songs, things take a turn down a road of speed bumps. "Yankee Doodle," "Do, Me Baby," "Irresistible Bitch," "Possessed," "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore," "Let's Pretend We're Married," and "International Lover" seems like a killer stretch of material, but this stretch never takes off. That is almost 30 straight minutes of incomplete songs, improv, and stops and starts. It's like being in traffic and moving a few 100 feet at 15 MPH then stopping, then crawling again at 15 MPH. Without the in-person theatrics, it takes forever to get where you are going.
I still need to listen Sides E & F, which feature "I Would Die 4 U," "Baby I'm A Star," and a side long, almost 20 minute "Purrple Rain." I guess there is the possibility that those last 35 minutes will save the set, but at press time, I have buyer's remorse.
As for the audio, it sounds compressed and sludgy, as if it was mastered from a VHS tape. Not what I expected from a Grundman remaster. But, your ears may vary.
As for The Revolution being the "greatest American rock and roll band of all time," I'll need you guys to chime in with yays or nays. They are pretty damn great, I'll say that. But that short lifespan just isn't enough to convince me.
For the record, I think The Allmans' Live At The Fillmore East is a much better live album.
15 comments:
I don't love "Purple Rain" either. I was already a fan, and it felt like a sellout.
I haven't gotten the Prince live LP yet, but I'm a Prince mega-fan so I will. I love Purple Rain... and the tour around it.
But I laughed out loud at your objections, which I mostly share despite being a big fan. All the stage direction Prince constantly gives - much more so later on than in this time period, actually - are horrible. They just about kill it. Same with the half-songs. Man!
But - when he and the band are ON, they are really on. And I think the songs are very well-written. So I'm in.
That said - my enthusiasm is now a bit tempered for this one!! :)
"That said - my enthusiasm is now a bit tempered for this one!! :)"
Well, I'm nothing if not a pre-ruiner.
Not being a big Prince fan, I can't comment on the music but loved your review.
Randy
P.S. I can't ever remember being tempted to throw a shoe at my turntable while listening to something.
This is the show released during Covid right? I remember enjoying that immensely (because, hey, what else was there to do?) on my TV with the sound cranked. But I also remember thinking that just *listening* to the show wouldn't have been as good without the visuals.)
Ha ha - you've certainly earned your stripes in reviewing music. :) And I may end up agreeing with you. I'm also leery about the sound quality, which you touche on. That's why, when I see this posted on IG, I always comment, "How does it SOUND to you?" Most folks hadn't opened it yet when they posted it...
all Prince concerts have the give and take with the audience, so I expected that. That band, Wendy & Lisa, the Dr, Dez and Bobby Z, had a look, moves and sound I hadn't heard before, so it's classic to me. my fave Prince concert is the Montreux big band (Switzerland Show 2 on youtube). there's also a dry run of the Sign O the Times concert on youtube that's fascinating for its differences to the movie version.
To the comment right above by Anonymous - so funny you point out Montreux 2013 in particular, out of all his shows... I have watched and listened to (on a boot) the HELL outta that show thru the years.
In fact, one song from it might be about my most-played Prince live song ever, the version of "The Love We Make."
For any who haven't checked it out, I hope I haven't overhyped it, but it's great.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uICq3ASkO9Y
Man, I get jazzed every time I hear "Dearly Beloved...." It's gonna be fun, I know! And while I'm not ALWAYS in the mood for an extended version of "Purple Rain," i do think it's great. (I think his best album is Parade. After that, Sing O The Times and Purple Rain have amazing peaks with a few minor flaws.) I saw Prince at the tail end of Purple Rain -- he was still touring and Around The World In A Day had just come out. The man did not sleep! It was a terrific show and he was very focused on entertaining the crowd. It was years later when I would see some annoying shows with endless snippets of songs and all the annoying stuff you describe. Then it got worse when he was over the hits and just played drawn out jams. And then once in a while he was focused and great again in concert. The Revolution was a great band and a real collaborator. Prob never had a better. Maybe someone would say at their peak they saw no one better? I still wish I could have seen Talking Heads circa Stop Making Sense tour. Springsteen w the Seeger Sessions Band is my favorite Bruce concert. And Richard Thompson alone on stage with acoustic and electric guitars can't be beat! The Sign of the Times movie concert -- sans the silly interludes -- is pretty amazing. So I won't rush to hear this particular show. Thx for biting the bullet and diving in.
Rock of Ages. The Band
Canadian.
Wait a minute...Dez isn't on this (is he?) and by far I like his time with the band much better than the time with Wendy
Love Prince, love Purple Rain but like you I love a number of his albums better. I’m wary of anything his estate puts out because I haven’t liked anything that they’ve put out after his death. Prince was great in concert but he could be a bit self-indulgent so I did not jump on this one fir the reasons you stated for not liking it. Just as I suspected. I’m sure there’s a killer set out there looking for the light of day but I don’t think his estate is concerned about quality but rather just how much $ they can make.
First: I'm a geezer.
Second: Jerry Lee Lewis Live At The Star Club is considered to be one of the hottest live albums ever made. (JB, Live At The Apollo IS THAT ALBUM.) That said, to listen to Jerry Lee drag The Nashville Teens behind him is an absolute treat. Great album? Eh, maybe. Great performance by JLL. Oh no, beyond that.
Dear Geezer,
JLL-Star Club is one of the Top 5 Live albums of all time!
Completely off the rails.
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