| Identifier | 7208865 |
| Created At | Tue May 23 2023 23:54:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) |
| Media Type | cdr |
| Media Count | 6 |
| Show Rating | A- |
| Trades Allowed |
Performance
| Prince 1984-01-13 Purple Rush 1, Minneapolis, MN | |
|---|---|
| Set 1 | PURPLE RAIN TOUR - ARENA, LONG BEACH
10th MARCH 1985 INTRO LET'S GO CRAZY DELIRIOUS 1999 LITTLE RED CORVETTE TAKE ME WITH U YANKEE DOODLE DANDY PRINCE SPEAKS DO ME, BABY IRRESISTIBLE BITCH HOW COME U DON'T CALL ME ANYMORE LET'S PRETEND WE'RE MARRIED INTERNATIONAL LOVER GOD COMPUTER BLUE DARLING NIKKI SHEILA E OPENING ACT OLIVER'S HOUSE REHEARSAL FOR JUNE 7th FIRST AVENUE CONCERT MAY / JUNE 1984 FREE EROTIC CITY SOMETHING IN THE WATER (DOES NOT COMPUTE) WHEN DOVES CRY IRRESISTIBLE BITCH GOTTA SHAKE THIS FEELING NOON RENDEZVOUS |
| Set 2 | REHEARSAL
1984 BILLY - STRANGE RELATIONSHIP REHEARSAL SUMMER 1984 FELINE PURPLE RAIN TOUR REHEARSAL OCTOBER 1984 LETS GO CRAZY DELIRIOUS 1999 LITTLE RED CORVETTE FREE FATHER'S SONG GOD AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL COMPUTER BLUE DARLING NIKKI WHEN DOVES CRY - THE BEAUTIFUL ONES WHEN DOVES CRY |
| Set 3 | REHEARSAL
SUMMER 1983 LET'S GO CRAZY G-SPOT I WOULD DIE 4 U CRUISIN' DOWN THE HIGHWAY - CAN'T STOP THIS FEELING I GOT ELECTRIC INTERCOURSE (TAKE #1) ELECTRIC INTERCOURSE (TAKE #2) PURPLE RAIN THE BIRD I WOULD DIE 4 U (STUDIO) PURPLE RAIN TOUR REHEARSAL NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 1984 ANOTHER LONELY CHRISTMAS (INSTRUMENTAL TRY OUT) ANOTHER LONELY CHRISTMAS (KEYBOARDS - BASSLINE) WHEN THE SAINTS GO MARCHING IN (VOCAL REHEARSAL) ANOTHER LONELY CHRISTMAS (KEYBOARDS - BASSLINE - GUITAR) ANOTHER LONELY CHRISTMAS (INSTRUMENTS - VOCALS) LET'S GO CRAZY (INSTRUMENTAL TRY OUT #1) INSTRUMENTAL JAM LET'S GO CRAZY (INSTRUMENTAL TRY OUT #2) ANOTHER LONELY CHRISTMAS (STUDIO 7") ANOTHER LONELY CHRISTMAS (STUDIO 12") |
| Comment | Disc 1 concentrates on the soundboard recording from the Long Beach Purple Rain concert.
This is one of 4 soundboards circulating from the tour, but unfortunately is incomplete and ends immediately after 'Darling Nikki'. The quality of the recording is stunning clear with barely a whisper from the audience heard for the majority of the show. Whilst the performance is impressive the set-list is rather typical of many Purple Rain concerts , and in this respect it's slightly disappointing. The most interesting aspect of having this soundboard is that things which are simply not heard on other recordings are audible on here. There is a keyboard line during '1999' which I'd certainly never picked up on before hearing this soundboard, and hilariously Bobby Z's drum machine appears to malfunction during 'Computer Blue' which leads it to play erratically at double speed. The clarity of this Long Beach soundboard really cannot be praised highly enough, and is certainly one of the highlights of this set and a fantastic way to kick off this particular volume. Disc 2 features a rehearsal in preparation for Prince's 7th June 1984 First Avenue birthday concert. Many of the songs performed are extended in to lengthy mainly instrumental jams including an excellent 14 minute version of 'Something In The Water' which is basically 10 minutes of Prince performing some extraordinary guitar work over the band. Props should also be given for a very passionate performance of 'When Doves Cry' - considering this is "merely" a rehearsal Prince performs with as much energy as if it were in front of an audience. The quality of the recording is slightly hissy with some surface noise audible during a few of the tracks, however it's still an impressive soundboard and certainly a major improvement over the previously circulating version of this rehearsal. Disc 3 concentrates on two different rehearsals from 1984. The first is one of the lengthiest loose jams in circulation and revolves around the seemingly improvised lyrics of "Billy, where you get those glasses" in reference to Billy Spark's funky white rims. The rehearsal lasts for 47 minutes yet 'Billy's Sunglasses' is itself 40 minutes long, and whilst I can perfectly understand it not appealing to the majority of listeners due to it's repetitive nature, there are some inspired guitar solo's played throughout. The remainder of the rehearsal consists of a quick instrumental run through of 'Strange Relationship' with Prince calling out the key changes to the band. The 2nd rehearsal on Disc 3 is far less entertaining and centres around The Family track 'Feline'. The quality on Disc 3 again is impressive, however it's not without it's problems and there are a small number of glitches during 'Billy's Sunglasses'. Disc 4 is a run-through of the first half of a typical Purple Rain concert from the first leg of the tour. Obviously in preparation for the upcoming Detroit shows Prince mentions "Detroit" during the rehearsal. It's certainly my personal favourite disc of this volume, and begins with Prince proclaiming, "...there's something else - yo' mama. A sexy woman with big legs, long hair, greasy lips - all that" It's a great frantic rehearsal with Prince on top form and a fair amount of interaction with the band throughout. There are some sound problems during a few tracks (the opening 'Let's Go Crazy' is most notable), but nothing particularly serious. There are some great moments during 'God' where the band are having problems getting their parts to Prince's satisfaction which leads him to chastise them repeatedly (including the classic "Put the motherfucking magazine down and play your part!"). Disc 5 contains a rehearsal allegedly dating from summer 1983 and again contains some nice material including a rare live version of 'G-Spot' and the instrumental jam 'Cruisin' Down The Highway'. It's also notable for the inclusion of 2 takes of the excellent 'Electric Intercourse' along with a stunning 'Purple Rain' which is performed with the added verse and lyrics and is much softer and piano-led than the released version (indicating this is an early rehearsal). The rehearsal is also heavily incomplete, however it has since been released in more complete form on 'Purple Rush Volume 2'. The extended version of 'I Would Die 4 U' has been used to fill a gap at the end of Disc 5, however it has been edited down from the original 30m 50seconds to 26m 18seconds - why they decided to fucked up and edit a perfectly decent outtake just to fit it on the disc is slightly annoying. The final disc contains a rehearsal from winter 1984 in which the main focus is on 'Another Lonely Christmas'. A few other tracks from the Purple Rain tour are also rehearsed including the instrumental "Sleazy" portion usually added to 'Baby I'm A Star'. Prince is constantly laughing and joking with the band during the rehearsal and it is fascinating. This is rather similar to the "Billy" rehearsal on Disc 3, and again it's completely understandable that people may find it repetitive - fascinating and interesting, but alas also slightly monotonous. Disc 6 closes out with both the edited and extended versions of 'Another Lonely Christmas' which whilst being of high quality have been sourced from vinyl and there is the occasional click/pop. The big disappointment of Disc 6 is that it is a straight copy of the early 90's Uptown Productions release 'Christmas In Uptown'. There has been no improvement on the sound quality, no effort has been made to do any work on small audio glitches, and the running length of the disc is exactly the same down to the last second - a real pity Sabotage have simply copied someone else's product and not credited them for doing so. That aside, this is still a stunning first volume of the "Purple Rush" series and includes many insights in to Prince's live performance and rehearsals during his commercial peak. The accompanying artwork and notes rely a little too heavily on Uptown for my liking, and I'm not 100% sure if they have checked their facts correctly. That small complaint aside, this 6cd release is worthy of it's status as one of the best bootleg releases - ever. |