MUSIC REVIEW
Prince sizzles for lucky few who attended

By Chad Pata
Advertiser Music Critic

The most underpromoted rock show in years proved to be the best show this millennium as Prince set the night on fire at the Blaisdell Arena yesterday.

Prince

Opening with the keyboard tones of "Let's Go Crazy," he floated out on stage in an all-white ensemble resembling the robes of Vietnamese monks. The resemblance stopped there as the band kicked in and washed over the crowd like a surprise set at Sandy Beach from which the fans never recovered.

The rest of the show they spent screaming and looking around at one another, not believing their eyes. His horn section could break out as their own jazz trio and the drummer, well, he was something to behold.

Encased in glass as if he were a lion at the zoo, he attacked his kit with an accuracy and ferocity not seen since Dave Grohl was last in town. Prince never introduced him but he wore a Frosty the Snowman hat. When he put it on his head, the kids began to dance around.

Not to overlook the man himself: Even if you don't like his music, you would have to love his show. He flits about the stage with such ease, he appears to be attached to wires a la "The Matrix."

His guitar solos rivaled anything seen since Eddie Van Halen was here, but they appeared effortless. Instead of a sweat-stained grimace, hair in the eyes, he'd just smile seductively at the girls in the front row, dry as a bone and exhibiting no more effort than he would turning out the light.

During "Break It On Down" he commanded everyone to clap, common practice at rock shows. But instead of obliging him, we all realized our hands were clapping of their own accord. Such is his power to take over an auditorium.

He hasn't had a hit song in 15 years, but all these old favorites felt as fresh as rain. At one point the band began with the opening chords of "When Doves Cry," then morphed into "Kiss" as if it had always been that way.

Midway through the set, he told them that he was renaming Honolulu to the more funk-appropriate "Honolula" and to pronounce it "like you have a piece of chicken in your mouth."

He followed this with a funk jam session with each member being highlighted and showing just how far funk has come.

Starting with George Clinton and Sly and the Family Stone, it was a greasy, underground, ultimately danceable music. Prince has since distilled it to a pure jazz sound with rock 'n' roll energy. Listening to it, you have to smile.

He slowed it down toward the end, playing the love ballad "Beautiful Ones," singing his heart out as he writhed on top of the monitors, sending the females into a tizzy. Also his version of "Nothing Compares to U" made you wonder why he ever let Sinead O'Connor have it in the first place.

He finished the show on a high note with classics like "Sign O' the Times," a song about problems in the inner city. His microphone was shaped like a gun and he would point it at the crowd between verses. Not in a threatening gangsta way, but as a way of bringing the crowd into the show, letting them know he knew they were there.

That may be the biggest difference between Prince and the young R&B acts we see today. The music is about the people, and the lucky group that attended last night got a glimpse of how great rock 'n' roll can be.

Reach Chad Pata at chadpata@mac.com.