Concert Review

Reviewed by Lindsay Marshall (Toronto)

It may be 2011, but Prince is still partying like it’s 1999.

At the second of two shows at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto on November 26, Prince and his band, The New Power Generation, entertained a crowd of over 13,000 with just about every hit you could name, on the first Canadian stop of their Welcome 2 Canada Tour.

Opening with “Gold,” amidst a shower of sparkly confetti and smoke, Prince was in fine form, rocking a pair of gold glitter pants, and his ubiquitous heels (at only 5’2”, heels seem to be his uniform). The NPG, as they are known, comprised almost entirely of females, then segued seamlessly into “Purple Rain,” and another wash of confetti, this time, obviously, purple.

From there, Prince sang hit after hit, exhausting every single he could think of from his catalogue. “When was the last time you saw a show with a live singer?” he asked, to huge cheers from the audience. “When was the last time you saw a show with a live drummer? When was the last time you saw a singer with 145 hits?”

While that last statement may be a bit of a stretch, Prince proved he has the chops to back it up, as he performed such favourites as “Let’s Go Crazy,” “1999,” and “Nothing Compares To You” with backup singer Shelby J, together bringing new life to the break-up song made famous by Sinead O’Connor, but written by Prince.

He also proved that despite the plethora of hits he has to ever-changing name, Prince still enjoys covering other artists; Sly & the Family Stone’s “Everyday People,” Wild Cherry’s “Play That Funky Music,” and Tommy James and the Shondells’s “Crimson and Clover,” among others, even including a short sample of Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough.”

For his first encore, Prince brought out his 1982 hit, “Controversy,” playing an extra-long version, that stretched into a cover of KC and the Sunshine Band’s “Get Down Tonight.” “That’s so funky, it hurts!” he crowed, going on to tell everyone, “If you got a cell phone, pull it out, call somebody, and tell them about the NPG party in Toronto!”

Prince seemed to be extremely enamoured with the name of his former-home, asking audience members to chant “Toronto” continuously, so it could be heard “all the way in the parking lot.”

It was definitely a party, with his band joining him all over the stage (shaped like his symbol, in the centre of the arena, giving the entire audience an excellent view), and audience members being brought on stage twice during the show, to dance to Prince’s funky beats.

His second encore opened with a slow-jam version of “Little Red Corvette,” complete with Prince grooving on top of his piano, and hits like “Raspberry Beret,” and “Cream.” The dance-party that Prince and the NPG brought seemed never-ending, with another extended version of “Cool.” Prince strolled all over the stage, asking, “Toronto, are you cool?” while his backup singers spelled it out for everyone repeatedly (just in case you forgot).

“You better call the babysitter; I got too many hits,” Prince announced during his third encore, while singing a medley of hits, including “When Doves Cry,” “Sign O’ the Times,” and “I Would Die 4 U,” always accompanied with resounding glee by the audience. Finally closing the show with his fourth (fourth!) encore, Prince ended with his Grammy-award winning hit “Kiss,” dancing with a lithe energy that proved this 53-year-old still has the voice and the moves of someone half his age.

Despite the fun everyone seemed to have, some fans were still miffed that Prince didn’t perform for the same record three hours and 15 minutes that he did the previous night. But at two and a half hours, and with four encores, Prince and The New Power Generation proved that they still know how to rock, and their fans won’t forget that anytime soon.

Written by :

Lindsay Marshall