“The heavens themselves
blaze forth the death of princes” or as the case be, Prince. The
world mourns the passing of music's second most enigmatic celebrity
(surpassed only by Jacko) He was totally fucking cool and bad
ass....an exaggerated foppish mini-pimp decked out in puffy sleeves
and every shade of purple imaginable. I gotta say though, I was never
a huge fan. As for his status as musical genius, lest we forget, the
Love Symbol formerly known as Prince, followed up “Purple Rain”
(a trite, quasi-biographical musical, chock full-o- drama for yo'
mama and bad acting) with the much maligned “Under the Cherry Moon”
(a self indulgent, pretentious clunker, filmed in black &
white, no less)
Prince Rogers Nelson was a
revolutionary figure in music (less so in film) and his first five
albums alone would have secured him a place in the annals of American
music. “Purple Rain” however was what ultimately transformed
Prince from a cult favorite into an unstoppable musical force.
Burning him deep onto the psyche of music lovers worldwide. “Purple
Rain” struck a nerve but after “Under the Cherry Moon” he was
dishing out mediocrity as an entrée. Not that Prince wasn't
on his game. He wrote chart busters for himself and others, boosting
the careers of a handful of artists. (Nothing Compares 2 U by Sinéad
O'Connor being the most memorable)
Prince's performance at Super Bowl XLI
in 2007 was electrifying. (the bar for halftime entertainment having
been set quite low..... Up With People, Tops in Blue, Aerosmith, the
Janet Jackson / Justin Timberlake wardrobe malfunction) Opening with
a thunderous refrain from Queen's “We Will Rock You” under storm
clouds, then seguing into a muscular arena rock take on “Let's Go
Crazy” The crowd rushed the love symbol stage platform in a
scripted frenzy. Prince effortlessly worked in covers of Proud Mary,
All Along the Watch Tower and The Foo Fighters' Best of You before
closing with a rousing version of Purple Rain complete with audience
sing-a-long. Shine on you crazy diamond.
It's rumored that he left enough
recorded music behind to release an album per year through the foreseeable future. Here's hoping that's nothing more than wishful
thinking. Prince released at least 39 albums while alive, few of
those albums are still compelling. While prolific, Prince Rogers was
also the king of indulgent doodling. I'd hasten to bet that hundreds
of hours spent hunkered down at Paisley Park (an unyielding big box
monolith jotting out of the prairie in Chanhassen, MN.) didn't
necessarily result in a treasure trove of killer tunes. The Prince is
dead and the lesson we should all come away with is simply this;
Prayer has few if any medicinal properties. If you're deathly ill...
go see a doctor.
