Publication: Guardian [US]
Date: March 7, 1995
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More jams, less tunes as the former Prince returns expensively to Wembley Slave to the rhythm. Caroline Sullivan A POP Big costing £27.50? Well Prince has an endorphin machine to pay for. Said £250,000 contraption is a gold-varnished stage set shaped to "represent" male and female genitalia. The right half, which has a working lift in it, is recognisably male but as for the other side . . . well, let's just say that a man of Prince's experience should have a better idea of what it looks like.

The diminutive one is using this tour to introduce fans to The Gold Experience, the unreleased new album that has caused a rift between Prince and Warner Bros. In the mode of his last two LPs Symbol and Come, it's an earthy urban-funk record with Prince's slick guitar-playing at its heart. From what one could gather from hearing it on Friday, it's full of grooves rather than songs.

The idiosyncratic artist decided to play the new record in its entirety plus two 1994 hits, The Most Beautiful Girl In The World and Letitgo. That was it. No Purple Rain or Kiss. He ignored his whole back catalogue to play songs no one knew. Perhaps he no longer feels an affinity for material from before he changed his name to two years ago, but such preciousness is inexcus able at £27.50 a shot.

To add boredom to injury, he started an hour after the advertised time. Tricked out in simple gold tunic and trousers, with ubiquitous dancing sidekick Mayte nudeish in a gold leotard, Prince looked young and eager. Wielding a Symbol-shaped guitar, he led his New Power Generation band into a brazen funker. A couple of minutes later, one of the keyboardists and his portable instrument were suddenly hoisted aloft and flown above the stage, still playing. Uh, pardon? Meanwhile, Mayte interpreted the music by vibrating her rump.

So far, so (reasonably) good. The music was crisp and club-friendly Prince's singing ribald and souly. A fluid guitarist, he turned out chugging riffs that dominated the songs. You felt, rather than heard, bassist Sonny T (who sat on a sofa in the female side of the endorphin machine) and drummer Michael B. At one point, they did a few bars of James Brown's Sex Machine, but this wasn't old-school, sweatyfunk, it was the Polished, hard-nosed variety of Sly Stone or, more contemporarily R Kelly. If those blaxploitation classics, Superfly or Shaft, are ever remade, this would be the perfect soundtrack.

If The Gold Experience is ever released, check out, Pussy ????? Power for an example of same. However, Prince's idea of a good night out is doing instrumental jams that go on until the band forgets what it's playing. Inflicted on familiar material, this sort of hyper-musianship is bad enough, upon stuff you've only just heard for the first time,it's wretchedly dull. Going off on tangents during 10 minute jams, this is the side of Prince that plays a two hour concert then goes to a nightclub and happily plays for another two. Has he never heard the old showbiz adage "Leave em wanting more"? Prince may be sporting the word "Slave" on his right cheek these days but how many slaves get to indulge themselves as he does? Good performer, yes, slave, hardly.