Publication: Mr Showbiz [Internet]
Date: January 12-18, 1997
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Title: Music: New Releases Section
Reviewed By: Staff

DETROIT, January 13--The marquee outside the State Theatre didn't read "Prince" or "The Artist Formerly Known as Prince," nor was it emblazoned with the now-infamous glyph. Its message was simple: "Emancipation Celebration." Over the course of his nearly two-hour show Monday night, Prince preened and strutted giddily, like a man with a new life to live and no time to waste in getting on with it. It was less a concert than a party anyway, another chapter in Prince's continuing celebration of what he considers artistic emancipation from his old record label (Warner Bros.) and the beginning of the next phase of his career. And while the triple-album Emancipation continues to slide down the charts, Prince's dedicated fan base was eager to join the celebration; three thousand tickets for the State Theatre show were snapped up in less than two minutes (Anita Baker got in; hoops star Grant Hill didn't).

The Detroit show was part of the three-week "Love 4 One Another" tour, which is raising funds for his children's charity fund. In accordance with the theme of liberation, Prince presented a fluid, free-flowing performance in which one song bled into the next, with most played as brief teases that set up lengthy, improvisational passages. He offered truncated versions of "Purple Rain" and "The Cross," and dished up snippets of "17 Days," "Take Me With You," and "Raspberry Beret." He also revisited his familiar themes of religious deliverance ("The Cross" and his reworked treatment of Joan Osborne's "One of Us") and sexual salvation ("Do Me Baby," "Sexy MF"), while the night's highlights were smoldering renditions of "If I Was Your Girlfriend" and "How Come You Don't Call Me Anymore."

Surprisingly, while he touched on his new triple-CD, playing "Jam of the Year," "Face Down," and "Somebody's Somebody," songs from Emancipation hardly dominated the show. It seemed Prince was simply enjoying himself without an agenda, playing just what he felt like and doing exactly what he wanted onstage. This was apparent in his interaction with the audience, which was much more relaxed and natural than on previous tours. Even his slick dance moves seemed spontaneous rather than choreographed.

Gone too from past tours were the clumsy attempts at musical storytelling and the overstaffed band. Prince reigned supreme over these stripped-down proceedings; if there was a bass solo to be played (in "Face Down"), then, by God, he was going to play it himself. He spent much of the show atop a purple piano with the word "beautiful" scripted on the side, carrying the show's musical weight on his symbol-shaped guitar and a portable synthesizer. But his heavy involvement didn't leave much room for his five-piece backing band (a very small crew by his standards). The tight but anonymous ensemble showed none of the personality--lacking the opportunity to show it--of the Revolution or the early New Power Generation. Prince more than filled the stage on his own, however, and while freedom can be a dangerous thing-- evidence the excess of Emancipation--onstage, it has only enhanced Prince's already captivating showmanship.