Publication: Chicago Tribune [US]
Date: April 2, 1993
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Title: "What it's like to work with Prince- Michael B. Reports"
Written By: Chris Heim

Let's suppose your boss, a rather reclusive sort, becomes the focus of intense public interest. He chooses you to speak to the press for and about him, and anything you say will appear - with your name attached to it - in the newspaper the next day. Now what do you suppose you are going to say about the fellow who signs your check? That's right. And I quote, "He's aprinceof a fellow."

That, in a nutshell, is what Michael B., drummer inPrince'scurrent band, New Power Generation (N.P.G.), has to say about his employer. Though, as much as it is possible to infer from such an artificial situation, he threads his comments with a genuine respect for the talent, high standards and hard work of the man.

Princeand N.P.G. are on their first American tour in several years. The outing could help consolidate a comebackPrincehas made with his last two albums, " Diamonds and Pearls"and the unpronounceable/unnameable latest set whose title graphic combines the symbols for male and female. Harking back to the tried-and-true formula of heavy funk and heavy petting (though compared to some of his musical heirs, this one-time bad boy of funk-rock seems almost prim and proper) and having made his peace with rap and hip-hop,Princeis selling records and winning favorable reviews after the drubbing he took for projects like "Lovesexy" and "Graffiti Bridge."

Next to rhythm guitarist Levi Seacer Jr., Michael B. (pictured on today's Take 2 cover) is the longest-standing member of the currentPrinceband. A native of Minneapolis, he was playing the clubs there whenPrinceappeared and sat in with his band.

"He got onstage and sat in, and really it just kind of snowballed from there," Michael B. says. " Princeinvited me out to his studio to cut some stuff. I wasn't made any offers for a while. We just hung out and jammed until 7, 8 o'clock in the morning. And that was a lot of fun because at the time people like Mavis Staples (from Chicago's Staple Singers) and George Clinton (mastermind of the Parliament/Funkadelic experience) were working on stuff for the label ( Prince'sPaisley Park imprint). So they were around, and we'd just have these amazing jam sessions. And eventually he offered me the job."

And the emphasis here is on the word "job." Says Michael: "This is a non-stop, 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week job. I've been called in to do sessions at 3 o'clock in the morning. It's an ongoing thing. The job goes all the time becausePrincegoes all the time. The cat never sleeps. He never takes a vacation."

Preparations for a tour like the current one begin weeks before hitting the road. "We decide what we're going to play, and then we rehearse on a regular basis pretty much seven, eight hours a day," Michael says. "Earlier on, we're really just learning the material verbatim from the album, and after a couple of weeks, we usually start to expand on what's already been recorded. We try to take it to another level as far as orchestrations and arrangements. And as the arrangements are coming together, the choreography is coming together as well."

At the same time, Michael says, sound and lighting are being working into the show as well. " Princeis really meticulous and specific about what he wants," Michael explains. "So while we're rehearsing the music and tightening up the arrangements, he's usually in the house to see what it looks like and check out the (sound) mix.

"Essentially," Michael continues, " Princedoesn't expect anything of you that he doesn't expect of himself. And to that degree, because he's such an amazing individual, on a musical basis that's a lot to reach for. He prefers to surround himself with people whose efforts seem limitless. To him, all of our efforts are limitless. To him, we're fearless.

"I couldn't imagine working for anyone else after, or if, I ever leave this band. Because the standards are so high that after a while you start to become dissatisfied with places where people don't understand how good or how much better things can be. I would have to start to 'settle.'Princenever 'settles' for any less than absolutely the best."

Though past tours have offered special effects and prop extravaganzas, the currentPrinceouting, says Michael, "is really more of a scaled-down production. It's really about the material that we're playing." The 2 1/2 -hour show, he says, boasts "a lot of new material up front. It's material that's out, but in order to be familiar with it you have to have the new album. So hopefully when people come to the show and they hear it all, they'll realize thatPrince is still writing masterpieces. The first set really is especially about the new material. Then we run though a lot of the catalog towards the end.

"I think this tour is going to prove a lot to the people at home, because we've done most of our touring overseas. No one has really seen aPrinceshow since '88. So this will make a difference in how he is seen over here. And it will be evidence that the man will never be washed up because his imagination is so amazing."

Princeand the New Power Generation appear Sunday through Tuesday at the Chicago Theatre. All shows are sold out.