Ladies and Gentlemen , The Greatest Ever, Prince

It is not only how well he can play but how long he can sustain the consistency of the pace the intricacies of the Melody, improvising whenever he wants. He would play for hours at that pace without a worry. He WAS music. 💜

Prince was and is music. Variety, complexity, feel, soul, beautiful. 🎵🎶

PRINCE IS INSANE ON STAGE 🇧🇷

🔥 🔥 🔥 PRINCE goes completely off 🎸 isn't he just amazing, hey ive been waiting for you to react to this I knew you'd llke it 🎸. This is my favorite Montreux PRINCE performance. He is 🔥 the audience was 🔥 man he should still be here with us 💜 Great reaction

The first time i watched this and heard him harmonizing with his guitar riffs using his falsetto i was fucking astounded still am , every time i watch it

Thank you to the person who gave you this request. Now this is an absolute favorite of mine. We call this " In the pocket and the pants are tight". Prince was always about the time, constant groove and keeping the rhythm in the pocket. This particular group of musicians could play at Prince's level but still keep their own musical identities which was not always the case the his bands. That's what made them such a "machine". Spot on reaction!!

I realy prefear Prince early years even before purple rain, he was so raw and talented and some of his performances then are the best there ever was in energy...BUT this is realy on sush a high level musicly its amazing. Best ever live!

Prince would have been a great silent movie actor…the emotion he could project with his facial and body language is reminiscent of Chaplin for me🎉🎉🎉every picture of him tells a story.. every track of the 2 montreux shows could be a reaction… unreal Thanks Bryan 🎉🎉🎉👏🏻

"I don't want to argue with B.B. King but uh...." one of my favorite seconds of him singing along with the 6 string note for note.

Great reaction. This was actually one of 2 shows at the same Montreaux Festival (2009). So the whole performance was great if you get a chance to watch it. Yes, Spanish Castle Magic, Empty Room, Elixir and this were all from one set. Renato Neto is the featured keyboardist. You are referring to Morris Hayes. He was Prince’s musical director and probably worked longer with Prince than any other band member (all-in). He did not get as many solos, in part I believe, just because Renato Neto is so good and versatile. Mr. Hayes has a nice solo in a video for “17 Days.” Some of his older work from the 90s would feature Mr. Hayes, particularly “Billy Jack B*tch,” but I am not sure how available a video of that song is at any given time. “All the Critics Love U in Montreaux” is based on his single about New York from his 1999 album. He mashed in a few other songs, including Housequake (the “jump up and down” part). I am glad to see your reaction to the scat piece he did. That’s never been a huge part of what I listen to, but it’s pretty impressive to hear someone scat to another musician. He was scarring to his own guitar line! His drummer from the Revolution, Bobby Z. tells a story from his earliest days of knowing Prince. He heard/saw Prince sing a line and play it at the same time on guitar with one hand and keys on the other. Wow. Great performance and great reaction.

Mr. Blackwell on drums, Rhonda Smith on bass, Renato & Mr. Hayes on keyboards

This is one of my favs Lives from P. "All the Critics Love U in New York" updated to the Jazz Festival with an "in Montreaux". He also changed the key of this 'almost experimental' track in the album 1999 (from 1982, right before Purple Rain) to a funky-jazzy-rock sound and added some verses from the song "Housequake". The audience sung the famous "oh weee oh" from the song "It's gonna Be A Beautiful Night" (recorded live for the Sign o'the Times album and drumming while Sheyla E raps). I suggest this as a future reaction. :)

I’ve definitely heard Prince hand out solos like that in the 80s. He would just randomly call out something like “solo”, “piano solo”, “sax solo”, etc. and Dr. Fink or Eric Leeds would jump in. I’m not going to say this iteration of the NPG is my all time favorite band of his, (it’s probably the Lovesexy band), but they are absolutely terrifying. Just scarily good, well oiled machine like you said.

I love the way he would integrate where he was into the songs (like Inglewood swingin). Notice how excited and interactive every crowd is at every show...even the shy ppl let loose! Good Gawd, I miss Prince concerts. I need a purple high..."Turn it up"!!! Have you checked out PLECTRUMELECTRUM yet?

I've seen THOUSANDS of guitarist in my lifetime but ONLY 1 that could shred like a wildcat and be ULTRA FUNKY @ the same time: 'Sir Nelson' (Of course)

A master at his craft showing how an amazing band should perform This is a wonderful performance and as u say He commands the crowd and keeps that energy going,The crowd feeding off prince and prince feeding off the crowd and always makes sure everybody is full.He was and still is amazing Thankyou prince Who is a king. Wonderful reaction as per usual and may I say definitely looking more relaxed when hanging out with us ur friends.Keep up the great work and to all the wonderful people making suggestions Keep em coming,It's wonderful to share and for us to be amazed all over again. Peace and be wild

This concert is one of my favorites there’s a part in this particular performance where he does that George Benson type of solo where he sings along with the guitar totally amazing

All the Critics Love U in New York is a great song from my favourite Prince album 1999, which i first heart aged 12 in 1987. i was forunate to see his very low key and short tour in 2002, where he only played on 2 'hits', the rest new tracks or fans favourites. this was one of the tracks he played, the whole concert was in a blues, jazz, funk style. incredible night. on your point about him allowing others to shine, he has been doing that since the mid 80's. (p.s how could you forget the amazing Rhonda Smith on bass.........

Very nice 😃💜. From this point on after seeing the Web Exclusive that aired with little 11 year old “skipper” aka Prince that was found in the Minneapolis news archives, all that I thought I knew and love about this dude has just MAGNIFIED one zillion percent . RIP to the GOAT 💜😃

You can call me CC Crowd Control - Prince This is a line from his song “Screwdriver “

With so many great performances I've seen from Prince, this one is my absolute favorite. Epic, and a song that while I always enjoyed, never really thought "wow I wanna hear him tear this one up live" this song live is like a revelation to me.

Best set of concerts he ever did.

Love this!!! The crowds energy reminds me when I almost passed out during his Vegas show during 3121 tour. I was so excited, dancing, jumping and singing. My hubby had to pretty much carry me out of the arena.

I always love how he goes from one song to the next and sometimes back again. There is rarely a break between songs when he plays. Other concerts I’ve been to there is almost always a break between songs.

A super funky performance 🧡💙💜💛💙🧡💜

Le festival MONTREUX 2009 est super, les 3 jours de 2013, inoubliables. L'organisateur était décédé en janvier même année sur une piste de ski, Prince lui a rendu hommage avec Purple rain

The bass player is Rhonda Smith, and she’s a fellow Canadian of yours. Check out the live performance of 17 Days. It was recorded back in 2011 at the Forum in Inglewood,Ca. On that song you’ll get Mr. Morris Hayes with an Organ solo that he just slays. Prince also mixed in the Teena Marie song Lover Girl. I can’t believe that I had not mentioned this version of All The Critics. This by far is my favorite version of the song.

The bassist was (once again) Rhonda Smith, and the other keyboardist (the "funk" keyboard is how it's usually listed) was Morris Hayes (in the Prince camp he was called Mr. Hayes); there are quite a few videos and concerts he played in. He was Prince's musical director for 20 years (he left, or was let go sort of right before Prince formed 3rdeyegirl). I can't think of any clip that would work for reaction musically - I hope someone can, I really like him. He's got some wonderful interview clips out there. Prince's hips were bad at this point; I imagine he was in a lot of pain. I think he got hip surgery sometime in 2010/2011. you can tell by the end of this show (show 2), by the end he seems worn out, and he gives one of the most intense versions of Purple Rain I've ever heard. You asked on an earlier post about his emotional state was (I think it was the "Empty Room" video, but I had already commented so I left it alone). But I have read (and heard in some interviews) that Michael Jackson had just died and - regardless of the media mytholgy that says otherwise - Prince really cared about MJ, so much that he cancelled several practice dates and locked himself in his room for a couple of days. Because this was the concert, I've always thought he was still thinking about Jackson and that's what made Prince seem so intense - sad? - during these performances. Idk if it's true, but the timing makes sense

Rhonda Smith on Bass😍💜

The BB King remark was about BB King saying that BB could not play and sing. Prince was showing how he does that with ease.

You finally got to my favourite Prince performance.

I discovered your channel this week and I love it!! I don’t play guitar but I’ve been a Prince fan for 38 years and I love when anyone discovers Prince and appreciates him as much as you are! The suggested videos so far are all favourites of mine too! Enjoy your purple journey! There’s so much to discover!! 😊💜

Great suggestion!! Love this one💜. Keyboardist is RENATO NETO. I love him! He was a true showman. Getting the audience involved is brilliant

Thank u 4 another great video. I was at this concert first row. A dream came true!! After this performance the audience needed time 2 come down😅! This performance is maybe his best in Montreux. But try Stratus and All this love. Great solos of all players.

I have read it said that he was the best known arranger and could change cover songs to suit himself and make his own.

Thank u. Prince would have valued u’re opinions highly because u are a talented musician urself 💕

Thanks so much for getting to this request! Man....I REALLY miss Prince concerts. 💜

I enjoy your analysis of Prince I've been a fan since his first album and has seen him 4 times live!

😀😀...I have the Montreux shows..they are just awesome.. can't really add to much to what this great bunch have already said...u mentioned how he handles the crowd...maybe a good watch for u would D.M.S.R. in Detroit...Prince not playing any instruments... just playing with the crowd and showing off his band... definitely worth a watch even if u don't react to it just go and watch it in your own time my friend...as always... great reaction..

Gotta love those European concert crowds! I wish I got to see Prince overseas...

Dude, you're getting prolific with your output lately :) The original album cut of this track was one of the major influences of Detroit Techno back in the early 80s. One of the amazing things he did was to be able to take the same song and make it a dance track, or rock out to it.

Have you ever heard the Purple rain solo in Milan 2010? I attended many gigs of him, he is my fav ever but that solo is so stunning and unique. Kind of landing on another planet! Cheers from Italy and grazie!

The performance at Montreux was weeks after Michael Jackson's death. Tavis Smiley mentioned how Prince was affected by Michael's passing. After the performance Tavis and Prince talked about MJ 'til the sun came up. Also, in my opinion, the wardrobe choice for this show was an homage to Thriller. The red jacket with similar kind of shoulders makes me think that he specifically wore it to pay his respects just like he wore a single glove in some parts of the shows during the Purple Rain Tour.

I am sure you enjoyed your talk with Susan Rogers. She was with him when he was prolific in producing his music, films and developing bands other than The Revolution. ( The Time, Vanity six, The Family)

All those Montreux Jazz Festival concerts are fabulous - extremely tight band dynamics both musically and technically. Managed to get hold of a soundboard quality copy of the slower, reworked version of ‘Little Red Corvette,’ from one of these shows and it blew me away. If you can get a video of that song and compare it in your mind with the original, you’ll be able to see how he adapted his music to his age and the technical/stylistic advances in music itself to come up with different arrangements and interpretations of his songs to keep them interesting to both himself and his fans. I actually prefer the slower live version now to the original. Another good example of this approach is the slower version of ‘Let’s Go Crazy,’ he was playing with 3rdeyegirl in 2014 on the Hit and Run tour of the UK. There’s easy to find video of that song and ‘Something in the Water Does not Compute,’ from the 2014 Manchester UK gig which has phenomenal guitar on both songs - well worth a look 👍🏻 Great review as always brother! 👍🏻👍🏻

There ya go!!! Love ur posts. Real music!!!

Have you heard Prince’s song, “Cinnamon Girl”? There was a bit of controversy over the music video. The answer to your question about the Montreaux performances is, YES”. You have to hear, “When Eye lay My Hands on U” and “The Love We Make” form montreaux.

Love love love both sets from montreux 2009. A true master at work 💜 currently my favourite Prince performances. Just in total awe! Jaw dropping!

On the one!!! What a master of his craft.

The Bass player is Rhonda Smith.

What a performance!

bass player Rhonda smith and the second keyboard player morris hayes he play with prince since the 90s

He just gets so much more music from his guitar than other players. Individual notes and sustained notes are interspersed with chords and runs. I don’t play guitar and may be using wrong words to describe his playing. He is the music on that stage. It just comes through him.❤

Loved watching you reacts to this :-) The Montreaux stuff is off the charts good. Best Tony

When he heard a song in his head he put it down on tape by laying down drums first, then bass, then guitar and finally lyrics, all on his own, playing all instruments. He was happiest recording on his own.

Good point about Neil Young. 👍🏻👍🏻 Yeah, this is just awesome. Can’t really fault at all, well, apart from the fact I wasnt there. 😉🤣🤣

Prince was a master of crowd control, an amazing performance, man i seriously need to watch these videos at an earlier time, not great when you're winding down for the day 🤣 hyped up now, i miss him so much. Great reaction Bryan as always, your face when he did his little Jazz Scat, priceless 🤣 . I missed this one last night super busy, upside i have another one to watch, see you over there 💜 & ☮

The best band on planet Earth at the time.

What i like about these reviews is YOU . your coming from a genuine place of musicianship. knowing you missed him all your musical time. . i could go on about Prince but i'll keep it for another review. I get sad watching him still. maybe the 2009 paris vid you may enjoy. I'm rocking jill jones Violet blue at the moment . no live video unfortunately . . its the intro really gets me every time. until next time . you good man you

Montreux 2009 is an absolute tour-de-force. The whole show is amazing. I'd personally love to see someone respond to Little Red Corvette from 1982 side by side with the Montreux 2009 version. (Hint, hint) 😉 Blackwell, Smith, Hayes, Neto and Nelson. What a band. The regimen was the schedule. He just played and rehearsed all the time. I wouldn't over think it.. If he was doing yoga and such, he never spoke to it as far as I am aware. His former bodyguard Gilbert Davison spoke about training with him in the late 80s. He had a barbell and bench press for a period and you can see he looks more muscular on the Lovesexy tour - and in fairness through to the end of the Act 2 tour in 93. (And he wrote a song called Ripopgodazippa in 1993 that references a weights bench - don't ask) When he played guitar with the scatting, you realise the talent is immense. I've not heard a bootleg with it (as far as I'm aware) but he would legato the guitar whilst playing the notes on piano and singing the same notes simultaneously. He did this at 18 to impress his manager and WB when getting a contract! A side note on the hip issues... The best guesses for hip surgery are late 2009 to 2010 according to general sources but he appears on French TV in mid-2011 (the appearance where he plays Johnny B Goode/Peach on acoustic and Shhh on electric) and he looks visibly pained by standing at the outset and he only gets up off a stool later into the performance. Now that might be soon after the surgery or a 2nd procedure or not but given his performance history being so packed throughout 2011 it seems unlikely. (I know you'd be up and moving the day after surgery but it wouldn't make huge sense to schedule mid-commitments in case of issues). I say all this because that lyric "body don't want to quit, gotta get another hit" is in the original 1982 song but it takes on a different meaning within a year or two. My best guess for what it's worth of a gap when surgery could have taken place is Aug or Sep 2010. Every song at Montreux in 2009 and 2013 deserves to be dissected for signs of 24-karat genius.

On bass is Rhonda Smith and the other keyboard player is Morris Hayes. Don’t really remember him doing too many keyboard solos Montreux 2009 is the pinnacle for me He also debuted his rearranged version of Little Red Corvette at that show which took a tired 80’s sound and turned it into a highlight for the rest of his tours kzfaq.info/get/bejne/rMppZLqDqZmRgpc.html

No, Prince has always had band members play solos as far back as '81, maybe further, but that what I remember.

Prince did a version of Cinnamon Girl too.

Unbelievable 🔥🔥🔥

Great choice!

Check this out PRINCE PERFORMANCE OF LED ZEPPELIN WHOLE LOTTA LOVE ---Prince - Whole Lotta Love (Live At The Aladdin, Las Vegas, 12/15/2002) FUNKY

The great Maceo Parker from the Famous JB's taught Prince the all important on the one!

All of Prince's shows at Montreux were amazing and DIFFERENT! He first played a show there in 2007, returned in 2009 and played 2 shows, then finally in 2013 - he played 3 shows. The 3rd show in 2013, with 3rd Eye Girl behind him, is the most rock guitar heavy of all of them.

I'm certain that the entire building was jumping off it's foundation during this part of the set! Seriously, you must watch both shows 1 & 2 from Montreux 2009 in their entirety. Genius, electrifying, extraordinary from start to finish. Show 1: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/b-CEfbp0uZfYmYE.html Show 2: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/qZObgrBlsruUqKM.html BASS: That bass player is Rhonda Smith ("...and she is funky!" -Prince). KEYS: There are 2 musicians on keys here: Renato Neto (stage right) and Morris Hayes (stage left). Renato joined the NPG in the early 2000s and Morris was there from the 90s. They both did some soloing in the "17 Days" performance at the LA Forum in 2011: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/rbOJZ7F3vJ2rm30.html SCAT SKILLS: I had a similar reaction to the "jazzy scat thing." 😮 I don't even play guitar at all and I know that was highly impressive! FITNESS: There isn't much out there about any specific ongoing fitness conditioning in Prince's regular routine. He had himself and the members of The Revolution taking dance classes at a Minneapolis studio during the Purple Rain era. As a dancer, I can tell you that that training clearly shows up throughout the decades in most performances. There are some things in dance technique that just stick in your muscle memory, even if you're not in a regular dance class every week. There's a weight bench that shows up in some photos of Paisley Park. He also busted out some pushups and roller skating in the Gangster Glam video (1991) and it seems that he was generally just a physically active guy who enjoyed roller skating, riding his bicycle, walking through the arboretum, taking to the dance floor during a night out, etc. He's known to have been a healthy eater (aside from the sweet tooth!) and it's easy to imagine that he also knew the importance of stretching and keeping his body stage-ready. He clearly had some healthy lungs because he was always dancing and jumping around AND maintaining the breath control required for his vocals. OTHER MONTREUXS: As for another Montreux performance that can even come close to this: Only Prince! He did 3 shows with the NPG and 3rd Eye Girl in 2013. 🙂💜

Bass Player from Montreal!!! Rhonda Smith...

Cool video and reaction again 😀😀 I was in the building that night, for both shows. The sound in there was phenomenal. Oudstanding concert!! I filmed a lot of the concert and I also filmed Prince after the concert outside private. He then was driving with car beside of me 😀

Hiii!!! Did you see last discovered Prince video when he was 11years old in an interview on street!! Yo u can find on KZfaq! Amazing!!

hi a good review but i like it when your breaking it down i learn alot about how hes doing his music and this was a really funk time they sound like they are having so much fun check out America you well love it great job my friend

Later 1990s/2000s were lower ponts in his career, but in his last years he seemed to be gearing up for a creative comeback; he would have fit in well with Mononeon, Silk Sonic, Thundercat, Hiatus Kaiyote, etc.

How about the cool faces he makes as he solos!!

He's a good lad.

He pulled a George Benson.

The "other" keyboard player is Morris Hayes,, He did a organ solo in "Play that Funky Music" that you reacted to some month ago

You should check out Head live from I believe 1981 or 82.He was smoking that guitar

So glad you got around to this live performance (as I also recommended). I think it's an excellent insight into how he not only commands the audience but his band. As you said, he creates drama in a song by varying the dynamics to keep you hooked. The way he plays that one -note solo shows great picking technique as well as creating a sense of intensity in the song without the need to resort to an 'Yngwie-esque' flurry of unnecessary arpeggios - something I notice when other guitarists cover a song like purple Rain in which they ruin the emotional connection by overdoing the solo with a load of speed runs on scales. Don't get me wrong - I can appreciate Yngwie Malmsteen's or Michael Angelo di Battio's precision and speed but it generally leaves me cold and ultimately it's difficult to listen to an album all the way through. Prince never let the solo overshadow the emotion and message in the song, which is in large part due to his competence as a multi-instrumentalist and writer/arranger of songs. He knew that often less is more and when to rein things in to keep the audience wanting more. He could also often envisage the whole song in his mind before recording, which is why he recorded so quickly, and this afforded him a keen sense of where each part belonged in the song. Those other guitarists are undoubtedly technically proficient and impressive but I think the reason they never reached a bigger, more diverse audience is that they came across as playing for the sake of showing off and without a sense of having the guitar as an extension of their soul. As you often say, it's the story within a story that lingers in the heart and mind and moves you, which a select few like Prince, Jimi Hendrix, Carlos Santana, David Gilmour and Gary Moore could tap into. To be controversial, I recently listened to a lot of Eddie Van Halen's (huge respect for his influence and achievements) playing following his unfortunate death and to be honest, although it's often impressive it could also be a bit sloppy (live) and involved a lot of overplaying at times. He certainly led the way in many respects for late 70s/80s guitarists and established a template of sorts which many guitarists copied but it sounds a bit dated now and later in his career I think he became more tasteful in his playing by tuning into the feeling of the song. I still think Prince's feel in his rhythm playing is outstanding - loose but precise at the same time and 'a little bit behind the beat' as he would say, which made it funky as hell. I also liked the way Prince showed his instinctive sense of rhythm with his percussive 'beatboxing' to cue in John Blackwell without missing a beat. No wonder he was also a monster programmer of the Linn 1 drum machine as he just exuded rhythm through his music and dancing in an organic way.

New to your channel and I love it !!!! So happy to have found a couple of channels who focus strongly on the purple one 💜💜💜 This is probably one of my favorite live performances of his

Prince live in Bergen ,best version of purple rain

Wish they would release entire concert. If it’s out there let know incredible

So glad you reviewed this but please check out stratus and all shook up and purple rain from this same show

Too funky!!

It's November 4th Today

Another great video! In the commentary discussion is increasingly querying into more difficult aspects for Prince fans. The accrued injuries from such high level performing and the resulting methods of pain management that led to his death. By the time he performed at the Montreal Jazz Festival Prince had experienced hip and ankle injuries. In real time fans were unaware. As a performer Prince didn't share his vulnerabilities. I don't believe it was to deceive the audience but rather a matter of professionalism. Prince wanted to put on the best shows he could. So he kept his pain to himself. Prince suffered for his art. Given what's been learned since his passing about his injuries, pain, and daily schedule it is astonishing how on point his live performances were.

Great performance. Please can you react to Little Red Corvette from the same gig. The slowed down version. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed. Great work that you are doing. Thank you for sharing your expertise with us.

Check out montraux 2013 with 3rd eye. Girl

When he announced he was writing a book,he knew it would be dangerous. He had already put WB on notice about his wanting the industry to change and give musicians a fairer deal in ownership of their intellectual property. Owning their own Masters was a first step. Writing slave on his face in protest of WB not allowing him ownership of his Masters made him a threat to the record industry. There are signs he was murdered in my opinion. He was 57, too young.

My brother is dating Rhonda the bass player. Maybe you and her can collaborate on a video. Let me know if you’re interested

Rhonda Smith!

Is that a oc-2 boss octave I hear or a whammy pedal?

Or : How to set an audience at 3 0000 °F

He was a vegetarian, not a vegan😊.

I’m not sure you know this. But that song was chosen off the cuff. It wasn’t on the song list. The band had to work it out as they went along !

I prefer the original version

Mentioning the drug references is lame. If he took Cocaine or anything else it was his private business. His public image was no drugs and he did that for the kids watching him. One of the greatest musicians ever did not promote drugs to audiences just MUSIC. 🫡⭐️❤️