My Summer In The ‘80s, Part 2—

Madonna’s ‘Re-Invention’ and Prince’s ‘Musicology’ Tours Aptly Named

By John Voket

(This is the second part of a series reviewing current live musical offerings from artists who became famous, primarily because of their exposure on music videos during the 1980s.)

I’ll admit right off, there have been many occasions during the past 20 years or so when I’ve referred to both Madonna and Prince as “geniuses.” But my on-again, off-again adoration was, and still is for distinctly different reasons – the same reasons that inspired me to trek to Worcester, Mass., on June 27 for a peek at Madonna’s Re-Invention Tour, and down to East Rutherford, N.J., on July 18 to see Prince and his Musicology show.

For lack of a better explanation, I went to see Madonna, but I went to hear Prince. And if I took those jaunts exclusively for those reasons, I would have left both events perfectly satisfied.

Essentially, if I went to the Madonna show with earplugs, and never heard a note, the concert would have went down in my memory as a visually enriching experience, utilizing aspects from the most cutting-edge, multi-media staging to the most traditional choreography and costuming.

And if you led me to my seat at the Prince show blindfolded, I would have come away with an even stronger respect and appreciation for this artist formerly known as a funky symbol that looked like it came from some fancy monogrammed kerchief.

For Madonna, the musical performance was obviously a necessary component, and probably could have held its own if the material girl simply stood alone at a microphone for two hours and just sang. But then, much like Cher without her wigs (or Elton John without his), it wouldn’t have been a Madonna “show.”

Prince, however, could not have strutted and posed and flirted and shook his butt for more than a few minutes without driving most of the crowd out to the concourses screaming for a refund. So does this make Madonna the victor in this MTV darling celebrity face-off?

In my humble opinion, it does not.

In hindsight, (no pun intended) I have to give his royal purpleness the more approving nod.

Considering I am not what one would consider a true fan of either artist, I headed off to these shows ill-prepared to recognize every song performed. In Madonna’s case, I’d say I knew 80 percent of the material, and even found myself recalling and singing along to snippets of lyrics from many of the songs she performed at the Centrum.

Among them were: “Vogue” – one of two selections she culled from her participation in then boytoy Warren Beatty’s quasi-flop film, Dick Tracy. She also reprised “Hanky Panky” complete with flapper-style trappings and a cleverly recycled vintage dance routine.

I enjoyed her throbbing, techno-take on “Frozen,” the Cabaret-themed “Material Girl,” complete vit de German accent, and the steamy, late-night dance club treatment of “Deeper and Deeper.” She was strapped into an electric chair set piece, managing to survive “Die Another Day,” and kept the cowboys and girls in the house happy by sticking very close to the original arrangement of “Don’t Tell Me.”

Although her pre-tour press promised there would be unprecedented re-inventions of many of Madonna’s ‘80s hits, they seemed to occur without much sense or order. Perhaps she would have served the audience better by grouping songs chronologically, patterning mini sets of songs to represent each period of Madonna re-inventing herself.

I say this because when she did reward the crowd with Big ‘80s hits including, “Like a Prayer,” “Into the Groove,” “Papa Don’t Preach,” “Crazy for You,” and the deceptive encore number “Holiday,” the diverse and multi-generational crowd’s reaction was perceptively greater. Oh, and the inclusion of John Lennon’s “Imagine,” was neither appreciated nor well-received – replacing that cover with any original Madonna song, no matter how obscure or re-invented, would have been a prudent choice.

Prince, on the other hand, could have filled his set with cover versions, and I would have been equally entertained. I’m one of those who knows a Prince song when I hear one, but I’d be hard pressed to sing more than an obligatory line from “Let’s Go Crazy,” never mind the deep and thorough representation of songs he presented during his July 18 stop – the first of several nights at the Continental Arena.

Based on reports from earlier stops on his Musicology Tour, I knew Prince mixed it up at several points during the set, choosing to anchor the beginning, middle and encore segments consistently. As I mentioned earlier, it was wonderfully and visually satisfying to see him interacting with, and literally directing the musicians with a flip of his head, a quick jab of his fist, or a subtle snap of his kerchief much like an orchestra conductor uses his baton.

And as much as Madonna utilized her dancers expertly, as one would expect, she remained fairly distant from her musicians who were relegated to two moving risers on the remote rear left and right flank of her stage. Prince, on the other hand, encouraged his musicians to move and dance with minimal, but strategically placed, choreography that only seemed to make the music more exciting.

He left audience members to intermittently grace the stage as his backup dancers – some presenting moves that seemed well rehearsed, and others who just swayed to the beat. At this stop, it appeared those audience participants were chosen either for their enthusiastic applause or their outrageous get-ups.

Like Madonna, Prince utilized an acoustic interlude to present a set of songs including two of my personal favorites, “Little Red Corvette,” and “Seven.” Perched on a revolving barstool – his Musicology Tour is presented in-the-round – he seemed to spin to the right or left, reacting to whatever area of the crowd was cheering, or singing along the loudest. It was kind of silly, but it worked.

The acoustic set most of all showcased the true talent and showmanship Prince has been delivering since I first saw him prancing and vamping on MTV in the early ‘80s. At times he was lost in the chords, at one moment hammering away and the next, barely brushing across a string or two as the audience’s back-up vocals overpowered the arrangements and carried them along in perfect time.

Other favorites that evening included the show opening sequence of “Let’s Go Crazy,” “I Would Die 4 U” and “When Doves Cry.” Some of the other more recognized tunes included, “I Feel 4 U,” “Sign O’ The Times,” “Kiss,” and the anthem-like closer, “Purple Rain.”

He also delivered a blistering “Whole Lotta Love,” a Led Zeppelin cover during which he unleashed his lead electric guitar talent. Granted, he’s no Jimmy Page, but considering most of the audience seemed to look on in bewilderment, while the few hundred classic rock fans in the house hooted and howled along with every screeching, screaming riff, it was a fantastic departure from the straight-ahead funk that permeated most of the rest of his set.

So to summarize:

Madonna – visually satisfying; definitely more material than musical; not as much re-invented as recycled.

Prince – unparalleled musicianship; cleverly and strategically integrated staging; truly worthy of his royal nom de plume – hands down the winner of this week’s Best Representative of the ‘80s’ face-off.

Prince also gets a bonus for bringing along Morris Day and the Time to heat up the crowd as a surprise opening act. Day & Co. more than adequately got the crowd jumping with their combination of up-beat urban funk, fashionable style and infectious stage antics.