Prince Feat.Tamer / Hotel California (2CDR)

Prince and Maniera divorced in 2006. There was a lot of turmoil around that time, but this recording of Prince's 2006 live performance, held in Las Vegas on June 27th after the Shaka Khan tribute on BET, was a miraculous one. Only VIPs were allowed in, so this recording is a miracle. The sound quality is also immersive, resulting in a superb audience recording. First, the 15-minute opener is a fantastic cover of Miles Davis's "So What." Horns like Mike Phillips play a major role. Since there were no horns in Tamar's live performances at the time, it sounded incredibly fresh. Mike Phillips showcased his Roger-esque vocoder playing on the 3121 instrumental jam, even breaking out a riff on "More Bounce To The Ounce." He also performed a unique version of Beyoncé's "Closer 2 My Heart," a groundbreaking cover of Naughty Girl, with a long jam in the middle. He also delivered a coquettish, eclectic rendition of Mary Jane Girls' pop track, "All Night Long." And since he'd only performed with Tamer at the time, Prince's first main performance in a long time was astounding. "3121," with its effective vocoder, and "Lolita," with its heavy horns, were played longer than they were on "American Idol." And then there was the debut of "Black Sweat," a gem of a funky jam, blending choppy bass and quirky keyboards. Of course, the acoustic version from the Mewcoro tour wasn't bad either, but Prince's extended falsetto vocals over an electronic backing were a welcome addition. While faithful to the studio tracks, this performance surpasses the studio version in danceability. The following "Kiss" also features a completely new, long intro version. The innovative horn-driven "Joy In Repetition" features Prince's vocals, followed by Tamar's brief, mellow rendition of his own single, "All I Want Is You." The hard rock version of "Anotherloverholenyohead" ends with a keyboard riff from the B-52s' "Rock Lobster." The album closes with Tamar's hardest hit, "Red Headed Stepchild." Bonus features include soundboard recordings of Prince, Stevie, and Shaka Khan performing at the BET Awards, as well as Prince's performance of "3121."