Prince / August 2, 1986 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY Special Edition (2CDR)

August 2, 1986 Madison Square Garden, NY

1.Around The World In A Day
2.Christopher Tracy's Parade
3.New Position
4.I Wonder U
5.Raspberry Beret
6.Delirious
7.Controversy
8.Mutiny
9.Do Me Baby
10.How Much Is That Doggie In The Window
11.Lady Cab Driver
12.Automatic
13.D.M.S.R.
14. When Doves Cry
15.Under The Cherry Moon
16.Anotherloverholenyohead (incomplete)
17.Pop Life (incomplete)
18.Girls & Boys
19.Life Can Be So Nice
20.America

Special CDR for Special Edition
1.Anotherloverholeyohead
2.Soft And Wet
3.I Wanna Be Your Lover
4. Head/Electric Man
5. Head (pt. 2)
6. Pop Life
7. Sometimes It Snows In April (incomplete)
8. Purple Rain
9. Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On
10. Montaignes
11. Kiss

Live at Madison Square Garden, NY, August 2, 1986

12. Mutiny
13. A Lovebizarre
14. Sometimes It Snows In April

Live at Madison Square Garden, NY, August 3, 1986

This super live performance by Prince and The Revolution, at their peak, surpasses even their 1984 birthday concert, and is now available on soundboard! The Parade Tour began in the UK on August 12, 1986, but this is a soundboard recording from a one-off concert prior to that, known as the Hit and Run Tour. The Hit and Run Tour was so rare that even audiences didn't know it existed. This soundboard recording from that elusive tour is literally astonishing! It features a live performance at Madison Square Garden on August 2nd! The process of finalizing the Parade Tour's setlist and performance style is fascinating. Prince's vocals are at the forefront, and the bass, keyboards, and horns at key points are also clearly audible. Hearing the flow from Around the World in a Day to Christopher Tracy's Parade on a soundboard is a special pleasure. The bass line also sounds fantastic on "New Position." Wendy's vocals on "I Wonder U" also sound lovely on the soundboard. And then there's the medley from "Raspberry Beret," where Prince's somewhat rugged New York vibe is revealed! He shouts, "Let's sing!" as he urges the audience to sing along, as always, but it's nice to be able to enjoy the dynamic bass. Then there's Delirious, with its funky keyboards, the flowing, tinkling Wendy's cutting, and the raucous horns of Eric Leeds and others. There's also a wah-wah guitar, likely from Miko Weaver. And then there's the shocking Revolution of Controversy! Then there's Collin's cutting, horns, and funky keyboard repetitive phrases! This is Controversy! And Prince's murmuring vocals, yet clear and stern when calling on Eric, ultimately earning him a fantastic solo, complete with stop-and-go moves. This is Mutiny, a truly orchestrated Revolution! The second half features the keyboard phrases from Ice Cream Castle, followed by a chorus. Even after the performance ends, Prince calls Confusion, delivering a ravishing, never-before-heard, intense funk. Prince starts off by shouting "Gimme Two" and getting the band to follow him, but then, silently, the band starts making sounds with a bang. It's all Prince's fingers doing. Ice Cream Castle reappears, then The Roof Is On Fire is thrown in. Prince declares he's playing all night, and with "ice cream!" the funk jam continues unabated. The track closes with the words "take me home," and then the performance slows down, evolving into the elegant "Do Me Baby." Lisa's chorus kicks in with a sexy touch. Eric's sax solo is amazing! There's a bit of noise in the rousing "Automatic" with "Party People," but the performance is so funky and the band transitions so quickly into D.M.S.R. that you don't have time to worry about it. And then there's "When Doves Cry," a classic live version! Prince's sweet, youthful voice is youthful, and Wendy's guitar solo is rockin'. The cutting and keyboard interplay in the second half is so cool it gives me goosebumps no matter how many times I listen to it. Prince is likely playing keyboards at the front of the stage, and his low voice during "Under the Cherry Moon" is unusual and impressive, remaining almost faithful to the studio version. And while "Anotherloverholeyohead," featuring a strong bass, fades out, the song is still sung for the most part. However, Pop Life transitions into the next track, "Girls & Boys," in just the last 25 seconds of the song. However, "Girls & Boys" features an interesting piano phrase and thick keyboard effects, an arrangement unique to this period, and in fact, this arrangement is arguably the best. Eric also has a fantastic saxophone solo, and Prince's rambling narration leads into "Life Can Be So Nice," a track played only on this tour. It's a shame the sound cuts out at the perfect moment. Other than that, it's a truly funky and lively performance! It's also unusual that Wendy's voice is so prominent. From here, the Parade Tour would normally transition to 1999, but then America, featuring rockish guitars, takes over. This thrilling opening gives me goosebumps, and I'm grateful to God that this performance was recorded on a soundboard. Wendy is somehow the main vocalist, while Prince is dedicated to hyping the crowd up. His hype is energetic, shouting things like "Po!" and "Seichou!", and Prince's rock guitar sounds are spastic and incredible. The guitars are more prominent than the horns, which is impressive. Wendy's cutting and Linn drums, never-before-heard keyboard phrases, stomping bass, and the erupting screams of dancers like Jerome Benton are all funky. The lyrics of "Holy Rock" are shouted, followed by the chorus of "Because of Soul Sisters" and Prince's screams, followed by "The Roof Is On Fire." When the horns are all alone, presumably Prince is playing, a funky drum and guitar ensemble comes in, like a promo. But then, with Wendy's super funky cutting, horns, and bass, we see a development never heard even in the promos. Prince leaves the drum set and finally yells, "The roof is my ass, uh!", finally muttering "Las Vegas," but the performance continues, stopping and continuing. Finally, he yells "25!" and the band plays 25 times, but the keyboards make a couple of extra noises and fail, which is a bit of a shame. Perhaps because of that, Prince yells "Las Vegas" again, and the performance finally ends.

Unfortunately, this wonderful, miraculous soundboard set is not a complete recording. "Anotherloverholeyohead" is incomplete, and the "Head" (which includes "Soft and Wet," "I Wanna Be Your Lover," and "Electric Man"), sandwiched between them, is missing. Also, "Pop Life" is incomplete. Furthermore, "Sometimes It Snows in April," "Purple Rain," "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On," "Montains," and "Kiss" (after "America") are missing. Still, the appeal of this tour is fully conveyed through the soundboard recordings. This special edition features rare audience tapes, previously only available through trade channels, recorded with the highest possible quality. While "Sometimes It Snows In April" is still incomplete, it's supplemented by a complete recording of "Sometimes It Snows In April" from MSG's live performance the following day, August 3rd. This is also an audience recording, but it comes with a niche compilation CD-ROM that digs into the details, unique to funk soul music/purpletown.