We the Purple

Hey there! It's been a while but I am back for a Sunday birthday celebration worthy of royalty.

You know full well who this is just from the picture, so let's dispense with the formalities. There was a time -- coincidentally around the time of this epic post I am sharing today -- when he was everywhere and a half. Biggest star on the planet, bar none.

Rather deserving, too. It's rare that someone with this much talent in so many areas -- musician, guitarist, composer, conceptualist, producer, studio proprietor, hit filmmaker -- can break through to a situation where they are able to apply all of it to the whole like this guy has done for merely the last 35+ years. You could make the argument that he is the biggest music person of our lifetimes.

Born Prince Rogers Nelson this day in 1958 -- yes, that is really his name -- and still doing it... there will only ever be one Prince. He's 57 today so let's fire up a share worthy of such a superstar, shall we? File this one under "needing a reissue ASAP".

Yes, this is another one where you just shake your head and wonder how this concert -- aired live via worldwide satellite TV as it happened -- has never seen the light of day as a legitimate DVD release. It's not like this is a marginally popular artist here.

I mean, I can see why the record industry is reticent to issue archival material from say, Hatfield and the North or Diamanda Galas. Those are cult artists and it's unlikely the suits would see a return on their investment. But this was the most popular tour of the whole decade. There's no way it can only be available as a laserdisc out of print for 30 years, can it? The movie that went with it is still as popular as ever. Astonishing, but I can't say I am surprised.

Prince and the Revolution
"Syracuse and the World"
Carrier Dome
Syracuse, NY
3.30.1985

01 Let's Go Crazy
02 Delirious
03 1999
04 Little Red Corvette
05 Take Me with U
06 Yankee Doodle Dandy (interlude)
07 Do Me, Baby
08 Irresistible Bitch
09 Possessed
10 How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore
11 Let's Pretend We're Married
12 International Lover
13 God
14 Computer Blue
15 Darling Nikki
16 The Beautiful Ones
17 When Doves Cry
18 I Would Die 4 U
19 Baby I'm a Star
20 Purple Rain

Total time: 1:56:24

Prince Rogers Nelson: lead vocals, guitar and keyboards
Wendy Melvoin: guitar
Brown Mark: bass
Matt Fink: keyboards
Lisa Coleman: keyboards
Bobby Z.: drums
Eric Leeds - saxophone
with
Sheila Escovedo - percussion
Miko Weaver - guitar
Eddie M. - saxophone
Juan Escovedo - percussion
Susie Davis - tambourine
and
Jerome Benton - dance
Greg Brooks - dance
Wally Safford - dance

NTSC DVD from the 1985 laserdisc
remastering by fullasoul

4.15 GB total/June 2015 archive link

Obviously this is a document of an artist at the absolute peak of their powers, in front of an adoring audience and on TV screens worldwide, so I needn't bother to hype it. What I will hype is the utterly incredible remastering job done on this by fullasoul... you will be hard pressed to distinguish this one from an official release and even the artwork (included) is gorgeous... not easy to achieve with a decades-old video like this. But like I alluded to earlier, all stops must be pulled cuz this isn't just anyone's birthday. This is royalty we are dealing with here! This is Prince.--J.