The music industry’s biggest “glorified corporate networking party”
got a rousing funk-ified send-off after Prince treated fans – i.e. Samsung customers – to a 2.5 hour hit-filled set. While corporation-funded closing night sets from Justin Timberlake and the Purple One signified the death of the true ethos behind SXSW, at least the utter denigration of indie spirit was completed with style.
Following A Tribe Called Quest’s polite request to kick it, Prince and his 22 piece backing band and choreographed dancers dazzled the exclusive 300 strong crowd, dropping super jams like “Purple Rain” and “1999” with the poise and confidence of a band who had a whole back catalog of all time super jams to pick from. During his 7 freewheeling encores, Prince complemented his own hits with a host of sublime covers including Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough“, Janet Jackson’s
“What Have You Done for Me Lately” and Curtis Mayfield’s “We’re a Winner”.
We weren’t there, very few were, but thanks to a bold punter still rock’n’roll enough to stick it to the No Photos policy, we were given a little peek at what we missed. SXSW may be dead, but Prince is still very much alive.
