This is from the Minneapolis vid. Nice find!
I have a crush on Shay Jones. [blush]
This is much better than the 10th generation video tape I’ve had for a number of years. The sound comes through much better on this version. Thank you for posting.
As far as the three keyboard players on stage…is that Roberts, Pothier, and Hallen? Which one is playing the funky synth bass over and over and who is playing the two synth chords on the Juno 60 (blonde haired dude with the sweater vest)?
Wempathy can you help us out with this lineup?
By the way…it looks like Al is having fun on stage…or perhaps I caught a glimpse of some dude from Arista backstage with a gun pointed directly at Al throughout the show…
Wempathy can probably elaborate (even though I still owe him a better copy ofthe vid), but I believe it’s Roberts on the right, Pothier on the left and Hallen on bass.
Wempathy can you help us out with this lineup?
By the way…it looks like Al is having fun on stage…or perhaps I caught a glimpse of some dude from Arista backstage with a gun pointed directly at Al throughout the show…
I think it was just Clive Davis pointing a laser pen at Al.
The lineup for that was Roberts kicking it off on bass synth. The blonde Pothier was standing next to Roberts. And the dark-haired Mr. Hallen was standing alone, stage left.
The venue was First Avenue in Minneapolis, the same club featured in “Purple Rain”.
The venue was First Avenue in Minneapolis, the same club featured in “Purple Rain”.
Awesome. Thanks. I went to First Avenue & 7th Street Entry in November 1984 to get a picture outside the nightclub with my brother - because of the raging success of “Purple Rain.” In fact, would it be off-base to suggest there is some Prince soul-funk influence in songs like “So So Life”? The instrumental bridge in the middle has a familiar Prince-like groove.
Did Arista commission this professional video taping of the concert?
[reply]The venue was First Avenue in Minneapolis, the same club featured in “Purple Rain”.
In fact, would it be off-base to suggest there is some Prince soul-funk influence in songs like “So So Life”? The instrumental bridge in the middle has a familiar Prince-like groove.
Did Arista commission this professional video taping of the concert?[/reply]
I don’t think that the Minneapolis scene was an influence on the band really. IIRC, funk bands like The Gap Band, and Afrika Bambaataa and Cameo were more of an influence. I know that the Bill Laswell/Material records were pretty popular with some of the band at the time too. The band would have probably seen Prince as too commercial to listen to or consider.
I’m also sure that First Avenue had an advanced club PA & Video system and that taping acts with multiple cameras was not out of the ordinary. I don’t think the tape of the Minneapolis show was a result of anything special by Arista or by Ministry. It was just how First Avenue typically operated at the time.
One other note: I think that “So-So Life” was the only song that was written with the WS Touring band that I know of. It was written and conceived during the rehearsals leading up to the tour. It does sound kind of unfinished. I never really cared for it to be honest.
thanks for the info! yeah, so-so life is probably my least favorite as well. I do hear a bit of Prince in them, this was around the time Prince was really blowing up but his earlier material is dirty! [laugh]
I ripped that hideously bad VHS copy to MPEG for Bisquit a few years back. The video is about as bad on this one but the audio’s much better.
As far as who filmed this performance, the opening title (early gen computer superimposed text) on the VHS indicates it was done by or for some local Minneapolis TV station/studio.
So yeah, I think this was just done by the First Avenue and/or they comissioned a local production crew to do it for them. As wempathy says, that was not unusual back in those days. I have a rare Freur live gig (“Live in London”) on VHS that was similarly done–shot and released by the venue and pretty much bypassing the label.
The whole gig appears to be cheaply but professionally shot since there are a number of different camera angles.
The performances of I’m Falling and What Is the Reason are especially good in this particular show…and Overkill is always a good closer.
somebody said they have good quality version of this. waiting for it to be shared. hell, anything can happen - we now all have seen “same old madness” video thanks to SKot.
Thanks, man. Always my pleasure to see that rare early material get out there.
Regarding the show video, I wish we could track down the original source. Anybody tried contacting the management for First Avenue of the time?
–SKot
Regarding the show video, I wish we could track down the original source. Anybody tried contacting the management for First Avenue of the time?
–SKot
That’s not a bad idea. I had presumed (incorrectly) that the master video tapes were locked away in some Arista vault. If First Avenue taped it, then it’s possible they would still have the masters, or could get their hands on it. The quality of VHS tape was much better back in the early 80s. Just pick up a VHS tape manufactured back then and see how much heavier it feels. Even 23 years later, it could still have decent quality images and audio. I can’t imagine there would be any legal/licensing concerns at this point.
It’s certainly worth looking into.