The last time Princehad eight uninterrupted minutes on national television, he was performing at the Super Bowl XLI halftime showin 2007. While that gig featured greatest hits like 1999, Purple Rain and Lets Go Crazy, Princes Saturday Night Live set featured tracks that were likely unknown to most viewers. It didnt matter: Prince, his backing band 3rdEyeGirl and guest vocalist Lianne La Havas still delivered one of the most explosive and most polished SNL musical spots anyone has witnessed since perhaps when Chris Rock, the guest host, was still an SNL featured player.
Ladies and gentlemen, you are so lucky tonight, Rock told the audience during his introduction for Prince, and the comedian was right. The opening moments of the performance mirroredthe cover of his new album Art Official Agewith Prince and his three-lensed sunglasses stationed in front of a blue sky. For the first track in his SNL medley, Prince and La Havas duet onthat albums bouncy Clouds. Maybe were better off in space, La Havas sang while Prince grabbed his six-string, the perfect segue into the guitar freak-out Marz off his and 3rdEyeGirls other new LPPlectrumelectrum.
For the final cut in the medley, Prince slowed things down briefly for the Plectrumelectrum rocker Anotherlove, which gave Prince another opportunity to showcase those guitar god skills that landed him on Rolling Stones list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists. Princes unprecedented eight-minute SNL set still felt too shortasmost viewers were probably wishing the Purple Rain singer would perform an encore instead of kicking it over to Weekend Update.
Princes performance will be hard to top, but Kendrick Lamar will give it his best shot when Saturday Night Live returns on November 15th after a week off. Woody Harrelson will be the guest host of that episode.