People arrive for the opening night of Prince's 3121 club Friday at the Rio. Prince will perform on Friday and Saturday nights. Photo by Jane Kalinowsky.
The purple veil parted, and shortly thereafter the pious Don Juan with the big guitar popped the question that's been on everyone's mind of late.
"How much do you love me, Las Vegas?" Prince asked early on during a sweaty two-hour set that christened his new club, 3121, at the Rio on Friday night. "You love me like I love you?"
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To affirm the sentiment, Prince has done what done serious suitors are supposed to do: He's made a commitment, promising to play here every Friday and Saturday night just as long as Vegas returns his affection.
The relationship got off to a steamy start on Friday, as new flings tend to, with a smitten crowd dancing in the aisles and serving as Prince's back-up singers, shouting along to his oversexed, underdressed repertoire.
During his last club stint here in Vegas, a thrilling two-night stand at the Empire Ballroom in May, Prince was given to long, often impenetrably dense periods of improvisation, soloing as if he were auditioning for a spot in Iron Maiden, regaling with chops that are second to none.
But at 3121's opening, he played it a bit more straight, fleshing out a couple of songs into verbose, 10-minute jams, but mostly powering through his catalog as if he didn't want to give the capacity crowd much of a chance to catch its breath.
Unlike many Prince concerts of recent vintage, in which he'll explore his vast catalog impulsively with sometimes only a passing acknowledgement of his many hits, Prince played plenty of fan favorites on this night, beating the stuffing out of former radio staples such as "Cream," "You Got the Look" and "Kiss," encoring with "Purple Rain" and "Let's Go Crazy."
"So many hits, so little time," he said on more than one occasion.
He even reworked other artist's signature tunes, buffering Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode" with still more wild-eyed guitar playing.
Through it all, Prince flirted with the crowd as if this were some well-attended first date. "Scream my name," he commanded at one point. "Am I getting you hot?" he asked later.
But Prince really wasn't out to play the tease on this night, and his set was surprisingly genteel.
Performing on a large, open stage, backed by brightly colored exposed piping and an illuminated heart, Prince gave shout-outs to Jehovah and quoted Scripture.
"You can get sexy without being dirty. Watch me," he announced, and when a gal from the crowd that Prince brought onstage to dance started getting a little too close, he sent her packing.
"Excuse me, you know I got kids," he playfully admonished.
