Two Critics Bookend Prince's Live Career

0:00It's April 21st, entertainment and celebrity news. Today starts now, AI-powered and spotlight-ready. I'm Cory with the story. Picture this. Two music critics accidentally bookended Prince's entire live performing career with their reviews. John Bream caught his debut show back in January 1979 at a freezing Minneapolis club. Prince had just dropped his first album, blew the budget three times over, so Warner Brothers pushed for a live test. He grabbed a band, rehearsed quick, and delivered what Bream called a solid start. Tickets ran just $4 ahead, $4.75 at the door. Fast forward nearly four decades to April 2014 when I reviewed what became Prince's final gig at Atlanta's Fox Theatre. He'd canceled hours before, due to a cold, then rescheduled sharp for the next week with tight ticket limits. Two per person, box office pickup only. I hit the 7 p.m., piano and a microphone set, praising his raw talent on stripped down

1:02tracks like a mashup of Little Red Corvette and Linus and Lucy. Fans snapped up premium seats for over $1,000 each, but no one knew it was the end. After his 10 p.m. encore, Prince's plane detoured to Illinois. He passed out from what they called flu and dehydration, but it was really in overdose hit with Narcan. Exactly one week later, he died at Paisley Park from opioids. My piece turned out to be the last major review of a Prince concert. Bream and I had been tight for over 25 years, swapping stories on the road. He's still grinding at the Star Tribune, America's longest-running daily pop critic, and a Prince encyclopedia from decades of chats and sources. He recalls Prince's quirky first show fit, jeans, open blouse, vest, leg warmers for that royal flair. Two nights before the end, Bream spotted Prince at a Minneapolis Jazz spot, sticking around for the encore, which was rare, then gliding through the kitchen with his crew and a jeweled cane slung over his shoulder.

2:03That sighting sealed Bream's claim on Prince's live legacy from Frosty Opener to Final Fade.