Prince at Super Bowl press conference
Prince: Why Was Prince Covering Foo Fighters? Odd
4 February 2007 
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Words by Craig DeVrieze // Illustration by Jorge Tapia
Purple rain?
More like Orange Crush.
The Artist Known for the Moment as Prince took a media conference stage at the Miami Beach Civic Center this week to promote his appearance in Sunday’s Super Bowl XLI. The diminutive royal rocker was clad in an orange cream jump suit and backed by a six-piece band, a backup singer and identical twins as dancing eye candy.
Assembled media had been told the famed singer would not take questions. “Contrary to rumors,’‘ he announced as he stepped up to the mic, “I’d like to take a few questions.’‘ One TV dolt stood, began to mumble a query and Prince stepped on the question with a mighty guitar riff, then ripped into a rocking rendition of “Johhny B. Good.’‘
He followed with “Anotherloverhole’nyohead,” probably just to challenge the unhip sports writers in the room to figure out that challenging song title. It also gave the twin, short-skirted, fifth-generation Apollonias a chance to really shake their groove thangs, which they nicely did.
The short set was concluded by “Get on the Boat,’‘ which allowed his horn section to strut. It was a brief show that promised a better, tighter Super Bowl XLI halftime show than the disjointed, noisy effort the Rolling Stones put forth last year in Detroit.
As a football purist, I’m no fan of rock’n roll shows during intermission. In my universe, halftime is for making a quick trip to the loo, grabbing another beverage and checking up on your fantasy football team.
Still, since football is only roughly half of what this annual mid-winter bacchanalia is all about, I would suggest Prince is a solid selection for this year’s halftime act.
Appendium (by Sean Moeller): When the NFL wanted Prince — FUCKING PRINCE — to cover a Foo Fighters song, why didn’t Prince raise some holy hell and mension to all in the room that he is FUCKING PRINCE and then bring forth an explosion that turned him into a bat a la Grandpa Munster, allowing him to fly out of the room and force the NFL to just go get the Foo Fighters if that’s what they wanted? Or get Toby Keith or Big & Rich to cover a Foo Fighters song. Prince doesn’t cover Foo Fighters. Not in my world.
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He sure sounded killer doing it…and All Along the Watchtower and everything else for that matter.
The dancing twins were more of a distraction than eye candy – I say, “Get out of the way and let the man do his thang.” And do it he did. Loved his version of Dylan’s ‘All Along the Watchtower’
Apparently Prince was not very happy when the FF covered “Darling Nikki” a few years back. I think it was a response to that somehow. Prince was the best part of the damn game.
The backup dancers were perhaps meant to be a distraction hiding the fact that he can’t really dance as he once could with his bum hip and all, but still, the dude can shred
there actually is a studio verson of prince doing watchtower>best of you and its rumored to be on the next record.
also, i heard he LOVED the cover of darling nikki and even called dave grohl to tell him how much he loved it.
i thought the mini-set last night was smokin’ hot and all the more power to prince.
Yeah, I don’t know how you could NOT like Darling Nikki, what a sick, awesome song. Both versions.
Ok, so I guess I am one of the few not impressed. I love the Foo Fighters, and for Prince to cover that song ruined it for me. Maybe next year they will have Jack Ingram sing the worst remake of any song ever, Hinder’s Lips of an Angel. Then Superbowl half time shows will have hit “rock” bottom, then they can get better.
He’s a jehova’s witness now. The show he does in Vegas, he doesn’t even do all the songs that made him what he is. His religion has taken precedence, and Pussy Control has fallen by the wayside. He’s still FUCKING PRINCE though. I guess they had to find something he could do “legitimately”.
Regarding Prince covering the Foo Fighters: The Foo Fighters covered Prince’s “Little Nikki”, not too long ago. You can find the song on Lime Wire. I am guessing he is just giving them a secret shout out or something like that.
i thought it was fucking A that prince did the foo fighters song. he said in an interview years ago when they did “darling nikki” that the foo fighters should do their own songs and stop doing his. i think he did it just to show them he could. also the last line he sang, “i got another confession to make, i’m no fool” is that in the song? or was that his way of calling out dave and the boys?
“Ok, so I guess I am one of the few not impressed.”
I am in that few aswell…the superbowl as a whole was somewhat of a let down, atleast the bears lost :D
I was at a FF show a few years back and Grohl said during the show that Prince did not want them to cover darling nikki. That’s why you can only get it on import CDs. Sounds to me like prince was just being a jerk
I liked it. It was silly. Prince is a silly little man with silly guitars. I jes’ luv sayin’ silly.
silly
I thought the cover of the “Best of You” was a tribute at first, but then when I saw an interview with the FF guys, here is part of that….
[quote]“Dude, I have no idea why he did it, but I’d love to find out,” Hawkins laughed. “I mean, the thought went through my head that maybe he was doing it as a sort of ‘F—- you’ to us, or maybe he really likes the song. Either way, it was pretty amazing to have a guy like Prince covering one of our songs — and actually doing it better than we did.”[/quote]
Well, that was a nice way too put it by Hawkins.
I think the I am no fool line ate the end of the song, was saying that “you guys are trying to make money off my song, find your own songs.”
I did appreciate the FF vesrion of Darling Nikki even if Prince didn’t (or did?).
link to the article…
http://www.vh1.com/news/articles/1551990/20070208/story.jhtml?partner=emailstoryfriend
I just listened to the halftime show again, and Prince was stressing “Is” someone getting the Best of You. I get it now. It is a total dig on FF. I think he is implying that the FF are getting the best of him $$ wise.
I like the FF, but never bought an album. But when I heard the Darling Nikki on the radio, I went looking for the FFs CD with that song on it.
I thought I would see what label the FF were under, if that had anything to do with it, but it is RCA not Warner?
It is just a plain outright jab at the FF. Just like Prince’s agenda with the “slave” on his face at the Grammys way back when when he turned into the symbol.
commenting closed for this article
It took me a couple of lines before I figure out Prince was covering ‘Best of You’ – that’s how frigging amazing he is: he took that song and completely reworked it. And that is the mark of a true Artist Formerly Known As.