The Controversy Tour was a

concert tour A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific to ...

by American recording artist

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...

in support of his fourth studio album '' Controversy''. The tour included Zapp and Roger and The Time as an opening act.

History

The Controversy Tour marked the debut of Mark Brown, a.k.a. Brown Mark, on bass guitar, replacing the departed

André Cymone André Cymone (born Andre Simon Anderson; June 27, 1958) is an American bassist, songwriter and record producer. Cymone was a bass guitarist for Prince's touring band, pre-Revolution. Cymone began a solo career in 1981. His song, "The Dance El ...

, and the introduction of

's new bodyguard, Chick Huntsberry. At first, Prince contemplated dismissing the huge Huntsberry after only being on tour with him for a few days, as Prince thought he was too big and he scared him. Guitarist

Dez Dickerson Desmond D'andrea Dickerson (born August 7, 1955) is an American guitarist and singer who was a member of Prince's band, the Revolution. Life and career Dickerson was born in 1955 as Desmond D'andrea Dickerson, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A v ...

talked him out of it and he eventually became a confidant to Prince and later appeared in '' Purple Rain'' as a bouncer. This tour was also notable for Prince's new side group The Time joining him on tour and the resulting backstage drama and arising tension that developed between the two bands. Although The Time became superstars overnight with their debut album, '' The Time'', they were frustrated at the lack of input they contributed to the album as, with the exception of

Morris Day Morris E. Day (born December 13, 1956) is an American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer of The Time. Music career Morris Day is best known as the lead singer of The Time, a group associated with Prince. Day and Pri ...

, they did not write or play their own music and were only being paid as a live act. During the tour, The Time would put on such a great show during their set that it began to worry Prince just how good they had become and with them performing right before his set, began to feel they were outshining him, so much so, that during the 1982–1983

1999 Tour The 1999 Tour was a concert tour by American recording artist Prince in support of his fifth studio album, ''1999''. It was, up till then, his longest tour of the United States. In addition to Prince and his band, his latest all-girl group, Van ...

, he kicked them off the tour for being so good. The conflict came to a head on the final night of the tour in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

as during The Time's set, Prince and some of the members in his band began egging them from off stage. Near the end of the set, they grabbed Jerome Benton from the stage and proceeded to "tar and feather" him by pouring honey all over him and dumping trash on him. Things got further escalated after The Time's performance, guitarist Jesse Johnson was handcuffed to a wall-mounted coat rack and further humiliated with Prince throwing

Doritos Doritos () is an American brand of flavored tortilla chips produced since 1964 by Frito-Lay, a wholly owned subsidiary of PepsiCo. The original Doritos were not flavored. The first flavor was Toasted Corn, released in 1966, followed by Taco in ...

and other food at him. When The Time went to retaliate, they were stopped by the tour manager and told there would be no interruptions during Prince's performance, but as soon as he left the stage, a food fight erupted between the two bands. When the battle continued at the hotel causing damage, Prince made Morris Day pay for all damages, claiming that he had started the whole thing.

Opening acts

* The Time * Zapp featuring

Roger Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ( ...

Set list

November 20, 1981 at the Stanley Theatre, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania #"The Second Coming" #" Sexuality" #" Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad?" #"Jack U Off" #" When You Were Mine" #"

I Wanna Be Your Lover "I Wanna Be Your Lover" is a song by American recording artist Prince. It was released on August 24, 1979, as the lead single from his second album, ''Prince''. The song was Prince's first major hit single in the United States, reaching number 11 ...

" #" Head" #"Annie Christian" #"

Dirty Mind ''Dirty Mind'' is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Prince. It was released on October 8, 1980, by Warner Bros. Records and produced entirely by Prince at his home studio in Minneapolis, Minnesota ...

" #"

Do Me, Baby "Do Me, Baby" is a 1981 ballad performed by Prince, from his fourth album, ''Controversy''. Although it was credited as being written by him, it is alleged to have been written by his former bassist and childhood friend André Cymone. It was rel ...

" #"

Let's Work "Let's Work" was the second single from the 1981 album '' Controversy'', by Prince. The song originates from a dance called "the Rock" that local kids were doing at the time in Minneapolis. Prince responded quickly with a track called "Let's Rock ...

" #" Controversy " #" Uptown" #"Partyup" January 30, 1982 at the Capitol Theatre,

Passaic Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city had a total population of 70,537, ranking as the 16th largest municipality in New Jersey and an increase of 656 from the 69,7 ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

#"The Second Coming" #" Uptown" #" Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad?" #"

" #" Head" #"

" #"

" #" Controversy" #"

" #"Jack U Off"

Tour dates

Prior to the tour, in October 1981 Prince played two shows at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum as an opening act for

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

. On the first date, Prince and his band did not finish their set, as the crowd turned hostile towards him. Dressed in his controversial bikini briefs and

trench coat A trench coat or trenchcoat is a variety of coat made of waterproof heavy-duty fabric, originally developed for British Army officers before the First World War, and becoming popular while used in the trenches. Originally made from gabardine, ...

, and singing his sexually androgynous lyrics, he was run off stage after 25 minutes of the crowd booing, throwing shoes and beer bottles at him."Rolling Stones Open 2-Day Stand In LA"
''Oxnard (CA) Press-Courier'', October 10, 1981, p3 Off stage, security escorted Prince to his trailer, they described him as emotionally distraught and crying softly. He was later heard cussing at his band and swearing he would never open for the Rolling Stones again. After the show, Prince immediately flew back home to Minneapolis. After speaking with

, manager Steve Fargnoli, and

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

himself, they convinced him to return for the second concert. Amidst the same hostility, as The Rolling Stones' fans heard about the incident at the first concert and came prepared to dog Prince again, Prince and his band finished their set this time. Backstage, Prince referred to the crowd as, "Tasteless in music and mentally retarded."

The band

: Lead vocals, Synthesizer and guitar *

: Guitar * Brown Mark: Bass * Matt Fink: Keyboards * Lisa Coleman: Keyboards * Bobby Z.: Drums

References

External links

Controversy Tour, Prince-Live
{{Prince Prince (musician) concert tours 1981 concert tours 1982 concert tours