yes, this guitar solo is over the top.
yes, this guitar solo is not built particularly well.
i like the way dale phrased it...(it doesn't tell a story.)

yes, this solo is kind of out of place.
b/c he's essentially just shredding the shit out of the guitar,
probablly because he just wanted to show the establishment
that he could do it, all while wearing a flashy costume
and a look on his face that indicates "this isn't even
a big deal to me."

it doesn't quite fit, b/c the name and vibe of the song is
"while my guitar GENTLY weeps,"
not, "while my guitar screams out 'look at me, look at me, i'm awesome.'"




that being said, this guitar solo being over the top
is precisely the reason it works for some people.
it injects life into an otherwise "routine" performance.

and even though prince isn't the BEST shredder out there,
he did it here convicingly, and depending on your tastes,
you may or may not appreciate that.





as for prince as a "rocker,"
price's best songs rarely fit cleanly into any one genre.

his best songs are hybrids.
(mixing funk w/ new wave, mixing rock and pop,
mixing rock and new wave, just putting shit together in unlikely
combinations).


when prince attempts to do a song
that fits cleanly into one genre,
those songs usually come across as competent, but not necessarily
inspired.

SEE: his vegas "funk" james brown songs, or
the "rock" tunes on chaos and disorder.

i mean, these songs aren't terrible.
and if you're in the mood for them, they are even good.

but they sound more like genre excercises
than vintage prince.



and as for prince's lead guitar skills,
i've always found him to be damn good... but not
necessariy legendary. his rhythm guitar makes him
a guitar god in my book... not his lead guitar.

his lead guitar can sound kind of rote.
which fits when he's on the right track
(let's go crazy) but doesn't quite fit
when he's just trying to do a straight up rock song.



in other words,
this is an okay/ good/ great performance
that you may or may not care for, depending on
personal sensabilities...

and there are valid reasons to like or dislike this performance.