Prince performed two gigs at Camden’s Electric Ballroom in London last night (05.01.14).
The ‘Purple Rain’ hitmaker took to the stage after a secret gig at the same venue on Wednesday evening and thousands of fans queued for hours in the rain, despite not knowing details of the performances or ticket prices.
Eventually, more than 800 people were allowed in the venue after the doors opened at 7pm and paid just £10 to see the legendary singer perform a special gig with his all-female band 3rd Eye Girl.
The set included new single ‘Pretzelbodylogic’, along with ‘Let’s Go Crazy’, ‘Funk ‘n’ Roll’, ‘Guitar’ and ‘She’s Always in My Hair’, in which the 55-year-old singer changed the lyrics to, ‘Always in Prince’s big curly hair’.
Audience members shouted: "London loves you", before he handed his guitar out to the crowd and dozens of fans surged forward.
The singer came back on for a second encore before the fans were ejected from the venue and security let in hundreds of people who were still queuing outside.
The star powered through tracks including ‘Cause and Effect’, ‘I Would Die 4 U’ and ‘Something in the Water (Does Not Compute)’ during the second set, before ending the first encore with a sensuous rendition of ‘Purple Rain’.
He then closed the gig with a medley of hits, including ‘When Doves Cry’ and ‘Sign o’ The Times’.
VIP guests at the gigs included Paloma Faith, Nicole Scherzinger and Lianne La Havas, who welcomed Prince into her home for a secret press conference this week.
The singer has ruled out playing any large venues while in London with his band this month, hinting instead of his desire to play small club gigs.
Speaking to BBC 6 Music, he said he wants to play venues such as Ronnie Scott’s and the Bag O’ Nails Club in Soho – although details for future gigs are being kept under wraps.
He described his trip to London as "open-ended" and told last night’s audience: "We’re gonna try and find somewhere else to play in this city. We’ll stay as long as you’ll have us."
Prince plays two gigs in Camden
