Prince (June 2, 1990) Nude Tour

The Nude Tour was Prince’s stripped-down, back-to-basics greatest-hits concert tour in 1990. Following the expensive and elaborate Lovesexy Tour, Prince opted for a more cost-effective production with a focus on raw energy and full-length songs, hence the “Nude” moniker. The tour supported the Batman soundtrack and previewed material from the upcoming Graffiti Bridge album.

TOUR DETAILS

Artist: Prince

Legs: 2 (Europe & Asia)

Total Shows: 56 performed out of 63 scheduled Duration: June 2 – September 10, 1990

No North American

Dates: Prince chose not to tour the US, returning to North America only in 1993 with the Act I Tour.

BACKGROUND

Prince wanted to present a younger, black, and hip image while cutting costs. He eliminated the large horn section and reduced the elaborate stage designs of previous tours. The setlist focused mainly on 1980s hits with a few newer tracks.

Prince specifically requested that the first 10 front-row tickets for all UK shows be sold by the UK-based organization known as The New Power Generation. However, the tour book listed another UK organization, Controversy, as the fan club outlet. Interestingly, both organizations were originally founded by the same person.

OPENING ACTS

• Jenny Morris

• Mavis Staples

• The Naked Mazurs

• Loïs Lane

BAND LINEUP

• Levi Seacer Jr. – Bass

• Miko Weaver – Guitar

• Michael Bland – Drums

• Doctor Fink – Keyboards

• Rosie Gaines – Vocals / Keyboards / Dance

• Tony M. – Rap Vocals / Dance (Game Boyz)

• Kirk Johnson – Vocals / Dance / Percussion (Game Boyz)

• Damon Dickson – Dance (Game Boyz)

SET LIST (Average)

1. DAT Intro (prerecorded samples)

2. The Future

3. 1999

4. Housequake (with excerpts of Sexy Dancer)

5. Kiss (with excerpts of Let’s Jam It)

6. Purple Rain

7. Take Me with U

8. Alphabet St. (with excerpts of It Takes Two / The Latest Fashion)

9. The Question of U (with excerpts of Electric Man)

10. Controversy (with excerpts of D.M.S.R.)

11. Do Me, Baby

12. Ain’t No Way (Rosie Gaines solo)

13. Nothing Compares 2 U

14. Batdance

15. Partyman (with excerpts of What Have You Done for Me Lately)

Encore: Baby I’m a Star (with excerpts of Respect)

Numerous variations occurred throughout the tour, including performances of “Raspberry Beret,” “When Doves Cry,” “Venus De Milo,” piano medleys, and several other songs depending on the night.

More information & images to follow.

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS & BOX OFFICE

The tour was a major success internationally, grossing over $50 million across 56 shows with very high attendance (over 99% capacity). Standout dates included multiple sold-out nights at Wembley Arena in London and large stadium shows in Japan.

CANCELLED DATES 

Several shows were cancelled or rescheduled, including dates in Dublin, Helsinki, Oslo, Lyon, Strasbourg, Vienna, and others.

CONTEXT & NOTES

The Nude Tour marked the debut of the New Power Generation (although not yet a band) and helped Prince reconnect with audiences after the Lovesexy era. It emphasized musical performance over theatrical spectacle and introduced a more youthful, hip-hop-influenced energy. The striking red patent leather outfits and blue logo imagery from this tour became iconic.

RELATED MATERIAL 

Prince – Batman (1989 Album)

Prince – Graffiti Bridge (1990 Album)

For other relevant posts, see the tags at the foot of the page.

SOURCES 

Wikipedia,

All artwork, photographs, labels, and original text excerpts remain the property of their respective copyright holders. This entry is a transformative, non-commercial archival summary created for historical documentation and educational reference.

Alterations

• "A Song for You" was performed in replacement of "Ain't No Way" on the second Rotterdam show, the Copenhagen show, the second Hamburg show, the Berlin show, the Paris show, the second and fourth Birmingham shows, the second Stockholm show, and the Lausanne show.

• "Little Red Corvette" was performed before "Batdance" and on rare occasion before "Purple Rain" on the second Rotterdam show, the second Hamburg show, the Berlin show, the Paris show, the second and fourth Birmingham shows, the Mannheim show, the second Stockholm show, the Lausanne show, the second Tokyo show, the Nishinomiya show, the Sapporo show and the Yokohama show.

• "Venus De Milo" was performed on piano before "The Question of U" as a medley on the Kiel show, the Berlin show, the first, fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth London shows, the first and fourth Birmingham shows, the Basel show, the Rome show, the Heerenveen show, the Mannheim show, the Gothenburg show, the second Stockholm show, the Nice show, the Manchester show, and all Japan shows.

• "Raspberry Beret" was performed before or after "Purple Rain" on the second Hamburg show, the sixteenth London show, the Nishinomiya show, the Sapporo show, and the Yokohama show.

• "Do Me, Baby" was not performed on both of the Rotterdam shows, the Copenhagen show, the Kiel show, the first Hamburg show, the third, fifth, seventh, eighth, and eleventh London shows, the second, third and fourth Birmingham shows, the Basel show, the second Stockholm show, and the Lausanne show.

• "Under the Cherry Moon (instrumental)" was performed on piano before "The Question of U" as a medley on the Berlin show, the first, and fourteenth London shows, the fourth Birmingham show, the Basel show, the Rome show, the Madrid show, the Heerenveen show, the second Dortmund show, the Mannheim show, the Gothenburg show, the second Stockholm show, the Lausanne show, the Nice show, the Manchester show, the second Tokyo show, and the Yokohama show.

• "Don't Make Me Pay For His Mistakes" and "Blues in C (If I Had A Harem)" was performed after "Take Me With U" on the first, sixth, ninth, tenth, and fifteenth London shows, the first and second Birmingham shows, the Cava de' Tirreni show, the Madrid show, the Werchter show, the second Dortmund show, the first Stockholm show, the Nice show, and the Manchester show.

• "We Can Funk" was performed in a medley with "Baby I'm A Star" on the first and second London shows, the Heerenveen show, and the Nice show.

• "Irresistible Bitch" was performed in the encore on the first and second London shows.

• A medley of "Respect" and "Rescue Me" was performed by Rosie Gaines during the encore on the second London show.

• "A Case of U" was performed on piano before "The Question of U" on the third London show.

• A cover of Joni Mitchell's "Blue Motel Room" was performed on piano before "The Question of U" on the fifth, sixth and seventh London shows.

• "When Doves Cry" was performed in replacement of "Controversy" and on rare occasions it was performed after "Partyman" and closed the main show on the third and fourth Birmingham show, the Cork show, the twelfth, the fourteenth and fifteenth London shows, the Basel show, the Rome show, the Madrid show, the Barcelona show, the second Stockholm show, the Lausanne show, the Manchester show, and all Japan shows.

• "Bambi" was performed after "Take Me With U" on the eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth London shows, the fourth Birmingham show, the Barcelona show, the Gothenburg show, the second Stockholm show, and the second Tokyo show.

• A "The Question of U" intro was played on piano in a medley before "The Question of U" on the Basel show, the Rome show, the Madrid show, the Heerenveen show, the second Dortmund show, the Gothenburg show, the second Stockholm show, the Lausanne show, the thirteenth, fourteenth, and sixteenth London shows, the Manchester show, the second Tokyo show, the Sapporo show, and the Yokohama show.

• "An Honest Man" was performed on piano in a medley before "The Question of U" on the Madrid show, the second Dortmund show, the thirteenth and fifteenth London shows.

• "Batdance" was not performed on the fourteenth London show

• An instrumental version of "The Arms of Orion" was performed on piano in a medley before "The Question of U" on the Lausanne show.

• "Baby I'm A Star" was not performed on the Manchester show

• "Jerk Out" was performed after "Take Me With U" on the Nishinomiya

• "Partyman" was not performed on the fifteenth and sixteenth London shows, the first Tokyo show and the Nishinomiya show.

• "Thieves in the Temple" closed the show in Yokohama.

• "Nothing Compares 2 U" was not performed on the second Hamburg show, the eighth London show, the fourth Birmingham show, the second Stockholm show, the Lausanne show, the second Tokyo show, the Sapporo show, the Nishinomiya show and the Yokohama show.

Date	City	Country	Venue	Attendance
June 2	Rotterdam	Netherlands	Stadion Feijenoord	80,920 / 89,230
June 5	Copenhagen	Denmark	Gentofte Stadion	18,128 / 18,128
June 6	Kiel	Germany	Ostseehalle	11,500 / 11,500
June 7	Hamburg	Germany	Alsterdorfer Sporthalle	14,000 / 14,000
June 10	Hanover	Germany	Niedersachsenstadion	37,000 / 37,000
June 12	Berlin	Germany	Waldbühne	22,560 / 23,000
June 13	Dortmund	Germany	Westfalenhallen	26,109 / 26,109
June 14	Munich	Germany	Olympiastadion	52,900 / 52,900
June 16	Paris	France	Parc des Princes	45,677 / 45,677
June 17	Lille	France	Escape Foire	27,122 / 27,122
June 19-23	London	England	Wembley Arena	179,120 / 179,120
June 25-27	Birmingham	England	National Exhibition Centre	52,000 / 52,000
July 7	Cork	Ireland	Páirc Uí Chaoimh	56,010 / 56,010
July 15	Basel	Switzerland	St. Jakob-Park	51,015 / 51,015
July 17	Rome	Italy	Stadio Flaminio	13,000 / 13,000
July 18	Cava de' Tirreni	Italy	Stadio Simonetta Lamberti	19,980 / 30,000
July 22	Madrid	Spain	Vicente Calderón Stadium	64,912 / 64,912
July 24	Valencia	Spain	Mestalla Stadium	48,127 / 48,127
July 25	Barcelona	Spain	Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc	49,455 / 49,455
July 27	Marbella	Spain	Estadio Municipal de Marbella	29,765 / 29,765
July 29	A Coruña	Spain	Estadio Santa Maria del Mar	25,575 / 25,575
August 4	Werchter	Belgium	Werchter festival ground	22,980 / 22,980
August 5	Heerenveen	Netherlands	Thialf	12,090 / 12,090
August 8	Mannheim	Germany	Maimarkthalle	75,894 / 79,000
August 11	Stockholm	Sweden	Globe Arena	29,000 / 29,000
August 16	Lausanne	Switzerland	Stade olympique de la Pontaise	32,080 / 32,080
August 18	Nice	France	Stade Charles-Ehrmann	30,500 / 30,500
August 21	Manchester	England	Maine Road	35,770 / 35,770
August 30	Tokyo	Japan	Tokyo Dome	90,550 / 90,550
September 2	Nishinomiya	Japan	Hankyu Nishinomiya Stadium	36,605 / 36,605
September 6	Sapporo	Japan	Makomanai Open Stadium	22,500 / 22,500
September 10	Yokohama	Japan	Yokohama Stadium	41,110 / 41,110

Nude Tour 1990 – Cancelled Dates

Date	City	Country	Venue
April 27, 1990	Dublin	Ireland	RDS Simmonscourt
April 28, 1990	Dublin	Ireland	RDS Simmonscourt
April 29, 1990	Dublin	Ireland	RDS Simmonscourt
May 8, 1990	Helsinki	Finland	Helsinki Ice Hall
May 9, 1990	Helsinki	Finland	Helsinki Ice Hall
May 15, 1990	Oslo	Norway	Oslo Spektrum
May 22, 1990	Lyon	France	Stade de Gerland
May 23, 1990	Strasbourg	France	Stade de la Meinau
May 25, 1990	Vienna	Austria	Wiener Stadthalle
May 30, 1990	Rotterdam	Netherlands	Ahoy Rotterdam
June 17, 1990	Paris	France	Parc des Princes
July 28, 1990	Würzburg	West Germany	Talavera Wiesen
July 20, 1990	Turin	Italy	Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino
July 30, 1990	Udine	Italy	Stadio Friuli
August 7, 1990	Dortmund	West Germany	Westfalenhallen
August 14, 1990	Oldenburg	West Germany	Weser-Ems Halle
August 18, 1990	Nimes	France	Arena of Nimes