The 2004 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony is etched in music history, not just for the honorees, but for a performance that redefined the term “show-stealing.” It was during a tribute to George Harrison, specifically “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” that Prince delivered a guitar solo so electrifying, so unexpected, that it continues to be discussed and revered by guitar aficionados worldwide. This wasn’t just playing the song; this was Prince making his guitar weep, scream, and sing in ways few had ever witnessed.
The performance almost didn’t reach its iconic status due to a simple misunderstanding. As producer Joel Gallen recounts, he overheard a familiar guitar riff during rehearsals. “I was sitting there, and I heard somebody playing a guitar riff from a song that I wrote with Average White Band,” Gallen explained. Looking towards the source, he was surprised to see Prince himself, “looking right at me and playing that song. And I thought, ‘Yeah, you actually do know who I am!'” This initial moment of recognition quickly turned to concern when Gallen realized Prince’s prominent role.
Gallen, concerned about Prince potentially overshadowing the intended guitarists, Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty’s guitarist, Mike Campbell, approached Prince for a private conversation. “This cannot be happening,” Gallen confided to Jeff and Tom. “This guy cannot be playing the solos throughout the song.” To Gallen’s surprise and relief, Prince’s response was both gracious and confident. “Look, let this guy do what he does, and I’ll just step in at the end. For the end solo, forget the middle solo,” Prince stated, adding with characteristic nonchalance, “Don’t worry about it.” He then left, leaving Gallen and the band to wonder what exactly “don’t worry about it” meant when uttered by Prince.
What unfolded on stage was nothing short of a guitar masterclass. As Joe Inciardi vividly describes, Prince unleashed a torrent of groundbreaking techniques. “You hear all this sort of harmonics and finger-tapping, sort of like what you’d hear Eddie Van Halen do.” But it wasn’t just technical prowess; it was musical storytelling. Inciardi continues, “He runs through all these different sort of guitar techniques that are sort of astonishing. You hear what sounds like someone cocking a shotgun.” The solo was a journey, incorporating “strumming power chords that really, really connected,” before subtly nodding to the song’s original guitarist. “Then he plays his version of the Eric Clapton solo,” Inciardi notes, “He evokes Eric’s solo in very sort of truncated fashion.” And just as the song reached its crescendo, Prince injected a touch of playful showmanship, ending with “this flourishing thing that sort of ends up sounding a little bit like Spinal Tap, but in a good way.”
On stage, Tom Petty was among those captivated. “You see me nodding at him, to say, ‘Go on, go on’,” Petty recalled. The energy was palpable. “I remember I leaned out at him at one point and gave him a ‘This is going great!’ kind of look. He just burned it up. You could feel the electricity of ‘something really big’s going down here.'” Drummer Steve Ferrone remembers Tom Petty encouraging Prince to truly express himself, “Tom sort of went over to him and said, ‘Just cut loose and don’t feel sort of inhibited to copy anything that we have, just play your thing, just have a good time.'”
The performance culminated in an unforgettable moment of rock and roll abandon. “It was a hell of a guitar solo, and a hell of a show he actually put on for the band,” Ferrone stated. Then came the iconic fall backwards into the audience. “When he fell back into the audience, everybody in the band freaked out, like, ‘Oh my God, he’s falling off the stage!'” And of course, the legendary guitar toss. “And then that whole thing with the guitar going up in the air. I didn’t even see who caught it. I just saw it go up, and I was astonished that it didn’t come back down again.” The mystery of the disappearing guitar persists, as Ferrone admits, “Everybody wonders where that guitar went, and I gotta tell you, I was on the stage, and I wonder where it went, too.”
Even years later, the sheer brilliance of Prince’s guitar playing remains underappreciated by some. As Gallen asserts, “I still feel like people don’t realize what an amazing guitar player he was. As a rock guitar player, he can go toe to toe with anybody.” Tom Petty’s reflection adds a poignant layer. “It’s funny because just a few days ago, he was in mind all afternoon, I was thinking about him.” This legendary “Prince Guitar Weeps” moment serves as a powerful reminder of Prince’s unparalleled talent and his ability to transform a song into an unforgettable, electrifying experience. His impromptu decision to “just step in at the end” resulted in a guitar solo that continues to inspire awe and solidify his place as a true guitar icon.
