The Time News

'Ain't nobody bad like me!' Whether you've been doing 'The Bird' with him since the 1980s, made some 'Jungle Love' while listening to his records or never heard of him until he was announced with dozens of national acts that played Super Bowl Village in downtown Indianapolis, it is impossible not to be a fan of Morris Day. The 54-year-old funk singer was the highlight of my winter so far when I snuck down to Indy Friday afternoon to catch Day and his band, The Time. Day was a contemporary of Prince back in Minneapolis in the 1970s and early '80s. Prince eclipsed Day but booked his eccentric, mirror-loving, playboy peer in the film version of 'Purple Rain,' right about the time Day finally scored a top-40 hit with 'Jungle Love.' Arriving an hour before Day's set, the Super Bowl Village was eerily comfortable. There were no lines for the beer or bathrooms, and walking around the grounds was easy. That all changed in about an hour as Day's stage attracted a sea of people. I underestimated Day's Hoosier following but still felt a part of the show stuck a good NFL punt away from the stage. With a tight band led by dual synth players and a powerhouse of a drummer in Jellybean Johnson, Morris sounded great and his antics were sublime. His longtime mirror assistant and percussionist Jerome Benton danced in sync with Day like it was 1983 again. The crowd went nuts for Mr. Morris and set the tone for an unforgettable night in Super Bowl Village. As expected, the crowd grew to an immeasurable rate while we ate a quick dinner at Yats. We couldn't get close to En Vogue -- the surprise booking of the Super Bowl by far -- and had to backtrack to even get into Super Bowl Village proper. Fitz and The Tantrums, a great Los Angeles soul band, was slotted for a 7 p.m. set and we got an OK spot at 6:15. We waited and waited and waited. The band was more than a half hour late when roadies started changing out drum cymbals and keyboards. What was going on? Ten minutes later the band popped up on the stage and tore through three fantastic soul gems led by singers Michael Fitzpatrick and Noelle Scaggs. However, things went downhill during a boring rendition of 'Sweet Dreams' by The Eurythmics. Doing a 10-minute version of a cover song that was already a hit cover for someone (Marilyn Manson) is a mistake. The band tried in vain to include the huge audience with the call and response shtick. No one took the bait. It was obvious 90 percent of the audience were there early to see top-40 act LMFAO. Fitz should have cut the set short since they were late but they kept playing, riling up the teenage crowd there to shuffle with LMFAO. The vibe got pretty dark with jeers, middle fingers and cursing at Fitz and the Tantrums so we skated, backtracking three blocks just to go one north through the half million who clogged downtown Indy. Despite the disappointing set from Fitz and The Tantrums, the overall experience of being inside ground zero of the Super Bowl party was incredible. The city did a fantastic job but it was Morris Day who got the party started properly on Friday.

His song of dedication, "When the Lady Sings the Blues," a five-minute ode, is the highlight of a highlight-filled album that amazes, inspires and offers fun and fascination.

Apparently not everybody is always running late ; with this in mind, Team Tattly asked Julia Rothman to put a positive spin on her bestselling You're Late Tattly to make Love Watch .