25 Live
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article or section needs sources or references that appear in reliable, third-party publications. Primary sources and sources affiliated with the subject of the article are generally not sufficient for a Wikipedia article. Please include more appropriate citations from reliable sources, or discuss the issue on the talk page. This article has been tagged since December 2007. |
| 25 Live | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Tour by George Michael | ||
| Dates | September 23, 2006 – July 2007; June 17-August 3, 2008 |
|
| Legs | 3 | |
| Shows | 88 | |
| George Michael tour chronology | ||
| Cover to Cover tour (1991) |
25 Live (2006-2008) |
|
25 Live is a concert tour by English singer / songwriter George Michael.
Contents |
[edit] History
It is George Michael's first in over 15 years. The tour, running for 50 dates, began in Barcelona, Spain on September 23 and was originally to be ended at Wembley Arena in London, England in December, but—due to great feedback from fans—continued into 2007 providing more gigs throughout the Europe, concluding in Belfast. The tour is described as "a celebration of his 25-year career in music", and was accompanied by a Greatest Hits album, released in late 2006. The news of the tour came amid increased media speculation about Michael's personal life, in particular his drug use and sex life. After the success of the autumn leg, new shows were added for summer 2007, in large arenas and stadiums. Popstar Sophie Ellis-Bextor was announced as the supporting act for 6 of the 8 UK shows. She will not open the show at Wembley Stadium as George is to be the first artist ever to play in the new stadium.
On March 25, 2008 a Third Leg of the 25 LIVE Tour was announced for North America. This leg will include 21 dates in the United States and Canada. This is Michael's first tour of North America in 17 years. The tour will coincide with the April 1, 2008 release of his new Greatest Hits album which had not yet been released in North America.
On June 11, 2008 2 dates were added, titled "The two final", taking place in Earls Court, London on August 24 and August 25, 2008. These concerts will be filmed for an upcoming 25Live DVD release. This will be the last time George Michael will perform in front of public.
[edit] Tickets Sales
The tour has been swiftly selling out. Within two hours of initial sales, 240,000 tickets were snatched up by eager fans. First to sell out were UK shows in London’s Wembley Arena and Earls Court as well as Birmingham’s NEC Arena and Manchester’s MEN Arena. The large capacity Manchester Evening News Arena show sold out within minutes, and the two 25 Live dates added to the venue were sold out by lunchtime. To meet demand, 14 gigs were added to the tour, including three additional shows in London alone. George Michael's dates around Europe were met with equally extraordinary enthusiasm. In Norway, the Oslo show at the Spektrum sold out in an hour and a half. In Copenhagen, 49,000 tickets sold out at the Parken venue in just 3 hrs. The first Rotterdam concert at Ahoy Arena sold out in a mere 6 minutes, and the second saw tickets vanish in 16 minutes. In fact, a third Rotterdam show was added by popular demand that also sold out in 16 minutes. This unprecedented response has stood out as the fastest sell of tickets ever experienced by Barrie Marshall, whose London-based promotion firm, Marshall Arts Limited, has been promoting shows for 30 years. George Michael’s 47-date European tour kicks off on September 23rd in Barcelona, culminating with four dates at London’s Wembley Arena.
The 25 LIVE tour broke several ticket sales records, most notably in Copenhagen. Michael's concert at The Parken Stadium soldover 50,000 tickets in the matter of minutes, shattering the previous ticket sales record at the venue, formerly held by U2.
[edit] Setlist
[edit] First Leg Setlist
- "Waiting (Reprise)"
- "Flawless (Go to the City)"
- "Fastlove"
- "Father Figure"
- "Star People '97"
- "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"
- "Praying for Time"
- "Too Funky"
- "You Have Been Loved"
- "Everything She Wants"
- "My Mother Had a Brother"
- "Shoot the Dog"
Break - "Faith"
- "Spinning the Wheel"
- "Jesus to a Child"
- "An Easier Affair"
- "A Different Corner"
- "Amazing"
- "I'm Your Man"
- "Outside
Encore - "Careless Whisper"
- "Freedom 90"
[edit] Second Leg Setlist
- "Waiting"
- "Flawless (Go to the City)"
- "Fastlove"
- "Precious Box"
- "Father Figure"
- "Everything She Wants"
- "Ticking" (Written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin for 1974's Caribou)
- "Praying For Time"
- "Too Funky"
- "Star People"
- "Shoot The Dog"
Break - "Faith"
- "Spinning The Wheel"
- "An Easier Affair"
- "Jesus To A Child"
- "Amazing"
- "I'm Your Man"
- "Outside"
Encore - "Careless Whisper"
- "Freedom '90"
[edit] Personnel
[edit] The band
- George Michael - vocals
- Chris Cameron - musical director/arranger
- Danny Cummings - percussion
- Phil Palmer - guitars
- Andy Hamilton - sax, keyboards, Ewi
- Steve Walters - bass
- Mike Brown - guitars
- Carlos Hercules - drums
- Graham Kearns - guitars
- Luke Smith - keyboards
- Shirley Lewis - backing vocals
- Jay Henry - backing vocals
- Lincoln Jean-Marie - backing vocals
- Lori Perry - backing vocals
- Sharon Perry - backing vocals
- Lucy Jules - backing vocals
[edit] Management and production
- Michael Lippman - artist manager
- Andy Stephens - artist manager
- Ken Watts - tour director
- Looloo Murphy - GM tour manager
- Sharon Ashley - band tour manager
- Mark Spring - production manager
- Lisa Johnson - assistant tour director
- Scott Chase - stage manager
- James Kelly - show manager
- Willie Williams - video staging designer and director
- Vince Foster - set and lighting design and operator
- Andy Bramley - video director
- Barrie Marshall and Doris Dixon - agents
[edit] Promoters
- Belgium - Live Nation
- Denmark - DKB & Motor
- France - Interconcerts
- Germany - Peter Rieger Konzertagentur
- Greece - Cosmote
- Holland - MOJO Concerts
- Hungary - Live Nation Hungary (previously Multimedia Concerts)
- Ireland - Aiken Promotions
- Italy - D'Alessandro E Galli
- Norway - Gunnar Eide
- Spain - Sagliocco Group
- Sweden - EMA Telstar
- Switzerland - Good News
- UK - Marshall Arts
- USA - Live Nation
[edit] Tour dates
[edit] First leg
| Date | City | Country | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23 September 2006 | Barcelona | Spain | Palau Sant Jordi |
| 26 September 2006 | Madrid | Spain | Palacio de Deportes |
| 29 September 2006 | Toulouse | France | Zenith de Toulouse |
| 30 September 2006 | Toulon | France | Zenith Omega |
| 2 October 2006 | Lyon | France | Halle Tony Garnier |
| 5 October 2006 | Milan | Italy | Forum Milano |
| 6 October 2006 | Milan | Italy | Forum Milano |
| 9 October 2006 | Paris | France | Bercy |
| 10 October 2006 | Paris | France | Bercy |
| 13 October 2006 | Amneville-Metz | France | Galaxie |
| 14 October 2006 | Stuttgart | Germany | Schleyerhalle |
| 16 October 2006 | Leipzig | Germany | Leipzig Arena |
| 17 October 2006 | Oberhausen | Germany | Oberhausen Arena |
| 20 October 2006 | Gothenburg | Sweden | Scandanavium |
| 21 October 2006 | Oslo | Norway | Spektrum |
| 22 October 2006 | Stockholm | Sweden | Globen |
| 25 October 2006 | Frankfurt | Germany | Festhalle |
| 26 October 2006 | Zurich | Switzerland | Hallenstadion |
| 29 October 2006 | Munich | Germany | Olympiahalle |
| 1 November 2006 | Rotterdam | Netherlands | Ahoy |
| 2 November 2006 | Rotterdam | Netherlands | Ahoy |
| 4 November 2006 | Rotterdam | Netherlands | Ahoy |
| 6 November 2006 | Berlin | Germany | Veldrom |
| 7 November 2006 | Hamburg | Germany | Color Line Arena |
| 9 November 2006 | Mannheim | Germany | SAP Arena |
| 11 November 2006 | Copenhagen | Denmark | Parken |
| 13 November 2006 | Koln | Germany | Koln Arena |
| 14 November 2006 | Antwerp | Belgium | Sports Paleis |
| 17 November 2006 | Manchester | England | MEN Arena |
| 18 November 2006 | Manchester | England | MEN Arena |
| 21 November 2006 | Manchester | England | MEN Arena |
| 22 November 2006 | Glasgow | Scotland | SECC Arena |
| 25 November 2006 | London | England | Earls Court |
| 26 November 2006 | London | England | Earls Court |
| 28 November 2006 | London | England | Earls Court |
| 02 December 2006 | Birmingham | England | NEC Arena |
| 03 December 2006 | Birmingham | England | NEC Arena |
| 04 December 2006 | Birmingham | England | NEC Arena |
| 07 December 2006 | Dublin | Ireland | The Point |
| 08 December 2006 | Dublin | Ireland | The Point |
| 11 December 2006 | London | England | Wembley Arena |
| 12 December 2006 | London | England | Wembley Arena |
| 14 December 2006 | London | England | Wembley Arena |
| 15 December 2006 | London | England | Wembley Arena |
[edit] Second leg
[edit] Third leg
[edit] Trivia
- 25 Live Tour features the first time a 3000 piece LED screen has been used.
- 25 Live Tour features the first three dimensional video wall. The video screen isn't just a backdrop to the stage, it also lies on the stage surface.
- 25 Live tour features the first time that motion tracking comes from the artist to video.
- 25 Live Tour features the first time 490 frequency channels are transmitted to the audio mixing board, producing dynamic, richer sound for the performance
- 25 Live Tour features the first time that on-screen visuals respond to the musicians performing.
[edit] External links
|
||||||||||||||||||||
