Tracks Across America Tour '82
The Tracks Across America Tour '82 was a concert tour by the American band Blondie in 1982. The tour supported their latest album, The Hunter (the first tour since their European Tour in 1979-'80) and would be Blondie's last tour before disbanding in late 1982. The band would reconvene in the late 1990s.
Tour by Blondie | |
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Associated album | The Hunter |
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Start date | July 23, 1982 |
End date | August 21, 1982 |
Legs | 1 |
No. of shows | 19 in North America |
Blondie concert chronology |
Background
Though the tour nominally supported the album The Hunter, songs from Autoamerican (1980) also saw their first live performances as the band had not toured in support of that album. The non-album hit single "Call Me" and Debbie Harry's solo track "Chrome" were also performed live for the first time.
For the tour, guitarist Frank Infante was replaced with a session musician Eddie Martinez due to Infante's conflicting relationship with other band members.[1] The tour also featured a horn section performing with the band.
Originally, the tour was supposed to have two legs, the second being in Europe[2] with 41 dates in total, but the second leg was cancelled after slow ticket sales.[3] Only 19 of the concerts (all in North America) were performed.
The show at the Exhibition Stadium in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, which took place an 18 August 1982, was recorded and filmed for the broadcast on HBO. Since then, it has been released several times as a semi-official live album[4] and on video (both on VHS and DVD).[5]
The tour turned out to be unsuccessful for Blondie with shows taking place at half-empty venues.[1] Guitarist Chris Stein's health had been worsening during the tour. He was rapidly losing weight and shortly after the tour ended was diagnosed with pemphigus vulgaris, a rare autoimmune disease.[1] Shortly afterwards, Blondie disbanded. They would not have any further live performances until a series of reunion concerts in 1997 and 1998.
Opening acts
- Duran Duran (August 2–18; Duran Duran did not appear with Blondie at John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia on August 21. Blondie were third on the bill of an all-day stadium show. The line-up that day consisted of Robert Hazard and the Heroes, A Flock of Seagulls, Blondie, Elvis Costello and the Attractions, and Genesis.) [1]
Personnel
- Blondie
- Debbie Harry – vocals
- Chris Stein – guitar
- Clem Burke – drums
- Jimmy Destri – keyboards
- Nigel Harrison – bass
- Additional musicians[6]
- Eddie Martinez – guitar
- Abel Domingues – keyboards
- Douglas Harris – horns
- Joseph Kohanski – horns
- Arthur Pugh – horns
Setlist
- "Rapture"
- "In the Sun"
- "Sunday Girl"
- "Little Caesar"
- "Union City Blue"
- "Chrome"
- "Island of Lost Souls"
- "Danceway"
- "The Tide is High"
- "Heart of Glass"
- "Hanging On The Telephone"
- "Dreaming"
- "One Way or Another"
- "War Child"
- "Start Me Up" (The Rolling Stones cover)
- "Call Me"
Notes
- "Chrome" is a song from Debbie Harry's first solo studio album KooKoo.
- "Theme from A Summer Place" was performed on 7 August at the Parade Stadium in Minneapolis.[7]
- Fab Five Freddy joined Blondie onstage on 14 August at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey.[8]
Tour dates
Date | City | Country | Venue |
---|---|---|---|
North America | |||
July 22, 1982 | Sunrise | United States | Sunrise Musical Theater |
July 23, 1982 | Baton Rouge | LSU Assembly Center | |
July 24, 1982 | Mobile | Municipal Auditorium | |
July 25, 1982 | Atlanta | Six Flags Over Georgia | |
July 26, 1982 | Lakeland | Lakeland Civic Center | |
July 28, 1982 | Pembroke Pines | Hollywood Sportatorium | |
July 30, 1982 | Memphis | Mid-South Coliseum | |
August 2, 1982 | Kansas City | Starlight Theatre | |
August 4, 1982 | Rockford | Rockford MetroCentre | |
August 5, 1982 | Cedar Rapids | Five Seasons Center | |
August 7, 1982 | Minneapolis | Parade Stadium | |
August 8, 1982 | Hoffman Estates | Poplar Creek Music Theater | |
August 9, 1982 | Clarkston | Pine Knob Music Theatre | |
August 10, 1982 | Cleveland | Agora Theatre and Ballroom | |
August 12, 1982 | Providence | Providence Civic Center | |
August 13, 1982 | Boston | Boston Garden | |
August 14, 1982 | East Rutherford | Meadowlands Arena | |
August 16, 1982 | Columbia | Merriweather Post Pavilion | |
August 18, 1982 | Toronto | Canada | Exhibition Stadium |
August 21, 1982 | Philadelphia | United States | John F. Kennedy Stadium |
References
- "Once More (Into the Bleach): Blondie Returns For Its Fifteenth Round". Discoveries magazine. Archived from the original on 2017-09-11. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- "Debs launches Blondiemania memorial tour". NME Magazine. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- "Tour off, rumours of split BLONDIE SHAMBLES". NME. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- Live in Toronto at Allmusic
- Blondie.net store
- End credits of Blondie Live it Toronto video
- Parade Stadium setlist at setlist.fm
- Meadowlands Sports Complex Archived 2013-10-16 at the Wayback Machine at Blondie.net