The Big Tour
| World tour by Wham! | |
 UK tour programme cover | |
| Location |
|
|---|---|
| Associated album | Make It Big |
| Start date | 4 December 1984 |
| End date | 10 April 1985 |
| Legs | 3 |
| No. of shows |
|
| Supporting act(s) | Gary Crowley |
| Wham! concert chronology | |
The Big Tour was the second concert tour by English pop duo Wham!, launched in support of their multi-platinum second studio album Make It Big, which sold over six million units in the US alone.[1] The tour spanned 4 months between December 1984 and April 1985, comprising 39 shows across the UK, Ireland, Japan, Australia, United States, Hong Kong and China. Wham! made history in China and achieved worldwide publicity by being the first Western pop act to visit the country.[2][3]
Overview
[edit]The Big Tour opened at Whitley Bay Ice Rink on 4 December with an audience of around 5,500.[4] The venue was small due to no other venues being available in the north east, they were booked for two more shows between concerts in Glasgow, Dublin and Leeds. Just as the UK portion of the tour was in its stride, George Michael hurt his back during a performance and the band had to cancel five consecutive shows which were put back until February and March. They continued the UK leg with shows in Wembley Arena during the Christmas period to around 50,000 fans during which "Last Christmas" reached number two on the UK Singles Chart.[3]
The new year began the tour in Japan performing in the Fukuoka Sunpalace with other dates in Osaka, Nagoya, Tokyo and Yokohama. In Australia, five shows followed in Melbourne and Sydney before continuing in the United States, with a sellout concert at the Palladium in front of 4,400 in February 1985.[5] Wham! returned to the United Kingdom with earlier dates having been rescheduled.
Following a month break, the tour resumed in Hong Kong on 2 April 1985. The 10-day visit to China was the first by a Western pop group.[6] The excursion was a publicity scheme devised by Simon Napier-Bell (one of their two managers—Jazz Summers being the other). It began with a concert at the Peoples' Gymnasium in Beijing (then Peking) in front of 13,000 people. They also played a concert in front of 5,000 in Canton. The two concerts were played without compensation.[7] Wham!'s visit to China attracted huge media attention across the world. Napier-Bell later admitted that he sabotaged the efforts of British rock band Queen to be the first to play in China. He made two brochures for the Chinese authorities – one featuring Wham! fans as pleasant middle-class youngsters, and one portraying Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury in typically flamboyant poses. The Chinese opted for Wham!.[8]
"The first feeling was of failure, there was no way we could communicate. And when we actually found out what had gone on [with people being told not to dance] I was just furious. Obviously, I felt responsibility at the time to represent my generation from the west in a good light and pop music in a good light."[9]
— George Michael reflecting on the China visit in 1986
Recordings
[edit]A documentary film was shot over two weeks in April and edited over summer and autumn 1985 in London. The whole China visit was documented by British film director Lindsay Anderson and producer Martin Lewis in their film Wham! in China: Foreign Skies released in 1986.[10] The first ever public viewing of Foreign Skies was shown on large video screens on Saturday 28 June 1986 at the farewell show "The Final".[11]
Support acts
[edit]- DJ Gary Crowley
- Pepsi & Shirlie
- DJ Neil Fincham
Set list
[edit]|
Japan[a]
|
Beijing, China
|
Tour dates
[edit]| Date | City | Country | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | |||
| 4 December 1984 | Whitley Bay | England | Ice Rink |
| 5 December 1984 | Glasgow | Scotland | Apollo |
| 6 December 1984 | |||
| 8 December 1984 | Dublin | Ireland | R.D.S. |
| 9 December 1984 | |||
| 11 December 1984 | Whitley Bay | England | Ice Rink |
| 12 December 1984 | |||
| 14 December 1984 | Leeds | Queens Hall | |
| Edinburgh | Scotland | Ingliston | |
| Bournemouth | England | International Centre | |
| Birmingham | N.E.C. | ||
| 23 December 1984 | London | Wembley Arena | |
| 24 December 1984 | |||
| 26 December 1984 | |||
| 27 December 1984 | |||
| Asia | |||
| 8 January 1985 | Fukuoka | Japan | Fukuoka Sunpalace |
| 10 January 1985 | Osaka | Festival Hall | |
| 11 January 1985 | Gymnasium | ||
| 13 January 1985 | Nagoya | Civic Assembly Hall | |
| 16 January 1985 | Tokyo | Budokan | |
| 17 January 1985 | Yokohama | Gymnasium | |
| 18 January 1985 | Tokyo | Budokan | |
| Oceania | |||
| 22 January 1985 | Melbourne | Australia | Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Centre |
| 23 January 1985 | |||
| 24 January 1985 | |||
| 26 January 1985 | Sydney | Sydney Entertainment Centre | |
| 27 January 1985 | |||
| North America | |||
| 4 February 1985 | Los Angeles | United States | Palladium |
| 5 February 1985 | Oakland | Kaiser Convention Center | |
| 7 February 1985 | Dallas | Bronco Bowl | |
| 13 February 1985 | Philadelphia | Tower Theatre | |
| 14 February 1985 | New York City | Beacon Theatre | |
| 16 February 1985 | Boston | Orpheum Theatre | |
| Europe | |||
| 23 February 1985 | Edinburgh | Scotland | Ingliston Royal Highland |
| 26 February 1985 | Birmingham | England | N.E.C. |
| 27 February 1985 | |||
| 1 March 1985 | Bournemouth | International Centre | |
| 2 March 1985 | |||
| Asia | |||
| 2 April 1985 | Hong Kong | British Dependent Territory | Coliseum |
| 3 April 1985 | |||
| 7 April 1985 | Beijing | China | Workers' Gymnasium |
| 10 April 1985 | Canton | Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall | |
| Denotes cancelled concert dates that were rescheduled. |
Box office score data
[edit]| Venue | City | Attendance | Gross |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palladium | Los Angeles | 4,400 / sellout | $57,402[5] |
| Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center | Oakland, California | 7,182 / sellout | $97,032[12] |
| Bronco Bowl | Dallas | / | $ |
| The Tower | Philadelphia | 2,971 / sellout | $36,565[13] |
| Beacon Theatre | New York City | / | $ |
| Orpheum Theatre | Boston | / | $ |
| Total | / | $ | |
Personnel
[edit]As printed in the official tour programme.
|
|
Notes
[edit]- ^ Taken from the official Japanese tour programme.
References
[edit]- ^ "American album certifications – Wham – Make It Big". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- ^ Steele, Robert (2017). Careless Whispers: The Life & Career of George Michael: Revised & Updated. Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-726-6. Retrieved 15 April 2018.[page needed]
- ^ a b Jovanovic, Rob (2015). George Michael: The Biography. Hachette UK. ISBN 978-1-78323-968-9. Retrieved 3 March 2023.[page needed]
- ^ Morton, David (4 December 2019). "When Wham sent the Whitley Bay Ice Rink audience into meltdown 35 years ago". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- ^ a b "Boxscore Top concert grosses" (PDF). Billboard. 16 February 1985. p. 46. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ McCarty, L. Y. (2010). "'Big in Japan': Orientalism in 1980s British Pop Music". The Mid-Atlantic Almanack. 19.
- ^ Patrick, Al (28 April 1985). "ROCK: East meets Wham!, and another great wall comes down". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "How Wham! brought the West to China". BBC News Online. 24 March 2005. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
- ^ Grow, Kory (21 March 2017). "See George Michael in Animated Interview: 'I Was Convinced I'd Be a Pop Singer'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
- ^ "Wham! in China – Foreign Skies Movie Reviews". Rotten Tomatoes. 21 April 2011. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
- ^ Kelbie, Paul (18 April 2006). "How Wham! made Lindsay Anderson see red in China". Scotland Correspondent. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
- ^ "Boxscore Top concert grosses" (PDF). Billboard. 23 February 1985. p. 42. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Boxscore Top concert grosses" (PDF). Billboard. 2 March 1985. p. 50. Retrieved 12 April 2020.