Tour Names?
Friday, January 16, 2009 at 12:01AM Does anyone really name tours anymore?
It seemed like back in the 1980s, all big tours had names. Those names were then pressed on shirts, buttons and books.
Just for fun, I went over to Motley Crue's Wikipedia entry and looked up the names of all their tours:
- "Anywhere USA" - Northern California Tour (1981)
- Too Fast For Love Tour (1981)
- Cruesing Through Canada Tour (1981-1982)
- Shout at the Devil World Tour (1983-1984)
- Welcome To The Theatre Of Pain Tour (1985-1986)
- Girls, Girls, Girls World Tour (1987-1988)
- Dr. Feelgood World Tour '89 - '90 (1989-1990)
- Monsters Of Rock Tour 1991 (1991)
- Anywhere There's Electricity Tour (1994)
- Live Swine Listening Party Tour (1997)
- Generation Swine Tour (1997)
- Mötley Crüe Vs. The Earth Tour (1997)
- Greatest Hits Tour (1998-1999)
- Maximum Rock Tour (1999)
- Welcome To The Freekshow Tour (1999)
- New Tattoo Tour (2000)
- Japanese Tour 2000 (2000)
- Red, White & Crüe Tour (2005)
- Carnival Of Sins Tour (2005-2006)
- Route of All Evil Tour (2006)
- 2007 Tour (2007)
- Crüe Fest (2008)
- Saints Of Los Angeles Tour (2009)
Now, some of these names are better than others. Ones that stand out are "Welcome To The Freekshow Tour," "Route of All Evil Tour" and "Welcome To The Theatre Of Pain Tour."
Aerosmith has a ton of tours, too. Interestingly, the most creative tour names are from some of their more recent shows. Some of those are:
- 1999-2000: Roar of the Dragon Tour
- 2001-02: Just Push Play Tour
- 2002: Girls of Summer Tour
- 2003: Rocksimus Maximus Tour
- 2004: Honkin' on Bobo Tour
- 2005-06: Rockin' the Joint Tour
- 2006: Route of All Evil Tour
- 2007: World Tour 2007
In case you're wondering, my favorite Aerosmith tour name is the "Rocksimus Maximus Tour."
It seems like lately bands just sort of hit the road and either 1) don't name the tour or 2) just name the tour after an album. Now, I understand the concept of naming a tour after an album - after all, one of the main reasons a band hits the road is to drum up record sales. Still, sometimes a little creativity goes a long way.
I remember seeing so many people wearing tour shirts back in the late 80s and 90s. I swear, it seemed like back then everywhere you went, you could find a music fan sporting the logo of a favorite band. At that point in time it seemed like a badge of honor to wear a tour T-shirt, cities and dates proudly emblazoned on the back.
Here's a secret: when I see someone wearing a tour shirt, I always read the back. I love seeing the places bands stop - especially vintage shirts. I also get a little excited when I see a complete stranger wearing a concert shirt from a show I attended. It's like an unspoken bond between people that will never meet or otherwise have nothing else in common.
When a band picks a really creative name for a tour, it just seems to add a little punch to the whole event. The ticket is more interesting, the shirts better - even the marquee out front of the venue seems to get the special treatment.
Can you think of any unique tour names?
Reader Comments (21)
The Elf Hazard Tour
Say what u like I think they were great in their own way