Rush Announce Dates for ‘Likely Last Major Tour of This Magnitude’
After months of rumors, Rush have announced tour dates for their 40th anniversary tour. They plan on hitting 34 cities across North America, kicking off May 8th in Tulsa, Oklahoma and wrapping up August 1st in Los Angeles. “These not-to-be-missed concerts will highlight four decades of the band’s music,” the group said in a press release. “[This] will most likely be their last major tour of this magnitude.” Tickets go on sale January 30th.
The tour commemorates the 40th anniversary of drummer Neil Peart joining the band, even though that actually happened in 1974. Last year, however, they had just wrapped up a long tour in support of their album Clockwork Angels and opted to celebrate the anniversary in 2015.
The Clockworks Angels tour centered around new material and songs from their 1980s catalog, leaving aside their 1970s work until a 2112 medley that wrapped up the night. This tour will likely give more weight to all eras of their career, especially since the band is not promoting a new album. “I’ve always wanted to do some rarer Rush material,” guitarist Alex Lifeson told Rolling Stone last year. “And this should be a good opportunity to do that.”
Frontman Geddy Lee spoke with Rolling Stone about the tour last November, noting, “I would think if we’re going to do some sort of anniversary thing, it’ll probably be a ‘trip through the years’ kind of thing.” When pressed, he said he was open to performing such rarities as the two books of “Cygnus,” “Cut To The Chase” and “Chemistry.”
On Rush’s 2010-11 Time Machine tour, they played their 1981 LP Moving Pictures straight through. As of now, they have not indicated whether or not they plan on reviving any complete albums on this tour.
R40 Live 40th Anniversary Tour Dates:
5/8 – Tulsa, OK @ BOK Center
5/10 – Lincoln, NE @ Pinnacle Bank Arena
5/12 – St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center
5/14 – St. Louis, MO @ Scottrade Center
5/16 – Austin, TX @ 360 Amphitheater
5/18 – Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center
5/20 – Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
5/22 – New Orleans, LA @ Smoothie King Arena
5/24 – Tampa, FL @ Amalie Arena
5/26 – Atlanta, GA @ Verizon Amphitheater
5/28 – Greensboro, NC @ Greensboro Coliseum
5/30 – Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live
6/8 – Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena
6/10 – Buffalo, NY @ First Niagara Center
6/12 – Chicago, IL @ United Center
6/14 – Detroit, MI @ The Palace of Auburn Hills
6/17 – Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre
6/21 – Montreal, QC @ Bel Centre
6/23 – Boston, MA @ TD Garden
6/25 – Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center
6/27 – Newark, NJ @ Prudential Center
6/29 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
7/9 – Kansas City, MO @ Sprint Center
7/11 – Denver, CO @ Pepsi Center
7/13 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Maverik Center
7/15 – Calgary, AB @ Scotiabank Saddledome
7/17 – Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena
7/19 – Seattle, WA @ Key Arena
7/21 – Portland, OR @ MODA Center
7/23 – San Jose, CA @ SAP Center at San Jose
7/25 – Las Vegas, NV @ MGM Grand Garden Arena
7/27 – Phoenix, AZ @ US Airways Center
7/30 – Irvine Meadows, CA @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
8/1 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Forum