The Paul McCartney World Tour

The Paul McCartney World Tour was a worldwide concert tour by Paul McCartney, notable for being McCartney's first tour under his own name, and for the monumental painted stage sets by artist Brian Clarke. The 103-gig tour, which ran from 1989 through 1990, included a concert played to what was then the largest stadium crowd in the history of rock and roll.[1]

The Paul McCartney World Tour
Tour by Paul McCartney
Cover of the tour booklet
Associated albumFlowers in the Dirt
Start date26 September 1989
End date29 July 1990
Legs9
No. of shows103
Paul McCartney concert chronology
Concert ticket for 15 December 1989

Tour

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The World Tour was Paul McCartney's first world tour under his own name; it was also his first major tour outing in ten years, following the Wings UK Tour 1979, and his first world tour since the 1976 Wings Over the World Tour (both also with Linda McCartney).

While the tour coincided with the release of the solo album Flowers in the Dirt, and promoted that record by inclusion of its songs in the set list, The Paul McCartney World Tour has been characterised as thematically more about him embracing his Beatles past; for the first time in any of his tours, a substantial number of Beatles songs were featured in the set list.

The tour was documented by the 1990 live albums Tripping the Live Fantastic and Tripping the Live Fantastic: Highlights!, and the 1991 concert film Get Back. A one-hour tour documentary was also aired on Channel 4 in the UK, titled From Rio to Liverpool.

Set designs

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The sets for the tour were designed by regular McCartney collaborator, the artist Brian Clarke, who together with Linda McCartney created the album cover for Flowers in the Dirt. The hand-painted stage set backdrops, notable for their scale, were executed under Clarke’s supervision by the scenic painters Elms Lesters, at the Los Angeles Painting Rooms. The scale designs for the tour, individual artworks by Clarke in acrylic and paper collage on Velin, were first publicly exhibited in 1990, at the Mayor Gallery in London. Elements from the sets appear as the graphic basis of much of the promotional material.

Brian Clarke’s painted and collaged set designs for the tour, showing the original backdrops for the arena concerts, and the additional wings designed for shows in larger stadiums.

Tour booklet

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Concert attendees received, free of additional charge, a lavish 9x12-inch 98-me page booklet, containing the tour itinerary, lengthy profiles of the band members, descriptions of the tour's stage and logistics, and an extended description of Friends of the Earth's mission. Two-thirds of the booklet consisted of McCartney's reflections upon his life and career, illustrated by many photographs.

Set list

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The following set list is obtained from the September 28, 1989 concert in Scandinavium, Gothenburg.[2] It is not intended to represent all dates throughout the tour.

Tour dates

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DateCityCountryVenue
Europe
26 September 1989DrammenNorwayDrammenshallen
28 September 1989GothenburgSwedenScandinavium
29 September 1989StockholmIsstadion
30 September 1989
3 October 1989HamburgWest GermanyAlsterdorfer Sporthalle
4 October 1989
6 October 1989FrankfurtFesthalle
7 October 1989
9 October 1989ParisFrancePalais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy
10 October 1989
11 October 1989
16 October 1989DortmundWest GermanyWestfalenhalle
17 October 1989
20 October 1989MunichOlympiahalle
21 October 1989
22 October 1989
24 October 1989RomeItalyPalaeur
26 October 1989MilanPalatrussardi
27 October 1989
29 October 1989ZürichSwitzerlandHallenstadion
30 October 1989
2 November 1989MadridSpainPalacio de los Deportes
3 November 1989
5 November 1989LyonFranceHalle Tony Garnier
7 November 1989RotterdamNetherlandsRotterdam Ahoy
8 November 1989
10 November 1989
11 November 1989
North America
23 November 1989InglewoodUnited StatesGreat Western Forum
24 November 1989
27 November 1989
28 November 1989
29 November 1989
3 December 1989RosemontRosemont Horizon
4 December 1989
5 December 1989
7 December 1989TorontoCanadaSkyDome
9 December 1989MontrealMontreal Forum
11 December 1989New York CityUnited StatesMadison Square Garden
12 December 1989
14 December 1989
15 December 1989
Europe
2 January 1990BirminghamEnglandNational Exhibition Centre
3 January 1990
5 January 1990
6 January 1990
8 January 1990
9 January 1990
11 January 1990LondonWembley Arena
13 January 1990
14 January 1990
16 January 1990
17 January 1990
19 January 1990
20 January 1990
21 January 1990
23 January 1990
24 January 1990
26 January 1990
North America
1 February 1990Auburn HillsUnited StatesThe Palace of Auburn Hills
2 February 1990
4 February 1990PittsburghCivic Arena
5 February 1990
8 February 1990WorcesterWorcester Centrum
9 February 1990
12 February 1990CincinnatiRiverfront Coliseum
14 February 1990IndianapolisMarket Square Arena
15 February 1990
18 February 1990AtlantaThe Omni
19 February 1990
Asia
3 March 1990TokyoJapanTokyo Dome
5 March 1990
7 March 1990
9 March 1990
11 March 1990
13 March 1990
North America
29 March 1990SeattleUnited StatesKingdome
31 March 1990BerkeleyCalifornia Memorial Stadium
1 April 1990
4 April 1990TempeSun Devil Stadium
7 April 1990IrvingTexas Stadium
9 April 1990LexingtonRupp Arena
12 April 1990TampaTampa Stadium
14 April 1990Miami GardensJoe Robbie Stadium
15 April 1990
South America
20 April 1990Rio de JaneiroBrazilMaracanã Stadium
21 April 1990
Europe
23 June 1990GlasgowScotlandS.E.C.C. Arena
28 June 1990LiverpoolEnglandKing's Dock
30 June 1990StevenageKnebworth Park
North America
4 July 1990Washington, D.C.United StatesRFK Stadium
6 July 1990
9 July 1990East RutherfordGiants Stadium
11 July 1990
14 July 1990PhiladelphiaVeterans Stadium
15 July 1990
18 July 1990AmesCyclone Stadium
20 July 1990ClevelandCleveland Stadium
22 July 1990RaleighCarter–Finley Stadium
24 July 1990FoxboroughFoxboro Stadium
26 July 1990
29 July 1990ChicagoSoldier Field

Box office score data

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VenueCityTickets sold / availableGross revenue
The Palace of Auburn HillsAuburn Hills35,294 / 35,294$1,005,879
Civic ArenaPittsburgh29,365 / 29,365$836,903
Worcester CentrumWorcester29,600 / 29,600$728,545
Riverfront ColiseumCincinnati14,545 / 14,545$414,533
Market Square ArenaIndianapolis30,650 / 30,650$873,525
The OmniAtlanta29,784 / 29,784$848,844
California Memorial StadiumBerkeley118,352 / 118,352$3,550,560
Sun Devil StadiumTempe66,546 / 66,546$1,996,380
Texas StadiumIrving57,337 / 57,337$1,863,453
Rupp ArenaLexington19,951 / 19,951$568,604
Tampa StadiumTampa58,241 / 58,241$1,747,230
Joe Robbie StadiumMiami Gardens95,410 / 95,410$2,862,300
RFK StadiumWashington, D.C.91,892 / 91,892$2,756,760
Giants StadiumEast Rutherford105,082 / 105,082$3,415,165
Veterans StadiumPhiladelphia102,695 / 102,695$3,107,980
Cyclone StadiumAmes53,763 / 53,763$1,747,298
Cleveland StadiumCleveland66,476 / 66,476$1,994,280
Carter–Finley StadiumRaleigh51,260 / 51,260$1,537,800
Foxboro StadiumFoxborough85,938 / 85,938$2,578,110
Soldier FieldChicago55,630 / 55,630$1,807,975
Total1,197,811 / 1,197,811
(100%)
$36,242,124

Personnel

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Outdoor stage and show, 14 July 1990 at Philadelphia's Veterans Stadium

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Tour Archives: The Paul McCartney World Tour". paulmccartney.com. MPL Communications). Retrieved 12 Dec 2020.
  2. ^ Paul McCartney Concert Setlist at Scandinavium, Gothenburg, Sweden on September 28, 1989 http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/paul-mccartney/1989/scandinavium-gothenburg-sweden-63d11ec7.html