It's Official! Guns N' Roses North American Tour
By
Sefany Jones,
Contributing Editor
Thursday, September 26, 2002 @ 2:54 PM
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From GNRonline.com:
GUNS N' ROSES ANNOUNCE FIRST NORTH AMERICAN TOUR SINCE 1993!
Guns N' Roses originally exploded onto the music scene in 1985 with their own ferocious brand of rock n’ roll. They were riding a wave of frenzied musical energy, extreme behavior, and thrilling live performances led by the sheer force of nature that was, is and continues to be the legendary W. Axl Rose. In the process they have sold more than 80 million records. And now, they return with the “Chinese Democracy” World Tour. Their first full tour since 1993!
North America will be the setting for the World Premiere of GN’ R’s full-bang, high-octane “Chinese Democracy” world tour production. Fans will witness the sonic assault of the ‘Guns N' Roses experience,’ that will feature a mixture of classic GN'R songs and new material from their forthcoming album.
Nearly nine years have passed since Guns N' Roses embarked on their last world tour. Fortunately, the most important piece is still in place and for people wondering where Axl Rose has been, he's been busy writing and recording a new album, Chinese Democracy, that promises to surpass all of his previous efforts. Keyboard player Dizzy Reed has been in GN'R since 1991 and along with Axl is the holdover from the band's previous line-up. New to the fold are three guitarists: Robin Finck, formerly of Nine Inch Nails, guitar phenomenon Buckethead, and Richard Fortus. Rounding out the all-star line-up is bassist Tommy Stinson from The Replacements, a second keyboard player Chris Pitman, and Brian "Brain" Mantia formerly of Primus on drums.
The band are fresh from the first six dates of the “Chinese Democracy” World Tour in China, Japan, Europe, and the U.K., where they set attendance and merchandise records at Tokyo (Chiba Marine Stadium-35,000 plus), Osaka (WTC Stadium-25,000 plus) and Leeds (Leeds Festival-52,000 plus), as well as their explosive and much talked-about appearance at this year’s MTV Video Music Awards in New York last month.
Following the launch of the World Tour in China, fans flooded the online website of England’s New Musical Express with hundreds of messages enthusing about the gig, including the following:
"I’ve just witnessed some kind of phenomenon, the most intense and remarkable two hours of my life. I have been to countless gigs but never before have I been so totally overwhelmed and engulfed by such an awesome performance as tonight. This band is going to take the world by storm, they are simply amazing. As musicians, there is no band ever that has the talent of this one, and as for charisma every member is a superstar.
"The highlight for me though was Mr. Axl Rose. He looked young and healthy and his voice was stunning, he will go down in history as the greatest frontman ever, he was totally awesome and should be commended."
Prior to the band’s performance in China, W. Axl Rose conducted a brief interview with the band’s official website www.gnronline.com and was asked how he felt about speculation as to whether or not Guns N’ Roses would actually be performing. His reply was as follows:
"To the ones who are negative and want to see either myself or the new band fall on their faces, personally I can't pass up an opportunity to upset so many of them in one quick swoop. I get misty-eyed just thinking about it. I feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside! But seriously...this is our tour. This is a collection of performances I've agreed to. That I have personally authorized not someone else's good intentions gone awry or a reckless promoter's personal agenda. These shows are important to us and for better or worse we'll be there. For those who've had my back and are down by us with even a modicum of understanding we hope to give you our best, and look forward to seeing you on this little intro jaunt."
Axl and Guns N’ Roses gave their best and delivered big time for the people of China, Japan, Europe, and the U.K.
Now it is North America’s turn!
Current North American itinerary is as follows. More dates will be added soon. All dates are subject to change:
11/07/02 Vancouver, BC General Motors Place
11/08/02 Tacoma, WA Tacoma Dome
11/11/02 Nampa, ID Idaho Center
11/14/02 Minneapolis, MN Target Center
11/15/02 Fargo, ND Fargodome
11/17/02 Moline, IL Mark Of The Quad Cities
11/18/02 Rosemont, IL Allstate Arena
11/19/02 Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena
11/21/02 Auburn Hills, MI Palace Of Auburn Hills
11/22/02 Lexington, KY Rupp Arena
11/24/02 Cleveland, OH Gund Arena
11/26/02 Buffalo, NY HSBC Arena
11/27/02 Albany, NY Pepsi Arena
11/29/02 Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre
11/30/02 Uniondale, NY Nassau Coliseum
12/02/02 Boston, MA FleetCenter
12/03/02 Hartford, CT Hartford Civic Center
12/05/02 New York, NY Madison Square Garden
12/06/02 Philadelphia, PA First Union Center
12/08/02 Wilkes-Barre, PA First Union Arena
12/09/02 Washington, DC MCI Center
12/11/02 Greenville, SC Bi Lo Center
12/13/02 Tampa, FL To Be Announced
12/14/02 Fort Lauderdale, FL To Be Announced
12/19/02 Biloxi, MS Miss. Coast Coliseum
12/21/02 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
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