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The Game Tour

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The Game Tour
World tour by Queen
Location
  • North America
  • Europe
  • Asia
  • South America
Associated albumThe Game
Start date30 June 1980
End date25 November 1981
Legs6
No. of shows
  • 49 in North America
  • 18 in Europe
  • 5 in Asia
  • 10 in South America
  • 82 in total
Queen concert chronology

The Game Tour was the eighth headlining concert tour by the British rock band Queen to support their successful 1980 album The Game. This tour featured the first performances in South America by the group. This tour marked the last time Queen played without a fifth player, as all tours from 1982 onwards would feature an extra man playing on keyboard.

Background

[edit]

This tour marked the introduction of a new lighting rig for Queen; the "Fly Swatters", also referred to as the "Bic Razors". This is also the first tour where Freddie Mercury had his moustache grown out. He would often ask the audience what they thought, to a mixed reception, where he would often pledge to keep it.[1] Several songs from the new album were incorporated, such as "Play the Game", "Need Your Loving Tonight", and "Rock It". The latter two of which saw very few performances on this leg of the tour, with Rock It being dropped before the four Inglewood dates, and Need Your Loving Tonight being dropped in the middle of August. Both songs would return to the stage in one form or another. Notably, "Somebody to Love" was only performed rarely early in the tour, being practically absent in the first three legs, but would return as a staple to the set by early March in South America. Early in the North American tour, as suggested by bootleg recordings, Mercury's voice mostly retained his late 1970s vocal tone in July before changing it to a more "macho" and aggressive style in August to match his appearance.

1980

[edit]
The July 14, 1980 concert at the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena

At one of the concerts in Inglewood, Michael Jackson recommended that the band release Another One Bites the Dust as a single, which they did. Believing it not to be single material, the song became a large success for the band, particularly in North America. The Hartford concert in August marks the first known time the song was played live. Dragon Attack was added to the set in Providence later that same month. "You're My Best Friend", a successful single for the band, was dropped from the medley after the last night of the North American leg, at the Madison Square Garden.

At the start of the European leg of the tour, the Battle Theme from the Flash Gordon soundtrack was incorporated into the set. "Need Your Loving Tonight" was also reincorporated into the set after a lengthy absence, now coming after "Get Down, Make Love". The concert in Essen featured the first performance of "The Hero" from the Flash Gordon soundtrack, with the second night in Birmingham being the debut of "Flash's Theme".

Due to the murder of John Lennon on the 8th of December, the members of Queen created an arrangement of Lennon's greatest hit, "Imagine", which was played on a handful of dates (in place of "Keep Yourself Alive"), including the night after Lennon's death, and on the final night of the leg. "Need Your Loving Tonight" and "Jailhouse Rock" were also dropped on the 9th.

1981

[edit]

On the Japanese leg of the tour, Vultan's Theme was added to the setlist on February 13, staying as part of the set until the end of the leg.

Queen (with Mercury in an Argentina jersey) meeting Diego Maradona (in a United Kingdom jersey) before their last concert in Buenos Aires, March 8, 1981 [2]

Queen was encouraged to play in South America, after discovering that they were extremely popular. In Buenos Aires, Queen drew a crowd of 300,000—the largest single concert crowd in Argentine history as of 1982.[3] In São Paulo, Brazil, the attendance was 131,000 and 120,000 on two consecutive nights.[4] All three Buenos Aires shows were filmed and broadcast, however, only the second night has its footage completely available. A fragment of the first night's footage and a screenshot of the third night's are all that are known to exist. The first São Paulo show was also broadcast and is widely available, however, the second night only circulates via a low quality broadcast, and a poor-quality bootleg.

This was the only tour that Queen played in Venezuela, where they were due to play 5 shows in its capital city, Caracas. However, after their third performance on 27 September, the Venezuelan government declared an 8-day period of National Mourning due to the passing of one of Venezuela's former president. The remaining two concerts were cancelled and all tickets were refunded to more than 50,000 fans.[5] The third night was filmed and was eventually leaked.

Queen were due to play two nights in Monterrey and Guadalajara each, however, due to subpar treatment of the crew by locals during the first night in Monterrey, Queen cancelled the remaining three shows. Two nights in Puebla were quickly set up as replacements, where the band faced unruly crowds that often threw shoes at the band.

1981 Montreal Concerts

[edit]

In 1980, director Saul Swimmer approached Queen with the idea of producing a concert film. Initially proposed to be shot at the Madison Square Garden, the band moved shooting to the Montreal Forum in Canada due to the audience being louder than the monitors there. When filming was occurring, Saul Swimmer wanted the band to choreograph their act and wear the same costumes on both nights, so he could switch between the footage at will. Out of spite, Jailhouse Rock was performed on the first night, with Mercury still in his trousers, which he wore during the first encore. During the second night, not only was the Elvis cover not performed, but Freddie had also switched to shorts for the first encore, to deliberately mess with the continuity of the footage.

Somehow, Swimmer acquired the rights to the footage. Many overdubs were made to the footage, such as most of Another One Bites the Dust, Sheer Heart Attack, Jailhouse Rock, the rock section of Bohemian Rhapsody, and the first verse of Let Me Entertain You.[6] The footage was given a dry mix and released in 1982 as "We Will Rock You" by Mobilevision. Despite being performed during the first encore of the first night, "Jailhouse Rock" was placed after "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" on official releases.

The film was released many times, including in 1984, 1997,[a] and 2001,[b][7] before the rights to the film were bought back by Queen Productions in early 2007. As all the footage that had not been included in the final cut had been discarded, the band could not re-edit the film, and could only remaster the video and remix the audio. Nonetheless, the intro sequence of Now I'm Here was recreated. Additionally, Love of My Life had an audience overdubbed onto it, and several fixes were made via pitch correction. Because of this, a good portion of the overdubs was removed.[6] The footage was re-released properly in 2007 as "Queen Rock Montreal", and has received much critical acclaim since.[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17]

Tour dates

[edit]
List of tour dates with date, city, country, venue
Date City Country Venue Attendance Gross Ref(s)
North America
30 June 1980 Vancouver Canada Pacific Coliseum N/A
1 July 1980 Seattle United States Seattle Center Coliseum
2 July 1980 Portland Portland Memorial Coliseum
5 July 1980 San Diego San Diego Sports Arena 11,500 / 11,500 $110,000 [18]
6 July 1980 Phoenix Compton Terrace 8,410 / 8,410 $77,351 [19]
8 July 1980 Inglewood The Forum 60,800 / 60,800 $594,970 [19]
9 July 1980 [19]
11 July 1980 [19]
12 July 1980 [19]
13 July 1980 Oakland Oakland Coliseum Arena 19,861 / 29,000 $179,466 [20]
14 July 1980 [20]
5 August 1980 Memphis Mid-South Coliseum 6,200 / 11,999 $50,611 [21]
6 August 1980 Baton Rouge Riverside Centroplex Arena N/A
8 August 1980 Oklahoma City Myriad Convention Center
9 August 1980 Dallas Reunion Arena 10,313 / 18,500 $90,925
10 August 1980 Houston The Summit 10,222 / 17,048 $98,642 [21]
12 August 1980 Atlanta Omni Coliseum N/A
13 August 1980 Charlotte Charlotte Coliseum
14 August 1980 Greensboro Greensboro Coliseum 5,200 / 8598 $41,976
16 August 1980 Charleston Charleston Civic Center 5,459 / 7,092 $43,262
17 August 1980[c] Indianapolis Market Square Arena
20 August 1980[d] Hartford Hartford Civic Center 9,930 /13,000 $91,590 [23]
22 August 1980[e] Philadelphia The Spectrum 14,117 / 18,454 $121,764 [23]
23 August 1980[f] Baltimore Baltimore Civic Center 8,695 / 12,007 $73,827
24 August 1980[g] Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Civic Arena 7,319 / 17,500 $64,260
26 August 1980 Providence Providence Civic Center
27 August 1980 Portland Cumberland County Civic Center
29 August 1980 Montreal Canada Montreal Forum 16,403 / 16,403 $173,447 [24]
30 August 1980 Toronto CNE Grandstand 22,312 / 22,312 $227,166 [24]
10 September 1980 Milwaukee United States MECCA Arena 6,705 N/A [25]
12 September 1980 Kansas City Kemper Arena 10,825 / 12,000 $100,529 [26]
13 September 1980 Omaha Omaha Civic Auditorium N/A
14 September 1980 Saint Paul St. Paul Civic Center 13,900 $133,000 [27]
16 September 1980 Ames Hilton Coliseum 9,215 / 10,372 $84,143 [27]
17 September 1980 St. Louis Checkerdome 6,667 / 10,000 $61,295 [27]
19 September 1980 Rosemont Rosemont Horizon N/A
20 September 1980 Detroit Joe Louis Arena 15,559 / 15,559 $152,955 [27]
21 September 1980 Richfield Richfield Coliseum N/A
23 September 1980 Glens Falls Glens Falls Civic Center 7,500 / 7,500 $67,694 [28]
24 September 1980 Syracuse Onondaga County War Memorial N/A
26 September 1980[h] Boston Boston Garden 13,000 / 13,000 $131,580 [28]
28 September 1980 New York City Madison Square Garden 50,000 / 50,000 $500,000 [29]
29 September 1980 [29]
30 September 1980 [29]
Europe
23 November 1980 Zürich Switzerland Hallenstadion N/A
25 November 1980 Paris France La Rotonde du Bourget
26 November 1980 Cologne West Germany Sporthalle
27 November 1980 Leiden Netherlands Groenoordhallen
29 November 1980 Essen West Germany Grugahalle
30 November 1980 West Berlin Deutschlandhalle
1 December 1980 Bremen Stadthalle Bremen
5 December 1980 Birmingham England Birmingham International Arena
6 December 1980
8 December 1980 London Wembley Arena
9 December 1980
10 December 1980
12 December 1980 Brussels Belgium Forest National
13 December 1980
14 December 1980 Frankfurt West Germany Festhalle Frankfurt
16 December 1980 Strasbourg France Hall Rhénus
18 December 1980 Munich West Germany Olympiahalle
Asia
12 February 1981 Tokyo Japan Nippon Budokan N/A
13 February 1981
16 February 1981
17 February 1981
18 February 1981
South America Bites the Dust
28 February 1981 Buenos Aires Argentina José Amalfitani Stadium 54,000 N/A
1 March 1981 52,000
4 March 1981[i] Mar del Plata Estadio José María Minella 30,000
6 March 1981 Rosario Estadio Gigante de Arroyito 34,000
8 March 1981 Buenos Aires José Amalfitani Stadium 58,000
20 March 1981 São Paulo Brazil Estádio do Morumbi 131,000 N/A
21 March 1981 120,000
Gluttons for Punishment
25 September 1981 Caracas Venezuela Poliedro de Caracas N/A
26 September 1981
27 September 1981
9 October 1981 Monterrey Mexico Estadio Universitario
17 October 1981 Puebla Estadio Ignacio Zaragoza
18 October 1981
We Will Rock You/Queen Rock Montreal
24 November 1981 Montreal Canada Montreal Forum N/A
25 November 1981

Cancelled concerts

[edit]
16 August 1980 New York City Battery Park Open Air Cancelled.[22]
17 August 1980 Cincinnati Riverfront Coliseum Cancelled.[22]
2 September 1980 New Haven Veterans Memorial Coliseum Cancelled.[22]
5 September 1980 Lexington Rupp Arena Cancelled.[22]
9 September 1980 Madison Dane County Coliseum Cancelled.[22]
13 March 1981 Porto Alegre Estádio Olímpico Monumental Cancelled.[22]
27 March 1981 Rio de Janeiro Maracanã Stadium Rescheduled to October 1981, then cancelled.[22]
29 September 1981 Caracas Poliedro de Caracas Cancelled due to Romulo Betancourt's national mourning period.[22]
30 September 1981 Caracas Poliedro de Caracas Cancelled due to Romulo Betancourt's national mourning period.[22]
10 October 1981 Monterrey Estadio Universitario Cancelled.[22]
15 October 1981 Guadalajara Estadio Jalisco Cancelled.[22]
16 October 1981 Guadalajara Estadio Jalisco Cancelled.[22]

Personnel

[edit]
  • Freddie Mercury – lead vocals, piano, guitar ("Crazy Little Thing Called Love"), tambourine.
  • Brian May – guitar, backing vocals, piano.
  • Roger Taylor – drums, timpani, lead vocals ("I'm in Love With My Car"), backing vocals.
  • John Deacon – bass guitar, additional vocals

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ The "Commemorative Release"
  2. ^ This was remastered in THX for enhanced audio and video quality, though cropped to 16:9.
  3. ^ The 17 August 1980 concert in Indianapolis originally part scheduled to take place on 7 September 1980.[22]
  4. ^ The 20 August 1980 concert in Hartford was originally scheduled to take place on 24 August 1980.[22]
  5. ^ The 22 August 1980 concert in Philadelphia was originally scheduled to take place on 27 August 1980.[22]
  6. ^ The 23 August 1980 concert in Baltimore was originally scheduled to take place on 26 August 1980.[22]
  7. ^ The 24 August 1980 concert in Pittsburgh was originally scheduled to take place on 31 August 1980.[22]
  8. ^ The 26 September 1980 concert in Boston was originally scheduled to take place on 3 September 1980.[22]
  9. ^ The 4 March 1981 concert in Mar del Plata was originally scheduled to take place at Estadio Olímpico in Monterrey.[22]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "THE DAY FREDDIE MERCURY'S MUSTACHE APPEARED". Ultimate Classic Rock. 30 May 2020. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  2. ^ La historia detrás de la foto by Pablo Lisotto, La Nación, 30 Oct 2018
  3. ^ "Queen's Flashy Rock". The Washington Post. 27 July 1982.
  4. ^ Henke, James (11 June 1981). "Queen Holds Court in South America". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 9 September 2009.
  5. ^ "Archived copy". queenlive.ca. Archived from the original on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 30 June 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ^ a b Chinwonder2 (11 June 2021). "Queen – Montreal 1981 – Live vs. Overdubs (Episode 5)". YouTube. Retrieved 20 May 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ "Queen – We Will Rock You". Discogs. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
  8. ^ "Queen – Rock Montreal (Album)" (ASP). Austrian Charts (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  9. ^ "Queen – Rock Montreal (Album)" (ASP). Ultratop (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  10. ^ "Queen – Rock Montreal (Album)" (ASP). Ultratop (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  11. ^ "Queen – Rock Montreal (Album)" (ASP). Les Charts (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  12. ^ "Chartverfolgung / Queen / Longplay". Music Line (in German). Media Control Charts. Archived from the original on 17 October 2012. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  13. ^ "Queen – Rock Montreal (Album)" (ASP). Dutch Charts (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  14. ^ "Queen – Rock Montreal (Album)" (ASP). Portuguese Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  15. ^ "Queen – Rock Montreal (Album)" (ASP). Spanish Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  16. ^ "Queen – Rock Montreal (Album)" (ASP). Swiss Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  17. ^ "Queen – Rock Montreal (Album)". Mexican Charts. Hung Medien. Archived from the original (ASP) on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  18. ^ "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 29. 19 July 1980. p. 32. ISSN 0006-2510.
  19. ^ a b c d e "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 30. 26 July 1980. p. 50. ISSN 0006-2510.
  20. ^ a b "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 31. 2 August 1980. p. 36. ISSN 0006-2510.
  21. ^ a b "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 34. 23 August 1980. p. 32. ISSN 0006-2510.
  22. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Unknown, Unknown. "Cancelled and rescheduled concerts". qliverecordings. Queen Live Recordings. Retrieved 2 January 2020.
  23. ^ a b "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 36. 6 September 1980. p. 51. ISSN 0006-2510.
  24. ^ a b "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 37. 13 September 1980. p. 35. ISSN 0006-2510.
  25. ^ Samuels, Lennox (11 September 1980). "Queen one of best to pass through city". The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Archived from the original on 13 August 2015. Retrieved 24 July 2024.
  26. ^ "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 39. 27 September 1980. p. 37. ISSN 0006-2510.
  27. ^ a b c d "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 40. 4 October 1980. p. 37. ISSN 0006-2510.
  28. ^ a b "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 41. 11 October 1980. p. 41. ISSN 0006-2510.
  29. ^ a b c "Top Box Office" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 42. 18 October 1980. p. 31. ISSN 0006-2510.
[edit]
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