1980 World Tour

1980 World Tour

Tour by Elton John
Location	North America Oceania
Associated album	21 at 33
Start date	4 September 1980
End date	22 December 1980
Legs	2
No. of shows	46 in North America 17 in Oceania 63 in total
Elton John concert chronology

The 1980 World Tour was a concert tour by English musician and composer Elton John, in support of his 14th studio album 21 at 33. the tour included two legs (North America and Oceania) and a total of 63 shows.

Tour

John's 1980 tour was unique for two reasons: it was the only tour he has ever done that had a guitarist in the band, but did not include Davey Johnstone, and it is the only time a band member (in this case drummer Nigel Olsson) has done songs from his solo career in the middle of a show. Olsson, who had rejoined John's band along with Dee Murray after six years, performed his own releases, "Saturday Night" and "All I Want Is You". And while Johnstone did make a guest appearance at one show (joining in on "Bite Your Lip (Get Up and Dance") at 6 November stop at The Forum in Los Angeles), he primarily was involved with Alice Cooper's career and had been replaced in John's band by two premiere session guitarists: Tim Renwick from England and American Richie Zito.

The new band did a private warm-up gig at the Palomino Club in Los Angeles on 25 August, exactly ten years to the day from his first American show at the nearby Troubadour. Then, with opening act Judie Tzuke, the tour moved across North America before landing with great fanfare at New York City's Central Park. There, on 13 September, John and the band played a free concert in front of an estimated 450,000 people. The show was highlighted by a cover of John Lennon's "Imagine" in the shadow of Lennon's apartment, and John's choice of costumes, including the "piano keys" outfit designed by Andre Miripolsky; he dressed as Donald Duck for the encores, in a costume designed by Bob Mackie. The Central Park show was recorded and broadcast as a concert special on HBO, and later released on home video. Clips from the show have been posted on Elton John's official website; however, to date no audio of the soundtrack has ever been officially released.

After the last United States show on 15 November in Honolulu, Hawaii, the tour concluded with 17 concerts in New Zealand and Australia, finishing at the Perth Entertainment Centre (as he had on the 1979 tour) on 22 December.

Tour dates

Date	City	Country	Venue
North America
4 September 1980	Madison	United States	Dane County Coliseum
5 September 1980	Rosemont		Rosemont Horizon
6 September 1980	Detroit		Joe Louis Arena
7 September 1980	Toronto	Canada	Maple Leaf Gardens
8 September 1980
9 September 1980	Montreal		Forum de Montréal
11 September 1980	Providence	United States	Providence Civic Center
12 September 1980	Hartford		Hartford Civic Center
13 September 1980	New York City		Central Park
16 September 1980	Baltimore		Baltimore Civic Center
18 September 1980	Charlotte		Charlotte Coliseum
19 September 1980	Columbia		Carolina Coliseum
20 September 1980	Raleigh		Reynolds Coliseum
23 September 1980	Hampton		Hampton Coliseum
25 September 1980	Oxford		Millett Hall
26 September 1980	Lexington		Rupp Arena
27 September 1980	Indianapolis		Market Square Arena
28 September 1980	Toledo		Centennial Hall
29 September 1980	Richfield		Richfield Coliseum
2 October 1980	West Lafayette		Elliott Hall of Music
3 October 1980	Carbondale		SIU Arena
4 October 1980	Champaign		Assembly Hall
5 October 1980	Lincoln		Bob Devaney Sports Center
7 October 1980	Tulsa		Tulsa Convention Center
9 October 1980	Oklahoma City		Myriad Convention Center
10 October 1980	Kansas City		Kemper Arena
11 October 1980	Ames		Hilton Coliseum
14 October 1980	Houston		The Summit
15 October 1980	Austin		Special Events Center
16 October 1980	Dallas		Reunion Arena
18 October 1980	Denver		McNichols Sports Arena
20 October 1980	Portland		Portland Memorial Coliseum
21 October 1980	Seattle		Seattle Center Coliseum
24 October 1980	Oakland		Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum
26 October 1980	Tucson		Tucson Convention Center
28 October 1980	Tempe		ASU Activity Center
29 October 1980	San Diego		San Diego Sports Arena
1 November 1980	Anaheim		Anaheim Convention Center
2 November 1980
6 November 1980	Inglewood		The Forum
7 November 1980
8 November 1980
9 November 1980
14 November 1980	Honolulu		Neal S. Blaisdell Center
15 November 1980
16 November 1980
Oceania
22 November 1980	Auckland	New Zealand	Western Springs Stadium
26 November 1980	Wellington		Athletic Park
30 November 1980	Sydney	Australia	Hordern Pavilion
1 December 1980
2 December 1980
3 December 1980
6 December 1980	Brisbane		Brisbane Festival Hall
7 December 1980
8 December 1980
11 December 1980	Melbourne		Festival Hall
12 December 1980
13 December 1980
16 December 1980	Adelaide		Memorial Drive Park
20 December 1980	Perth		Perth Entertainment Centre
21 December 1980
22 December 1980

Set list

1. "Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding"
2. "Tiny Dancer"
3. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road"
4. "All the Girls Love Alice"
5. "Rocket Man"
6. "Sartorial Eloquence"
7. "Philadelphia Freedom"
8. "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word"
9. "Saturday Night" (Nigel Olsson song)
10. "All I Want Is You" (Nigel Olsson song)
11. "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting"
12. "Harmony"
13. "White Lady, White Powder"
14. "Little Jeannie"
15. "Bennie and the Jets"
16. "Imagine" (John Lennon song)
17. "Ego"
18. "Have Mercy on the Criminal"
19. "Someone Saved My Life Tonight"
20. "Your Song"
21. "Bite Your Lip"

Personnel

• Elton John – lead vocals, piano
• Richie Zito – lead guitar, backing vocals
• Tim Renwick – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
• Dee Murray – bass guitar, backing vocals
• Nigel Olsson – drums, backing vocals
• James Newton Howard – keyboards, synthesizer, electric piano, backing vocals

External links

Quotations related to 1980 World Tour at Wikiquote

• Information Site with Tour Dates