The Joshua Tree Tour

The Joshua Tree Tour
The Joshua Tree Tour was a concert tour by the Irish rock band U2, which took
The Joshua Tree Tour
place during 1987, in support of their album The Joshua Tree. The tour was depicted
by the video and live album Live from Paris and in the film and part-live album Tour by U2
Rattle and Hum.
Contents
Itinerary
Cover performances
Filming for Rattle and Hum documentary
Support acts
Injuries
Set list
Tour dates Location North America,
See also Europe
References Associated The Joshua Tree
External links album
Start date 2 April 1987
End date 20 December
Itinerary 1987
This tour's opening night was 2 April at Arizona State University's Activity Center Legs 3
in Tempe, Arizona. The day before the opening night, Bono fell onto a spotlight he
No. of shows 110
was carrying during a rendition of "Bullet the Blue Sky", cutting open his chin.
Bono had partially lost his voice as a result. He asked the audience to help him sing U2 concert chronology
the majority of the set, which they were happy to do. At the time, it was explained
by their publicists in a press release that it was due to the week of rehearsals the
band held at A.S.U.'s Activity Center and he had over rehearsed his voice. He had
fully regained his voice for the second of the two shows at the arena on 4 April.
The first leg took place in American indoor arenas during April and May. The 29
concerts generated US$7,501,329 with a total of 465,452 tickets sold. 1,063 tickets
from Las Vegas remained unsold equating to a 99.77% sellout for the 1st American
leg.[1] The first leg finished with 5 concerts at the Brendan Byrne Arena in East Fans waiting for U2 outside Hartford
Rutherford between 11 and 16 May. Civic Center May 1987
The second leg in European arenas and outdoor stadiums ran from late May through
to early August, starting at the Stadio Flaminio in Rome on 27 May.[2] The final show of the European leg is at Páirc Uí Chaoimh in
Cork on 8 August.[3]
The third leg returned to American and Canadian arenas and stadiums in the autumn. The tour ended on 20 December back where it
started in Tempe, Arizona, but this time atSun Devil Stadium.
On 30 April, the band played the Pontiac Silverdome, their first headlining stadium show in the United States. While the show's
reviews were positive, they said that a video screen is necessary for people at the back. U2 production manager, Willie Williams,
recalls the debate within the band about the use of screens and whether they would divide the audience's attention between the stage
and the screen.[4] A video screen was installed behind the lighting tower at the 20 September show at the RFK Stadium in
Washington, D.C. so the back half of the stadium could better see the band, and screens were used at most stadium shows for the rest
of the tour.[5]
The Joshua Tree Tour sold out stadiums around the world, the first time the band had consistently played venues of that size. The
Joshua Tree and its singles had become huge hits and the band had reached a new height in their popularity. Tickets for shows were
often very hard to get, especially on the first American leg when they only played in arenas.
That first leg was also organised around multiple-night stands in centres of U2 fandom along the two U.S. coasts, with only a very
few dates in the middle of the country. These multiple-night stands also featured an unusual set list twist. All but the last night would
begin in conventional concert fashion with the rousing pair of "Where the Streets Have No Name" into "I Will Follow", but the last
night in each city would begin with the house lights fully up and the band performing the early 1960s classic "Stand By Me", with
The Edge singing one verse, all intended as a friendly
, informal opening. The house lights would then stay up for "Pride (In the Name
of Love)", only going off at the end of it; the rest of the set list would be consequently scrambled from the norm.
ganisation under a large amount of stress.[6]

The new level of fame, exposure and the frantic nature of the tour put the U2 or
The 79 North American shows on the tour sold 2,035,539 tickets and grossed US$35 million.[7] In total, the tour grossed
US$40 million[8] and drew 3 million attendees.[9]
Cover performances
At Wembley Stadium in London, Bono sang The Beatles' "Help!", dedicating it to those
in the audience who were dreading another five years of the recently re-elected Prime
Minister, Margaret Thatcher. As another sign of the group's confidence, they also
covered The Beatles' heretofore untouchable "Helter Skelter", declaring "This is a song
Charles Manson stole from the Beatles; we're stealin' it back." Other notable covers
from the tour included Eddie Cochran's "C'mon Everybody", Peggy Seeger's "The
Ballad of Springhill", Neil Young's "Southern Man", Curtis Mayfield's "People Get
Ready" (during which Bono would invite a fan to play guitar on the song) and numerous
Bob Dylan covers including "Maggie's Farm" and "I Shall Be Released". On 20 April,
The back of the most commonT-
following a performance of I Shall Be Released in Los Angeles, the band surprised the
shirt from the Joshua Tree Tour's
audience by bringing out Dylan himself for a performance of Knockin' on Heaven's first leg.
Door. During the performance, Bono jokingly said, "I usually make up my own words to
Bob Dylan songs. He says he doesn't mind." Dylan replied in kind, saying "I do it too."
Bono often would sing excerpts of other songs, notably ones by The Rolling Stones and Lou Reed's Walk on the Wild Side, near the
end of the song Bad as he had done during theLive Aid performance and would do on later tours.
U2 covered Ben E. King's "Stand By Me" at their 25 September, '87 show at Philadelphia's old JFK Stadium, accompanied by a guest
performance from Bruce Springsteen.
The band performed "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" at their final concert in Tempe, Arizona on 20 December 1987. The
band had recorded the track for the compilation albumA Very Special Christmas months earlier on the European leg of their tour
.
Filming for Rattle and Hum documentary

The band filmed and recorded various shows from the tour for the documentary and album Rattle and Hum. The band filmed the
black-and-white footage at Denver's McNichols Sports Arena on 7 and 8 November 1987. They chose the city following the success
of their Live at Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky video, which was filmed at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in 1983. "We thought
lightning might strike twice", said guitarist The Edge. Seven songs from the second show were used in the film, none from the
first.[10] Hours before the second Denver show, an IRA bomb killed eleven people at a Remembrance Day ceremony in the Northern
Irish town of Enniskillen (see Remembrance Day Bombing). Bono addressed the event angrily during the band's performance of
Sunday Bloody Sunday, which was included in the film. Bono's reference to the number of people killed in the incident was later
edited for the film to reflect the actual number
.
The band also gave a brief, free performance in San Francisco, California three days later on 11 November 1987, billed as the "Save
the Yuppies" concert, from which the performance of "All Along the Watchtower" was taken for the film and album. During the
performance of "Sunday Bloody Sunday", Bono observed a fan holding a sign with the letters "SF" and "U2" on it. Believing the
"SF" in the sign to refer to Sinn Féin, Bono reacted angrily to the fan and the sign, apparently not realizing that the "SF" more likely
stood for San Francisco. Also during the performance, Bono spray painted "Stop the Traffic, Rock and Roll" on the Vaillancourt
Fountain in Justin Herman Plaza, which was captured in the film.The act angered some, including then-mayorDianne Feinstein.
At least part of the band's second concert in Fort Worth, Texas was filmed and featured in the film, as the band performed an early
version of the then-unreleased song "When Love Comes to Town" with blues performer B.B. King. The band would go on to tour
with King on their Lovetown Tour two years later.
Colour outdoor concert footage was taken from the band's Tempe, Arizona shows on 19 December 1987 and 20 December 1987. The
initial plan was that the colour outdoor footage would have been taken during 2 shows in Buenos Aires, but during the tour planning
this became impossible due to heavy costs to transport all the equipment.[11] The shows were the final two of the tour, having been
held in the same city in which the tour opened.
Support acts
A number of opening acts were used for the tour. Lone Justice was still given emphasis in this role, as they had been on the
Unforgettable Fire Tour, but it was not enough to give them a successful career. Other openers included The Pretenders, Big Audio
Dynamite, UB40, Little Steven, The BoDeans, Mason Ruffner, World Party, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Spear of Destiny, The Waterboys,
Hurrah!, Los Lobos, Buckwheat Zydeco, The Pogues, The Alarm, The Silencers, and Lou Reed.
On 1 November in Indianapolis, U2 appeared as their own support act, disguised as "The Dalton Brothers", playing between sets by
the Bodeans and Los Lobos. They were dressed in Western outfits and wigs while Bono spoke with a twangy southern accent.
Playing their own country-influenced song, "Lucille", and Hank Williams' "Lost Highway", only some of the audience in the front
few rows recognised them. "The Dalton Brothers" also appeared at concerts in Los Angeles and Hampton,irginia.
V [10]
B.B. King was the opening act for both final shows of the tour on 19 and 20 December at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona, and
in Fort Worth same year.
Injuries
During rehearsals on 1 April 1987, the day before the opening show in Tempe, Arizona, Bono fell onto a spotlight he was carrying
during a rendition of "Bullet the Blue Sky", cutting open his chin. He was taken to a hospital and the wound was stitched up.[12]
Bono later said, "I was lost in the music and at the start of any tour you're just getting to know the physicality of the stage... and
you're overestimating your own physicality. You think you're made of metal and you're not. Cuts and bruises, that's what I remember
from The Joshua Tree."[13]
Bono sustained a second injury on 20 September 1987 during a concert at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. on the third leg of the
tour. He fell off the rain-slicked stage and dislocated his arm.[5] He completed the performance and had his arm popped back into
place after its conclusion. His arm was in a sling for twelve shows between 22 September and 20 October, which is visible at some
points during the 1988 filmRattle and Hum.[14]
Set list
This set list is representative of the tour's average setlist as conducted by Setlist.fm, which represents all concerts for the duration of
the tour.[15]
1. "Where the Streets Have No Name"

2. "I Will Follow"
3. "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"
4. "Trip Through Your Wires"
5. "MLK"
6. "The Unforgettable Fire"
7. "Exit"
8. "Sunday Bloody Sunday"
9. "In God's Country"
10. "Gloria"
11. "Help!" (The Beatles cover)
12. "People Get Ready" (The Impressions cover)
13. "Bad"
14. "October"
15. "New Year's Day"
16. "Pride (In the Name of Love)"
Encore
1. "Bullet the Blue Sky"

2. "Running to Stand Still"
3. "With or Without You"
4. "40"
Tour dates
List of concerts, showing date, city, country, venue, tickets sold, number of available ticket
s and gross revenue
Date City Country Venue Attendance Revenue
North America[16][17]
2 April 1987 Arizona State

25,113 /
Tempe University Activity $389,251
25,113
4 April 1987 Center
Tucson Community
5 April 1987 Tucson 8,032 / 8,032 $124,496
Center
7 April 1987 27,251 /
Houston The Summit $368,974
8 April 1987 27,251
12,500 /
10 April 1987 Las Cruces Pan American Center $185,580
12,500
12 April 1987 Paradise Thomas & Mack Center 8,637 / 9,700 $138,192
13 April 1987 San Diego Sports 27,937 /
San Diego $450,384
14 April 1987 Arena 27,937
17 April 1987
18 April 1987
Los Angeles Memorial 74,176 /
20 April 1987 Los Angeles $1,298,080
Sports Arena 74,176
21 April 1987
22 April 1987
24 April 1987 United States
25,785 /
Daly City Cow Palace $425,453
25 April 1987 25,785
16,854 /
29 April 1987 Rosemont Rosemont Horizon $270,923
16,854
51,718 /
30 April 1987 Pontiac Pontiac Silverdome $853,347
51,718
2 May 1987
37,482 /
3 May 1987 Worcester Centrum in Worcester $601,739
37,482
4 May 1987
7 May 1987
47,327 /
8 May 1987 Hartford Hartford Civic Center $773,632
47,327
9 May 1987
11 May 1987
12 May 1987
102,640 /
13 May 1987 East Rutherford Brendan Byrne Arena $1,621,278
102,640
15 May 1987
16 May 1987
Leg 2: Europe[2]
27 May 1987 Rome Stadio Flaminio N/A N/A
29 May 1987 Italy

Modena Stadio Alberto Braglia
30 May 1987
2 June 1987 London England Wembley Arena
3 June 1987 Birmingham National Exhibition
Centre
6 June 1987 Gothenburg Sweden Eriksberg
12 June 1987
London England Wembley Stadium
13 June 1987
15 June 1987 Paris France Le Zénith
17 June 1987 Cologne Germany Müngersdorfer Stadium
21 June 1987 Basel Switzerland St. Jakob Stadium
Northern
24 June 1987 Belfast King's Hall
Ireland
27 June 1987
Dublin Ireland Croke Park
28 June 1987
1 July 1987 Leeds England Elland Road
Hippodrome de
4 July 1987 Paris France
Vincennes
8 July 1987 Brussels Belgium Forest National
10 July 1987
Rotterdam Netherlands Feijenoord Stadion
11 July 1987
Santiago Bernabéu
15 July 1987 Madrid Spain
Stadium
18 July 1987 Montpellier France Espace Richter
21 July 1987
Munich Germany Olympiahalle
22 July 1987
25 July 1987 Cardiff Wales Cardiff Arms Park
29 July 1987 Scottish Exhibition and
Glasgow
30 July 1987 Scotland Conference Centre
1 August 1987 Edinburgh Murrayfield Stadium

3 August 1987 National Exhibition
Birmingham England
4 August 1987 Centre
8 August 1987 Cork Ireland Páirc Uí Chaoimh
Leg 3: North America[18][19]

10 September United States
1987 34,899 /
Uniondale Nassau Coliseum $648,603
11 September 34,899
1987
12 September 17,622 /
Philadelphia The Spectrum $323,509
1987 17,622
14 September 54,780 /
East Rutherford Giants Stadium $1,040,820
1987 54,780
17 September
1987 31,018 /
Boston Boston Garden $589,342
18 September 31,018
1987
20 September Washington, Robert F. Kennedy 51,016 /
$969,304
1987 D.C. Memorial Stadium 53,056
22 September Foxborough Sullivan Stadium 55,378 / $1,051,137
1987 55,378
23 September New Haven Veterans 10,535 /
New Haven $177,960
1987 Memorial Coliseum 10,535
25 September John F. Kennedy 86,145 /
Philadelphia $1,593,683
1987 Stadium 86,145
28 September
1987 Madison Square 39,510 /
New York City $744,838
29 September Garden 39,510
1987
66,117 /
1 October 1987 Montreal Olympic Stadium $1,243,660
66,117
Canada
62,846 /
3 October 1987 Toronto CNE Stadium $1,194,194
62,846
United States Cleveland Municipal 50,081 /
6 October 1987 Cleveland $901,458
Stadium 50,081
Buffalo Memorial 17,065 /
7 October 1987 Buffalo $298,638
Auditorium 17,065
39,157 /
9 October 1987 Syracuse Carrier Dome $685,248
39,157
11 October 30,500 /
Rochester Silver Stadium $564,250
1987 30,500
13 October
Pittsburgh Three Rivers Stadium N/A N/A
1987
20 October 15,846 /
Iowa City Carver–Hawkeye Arena $261,469
1987 15,846
22 October 16,193 /
Champaign Assembly Hall $275,281
1987 16,193
23 October 22,815 /
Lexington Rupp Arena $387,855
1987 22,815
25 October 18,237 /
St. Louis St. Louis Arena $317,153
1987 18,237
26 October 17,168 /
Kansas City Kemper Arena $297,535
1987 17,168
28 October
1987
29 October 51,998 /
Rosemont Rosemont Horizon $941,471
1987 51,998
30 October
1987
1 November
Indianapolis Hoosier Dome 38,441/ 38,441 $634,277
1987
3 November
1987 35,152 /
Saint Paul St. Paul Civic Center $615,160
4 November 35,152
1987
7 November
1987 34,000 /
Denver McNichols Arena $605,779
8 November 34,000
1987
11 November San Francisco Justin Herman Plaza N/A N/A
1987
12 November 54,204 /
Vancouver Canada BC Place Stadium $1,012,878
1987 54,204
14 November
1987 Oakland–Alameda 103,260 /
Oakland $2,013,570
15 November County Coliseum 119,000
1987
17 November
1987 Los Angeles Memorial 132,925 /
Los Angeles $2,590,457
18 November Coliseum 142,000
1987
Austin Frank Erwin Center $280,467
1987 17,202
23 November
1987 Tarrant County 27,560 /
Fort Worth $435,676
24 November Convention Center 27,560
1987
Baton Rouge LSU Assembly Center $249,025
1987 15,042
28 November Charles M. Murphy 11,619 /
Murfreesboro United States $203,333
1987 Athletic Center 11,619
3 December
Miami Orange Bowl N/A N/A
1987
5 December 58,865 /
Tampa Tampa Stadium $1,089,003
1987 58,865
8 December
1987 32,734 /
Atlanta The Omni $572,845
9 December 32,734
1987
11 December
1987 21,088 /
Hampton Hampton Coliseum $358,496
12 December 21,088
1987
19 December
1987 110,450 /
Tempe Sun Devil Stadium $552,340
20 December 110,450
1987
1,946,920 /
Total $33,312,043
1,974,838
See also
List of highest-attended concerts
List of highest-grossing concert tours
References
Footnotes
1. de la Parra (1996), p. 102.

2. de la Parra (2003), pp. 103–110
3. McGee (2008), p. 109.
4. McGee (2008), p. 104.
5. McGee (2008), p. 110.
6. Graham, Bill (17 December 1987). "Band on the Run".Hot Press.
7. Grossweiner, Bob (1 June 1992). "U2: It's A Business". Hit Parader.
8. Mico, Ted (January 1989). "Hating U2".Spin. Vol. 4 no. 10. pp. 35–37, 76.
9. Dalton, Stephen (October 2003). "How the W
est Was Won". Uncut. No. 77.
10. McGee (2008), p. 112
11. McGee (2008)
12. McGee (2008), p. 102.
13. U2 (July 2010). "Stairway to Devon − OK, Somerset!".Q. p. 103.
14. McGee (2008), pp. 110, 112.
15. "Average setlist for tour: The Joshua Tree" (https://www.setlist.fm/stats/average-setlist/u2-23d6b80f.html?tour=13d68
9e5). Setlist.fm. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
16. de la Parra (2003), pp. 79–102
17. North American 1st leg boxscore data:
"Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses" (http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1987/Billboard-19

87-04-18.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 16. 18 April 1987. p. 23.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.org/is
sn/0006-2510).
87-05-02.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 18. 2 May 1987. p. 36.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.org/iss
n/0006-2510).
87-05-09.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 19. 9 May 1987. p. 36.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.org/iss
n/0006-2510).
87-05-16.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 20. 16 May 1987. p. 26.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.org/is
sn/0006-2510).
87-05-23.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 21. 23 May 1987. p. 34.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.org/is
sn/0006-2510).
87-06-06.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 23. 6 June 1987. p. 41.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.org/iss
n/0006-2510).
18. de la Parra (2003), pp. 111–121
19. North American 2nd leg boxscore data:

87-09-26.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 39. 26 September 1987. p. 28.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldca
t.org/issn/0006-2510).
87-10-03.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 40. 3 October 1987. p. 29.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.org/
issn/0006-2510).
87-10-10.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 41. 10 October 1987. p. 23.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.or
g/issn/0006-2510).
g/issn/0006-2510).
g/issn/0006-2510).
g/issn/0006-2510).
87-11-07.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 45. 7 November 1987. p. 26.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.o
rg/issn/0006-2510).
87-11-14.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 46. 14 November 1987. p. 24.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.
org/issn/0006-2510).
org/issn/0006-2510).
org/issn/0006-2510).
87-12-05.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 49. 5 December 1987. p. 21.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.o
rg/issn/0006-2510).
87-12-12.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 50. 12 December 1987. p. 19.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.
org/issn/0006-2510).
87-12-19.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 51. 19 December 1987. p. 24.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.
org/issn/0006-2510).
"Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses" (https://books.google.com/books?id=JCgEAAAAMBAJ&lpg=P A60&hl=ko&pg=
PA42#v=onepage&q&f=false). Billboard. Vol. 99 no. 52. 26 December 1987. p. 42.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://ww
w.worldcat.org/issn/0006-2510).
"Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses" (http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1988/BB-1988-01-
23.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 100 no. 4. 23 January 1988. p. 26.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/
0006-2510).
"Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses" (http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1988/BB-1988-01-
09.pdf) (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 100 no. 2. 9 January 1988. p. 25.ISSN 0006-2510 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0
006-2510).
Bibliography
de la Parra, Pimm Jal (2003).U2 Live: A Concert Documentary(second ed.). New York: Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-
0-7119-9198-9.
McGee, Matt (2008). U2: A Diary. Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-1-84772-108-2.
External links
U2.com
The Joshua Tree Tour on U2Gigs
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ganisation under a large amount of stress.[6]

Filming for Rattle and Hum documentary

1. "Where the Streets Have No Name"

1. "Bullet the Blue Sky"

2 April 1987 Arizona State

29 May 1987 Italy

1 August 1987 Edinburgh Murrayfield Stadium

8 August 1987 Cork Ireland Páirc Uí Chaoimh

Leg 3: North America[18][19]

1. de la Parra (1996), p. 102.

"Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses" (http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1987/Billboard-19

"Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses" (http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1987/Billboard-19

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Joshua_T

This page was last edited on 20 March 2019, at 03:48(UTC).

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