David Bowie‘s bandmates, a literal plethora of British music legacy, have just revealed they’ll soon be hitting the road for a world tour titled A Bowie Celebration.
The David Bowie Alumni Tour is the full name for this extensive trek, and as of this writing will hit 11 countries throughout North America, Europe and the U.K. Overall, there will be 54 shows, with more concerts yet to be announced.
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A Bowie Celebration (or ABC) features members spanning throughout various different eras of Bowie’s musical career. Most notably, Mike Garson joins the roster as Bowie’s longest-standing touring musician. He was his keyboard and piano player.
Garson made the official tour announcement via Twitter on Monday morning.
He joined The Spiders from Mars back in 1972 on the Ziggy Stardust tour and played over 1,000 shows with Bowie, right through to his final U.S. performance in 2006.
Garson was featured on over 20 Bowie albums and contributed the piano solo on the title track of 1973’s Aladdin Sane, one which many consider to be a monumental moment in Bowie’s overall sound.
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Earl Slick and Gerry Leonard will be joining ABC on the road as well. Slick replaced original Spider lead guitarist, Mick Ronson, during the Diamond Dogs tour in 1974.
Slick was also featured on five Bowie studio albums and two live recordings, including Young Americans (1975) and Bowie’s penultimate album, The Next Day (2013).
Gerry Leonard toured with Bowie from the 2000s all the way through to The Next Day. He was featured on three albums and was the guitar player and musical director for the critically-acclaimed Reality tour concert DVD.
Mark Plati and the beloved Carmine Rojas join the ranks as the last two Bowie alumni for this run of the ABC tour.
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Plati helped produce a lot of Bowie’s live sound and toured with him extensively for three years, while Rojas contributed his talents as Bowie’s bassist and toured the world with him through the mid-1980s during the Let’s Dance (1983) breakthrough.
A well-rounded roster indeed. Along with the honorary alum, a wide array of other notable musicians are joining ABC on the road, including Bernard Fowler, Corey Glover and Lee John (Earl Slick’s son).
These musicians took part in the initial run of Celebrating David Bowie, which began in the winter of last year.
The tour’s goal is to celebrate the life of David Bowie, his musical legacy and how he contributed to the world.
Each show will be different, featuring “an ever-rotating mix of hits and deep cuts,” and of course including a range of different vocalists fit to perform the Bowie classics.
Westworld’s Evan Rachel Wood was featured as a guest vocalist on a number of shows on the original run. “It’s not a cover band. It’s the actual band,” she said as a guest on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. “It’s as close as you’re going to get to Bowie.”
The tour begins with a quick Californian stint at the end of the month. ABC will then take the show to Europe and the U.K., then return to North America in early 2019.
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There will be four Canadian shows, in Vancouver, Kitchener, Toronto and Montreal. You can find tickets on the A Bowie Celebration website.
A Bowie Celebration 2018 North American Tour Dates
(Canadian shows are bolded)
September 26 – Ventura, CA @ Majestic Ventura Theater
September 27 – Riverside, CA @ Fox Performing Arts Center
September 28 – San Diego, CA @ Humphreys Concerts By the Bay
September 29 – Reno, NV @ Silver Legacy Resort Casino
September 30 – Saratoga, CA @ The Mountain Winery
2019 Tour Dates:
February 6 – Mesa, AZ @ Mesa Arts Center
February 7 – Los Angeles, CA @ Orpheum Theatre
February 9 – Cerritos, CA @ Cerritos Center
February 10 – Modesto, CA @ Gallo Center
February 12 – Livermore, CA @ Livermore PAC
February 13 – San Francisco, CA @ The Warfield
February 15 – Seattle, WA @ Benaroya Hall
February 16 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
February 17 – Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall
February 19 – Denver, CO @ Paramount Theatre
February 21 – Madison, WI @ Orpheum Theatre
February 22 – Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
February 23 – Detroit, MI @ Royal Oak Music Hall
February 24 – Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theatre & Ballroom
February 26 – Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom
February 27 – Kitchener, ON @ Centre In The Square
March 1 – Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall
March 2 – Montreal, QC @ MTelus
March 3 – Boston, MA @ Wilbur Theatre
March 5 – New York, NY @ Irving Plaza
March 6 – Albany, NY @ Palace Theater
March 7 – Syracuse, NY @ Palace Theater
March 9 – New Brunswick, NJ @ State Theater
March 10 – Philadelphia, PA @ Keswick Theatre
March 12 – Louisville, KY @ The Brown Theatre
March 13 – Nashville, TN @ Polk Theatre
March 15 – Ponte Vedra, FL @ Ponte Vedra Concert Hall
March 16 – Fort Lauderdale, FL @ Parker Playhouse
March 17 – Clearwater, FL @ Capitol Theatre
March 20 – Houston, TX @ Heights Theatre
March 21 – Austin, TX @ Paramount Theatre
March 22 – Dallas, TX @ Majestic Theatre\
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