25 Live

Infobox concert tour
concert_tour_name = 25 Live


artist = George Michael
album = "TwentyFive"
start_date = September 23 2006
end_date = August 30 2008
number_of_legs = 3
number_of_shows = 105
last_tour=Cover to Cover tour (1991)
this_tour=25 Live (2006-2008)
next_tour=

25 Live is a concert tour by English singer / songwriter George Michael. The tour was the most commercially successful tour of (2006-2007) in the Europe, grossing over $200 million, with positive reviews from critics.

History

It is George Michael's first in over 15 years. The tour, running for 50 dates, began in Barcelona, Spain on September 23 and was originally to be ended at Wembley Arena in London, England in December, but—due to great feedback from fans—continued into 2007 providing more gigs throughout Europe, concluding in Belfast. The tour is described as "a celebration of his 25-year career in music", and was accompanied by a Greatest Hits album, released in late 2006. The news of the tour came amid increased media speculation about Michael's personal life, in particular his drug use and sex life. After the success of the autumn leg, new shows were added for summer 2007, in large arenas and stadiums. Popstar Sophie Ellis-Bextor was announced as the supporting act for 6 of the 8 UK shows. She will not open the show at Wembley Stadium as George is to be the first artist ever to play in the new stadium.

On March 25 2008 a Third Leg of the 25 LIVE Tour was announced for North America. This leg included 21 dates in the United States and Canada. This was Michael's first tour of North America in 17 years. The tour coincided with the April 1 2008 release of his new Greatest Hits album.

The tour ended with two concerts at Earls Court in London named The Final Two. Wham! fans would recognise the reference to Wham!’s last gig at Wembley Arena in London in 1986, The Final. Another final concert was later announced. The concert was held in Copenhagen, Denmark, on August 30 and called The Final One.

Ticket Sales

Ticket sales in the UK and Europe have been brisk. Within two hours of initial sales, 240,000 tickets were snatched up by eager fans. First to sell out were UK shows in London’s Wembley Arena and Earls Court as well as Birmingham’s NEC Arena and Manchester’s MEN Arena. The large capacity Manchester Evening News Arena show sold out within minutes, and the two 25 Live dates added to the venue were sold out by lunchtime. To meet demand, 14 gigs were added to the tour, including three additional shows in London alone. George Michael's dates around Europe were met with equally extraordinary enthusiasm. In Norway, the Oslo show at the Spektrum sold out in an hour and a half. In Copenhagen, 49,000 tickets sold out at the Parken venue in just 3 hrs. The first Rotterdam concert at Ahoy Arena sold out in a mere 6 minutes, and the second saw tickets vanish in 16 minutes. In fact, a third Rotterdam show was added by popular demand that also sold out in 16 minutes. This unprecedented response has stood out as the fastest sell of tickets ever experienced by Barrie Marshall, whose London-based promotion firm, Marshall Arts Limited, has been promoting shows for 30 years. George Michael’s 47-date European tour kicks off on September 23rd in Barcelona, culminating with four dates at London’s Wembley Arena.

The 25 LIVE tour broke several ticket sales records, most notably in Copenhagen. Michael's concert at The Parken Stadium sold over 50,000 tickets in the matter of minutes, shattering the previous ticket sales record at the venue, formerly held by U2.

Although ticket sales had been slow in North America, every venue was sold out in time for the concert. For a period of 25 hours during the week leading up to the Los Angeles Show on June 25, 2008, tickets were sold for a promotional price of $25.00 (down from $95) in celebration of George Michael's birthday, June 25, 1963.

All the tickets for the Final Two shows in London, England and the Finale One show in Denmark where sold out in 2 hours.

The Finals

On June 11 2008 2 dates were added, titled "The two final", taking place in Earls Court, London on August 24 and August 25, 2008. These concerts will be filmed for an upcoming 25 Live DVD release.

On June 30 2008 George Michael announces one last show in Copenhagen at Copenhagen's Parken Stadium on August 30th. This special performance, titled The Final One, will allow Michael to say thank you to his loyal fans, not only in Scandinavia, but also across Europe.

These concerts will be the last time George Michael will embark on extensive touring.

Setlist

First Leg Setlist

# "Waiting (Reprise)"
# "Flawless (Go to the City)"
# "Fastlove"
# "Father Figure"
# "Star People '97"
# "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"
# "Praying for Time"
# "Too Funky"
# "You Have Been Loved"
# "Everything She Wants"
# "My Mother Had a Brother"
# "Shoot the Dog"
Break
# "Faith"
# "Spinning the Wheel"
# "Jesus to a Child"
# "An Easier Affair"
# "A Different Corner"
# "Amazing"
# "I'm Your Man"
# "Outside
Encore
# "Careless Whisper"
# "Freedom 90"

Second Leg Setlist

# "Waiting"
# "Flawless (Go to the City)"
# "Fastlove"
# "Precious Box"
# "Father Figure"
# "Everything She Wants"
# "Ticking"
# "Praying For Time"
# "Too Funky"
# "Star People"
# "Shoot The Dog"
Break
# "Faith"
# "Spinning the Wheel"
# "An Easier Affair"
# "Jesus To A Child"
# "Amazing"
# "I'm Your Man"
# "Outside"
Encore
# "Careless Whisper"
# "Freedom '90"

Third Leg Setlist

# "Waiting (Reprise)"
# "Fastlove"
# "I'm Your Man"
# "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"
# "Father Figure"
# "Hard Day"
# "Everything She Wants"
# "One More Try"
# "A Different Corner"
# "An Easier Affair"
# "Too Funky"
# "Star People '97"
Break
# "Faith"
# "Feeling Good"
# "Roxanne"
# "Spinning the Wheel"
# "Kissing a Fool"
# "Amazing"
# "Flawless (Go to the City)"
# "Outside
# "Praying For Time"
Encore
# "Careless Whisper"
# "Freedom 90"

The Finals Setlist

# "Waiting (Reprise)"
# "Fastlove"
# "I'm Your Man"
# "Father Figure"
# "You Have Been Loved"
# "Everything She Wants"
# "Precious Box"
# "One More Try"
# "Jesus To A Child"
# "An Easier Affair"
# "Too Funky"
# "Shoot The Dog"
Break
# "Faith"
# "Spinning the Wheel"
# "Feeling Good"
# "Roxanne"
# "My Mother Had a Brother"
# "Kissing a Fool"
# "Amazing"
# "Flawless"
# "Fantacy"
# "Outside"
Encore
# "Careless Whisper"
# "Freedom 90"

Personnel

The band

* George Michael - vocals
* Chris Cameron - musical director/arranger
* Lea Mullen - percussion
* Phil Palmer - guitars
* Andy Hamilton - sax, keyboards, Ewi
* Steve Walters - bass
* Mike Brown - guitars
* Carlos Hercules - drums
* Graham Kearns - guitars
* Luke Smith - keyboards
* Shirley Lewis - backing vocals
* Jay Henry - backing vocals
* Lincoln Jean-Marie - backing vocals
* Lori Perry - backing vocals
* Sharon Perry - backing vocals
* Lucy Jules - backing vocals

Management and production

* Michael Lippman - artist manager
* Andy Stephens - artist manager
* Ken Watts - tour director
* Looloo Murphy - GM tour manager
* Sharon Ashley - band tour manager
* Ronnie Franklin - security consultant
* Mark Spring - production manager
* Lisa Johnson - assistant tour director
* Scott Chase - stage manager
* James Kelly - show manager
* Willie Williams - video staging designer and director
* Vince Foster - set and lighting design and operator
* Andy Bramley - video director
* Barrie Marshall and Doris Dixon - agents

Promoters

* Belgium - Live Nation
* Denmark - DKB & Motor
* France - Interconcerts
* Germany - Peter Rieger Konzertagentur
* Greece - Cosmote
* Holland - MOJO Concerts
* Hungary - Live Nation Hungary (previously Multimedia Concerts)
* Ireland - Aiken Promotions
* Italy - D'Alessandro E Galli
* Norway - Gunnar Eide
* Spain - Sagliocco Group
* Sweden - EMA Telstar
* Switzerland - Good News
* UK - Marshall Arts
* USA - Live Nation

Tour dates

First leg

The Finals

Critical Reception

The tour received positive reviews, with praise for the set list and all over production of the show.

Features

*25 Live Tour features the first time a 3000 piece LED screen has been used.
*25 Live Tour features a three dimensional video wall. The video screen isn't just a backdrop to the stage, it also lies on the stage surface. Paul McCartney used a similar concept in his 2005 US Tour.
*25 Live tour features the first time that motion tracking comes from the artist to video.
*25 Live Tour features the first time 490 frequency channels are transmitted to the audio mixing board, producing dynamic, richer sound for the performance
*25 Live Tour features the first time that on-screen visuals respond to the musicians performing.

Trivia

*On December 31, 2006 George Michael was paid $3 million for a 75 minute private concert in Moscow, Russia, which made him the highest paid entertainer in Russian history. [ [http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/michael%20highest%20paid%20performer%20in%20russian%20history_1017692 George Michael - Michael 'Highest Paid Performer In Russian History' ] ]
*George Michael became the first music artist to perform at the new Wembley Stadium when he played two shows at the venue on June 9, 2007 and June 10, 2007 during his 25 Live tour. [ [http://www.wembleystadium.com/pressbox/pressReleases/George%20Michael%20to%20play%20first%20concert Wembley Stadium - Press Releases ] ]
*During his concert in Sofia, Bulgaria George Michael devoted to the Bulgarian nurses prosecuted in the HIV trial in Libya. [ [http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=81212 Bulgaria: George Michael: Free Bulgaria's Nurses in Libya! ] ]
* On June 17, 2008 George Michael launched the NA leg of his final world tour by congratulating lawmakers for legalising gay marriage in California. [ [http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/michael%20thrilled%20about%20same-sex%20marriages_1071862 George Michael - Michael Thrilled About Same-Sex Marriages ] ]
*On June 25, 2008, during the L.A. concert, George celebrated his 45th birthday. The band played "Happy Birthday," while Bo Derek walked on stage with a huge birthday cake.
*On July 27, 2008, George Michael's concert at TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, MA was delayed 1 1/2 hours due to weather conditions and flight delays. He later apologized for the delay and despite the holdup, played a full 3 hour set.

References

Notes

External links

* [http://www.georgemichael.com/ Official website]
* [http://www.georgemichaelforums.com/forumdisplay.php?f=111/ 25Live Archives on George Michael Forums]
* [http://orlando.metromix.com/music/photogallery/george-michael-concert-pics/538271/content/ Concert Photos]
* [http://bonustrack.bo.funpic.de/index.htm/ George Michael Tour Archive]