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This Way Up Tour

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This Way Up Tour
Tour by Peter Gabriel
Associated albumSo
Start date7 November 1986
End date9 October 1987
Legs2
No. of shows93
Peter Gabriel concert chronology

The This Way Up Tour was a 1986–87 concert tour mounted by English singer-songwriter Peter Gabriel to promote his 1986 album So. The concert tour spanned 93 shows, starting on 7 November 1986 in Rochester, New York and concluding on 9 October 1987 in Athens, Greece. It was broken up into two legs, with the first lasting six months through the middle of December and the second commencing in June of 1987, which covered the continents of both North America and Europe.

Gabriel's touring band consisted of several musicians who had played on So, including Tony Levin, David Rhodes, and Manu Katché. The setlist comprised around half of So, with the remaining songs originating from earlier albums in Gabriel's discography. Youssou N'Dour served as the opening act throughout the duration of the tour.

Background

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In June 1986, Gabriel performed at A Conspiracy of Hope, which was arranged to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Amnesty International.[1] Bono asked Gabriel to participate in the concerts and told him that his song "Biko" had "opened him up to Africa".[2] The Conspiracy of Hope concerts required Gabriel to reschedule his This Way Up Tour further back than he had originally planned.[3]

Gabriel embarked on the This Way Up Tour in November 1986 with a touring band consisting of Tony Levin, David Rhodes, Manu Katché, and David Sancious. The setlist consisted of songs from Gabriels So studio album along with several other songs from Gabriel's discography.[3] Whereas the audiences of several of his previous tours consisted of "denim guys and intellectuals." according to Rhodes, the This Way Up Tour marked a shift toward larger and younger crowds with a more even gender balance.[4] San Jacinto" served as first song of the setlist for both the 1986 and 1987 legs of the tour. Youssou N'Dour, who served as the tour's opening act with his band Super Étoile de Dakar, joined Gabriel onstage to sing "In Your Eyes".[1][5] Some members from N'Dour's band played horns on "Big Time".[6] During "Lay Your Hands on Me", Gabriel would routinely fall into the audience and crowd surf.[3][4]

Staging

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For the show's illumination, four banks of light were installed onto a set of crane arms that maneuvered throughout the stage via a railed track.[7][6] These cranes were used extensively on both "No Self Control" and "Mercy Street".[1] During portions of "Red Rain", the lights were calibrated to create the illusion of rain droplets falling.[7] On "Big Time", the light fixtures were programmed to create what the Toronto Star described as "a massive display of white light" that "exploded and swirled around the arena."[8] When determining the show's choreography, Gabriel took inspiration from some of the movements and gestures found in the 1975 book Bodily Communication, written by the UK social psychologist Michael Argyle. One such example was the outward palm gesture that he employed during "In Your Eyes".[1]

Set list

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1986 leg[9]

This setlist is not representative of every show during the first leg of the tour. During Gabriel's opening night in Rochester, New York, "Big Time" was positioned in the set after "Don't Give Up".[7] For other performances, including his tour stop in Buffalo, New York, "Big Time" instead preceded "Don't Give Up." For the same show, "I Don't Remember" was played after "Family Snapshot".[10] At certain shows, "Not One of Us", "Solsbury Hill" and Wallflower" were also played.[9]

  1. "San Jacinto"
  2. "Red Rain"
  3. "Shock the Monkey"
  4. "Family Snapshot"
  5. "I Have the Touch" (occasionally)
  6. "The Family and the Fishing Net"
  7. "No Self Control"
  8. "Mercy Street"
  9. "This is the Picture (Excellent Birds)"
  10. "Big Time"
  11. "Don't Give Up"
  12. "Lay Your Hands on Me"
  13. "Sledgehammer"
  14. "Here Comes the Flood" (occasionally)

Encore:

  1. "In Your Eyes"
  2. "Biko"

Personnel

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Musicians

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Tour crew

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  • Gail Colson – manager
  • Billy Francis - road manager
  • Carol Graham – wardrobe
  • David Parry – accountant
  • Jonathan Smeeton – lightning designer
  • Clive Franks – sound engineer[11]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Bowman, Durrell (2 September 2016). Experiencing Peter Gabriel: A Listener's Companion. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 138, 145–146. ISBN 9781442252004.
  2. ^ So (CD liner notes). Peter Gabriel. United Kingdom: Real World. 2012. PGCD 5.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. ^ a b c Easlea, Daryl (2013). Without Frontiers: The Life & Music of Peter Gabriel. London: Omnibus Press. pp. 267–274. ISBN 978-1780383156.
  4. ^ a b Pond, Steve (29 January 1987). "Peter Gabriel Hits the Big Time". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 25 February 2020. Retrieved 5 July 2025.
  5. ^ Barr, Greg (11 July 1986). "Rock innovator Gabriel true to form". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 5 July 2025.
  6. ^ a b Krewen, Nick (27 November 1986). "Another first for Gabriel: Moving lanterns featured at Maple Leaf Gardens present possible revolution for concert lighting". The Spectator. Retrieved 6 July 2025 – via The Genesis Archive.
  7. ^ a b c Smith, Andy (10 November 1986). "Peter Gabriel starts his U.S. tour in Rochester". Democrat and Chronicle. Retrieved 5 July 2025 – via The Genesis Archive.
  8. ^ Quill, Greg (27 November 1986). "Gabriel fans in rock heaven". Toronto Star. Retrieved 6 July 2025 – via The Genesis Archive.
  9. ^ a b Marziano, Alfredo; Perasi, Luca (2024). Peter Gabriel: The Rhythm Has My Soul. Milan, Italy: L.I.L.Y Publishing. p. 143. ISBN 978-88-909122-5-2.
  10. ^ Johns, Jeff (21 November 1986). "Peter Gabriel: The Mindset of the mid-80s". The Buffalo News. p. 75. Retrieved 5 July 2025 – via Newspapers.com.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ^ This Way Up - Tour Itinerary. 1987. Retrieved 5 July 2025 – via The Genesis Archive.
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