Prince's REVOLUTION Launch First Tour in over 30 Years

Article Contributed by MAD Ink PR | Published on Thursday, April 20, 2017

The Revolution has gathered together to celebrate and pay tribute to their PRINCE. The band will set off on their first coast-to-coast foray in decades in response to the overwhelming reaction of February’s surprise announcement of their reunion. The jaunt, which was originally just six dates, including a special performance at Paisley Park, quickly expanded when demand made it necessary to add second shows in Chicago, New York, Philadelphia and San Francisco.  The quintet are set to bring their exciting new show to the rest of the U.S.  The current itinerary ends on July 17th, with even more dates expected to be announced soon.

The Revolution formed in 1979 when Prince joined drummer, Bobby Z and keyboardist Matt Fink. Over the next four years, several formations would emerge until finally Prince found the band he felt could master the challenging musicality of his vision.  The legendary final line-up included Lisa Coleman on keyboards/piano, Wendy Melvoin on guitar and Brown Mark on bass. The Revolution was credited on three Prince studio-albums, Purple Rain, Around the World In a Day and Parade while some members also played on 1999. Together, they earned multiple #1 hits, as well as two Grammy® Awards and an Oscar, with the song “Purple Rain,” for Best Original Song Score in 1985.

After being asked to perform at Paisley Park on the first anniversary of Prince’s death, the group felt it was time to take The Revolution back on the road. Recently, in Billboard Magazine,  Melvoin shared that those First Avenue shows were a catharsis for both themselves and the fans. "The first night it was so sad. There was a lot of beautiful energy and it was high contrast for sure, all fantastic and all horrible swimming at the same time," Melvoin recalls. "By night three we were smiling from beginning to end, and when we walked off stage the five of us went into a back room, and I remember Bobby just broke down and started to cry. We all sort of had this moment where it felt like this was almost too much. But at the same time we made people smile and they felt good and they got to grab onto at least the legacy of him so that his death didn't feel so permanent.” It is with that spirit that the Grammy® Award winning group heads out to spread love and funk across America this spring.

“Prince said that music is medicine,” Bobby relates, “People need it, and we need it.… In honor of him, we’ll give it everything we’ve got.”

THE REVOLUTION Tour Itinerary:

April 21           Celebration 2017 @ Paisley Park         Minneapolis, MN

April 23           Metro                                                 Chicago, IL

April 24           Metro                                                 Chicago, IL

April 27           The Fillmore Silver Spring                     Washington, DC

April 28           BB Kings                                            New York, NY

April 29           Theatre of Living Arts                           Philadelphia, PA

April 30           Theatre of Living Arts                           Philadelphia, PA

May 3              Webster Hall                                        New York, NY

May 4              Capitol Theatre                                    Port Chester, NY

May 12           Barrymore Theatre                                Madison, WI

May 14           The Vogue                                            Indianapolis, IN

May 15              Mercury Ballroom                                Louisville, KY

May 16           Bogart’s                                               Cincinnati, OH

May 18           House of Blues                                     Cleveland, OH

May 20           Majestic Theater                                    Detroit, MI

May 21           Phoenix Theatre                                    Toronto, Ont

June 14           House of Blues                                     Dallas, TX

June 15           House of Blues                                     Houston, TX

June 16           The Aztec Theater                                 San Antonio, TX

June 17           ACL Live                                               Austin, TX

June 21           Brooklyn Bowl                                      Las Vegas, NV

June 22           House of Blues                                     San Diego, CA

June 23           Wiltern                                                   Los Angeles, CA

July 11          The Fillmore                                             San Francisco, CA

July 12             The Fillmore                                         San Francisco, CA

July 13             Artown                                                  Reno, NV

July 14             Roseland Theater                                  Portland, OR

July 15             The Showbox                                        Seattle, WA

July 17              Britt Pavillion                                      Jacksonville, OR

 

More dates TBA

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