Somewhere Back in Time World Tour

Somewhere Back in Time World Tour was a concert tour by the heavy metal band Iron Maiden in 2008 and 2009, focused on the band's 1980s material, in particular songs from Powerslave, Somewhere In Time and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. The tour tied in with the second part of the DVD series, entitled "The History of Iron Maiden",[1] and prompted the release of a new greatest hits compilation, Somewhere Back in Time.[2]

Somewhere Back in Time World Tour
Tour by Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden performing in Irvine on 31 May 2008
Start date1 February 2008
End date2 April 2009
Legs4
No. of shows90 in total (91 scheduled)
Iron Maiden concert chronology

The tour was advertised as a way of bringing back the 1980s stage show and forgotten "classics" for an audience of younger fans, not having been born in time to witness the original. Many of the band's songs had not been played in a long time, as much as 21 years in one case, and two of them ("Moonchild" and "Rime of the Ancient Mariner") never having been played by the current line-up. The stage set was based around that of the widely celebrated World Slavery Tour of 1984–85, featuring similar pyrotechnics and the return of the giant mummified Eddie, but also included a lighting rig and cyborg walk-on Eddie based on that of Somewhere on Tour 1986.[1]

The tour would also see the first use of Ed Force One, Iron Maiden's customised Boeing 757, designed to carry band, crew and equipment across continents.[1] The ground breaking nature of the tour led to the documentary entitled Iron Maiden: Flight 666, released in select cinemas in April 2009,[3] followed by a Blu-ray, DVD and CD release in May and June,[4] which would top the music DVD charts in 22 countries.[5]

The 2008 tour was the second highest grossing of the year for a British artist,[6] with the band reportedly playing to more than 2 million people worldwide over both years.[5]

Tour synopsis

The first leg of Iron Maiden's Somewhere Back in Time World Tour opened in Mumbai, India on 1 February, and continued through Australia, Japan, Los Angeles and Mexico, followed by concerts in Costa Rica, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Puerto Rico and New Jersey, before finishing in Toronto, on 16 March. Over the 45-day period the band played 23 concerts to over 500,000 fans in 11 countries, flying close to 50,000 miles in the specially refitted plane: Boeing 757, dubbed "Ed Force One" after a competition to name the plane. On this leg of the tour, the Iron Maiden: Flight 666 film was shot.

Concerning concerts in Scandinavia, EMA Telstar announced that the Iron Maiden tour will be the biggest rock tour that any band has ever undertaken in these Nordic regions. Tour promoter Thomas Johansson of EMA Telstar commented:

Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janick Gers performing in Irvine.
Bruce Dickinson performing "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" in Paris.

"We are all very proud to be making history by giving our rock fans the biggest Nordic Rock Tour there has ever been and certainly one of the most spectacular. Maiden is so hugely popular with the Nordic peoples that we wanted to ensure that as many fans as possible got the opportunity to see this very special show next year as we expect demand for tickets to be enormous.",[7]

Maiden had also announced that they would be returning to cities that they hadn't returned to for years. Western Canada is included, as their five city run through Western Canada had sold out the very day they went on sale. Calgary and Regina had sold out in just under an hour. Edmonton sold out completely in a few hours. Winnipeg and Vancouver sold out within two hours. Calgary also had the highest pre-sale ever for the band, in which they sold out half the tickets. Edmonton and Regina were not far behind. Says Dickinson about the results: "We are truly overwhelmed by this response, especially as some of these cities we haven't played in 20 years!! Being Brits we are always very comfortable with Canadians and it will be a great pleasure to get back on the prairies again. It was always a LOUD response there! We look forward to this immensely and hope to give you all a show to remember."[8] Most recently they played at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Tickets to this show were sold out. During the performance of "Powerslave" the band's instruments lost power for a brief period of time and they passed time by playing football on the stage. Once the equipment was fixed they returned and asked the audience if they should play the last verse of the song or do the next one. The band opted to play the next song which was "Heaven Can Wait". Due to storm damage to the PA and lights at the Metalway Festival in Zaragoza, Spain, Iron Maiden had to cancel their 12 July date. The Metalway Festival in Zaragoza could be rescheduled, but it seems unlikely that Iron Maiden can appear for their fans in Zaragoza.[9] The 15 March presentation, in São Paulo's Race Course, had Iron Maiden's all-time biggest attendance for them as sole performers (not a festival). Bruce Dickinson announced to the crowd that "100.000 fans" were at the venue.

Support acts

The opening bands on the tour were:

Setlist
2008 Setlist

Transylvania/Churchill's Speech
Intro song to all shows on this leg of the tour.

Encore

  1. "Moonchild" (from Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, 1988)
  2. "The Clairvoyant" (from Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, 1988)
  3. "Hallowed Be Thy Name" (from The Number of the Beast, 1982)
2009 Setlist

Transylvania/Churchill's Speech
Intro song to all shows on this leg of the tour.

Encore

  1. "The Number of The Beast" (from The Number of the Beast, 1982)
  2. "The Evil That Men Do" (from Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, 1988)
  3. "Sanctuary" (from Iron Maiden, 1980)

Note:

  • In Belgrade, the opening date of the 2009 tour, "2 Minutes to Midnight" and "Wrathchild" were played the other way round. In addition, The drum intro to "The Trooper" was mistakenly played before "Phantom of the Opera", and the intro to "Wasted Years" was also played before "The Trooper". Only the first mistake affected the concert's setlist.[12]

Personnel

(Credits taken from the official tour programme.)[13]

Crew
  • Ian Day – Tour Manager
  • Steve Gadd – Assistant Tour Manager
  • Jason Danter – Production Manager
  • Bill Conte – Stage Manager
  • Zeb Minto – Tour Coordinator
  • Natasha De Sampayo – Wardrobe
  • Doug Hall – Front of House Sound Engineer
  • Steve 'Gonzo' Smith – Monitor Engineer
  • Ian 'Squid' Walsh – Sound Technician
  • Mike Hackman – Sound Technician
  • Rob Coleman – Lighting Designer
  • Rowan Norris – Lighting Technician
  • Sean Brady – Adrian Smith's Guitar Technician
  • Colin Price – Dave Murray's Guitar Technician
  • Mick Pryde – Janick Gers' Guitar Technician
  • Michael Kenney – Steve Harris' Guitar Technician and keyboards
  • Charlie Charlesworth – Nicko McBrain's Drum Technician
  • Paul Stratford – Set Carpenter
  • Ashley Groom – Set Carpenter
  • Philip Stewart – Set Carpenter
  • Jeff Weir – Tour Security
  • Peter Lokrantz – Masseuse
  • Dave 'Tith' Pattenden – Video Director
  • Johnny 'TGD' Burke – Moving and Still Pictures
  • Keith Maxwell – Pyrotechnician
  • Eric Muccio – Pyrotechnician
  • Boomer – Merchandising
  • Dick Bell – Production Consultant

Tour dates
Date City Country Venue
Asia & Oceania (Leg #1)
1 February 2008 Mumbai India Bandra-Kurla complex
4 February 2008 Perth Australia Burswood Dome
6 February 2008 Melbourne Rod Laver Arena
7 February 2008
9 February 2008 Sydney Acer Arena
10 February 2008
12 February 2008 Brisbane Brisbane Entertainment Centre
15 February 2008 Yokohama Japan Yokohama Pacifico
16 February 2008 Chiba Makuhari Messe
North America and South America (Leg #1)
19 February 2008 Inglewood United States The Forum
21 February 2008 Zapopan Mexico Auditorio Telmex
22 February 2008 Monterrey Monterrey Arena
24 February 2008 Mexico City Foro Sol
26 February 2008 San José Costa Rica Estadio Ricardo Saprissa
28 February 2008 Bogotá Colombia Simón Bolívar Park
2 March 2008 São Paulo Brazil Estádio Palestra Itália
4 March 2008 Curitiba Pedreira Paulo Leminski
5 March 2008 Porto Alegre Gigantinho
7 March 2008 Buenos Aires Argentina Estadio Ricardo Etcheverry
9 March 2008 Santiago Chile Pista Atletica
12 March 2008 San Juan Puerto Rico Coliseo de Puerto Rico, José Miguel Agrelot
14 March 2008 East Rutherford United States Izod Center
16 March 2008 Toronto Canada Air Canada Centre
North America (Leg #2)
21 May 2008 Selma United States Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
22 May 2008 The Woodlands Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
25 May 2008 Albuquerque Journal Pavilion
26 May 2008 Phoenix Cricket Wireless Pavilion
28 May 2008 Concord Sleep Train Pavilion
30 May 2008 Irvine Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
31 May 2008
2 June 2008 Auburn White River Amphitheatre
3 June 2008 Vancouver Canada Pacific Coliseum
5 June 2008 Calgary Saddledome
6 June 2008 Edmonton Rexall Place
8 June 2008 Regina Brandt Centre
9 June 2008 Winnipeg MTS Centre
11 June 2008 Rosemont United States Allstate Arena
12 June 2008 Cuyahoga Falls Blossom Music Center
14 June 2008 Holmdel PNC Bank Arts Center
15 June 2008 New York City Madison Square Garden
17 June 2008 Camden Susquehanna Bank Center
18 June 2008 Columbia Merriweather Post Pavilion
20 June 2008 Mansfield Comcast Center
21 June 2008 Montreal Canada Parc Jean-Drapeau
Europe (Leg #3)
27 June 2008 Bologna Italy Gods of Metal
29 June 2008 Dessel Belgium Graspop Metal Meeting
1 July 2008 Paris France Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy
2 July 2008
5 July 2008 London England Twickenham Stadium
9 July 2008 Lisbon Portugal Super Bock Super Rock
11 July 2008 Mérida Spain Via de la Plata Festival
12 July 2008 Zaragoza Metalway Festival
16 July 2008 Stockholm Sweden Stockholm Olympic Stadium
18 July 2008 Helsinki Finland Helsinki Olympic Stadium
19 July 2008 Tampere Ratina Stadion
22 July 2008 Trondheim Norway Lerkendal Stadion
24 July 2008 Oslo Valle Hovin
26 July 2008 Gothenburg Sweden Ullevi Stadium
27 July 2008 Horsens Denmark Godsbanepladsen
31 July 2008 Wacken Germany Wacken Open Air
2 August 2008 Athens Greece Terra Vibe Park
4 August 2008 Bucharest Romania Cotroceni Stadium
7 August 2008 Warsaw Poland Gwardia Stadium
8 August 2008 Prague Czech Republic Synot Tip Arena
10 August 2008 Split Croatia Stadion Poljud
12 August 2008 Budapest Hungary Sziget Festival
14 August 2008 Basel Switzerland St. Jakobshalle
16 August 2008 Assen Netherlands TT Circuit Assen
19 August 2008 Moscow Russia Olimpiyskiy Arena
Europe (Leg #4)
10 February 2009 Belgrade Serbia Belgrade Arena
Asia & Oceania (Leg #4)
13 February 2009 Dubai United Arab Emirates Media City Amphitheatre
15 February 2009 Bangalore India Palace Grounds
20 February 2009 Auckland New Zealand Mount Smart Stadium
22 February 2009 Christchurch Westpac Arena
North America and South America (Leg #4)
25 February 2009 Monterrey Mexico Estadio Universitario
26 February 2009 Guadalajara Arena VFG
28 February 2009 Mexico City Foro Sol
3 March 2009 Alajuela Costa Rica Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto
5 March 2009 Caracas Venezuela Poliedro de Caracas
7 March 2009 Bogota Colombia Simon Bolivar Park
10 March 2009 Quito Ecuador Estadio Aucas
12 March 2009 Manaus Brazil Sambodromo
14 March 2009 Rio de Janeiro Praça da Apoteose
15 March 2009 São Paulo Autodromo de Interlagos
18 March 2009 Belo Horizonte Mineirinho
20 March 2009 Brasília Estádio Mané Garrincha
22 March 2009 Santiago Chile Club Hipico Santiago
26 March 2009 Lima Peru Estadio Nacional
28 March 2009 Buenos Aires Argentina José Amalfitani Stadium
31 March 2009 Recife Brazil Pernambuco Jockey Club
2 April 2009 Sunrise, Florida United States BankAtlantic Center
Iron Maiden in Paris, 1 July 2008.
  • According to sponsors and the Flight 666 documentary, the concert held in Costa Rica was the largest in Central America, with over 27,000 attendants.
  • The Metalway Festival appearance was cancelled due to extremely bad weather.
  • The European Leg was the biggest sales achievement in band's career. Most shows were sold out in rapid time and streams of tickets were officially extra added due to high demand. The band's performance at Wacken Open Air in 2008 was their largest festival performance of the year. According to Metal Hammer DE, "...not less than 83.000 metal maniacs from all over the world attended this show".
  • On the Latin American Leg in 2009 Iron Maiden played 16 gigs to well over half a million people. Their show at Autodromo de Interlagos had the biggest attendance for a rock music event in history of the venue.

References
  1. Lane, Daniel (7 September 2007). "Iron Maiden Tour Plans". Metal Hammer. Archived from the original on 2 June 2013. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  2. "Iron Maiden To Release Somewhere Back In Time Collection". Blabbermouth.net. 11 March 2008. Retrieved 20 November 2011. The album celebrates the essence of the current tour by featuring most of the essential tracks from the band's first seven studio albums and one live album, recorded between 1980 and 1989
  3. Bezer, Terry (20 January 2009). "Iron Maiden: The Movie! Catch The Trailer!". Classic Rock. Archived from the original on 6 May 2009. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  4. "Iron Maiden Flight 666 To Be Released On Blu-Ray, DVD". Blabbermouth.net. 15 April 2009. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
  5. "Iron Maiden's Flight 666 Is A Global Smash". Blabbermouth.net. 18 June 2009. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
  6. "The Police and Iron Maiden lead British music stars' foreign earnings to hit record levels". The Daily Telegraph. London. 6 April 2009. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
  7. "06.11.2007 Dates for the Nordic tour". Ironmaiden-bg.com. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  8. "Iron Maiden official website - Maiden Mania now hits Western Canada". Ironmaiden.com. 28 March 2008. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  9. "Iron Maiden Official Website - Zaragoza cancelled today". Ironmaiden.com. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  10. "Iron Maiden Official Website - Lauren Harris debut album and tour details". Ironmaiden.com. 21 April 2008. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  11. "Trivium To Support Iron Maiden In New Jersey". Blabbermouth.net. 14 April 2008. Retrieved 14 April 2008.
  12. Andy. "Iron maiden in Belgrade, Serbia, February 10, 2009". Metal Traveller. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  13. EMI (2009). "Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time World Tour 08-09" (4th ed.). London{{inconsistent citations}} Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
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