It's My Life Tour

It's My Life Tour
Tour by Tin Machine
	"It's My Life" Promotional Band Image; From L to R: David Bowie, Hunt Sales, Reeves Gabrels, Tony Sales
Associated album	Tin Machine II
Start date	5 October 1991
End date	17 February 1992
Legs	3
No. of shows	69
Tin Machine concert chronology
	; Tin Machine Tour; (1989); ; It’s My Life Tour; (1991–1992); ; ;
David Bowie tour chronology

The It's My Life Tour was a concert tour by the Anglo-American hard rock band Tin Machine. The tour commenced on 5 October 1991 after two warm-up shows, one press show and three trade-industry shows, visiting twelve countries and concluding after seven months and sixty-nine performances, a larger outing than their first tour in 1989.

Tour details

The band rehearsed and warmed up for the tour in Dublin in August 1991.^[1] Joined onstage by guitarist Eric Schermerhorn,^[2] Tin Machine presented songs from the Tin Machine album and the Tin Machine II album, augmented with cover versions of songs from the Pixies, Neil Young and The Moody Blues.^[3]

To start the show at some venues, an old TV was placed on stage, playing old sitcoms while the prelude to Wagner's Tristan and Isolde played over loudspeakers.^[2]

The band purposefully booked intimate venues of a few thousand seats or less so that they could focus on the music without any theatrical trappings, a stark change from lead vocalist David Bowie's previous Glass Spider and Sound+Vision tours;^[4] Bowie also wanted to avoid playing larger venues and arenas lest his fans show up "hoping I'd be doing old songs or something. We don't want that feeling at all."^[5]

Bowie claimed that the setlist for the tour was made on the fly each night, saying "We have no setlist whatsoever. We have a complete list of all our songs on the floor of the stage and we yell it out as we feel it. If you catch us on a bad night, it can be one of the most disastrous shows you've ever seen. But on a good night – and fortunately with this band most nights have been good nights – it really happens".^[6]

Critical reception

The review of the performance at the trade show at Slim's in San Francisco was not kind: "It's hard to imagine people walking out on a David Bowie show at Slim's, but all you had to do was look around the room Thursday at the end of the appearance by Tin Machine. (...) Bowie and his associates gave a more than hour-long display of his latest incarnation, and the music turned out to be nearly unlistenable."^[7]

The show in Seattle was met with positive reviews: "Let it first be said that on every level, Tin Machine is an outstanding band. (...) [they] may well represent the next evolutionary step in rock and roll – or just another blind alley. In any event, it is powerful stuff."^[2] During the show, Bowie played alto and baritone sax and electric, acoustic and 12-string guitar.^[2]

The Los Angeles Times had a positive review of the first New York show, complimenting the band on their desire to tinker with songs' arrangements and appreciating Bowie's "theatrical gift" for performing.^[8]

Live recordings

Their performance on 1 September 1991 at the Los Angeles airport was taped for broadcast in America as part of the ABC In Concert series, and was aired on 6 September 1991.^[9]

Tin Machine were the musical guest on Saturday Night Live's 17th season on 23 November 1991.^[9]

The show in Hamburg on 24 October, 1991, at Docks, was filmed and later released on the video, Oy Vey, Baby: Tin Machine Live at the Docks, with the song "Baby Can Dance" from the same performance appearing on the compilation album Best of Grunge Rock.

Songs from the concerts in Boston, New York City, Sapporo and Tokyo were recorded and released on the live album Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby (1992).

Setlist

The following set list was obtained from the concert held on 30 October, 1991, at Le Zénith Paris in Paris. It does not represent all concerts for the duration of the tour.

"Bus Stop"
"Under the God"
"A Big Hurt"
"Baby Can Dance"
"Shopping for Girls"
"Stateside"
"Goodbye Mr. Ed"
"I Can't Read"
"Go Now" (Bessie Banks cover)
"Baby Universal"
"Sacrifice Yourself"
"I've Been Waiting for You" (Neil Young cover)
"Betty Wrong"
"You Can't Talk"
"Debaser" (Pixies cover)
"If There Is Something" (Roxy Music cover)
"Heaven's in Here"
"One Shot"
"You Belong in Rock 'n' Roll"

Tour dates

Date	City	Country	Venue
Tour rehearsals
10 August 1991	Dublin	Ireland	Factory Studios
11 August 1991
12 August 1991
13 August 1991
14 August 1991
15 August 1991
Warm up shows
16 August 1991	Dublin	Ireland	The Baggot Inn
19 August 1991	Dublin	Ireland	The Waterfront
Press show
1 September 1991	Los Angeles	United States	Rockit Cargo @ LAX Airport
Trade shows
7 September 1991	Minneapolis	United States	Marriott
10 September 1991	Los Angeles		Marriott
12 September 1991	San Francisco		Slim's
Europe
5 October 1991	Milan	Italy	Teatro Smeraldo
6 October 1991	Milan		Teatro Smeraldo
8 October 1991	Florence		Palazzetto Dello Sport
9 October 1991	Rome		Teatro Brancaccio
10 October 1991	Rome		Teatro Brancaccio
12 October 1991	Munich	Germany	Circus Krone
14 October 1991	Offenbach		Stadthalle
15 October 1991	Ludwigsburg		Forum
17 October 1991	Berlin		Neue Welt
19 October 1991	Copenhagen	Denmark	Falkoner Teatret
21 October 1991	Stockholm	Sweden	Circus
22 October 1991	Oslo	Norway	Oslo Konserthus
24 October 1991	Hamburg	Germany	Docks
25 October 1991	Hanover		Music Hall
26 October 1991	Cologne		E-Werk
28 October 1991	Utrecht	Netherlands	Muziekcentrum Vredenburg
29 October 1991	Paris	France	Olympia
30 October 1991	Paris	France	Le Zénith
31 October 1991	Brussels	Belgium	Ancienne Belgique
2 November 1991	Wolverhampton	England	Civic Hall
3 November 1991	Manchester		International 2
5 November 1991	Newcastle upon Tyne		Mayfair
6 November 1991	Liverpool		Royal Court
7 November 1991	Glasgow	Scotland	Barrowlands
9 November 1991	Cambridge	England	Corn Exchange
10 November 1991	Brixton		Brixton Academy
11 November 1991	Brixton		Brixton Academy
North America
15 November 1991	Philadelphia	United States	Tower Theater
16 November 1991	Washington, D.C.		The Citadel
17 November 1991	Philadelphia		Tower Theater
19 November 1991	New Haven		Toad's Place
20 November 1991	Boston		Orpheum Theater
24 November 1991	Providence		New Campus Club
25 November 1991	New Britain		The Sting
27 November 1991	New York City		Academy of Music
29 November 1991	New York City		Academy of Music
1 December 1991	Montreal	Canada	La Brique
2 December 1991	Montreal		La Brique
3 December 1991	Toronto		The Concert Hall
4 December 1991	Detroit	United States	Clubland
6 December 1991	Cleveland		Agora Metropolitan
7 December 1991	Chicago		Riviera Theatre
9 December 1991	Dallas		Bronco Bowl
10 December 1991	Houston		Back Alley
12 December 1991	Los Angeles		Hollywood Palladium
14 December 1991	San Diego		Spreckels Theater
15 December 1991	San Diego		Spreckels Theater
17 December 1991	San Francisco		The Warfield
18 December 1991	San Francisco		The Warfield
20 December 1991	Seattle		Paramount Theatre
21 December 1991	Vancouver	Canada	Commodore Ballroom
Asia
29 January 1992	Kyoto	Japan	Kaikan Dai Ichi Hall
30 January 1992	Osaka		Festival Hall
31 January 1992	Osaka		Festival Hall
2 February 1992	Kitakyushu		Kyusyu Kouseinenkin Kaikan
3 February 1992	Hiroshima		Kouseinenkin Kaikan
5 February 1992	Tokyo		NHK Hall
6 February 1992	Tokyo		NHK Hall
7 February 1992	Yokohama		Bunka Taiikukan
10 February 1992	Sapporo		Kouseinenkin Kaikan
11 February 1992	Sapporo		Kouseinenkin Kaikan
13 February 1992	Sendai		Sunplaza Hall
14 February 1992	Omiya		Sonic City Hall
17 February 1992	Tokyo		Budokan Hall

Songs

Notation:

^CD Included on the Oy Vey, Baby album
^VHS/LD Included on the Oy Vey, Baby video album
^CD/VHS/LD Included on both versions of the Oy Vey, Baby album

From Live Santa Monica '72

"My Death" (originally from La Valse à mille temps (1959) by Jacques Brel; written by Brel & Mort Shuman)
"I'm Waiting for the Man" (originally from The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967) by The Velvet Underground and Nico, written by Lou Reed; outtake from various Bowie sessions 1966–72)

From Tin Machine

"Heaven's in Here" ^CD/VHS/LD
"Tin Machine" (Bowie, Reeves Gabrels, Hunt Sales, Tony Sales)
"Crack City" ^VHS/LD
"I Can't Read" (Bowie, Gabrels) ^CD/VHS/LD
"Under the God" ^CD/VHS/LD
"Amazing" (Bowie, Gabrels) ^CD
"Bus Stop" (Country version) (Bowie, Gabrels) ^VHS/LD
"Pretty Thing"
"Sacrifice Yourself" (Bowie, H. Sales, T. Sales) ^VHS/LD
"Baby Can Dance"

From Tin Machine II

"Baby Universal" (Bowie, Gabrels) ^VHS/LD
"One Shot" (Bowie, Gabrels) ^VHS/LD
"You Belong in Rock 'n' Roll" (Bowie, Gabrels) ^CD/VHS/LD
"If There Is Something" (originally from Roxy Music (1972) by Roxy Music; written by Bryan Ferry) ^CD/VHS/LD
"Amlapura" (Bowie, Gabrels) ^VHS/LD
"Betty Wrong" (Bowie, Gabrels) ^VHS/LD
"You Can't Talk" (Bowie, Gabrels) ^VHS/LD
"Stateside" (Bowie, H. Sales) ^CD/VHS/LD
"Shopping for Girls" (Bowie, Gabrels)
"A Big Hurt"
"Sorry" (H. Sales)
"Goodbye Mr. Ed" (Bowie, H. Sales, T. Sales) ^CD/VHS/LD

From Black Tie White Noise

"I Feel Free" (originally from Fresh Cream (1966) by Cream; written by Pete Brown & Jack Bruce)

Other songs:

"A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" (from The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan (1963) by Bob Dylan; written by Dylan)
"April in Paris" (from the Broadway musical Walk A Little Faster (1932); written by Vernon Duke and E. Y. Harburg)
"Baby, Please Don't Go" (a single (1935) by Big Joe Williams)
"Debaser" (from Doolittle (1989) by the Pixies; written by Black Francis)
"Don't Start Me Talkin'" (a single (1955) by Sonny Boy Williamson II)
"Dream On Little Dreamer" (from The Scene Changes (1965) by Perry Como; written by Jan Crutchfield and Fred Burch)
"Fever" (a single (1956) by Little Willie John; written by Eddie Cooley and John Davenport (a.k.a. Otis Blackwell))
"Go Now" (a single in 1964 by Bessie Banks and later made famous by The Moody Blues the following year; written by Larry Banks and Milton Bennett) ^VHS/LD
"I'm a King Bee" (a single (1957) by Slim Harpo; written by Harpo)
"In Every Dream Home a Heartache" (from For Your Pleasure (1973) by Roxy Music; written by Ferry)
"I've Been Waiting for You" (originally from Neil Young (1968) by Neil Young; written by Young), later included on Bowie's 2002 album, Heathen (David Bowie album).
"Shakin' All Over" (originally a single (1960) by Johnny Kidd and the Pirates; written by Johnny Kidd; B-side to "You Belong in Rock n' Roll")
"Somewhere" (from the musical West Side Story (1957); written by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim)
"Throwaway" (from Primitive Cool (1987) by Mick Jagger of The Rolling Stones, written by Jagger)
"Wild Thing" (by The Wild Ones (1965) and made famous by The Troggs; written by Chip Taylor)
"(You Caught Me) Smilin'" (from There's a Riot Goin' On (1971) by Sly & the Family Stone; written by Sylvester Stewart)
"You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby" (from the Hard to Get soundtrack (1938) by Dick Powell; written by Harry Warren and Johnny Mercer)

Personnel

Tin Machine

David Bowie – vocals, guitar, alto & tenor saxophone
Reeves Gabrels – lead guitar, vocals
Tony Sales – bass guitar, vocals
Hunt Sales – drums, vocals

Additional musicians

Eric Schermerhorn – rhythm guitar, vocals

References

^ Murray, Charles Shaar (October 1991), "And the Singer's Called Dave...", Q magazine, no. 61, pp. 56–64
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Bowie, Tin Machine offer what may be rock's new frontier" by Cary Smith, Journal-American, December 1991
^ Pegg, 2004, pp. 594–595.
^ "David Bowie Music Interview" by George Varga for The Star Entertainment Weekly, 1–7 January 1992, pp 2 & 10
^ di Perna, Alan (1991), "Ballad of the Tin Men", Creem, 2 (1): 50–59
^ "Beaming Bowie excited about current direction of his life, music" by Patrick MacDonald, The Seattle Times, 20 December 1991
^ "Bowie's Band Unimpressive at Slim's" by Joel Selvin, San Francisco Chronicle, 14 September 1991, C4
^ Pareles, Jon (30 November 1991), "Review/Rock; For Bowie, One More Change of Pace", Los Angeles Times, retrieved 29 October 2013
^ ^a ^b Tin Machine Rockline Interview 1991. Retrieved 8 August 2021.

Nicholas Pegg, The Complete David Bowie, Reynolds & Hearn Ltd, 2004, ISBN 1-903111-73-0
David Buckley, Strange Fascination: The Definitive Biography of David Bowie, Virgin Books, 1999, ISBN 1-85227-784-X

[Q91-1] Murray, Charles Shaar (October 1991), "And the Singer's Called Dave...", Q magazine, no. 61, pp. 56–64

[JA91-2] "Bowie, Tin Machine offer what may be rock's new frontier" by Cary Smith, Journal-American, December 1991

[3] Pegg, 2004, pp. 594–595.

[4] "David Bowie Music Interview" by George Varga for The Star Entertainment Weekly, 1–7 January 1992, pp 2 & 10

[Creem91-5] Perna, Alan (1991), "Ballad of the Tin Men", Creem, 2 (1): 50–59

[RM91-6] "Beaming Bowie excited about current direction of his life, music" by Patrick MacDonald, The Seattle Times, 20 December 1991

[SFC91-7] "Bowie's Band Unimpressive at Slim's" by Joel Selvin, San Francisco Chronicle, 14 September 1991, C4

[latr-8] Pareles, Jon (30 November 1991), "Review/Rock; For Bowie, One More Change of Pace", Los Angeles Times, retrieved 29 October 2013

[rlyt-9] Tin Machine Rockline Interview 1991. Retrieved 8 August 2021.

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