Presto tour

1990 concert tour by Rush

Presto TourTour by Rush

Location| North America
Associated album| Presto
Start date| February 17, 1990
End date| June 29, 1990
No. of shows| 63
Rush concert chronology

*   * Hold Your Fire Tour
(1987–1988)
*   * Presto Tour
(1990)
*   * Roll the Bones Tour
(1991–1992)

The Presto Tour was a concert tour by Canadian rock band Rush in support of their thirteenth studio album Presto.

## Background[edit]

The tour started on February 17, 1990 at Greenville Memorial Auditorium in Greenville, South Carolina[1] and concluded on June 29, 1990 at Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre in Irvine, California,[2] having performed to more than 650,000 fans.[3] Opening bands that premiered in the tour included Mr. Big, Chalk Circle and Voivod.[4] The stage production for each of the shows were presented with elements of the Presto cover art, which had featured lasers and Vari-Lites that were dropped from trusses on extensions as well as two giant inflatable rabbits, two sets of rear PA speakers on the back end of the stage floor to represent a quadrophonic effect on the sound which was engineered by Robert Scoville,[5] and a projection screen that displayed video sequences and retro films throughout the performance.[3] When the band performed in Toronto for two shows in May 1990, both shows had raised $200,000 for United Way for the demands on the band for complimentary tickets.[6]

## Reception[edit]

Michael Hochanadel from the Daily Gazette opened his review stating that the visuals made the Rush concert at the Knickerbocker Arena on June 2, 1990, one of the biggest, brightest and overwhelming rock spectacles - with effects representing a 1970s arena rock throwback with the usage of lasers and haze. While criticizing the music's lyrics as being sometimes preachy, he stated that they were at the same time, anthemic and tackled subjects in a fairly obvious way, but added that they needed something to keep their songs from sounding too alike. Praising Lee's vocals, Hochanadel affirmed that his voice gave the songs emotion that the lyrics did not always earn.[5]

Reviewing the Pittsburgh performance on June 7, 1990, Janice Haidet of The Vindicator stated that the band put a huge reliance on talent from the instruments they were using, treating a crowded arena of fans to a "searing rock and roll feast". Haidet noted that the band kept the audience standing on their seats with fists raised in time with the music, and Geddy Lee delivering extraordinary vocals that were presented by a balanced and clear sound mix - also noting the show as one of the best light shows in rock music, although outdone by Genesis and Pink Floyd.[7] Peter B. King from the Pittsburgh Press who was in attendance at the same show that night, stated that the band had offered some of the best visuals seen at a rock concert, and expressed that Rush had delivered an intelligent, distinctive brand of "art rock".[8]

## Set list[edit]

This is an example set list adapted from Rush: Wandering the Face of the Earth – The Official Touring History of what were performed during the tour, but may not represent the majority of the shows.[9]

1. "Force Ten"
2. "Freewill"
3. "Distant Early Warning"
4. "Time Stand Still"
5. "Subdivisions"
6. "Marathon"
7. "Red Barchetta"
8. "Superconductor"
9. "Show Don't Tell"
10. "The Pass"
11. "Closer to the Heart"
12. "Manhattan Project"
13. "Xanadu"
14. "YYZ"
15. "The Rhythm Method" (Neil Peart drum solo)
16. "Scars"
17. "War Paint"
18. "Mission"
19. "Tom Sawyer"

Encore
20. "The Big Money"
21. "2112: Overture"
22. "La Villa Strangiato"
23. "In the Mood"
24. "Wipeout!"

## Tour dates[edit]

Date[10][11] | City  | Country  | Venue

|
|
|

February 17, 1990 | Greenville | United States | Greenville Memorial Auditorium
February 19, 1990 | Jacksonville | Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum
February 20, 1990 | St. Petersburg | Bayfront Center
February 22, 1990 | Miami | Miami Arena
February 23, 1990 | Orlando | Orlando Arena
February 25, 1990 | New Orleans | Lakefront Arena
February 26, 1990 | Houston | The Summit
February 28, 1990 | San Antonio | Convention Center Arena
March 1, 1990 | Dallas | Reunion Arena
March 3, 1990 | Kansas City | Kemper Arena
March 5, 1990 | St. Louis | St. Louis Arena
March 6, 1990 | Cincinnati | Riverfront Coliseum
March 8, 1990 | Auburn Hills | The Palace of Auburn Hills
March 9, 1990
March 20, 1990 | Edmonton | Canada | Northlands Coliseum
March 21, 1990 | Calgary | Scotiabank Saddledome
March 23, 1990 | Vancouver | Pacific Coliseum
March 24, 1990 | Portland | United States | Veterans Memorial Coliseum
March 26, 1990 | Seattle | Seattle Center Coliseum
March 28, 1990 | Sacramento | ARCO Arena
March 30, 1990 | Oakland | Oakland Coliseum
March 31, 1990
April 2, 1990 | Inglewood | Great Western Forum
April 3, 1990
April 5, 1990 | San Diego | San Diego Sports Arena
April 7, 1990 | Costa Mesa | Pacific Amphitheatre
April 8, 1990 | Phoenix | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum
April 20, 1990 | East Rutherford | Brendan Byrne Arena
April 22, 1990 | Uniondale | Nassau Coliseum
April 24, 1990 | Philadelphia | The Spectrum
April 25, 1990 | East Rutherford | Brendan Byrne Arena
April 27, 1990 | Philadelphia | The Spectrum
April 28, 1990 | Rochester | War Memorial Auditorium
May 1, 1990 | Atlanta | The Omni
May 2, 1990 | Charlotte | Charlotte Coliseum
May 4, 1990 | Richmond | Richmond Coliseum
May 5, 1990 | Largo | Capital Centre
May 7, 1990 | Providence | Civic Center
May 8, 1990 | Hartford | Hartford Civic Center
May 10, 1990 | Worcester | The Centrum
May 11, 1990
May 13, 1990 | Quebec City | Canada | Colisée Quebec City
May 14, 1990 | Montreal | Montreal Forum
May 16, 1990 | Toronto | Maple Leaf Gardens
May 17, 1990
June 2, 1990 | Albany | United States | Knickerbocker Arena
June 4, 1990 | Baltimore | Baltimore Arena
June 5, 1990 | Hampton | Hampton Coliseum
June 7, 1990 | Pittsburgh | Civic Arena
June 8, 1990 | Richfield | Richfield Coliseum
June 10, 1990 | Cuyahoga Falls | Blossom Music Center
June 11, 1990 | Cincinnati | Riverbend Music Center
June 13, 1990 | Columbus | Cooper Stadium
June 14, 1990 | Noblesville | Deer Creek Music Center
June 16, 1990 | East Troy | Alpine Valley Music Theatre
June 17, 1990
June 19, 1990 | Bloomington | Met Center
June 20, 1990 | Omaha | Omaha Civic Auditorium
June 22, 1990 | Englewood | Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre
June 24, 1990 | Salt Lake City | Salt Palace
June 26, 1990 | Sacramento | Cal Expo Amphitheatre
June 27, 1990 | Mountain View | Shoreline Amphitheatre
June 29, 1990 | Irvine | Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre

## Personnel[edit]

* Geddy Lee – vocals, bass, keyboards
* Alex Lifeson – guitar, backing vocals
* Neil Peart – drums

## References[edit]

### Citations[edit]

1. ^ Little, Michelle (February 16, 1990). "Rush starts jamming and presto: A concert". Spartanburg, South Carolina: Herald-Journal. p. B11. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
2. ^ Popoff 2021, p. 299.
3. ^ a b Daly & Hansen 2019, p. 290.
4. ^ Popoff 2021, p. 292.
5. ^ a b Hochanadel, Michael (June 4, 1990). "Rush Serves Up Spectacular Show". Albany, New York: The Daily Gazette. p. B8. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
6. ^ Popoff 2021, pp. 291–292.
7. ^ Haidat, Janice (June 8, 1990). "Rush uses its talent to electrify concert". Youngstown, Ohio: The Vindicator. p. 24. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
8. ^ King, Peter B. (June 8, 1990). "Rush lights up Civic Arena with art-rock display, visual explosion". No. 345\. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: The Pittsburgh Press. p. C3. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
9. ^ Daly & Hansen 2019, p. 293.
10. ^ Daly & Hansen 2019, pp. 293–301.
11. ^ "Presto Tour". Rush.com. Retrieved 6 April 2023.

### Sources[edit]

* Daly, Skip; Hansen, Eric (2019). Rush: Wandering the Face of the Earth – The Official Touring History. Insight Editions. ISBN 978-1-68383-450-2.
* Popoff, Martin (2021). Limelight: Rush in the '80s. Toronto, Canada: ECW Press. ISBN 978-1-77041-569-0.

* v
* t
* e

Rush

* Jeff Jones
* Alex Lifeson
* John Rutsey
* Geddy Lee
* Neil Peart

Studio albums|

* Rush (1974)
* Fly by Night (1975)
* Caress of Steel (1975)
* 2112 (1976)
* A Farewell to Kings (1977)
* Hemispheres (1978)
* Permanent Waves (1980)
* Moving Pictures (1981)
* Signals (1982)
* Grace Under Pressure (1984)
* Power Windows (1985)
* Hold Your Fire (1987)
* Presto (1989)
* Roll the Bones (1991)
* Counterparts (1993)
* Test for Echo (1996)
* Vapor Trails (2002)
* Snakes & Arrows (2007)
* Clockwork Angels (2012)

Live albums|

* All the World's a Stage (1976)
* Exit... Stage Left (1981)
* A Show of Hands (1989)
* Different Stages (1998)
* Rush in Rio (2003)
* R30: 30th Anniversary World Tour (2005)
* Snakes & Arrows Live (2008)
* Grace Under Pressure Tour (2009)
* Time Machine 2011: Live in Cleveland (2011)
* Clockwork Angels Tour (2013)
* R40 Live (2015)

Live videos|

* Exit... Stage Left (1982)
* Grace Under Pressure Tour (1986)
* A Show of Hands (1989)
* Rush in Rio (2003)
* R30: 30th Anniversary World Tour (2005)
* Rush Replay X 3 (2006)
* Snakes & Arrows Live (2008)
* Time Machine 2011: Live in Cleveland (2011)
* Clockwork Angels Tour (2013)
* R40 Live (2015)

Compilations|

* Rush Through Time (1979)
* Chronicles (1990)
* Retrospective I (1997)
* Retrospective II (1997)
* The Spirit of Radio: Greatest Hits 1974–1987 (2003)
* Gold (2006)
* Retrospective III: 1989–2008 (2009)
* Working Men (2009)

Video compilations|

* Through the Camera Eye (1985)
* Chronicles (1990)

Box sets|

* The Studio Albums 1989–2007 (2013)

Extended plays|

* Feedback (2004)
* Cygnus X-1 (2017)

Singles|

| 1970s|

* "In the Mood"
* "Fly by Night"
* "Lakeside Park"
* "The Twilight Zone"
* "Closer to the Heart"
* "Circumstances"
* "The Trees"

|

1980s|

* "The Spirit of Radio"
* "Entre Nous"
* "Limelight"
* "Tom Sawyer"
* "Vital Signs"
* "New World Man"
* "Subdivisions"
* "Countdown"
* "Red Sector A"
* "Afterimage"
* "The Big Money"
* "Mystic Rhythms"
* "Time Stand Still"
* "Show Don't Tell"

1990s–2010s|

* "The Pass"
* "Dreamline"
* "Roll the Bones"
* "Ghost of a Chance"
* "Stick It Out"
* "Nobody's Hero"
* "Test for Echo"
* "Half the World"
* "Driven"
* "One Little Victory"
* "Secret Touch"
* "Summertime Blues"
* "Far Cry"
* "Spindrift"
* "Caravan"
* "Headlong Flight"

Other songs|

* "Working Man"
* "2112"
* "A Passage to Bangkok"
* "Tears"
* "Xanadu"
* "Freewill"
* "Red Barchetta"
* "YYZ"
* "Witch Hunt"
* "The Analog Kid"
* "Between the Wheels"
* "Red Lenses"
* "Marathon"
* "Manhattan Project"
* "Force Ten"
* "Mission"
* "Lock and Key"
* "Heresy"
* "Animate"
* "Cold Fire"
* "The Larger Bowl (A Pantoum)"

Tours|

* Hemispheres Tour (1978–1979)
* Moving Pictures Tour (1980–1981)
* Exit... Stage Left Tour (1981)
* Power Windows Tour (1985–1986)
* Presto Tour (1990)
* Roll the Bones Tour (1991–1992)
* Counterparts Tour (1994)
* Test for Echo Tour (1996–1997)
* Snakes & Arrows Tour (2007–2008)
* Time Machine Tour (2010–2011)
* Clockwork Angels Tour (2012–2013)
* R40 Live Tour (2015)

Related articles|

* Discography
* Songs
* Awards
* Instrumentals
* Victor
* My Favourite Headache
* A Work in Progress
* Anatomy of a Drum Solo
* Ghost Rider: Travels on the Healing Road
* Hugh Syme
* Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage
* Working Man – A Tribute to Rush

* Category

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