The Faith Tour was the first solo

concert tour A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific to ...

by English recording artist

George Michael George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the most significant cultural icons of the MTV generation and is one of the best-selling musici ...

, launched in support of his multi-million selling debut solo album ''

Faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people often ...

''. The tour spanned nine months between February and October 1988 with three final shows in the summer of 1989 comprising 109 shows across sixteen countries. It was choreographed by

Paula Abdul Paula Julie Abdul (born June 19, 1962) is an American singer, dancer, choreographer, actress, and television personality. She began her career as a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers at the age of 18 and later became the head choreograph ...

Overview

On 30 October 1987, Michael released his debut solo studio album, ''

''. After receiving a 1988

Brit Award The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...

for " Best British Male" at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

in London, George Michael embarked on a massive sold out world tour which would occupy most of that year. It started in Tokyo's

Budokan The , often shortened to simply Budokan, is an indoor arena located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally built for the inaugural Olympic judo competition in the 1964 Summer Olympics. While its primary purpose is to host martial arts ...

indoor arena in February and ended at

Pensacola Civic Center Pensacola Bay Center (formerly Pensacola Civic Center) is an indoor arena located in Pensacola, Florida. It is owned by Escambia County and operated by ASM Global. The Bay Center has a capacity of 8,049 for hockey games, and as much as 10,000 ...

in Pensacola, Florida.Careless Whispers:
The Life & Career of George Michael: Revised & Updated - By Robert Steele Most of the

set list A set list, or setlist, is typically a handwritten or printed document created as an ordered list of songs, jokes, stories and other elements an artist intends to present during a specific performance. A setlist can be made of nearly any materi ...

was based on the ''Faith'' track listing with a couple of songs from

Wham! Wham! (briefly known in the US as Wham! U.K.) were an English pop duo formed in Bushey in 1981. The duo consisted of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They became one of the most commercially successful pop acts of the 1980s, selling more ...

Everything She Wants "Everything She Wants" is a song by British pop duo Wham!, originally released as a single in 1984 on Epic Records on a double A-side with "Last Christmas". It was written and produced by George Michael, one half of the duo, becoming their th ...

" and " I'm Your Man"). Michael also paid a tribute to artists that he had been influenced by such as "

Lady Marmalade "Lady Marmalade" is a song written by Bob Crewe and Kenny Nolan, originally for Nolan's disco group. The song is famous for the repeated refrain of " ''Voulez-vous coucher avec moi''?" in French as part of the chorus, a sexually suggestive line ...

" by Labelle, Wild Cherry's "

Play That Funky Music "Play That Funky Music" is a song written by Rob Parissi and recorded by the band Wild Cherry. The single was the first released by the Cleveland-based Sweet City record label in April 1976 and distributed by Epic Records. The performers on th ...

" and Stevie Wonder's " Love's in Need of Love Today". When Michael performed at Birmingham's

Genting Arena The Resorts World Arena is a multipurpose indoor arena located at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Solihull, England. It has a capacity of 15,685 seats. The venue was built as the seventh hall of the NEC complex. After 18 months of const ...

, Andrew joined him briefly onstage for a performance of "I'm Your Man". With already two U.S. number ones, new singles continued to be released while on tour with " One More Try" and "

Monkey Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as the simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes, which constitutes an incomple ...

" also reaching No. 1 in late May and August 1988 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. On Saturday 11 June, Michael performed three songs including Gladys Knight's " If You Were My Woman" for the

Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute The Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute was a popular-music concert staged on 11 June 1988 at Wembley Stadium, London, and broadcast to 67 countries and an audience of 600 million. Marking the forthcoming 70th birthday (18 July 1988) of the ...

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

. Michael used the concert as preparation for a show later the same day at London's

Earls Court Earl's Court is a district of Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in West London, bordering the rail tracks of the West London line and District line that separate it from the ancient borough of Fulham to the west, the ...

. For the first five months, Michael had consulted eight doctors in a variety of countries for throat pain which had caused some concert cancellations. Eventually in London he was diagnosed with a cyst in the throat. The demanding schedule took a pause for Michael to recuperate. In August 1988, Michael toured the United States beginning in

Landover, Maryland Landover is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 25,998. Landover is contained between Sheriff Road and Central Avenue to the so ...

and closing late October in

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ...

. In August, in Auburn Hills, Michigan, George was joined on stage by

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

for a duet on "

I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) "I Knew You Were Waiting (for Me)" is a song released by American singer Aretha Franklin and English singer George Michael as a duet in 1987. The song was a number one hit in the United States and the United Kingdom. ''Billboard'' listed "I Knew ...

". The 43-date American tour alone grossed a total of $15 million (about $ in today's dollars), performing to over 750,000 fans. Michael also topped the

Billboard Year-End ''Billboard'' Year-End charts are cumulative rankings of entries in '' Billboard'' magazine charts in the United States in any given chart year. Several hundred Year-End charts are now published by ''Billboard'', the most important of which are ...

of 1988 charts in the U.S. with his album ''Faith'' and single of the same title. According to

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

, he was the top-selling artist of the year 1988 in the United States.

Last shows (1989)

In early July 1989, nine months after the tour ended, Michael performed three special concerts (shows in Spain had been previously cancelled) at Madrid's

Las Ventas The plaza de toros de Las Ventas, known simply as Las Ventas, is the largest bullfighting ring in Spain, located in the Guindalera quarter of the Salamanca district of Madrid. It was inaugurated on June 17, 1931. Its seating capacity of 23,798, m ...

La Rosaleda Stadium Estadio La Rosaleda (; literally The Rose Garden) is a football stadium in the city of Málaga, in Andalucia, southern Spain. It is the home stadium of Málaga CF in Segunda División and was previously that of the Club Deportivo Málaga, of wh ...

Málaga Málaga (, ) is a municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 578,460 in 2020, it is the second-most populous city in Andalusia after Seville and the sixth most pop ...

and

Sarrià Stadium Sarrià Stadium (in Catalan: Estadi de Sarrià ; in Spanish: Estadio de Sarrià) was a football stadium in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The stadium was the home of RCD Espanyol from 1923 to 1997, and was located in the district of Sarrià. Begi ...

in Barcelona.

Broadcast and recordings

The concert on 16 April 1988 in Rotterdam was professionally recorded for a commercial release. No DVD has been released. The concert on 31 May 1988 in Paris was officially recorded as audio and 11 tracks from that show were broadcast on several radio stations in several countries. The concert on 1 July 1989 in Madrid was recorded and broadcast live on the television channel

TVE1 La 1 (, ''The One'') is a Spanish free-to-air television channel owned and operated by Televisión Española (TVE), the television division of state-owned public broadcaster Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE). It is the corporation's flagship te ...

in Spain and various European and Latin American countries.

Opening acts

Deon Estus Jeffery Deon Estus (July 4, 1956 – October 11, 2021) was an American musician and singer, best known as the bass player of Wham! and as the bassist on George Michael's first two solo projects. Estus' single "Heaven Help Me", with additional ...

(North America, selected dates)Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses
- ''Billboard'', 27 August 1988 (P. 34) *

The Bangles The Bangles are an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1981. The band recorded several singles that reached the U.S. top 10 during the 1980s, including "Manic Monday" (1986), "Walk Like an Egyptian" (1986), " Hazy Shade ...

(North America, selected dates)Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses
- ''Billboard'', 12 November 1988 (P. 27)Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses
- ''Billboard'', 3 December 1988 (P. 20) * Johnny Clegg & Savuka (Toronto)Boxscore: Top Concert Grosses
- ''Billboard'', 10 September 1988 (P. 30)

Set list

1988 ;First leg # "

I Want Your Sex "I Want Your Sex" is a song by the English singer and songwriter George Michael. Released as a single in late May 1987 (U.S.) and early June 1987 (UK), it was the third hit from the soundtrack to '' Beverly Hills Cop II'' and the first single fro ...

" # "

Hard Day "Hard Day" is a song by English singer George Michael from his debut studio album, ''Faith'' (1987). It was released on 30 October 1987 as the album's third single. The song was written and originally produced by Michael, and was released sole ...

" # " Love's in Need of Love Today" # "

" # "

Father Figure A father figure is usually an older man, normally one with power, authority, or strength, with whom one can identify on a deeply psychological level and who generates emotions generally felt towards one's father. Despite the literal term "father ...

" # " I'm Your Man" # "

A Different Corner "A Different Corner" is a song written and performed by George Michael that was released on Epic Records (Columbia Records in the US) in 1986 . Background & Writing "A Different Corner" was written by Michael while Wham! were at their peak as a ...

" # "

" # "Hand to Mouth" # " One More Try" # "

" # "

Careless Whisper "Careless Whisper" is a song written by George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. Released on the 1984 Wham! album ''Make It Big'', the single release was credited either to ''Wham! featuring George Michael'' (in North America and several other count ...

" # "

" ;Second leg # "I Want Your Sex" # "Hard Day" # "Everything She Wants" # "I'm Your Man" # "A Different Corner" # " Love's in Need of Love Today" # "Father Figure" # "One More Try" # "Faith" # "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" # "Careless Whisper" # "

" # "I Want Your Sex" ;Third leg # "I Want Your Sex (Part I)" # "Hard Day" # "Father Figure" # "I'm Your Man" # "Love's in Need of Love Today" # "Everything She Wants" # "A Different Corner" # "Faith" # "Monkey" # "Hand to Mouth" # "

" # "One More Try" # "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" # "Look at Your Hands" # "Careless Whisper" # "Lady Marmalade" # "I Want Your Sex (Part II & III)" ;Fourth leg # "I Want Your Sex" # "Faith" # "Hard Day" # "Everything She Wants" # "I'm Your Man" # "A Different Corner" # "Love's in Need of Love Today" # "Father Figure" # "One More Try" # "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" # "Lady Marmalade" # "Careless Whisper" 1989

Shows

;Cancellations and rescheduled shows

Personnel

As printed in the official tour programme.As printed in the official ‘THE FAITH TOUR’ programme. *George Michael – ''Lead vocals'' *Chris Cameron – ''Musical Director'' *Carlos Rios – ''Guitarist'' *

– ''Bassist'' *Moyes Lucas – ''Drummer'' *Tony Patler – ''Keyboards'' *Andy Hamilton – ''Saxophone'' * Lynn Mabry – ''Vocalist'' *Eric Henderson/Art Palmer – ''Dancers'' *Lippmann Kahane Entertainment – ''Management'' *Jake Duncan – ''Tour Manager'' *Albert Lawrence – ''Production Manager'' *Jonathan Smeeton/Shawn Richardson – ''Lighting Designers'' *Benji Lefevre – ''Sound Engineer'' * Chris Porter – ''Sound Co-ordinator'' *Mark Fisher/Jonathan Park – ''Stageset Designer'' *Gerry Raymond Barker – ''Stage Manager'' *Ian Tucker – ''Lighting Crew Chief'' *Chris Wade Evans – ''Monitor Engineer'' *Bob Weber – ''Head Carpenter'' *Michael Garabedian – ''Carpenter'' *Dean Hart/Steve Olean – ''Riggers'' *Siobhan Bailey – ''Asst. to George Michael'' *Rusty Hooker – ''Tour Accountant'' *Triad – ''Agency'' *Nick Sizer – ''Drum Technician'' *Adrian Wilson – ''Guitar Technician'' *Gary Hodgson – ''Keyboard Technician'' *Wells Christie III – ''Programming Technician'' *Ronnie Franklin/Bill Greer – ''Security Officers'' *Melanie Panayiotou – ''Hair'' *Kathy Jeung/Melanie Panayiotou – ''Make Up'' *

Michael Putland Michael Putland (27 May 1947 – 18 November 2019) was a 1970s English music photographer. Biography Born in 1947 just outside London, Putland took up photography at the age of 9. He is a portrait photographer and photojournalist most noted fo ...

/ Chris Cuffaro – ''Tour Photographers'' *Alan Keyes – ''Wardrobe Master'' *Debra De Luca – ''Asst. Tour Manager'' *Paul Corkill – ''Fitness Trainer'' *Michael Deissler/Alastair Walsh – ''Laser Technicians'' *Brian Latt/John Brant – ''Color Ray Technicians'' *Lori Goldklang – ''Management Assistant'' *Deirdre Pratt – ''Tour Manager Assistant'' *

Showco Showco was a sound equipment provider of touring sound reinforcement equipment and services to the concert touring industry. It was based in Dallas, Texas, United States. In 2000, Showco was acquired by Clair Global. Showco was established in 197 ...

INC. – ''Sound'' *Samuelsons – ''Lighting'' * VARI*LITE INC. – ''Moving Lights''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Faith Tour, The George Michael concert tours 1988 concert tours 1989 concert tours