Tour de Force: Live in London | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Video by | ||||
Released | October 28, 2013 (video albums) May 19, 2014 (live albums) | |||
Recorded | March 26 – 30, 2013 | |||
Venue |
| |||
Genre | Blues-rock | |||
Length | 7:16:43 (total)
| |||
Label |
| |||
Director | Philippe Klose | |||
Producer | Kevin Shirley | |||
Joe Bonamassa video album chronology | ||||
| ||||
Joe Bonamassa live album chronology | ||||
|
Tour de Force: Live in London is a series of videos and live albums by American blues-rock musician Joe Bonamassa. Produced by Kevin Shirley and directed by Philippe Klose, the albums document the guitarist and vocalist's four performances at four venues in London, England in March 2013. Each of the four shows were initially released as videos on October 28, 2013 in Europe by Provogue Records, and the following day in North America by J&R Adventures, with a box set featuring all four shows and a special collector's edition hardback book also issued at the same time. All four shows were issued as live albums on May 19, 2014.
During March 2013, Bonamassa performed a series of shows at four venues in London, each of which featured different personnel and themes. On March 26, a three-piece lineup performed a set featuring many of Bonamassa's early songs at The Borderline; on March 27, a larger band including a keyboardist and horn section performed a blues-themed set at Shepherd's Bush Empire; on March 28, another lineup of the group including a percussionist and backing vocalist focused on the rock genre at the Hammersmith Apollo; and on March 30, Bonamassa performed acoustic and electric "greatest hits" sets with two different bands at the Royal Albert Hall.
All four Tour de Force single-show video releases reached the top ten of the US Billboard Music Video Sales chart and the UK Music Video Chart, with the complete collection reaching number 18 in the US. The four live albums all reached the top ten of the Billboard Blues Albums chart and the UK Jazz & Blues Albums Chart, while the Royal Albert Hall release also charted on the Billboard Independent Albums chart (at number 46) and the UK Albums Chart (at number 131). Media response to the albums was generally positive, with commentators praising the ambition of the releases, as well as the variety of set lists and performances across the shows.
Billed as "The Guitar Event of the Year", Joe Bonamassa performed four shows in London, England in March 2013 – at The Borderline on March 26, at Shepherd's Bush Empire on March 27, at Hammersmith Apollo on March 28, and at the Royal Albert Hall on March 30. [1] The official press release for the shows explained that they were designed to "chronicle Bonamassa's atmospheric rise from the intimate club environment of The Borderline, to the prestigious Royal Albert Hall", with each date featuring a different band lineup and set list theme to match the according phase of his career – the first would feature a three-piece band performing a "jammy tribute to Bonamassa's earlier career"; the second would be a "blues-themed night" including a horn section designed to create a "soulful, big-blues-band feel"; the third would be a "rock-inspired evening" beginning with a short acoustic set; and the fourth would be a "half acoustic/half electric show" based on Bonamassa's "most popular and well-known songs". [2]
The idea for the four different shows in London was originally conceived by Bonamassa's producer Kevin Shirley and manager Roy Weisman, the latter of whom recalled that he had suggested Bonamassa use the four shows as "an opportunity for him to go back on his entire career and do a lot of songs he'd recorded but never played live",. [3] Bonamassa added that "London is like my second home. With these shows, I wanted to give the fans attending the London 2013 shows a real treat – something special to thank them for their unwavering support." [2] The initial release of Tour de Force: Live in London on October 28, 2013 included four double DVD and Blu-ray sets (one for each show), as well as a collector's edition box set containing all four videos and a hardback book packaged in a box designed to look like a Marshall amplifier. [3]
All four single-show Tour de Force: Live in London videos debuted in the top ten of the US Billboard Music Video Sales chart, with the Royal Albert Hall release entering at the highest position, number 5. [4] They also reached the top ten of the UK Music Video Chart, with Royal Albert Hall reaching number 4. [5] Elsewhere in Europe, the albums reached the top ten in Belgium, [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] the Netherlands, [11] and Sweden. [12] The Tour de Force: Live in London box set containing all four shows charted at number 18 in the US, [4] number 2 in Austria, [13] number 3 in Switzerland, [14] and number 14 in Germany. [15]
The following year, all four Tour de Force: Live in London albums entered the top ten of the US Billboard Blues Albums chart, with the Royal Albert Hall release reaching number 4. [16] They also all reached the top ten of the UK Jazz & Blues Albums Chart, with the Royal Albert Hall album peaking at number 3. [17] Royal Albert Hall also reached number 131 on the UK Albums Chart. [18] Three of the four releases also charted in Belgium, [19] [20] two of the four charted in the Netherlands, [11] The Borderline album charted in France, [21] and the Royal Albert Hall album also charted in Austria and Switzerland. [22] [23]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [24] |
Blues | [25] |
Blues Matters! | Favorable [26] |
Classic Rock | [27] |
Premier Guitar | [28] |
Total Guitar | [29] |
Media response to Tour de Force: Live in London was positive. Classic Rock and its sister publication Blues each presented Tour de Force: Live in London with ratings of eight out of ten, with Hugh Fielder for the former praising the breadth of material available on the set. [27] For Blues, Henry Yates proposed that "we can't remember the last time a live blues event caught the imagination quite like Joe Bonamassa's four-night stand", praising elements of the videos' production (including "stellar camerawork and pin-sharp sound"), the extra content included on the releases (which he described as "a healthy dollop of bonus material"), and the performances themselves (he concludes his review by saying that "Tour de Force is a brilliantly executed document of a truly memorable concert run, and comes highly recommended"). [25]
In a review of the set for Blues Matters! , Pete Sargeant praised the performances of various members of Bonamassa's backing bands at the shows, noting that "The players are fantastic throughout the shows, especially the drummers and percussionists", although concluded by praising the frontman's vocal performances as the main highlight. [26] Total Guitar magazine awarded the video albums four out of five stars, with reviewer Chris Vinnicombe praising the set for "showcasing an artist right at the top of his game in terms of both musical ability and business savvy". [29] Premier Guitar magazine writer Corbin Reiff outlined that "Overall it's a triumph. You really have to marvel at Bonamassa's gumption, and moreso, his sheer will and determination to pull it off." [28] AllMusic's Steve Leggett reviewed the Royal Albert Hall release of the set positively, explaining that "Bonamassa has soul, plenty of it, and he plays guitar with a reverent grace ... the guitarist and singer [is] in fine form in both settings". [24]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Albion" (intro) | 2:14 | |
2. | "I Know Where I Belong" | Joe Bonamassa | 5:46 |
3. | "Spanish Boots" | 4:10 | |
4. | "Your Funeral My Trial" (Sonny Boy Williamson II cover) | Sonny Boy Williamson II | 3:41 |
5. | "Blues Deluxe" |
| 8:38 |
6. | "Pain and Sorrow" |
| 7:54 |
7. | "Happier Times" | Bonamassa | 7:53 |
8. | "Steal Your Heart Away" | Bobby Parker | 3:42 |
9. | "Miss You, Hate You" | Bonamassa | 7:57 |
Total length: | 51:55 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "The River" |
| 6:57 |
2. | "Burning Hell" |
| 7:07 |
3. | "Don't Burn Down That Bridge" |
| 10:40 |
4. | "Story of a Quarryman" | Bonamassa | 4:53 |
5. | "Are You Experienced?" (The Jimi Hendrix Experience cover) | Jimi Hendrix | 7:00 |
Total length: | 36:37 |
Bonus features on the video release:
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Albion" (intro) |
| 2:14 |
2. | "Slow Train" |
| 6:45 |
3. | "So, It's Like That" |
| 3:26 |
4. | "Midnight Blues" (Gary Moore cover) | Gary Moore | 8:38 |
5. | "Last Kiss" | Bonamassa | 7:40 |
6. | "So Many Roads" (Otis Rush cover) | Paul Marshall | 6:25 |
7. | "You Better Watch Yourself" (Little Walter cover) |
| 5:04 |
8. | "Chains and Things" (B.B. King cover) |
| 7:36 |
Total length: | 47:48 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Lonesome Road Blues" | Bonamassa | 4:54 |
2. | "Stop!" |
| 6:37 |
3. | "I Got All You Need" | Willie Dixon | 3:07 |
4. | "The Great Flood" | Bonamassa | 10:17 |
5. | "The Ballad of John Henry" | Bonamassa | 13:23 |
6. | "Asking Around for You" |
| 10:39 |
7. | "Further On Up the Road" (Bobby "Blue" Bland cover) | 5:01 | |
Total length: | 53:58 |
Bonus features on the video release:
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Albion" (intro) |
| 2:14 |
2. | "Seagull" | 4:33 | |
3. | "Jelly Roll" | John Martyn | 2:53 |
4. | "Richmond" |
| 4:49 |
5. | "Athens to Athens" | Bonamassa | 4:51 |
6. | "Woke Up Dreaming" |
| 4:09 |
7. | "Cradle Rock" | Rory Gallagher | 4:58 |
8. | "When the Fire Hits the Sea" | Bonamassa | 3:47 |
9. | "Dust Bowl" | Bonamassa | 7:09 |
10. | "Dislocated Boy" | Bonamassa | 9:52 |
11. | "Driving Towards the Daylight" |
| 6:22 |
Total length: | 55:37 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Who's Been Talking" | Chester Arthur Burnett | 5:45 |
2. | "Jockey Full of Bourbon" | Tom Waits | 5:29 |
3. | "Tea for One" | 9:43 | |
4. | "Lonesome Road Blues" | Bonamassa | 4:57 |
5. | "The Ballad of John Henry" | Bonamassa | 13:16 |
6. | "Sloe Gin" | 8:59 | |
7. | "Just Got Paid" (ZZ Top cover) | 12:25 | |
Total length: | 60:34 |
Bonus features on the video release:
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Albion" (intro) |
| 2:14 |
2. | "Palm Trees, Helicopters and Gasoline" | Bonamassa | 1:51 |
3. | "Seagull" |
| 5:39 |
4. | "Jelly Roll" | Martyn | 2:39 |
5. | "Black Lung Heartache" | Bonamassa | 4:03 |
6. | "Around the Bend" |
| 6:04 |
7. | "Jockey Full of Bourbon" | Waits | 5:25 |
8. | "From the Valley" | Bonamassa | 2:31 |
9. | "Athens to Athens" | Bonamassa | 6:18 |
10. | "Slow Train" |
| 6:32 |
11. | "Last Kiss" | Bonamassa | 7:17 |
12. | "Dust Bowl" | Bonamassa | 7:12 |
13. | "Midnight Blues" (Gary Moore cover) | Moore | 8:19 |
Total length: | 66:04 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Who's Been Talking" | Burnett | 5:49 |
2. | "Happier Times" | Bonamassa | 6:29 |
3. | "Driving Towards the Daylight" |
| 6:22 |
4. | "The Ballad of John Henry" | Bonamassa | 13:13 |
5. | "Django/Mountain Time" |
| 11:43 |
6. | "Sloe Gin" |
| 8:24 |
7. | "Just Got Paid" (ZZ Top cover) |
| 12:11 |
Total length: | 64:11 |
Bonus features on the video release:
Video chartsThe Borderline
Shepherd's Bush Empire
Hammersmith Apollo
Royal Albert Hall
Live in London
| Album chartsThe Borderline
Shepherd's Bush Empire
Hammersmith Apollo
Royal Albert Hall
|
Beth Hart is an American musician from Los Angeles, California. She rose to fame with the release of her 1999 single "LA Song " from her second album Screamin' for My Supper. The single was a number one hit in New Zealand, as well as reaching the top 5 of the US Adult Contemporary and Top 10 on the Billboard Adult Top 40 charts.
Joseph Leonard Bonamassa is an American blues rock guitarist, singer and songwriter. He started his career at age twelve, when he opened for B.B. King. Since 2000, Bonamassa has released fifteen solo albums through his independent record label J&R Adventures, of which eleven have reached No. 1 on the Billboard Blues chart.
Royal Albert Hall London May 2-3-5-6, 2005 is a live album by the British rock band Cream, recorded at the Royal Albert Hall in 2005 during the band's reunion tour. As the title implies, the recording includes songs from their four reunion shows on 2, 3, 5, and 6 May 2005.
Live from the Royal Albert Hall is a live video and audio release by American rock band the Killers, released on November 9, 2009, by Island Records. The video is pulled from two nights the band performed at the Royal Albert Hall in July 2009, and also includes footage from festival dates the band headlined during the middle months of 2009. A CD of live material accompanies the DVD as part of the package. The artwork resembles the artwork for the band's third studio album, Day & Age, and was designed by artist Paul Normansell.
The discography of Black Country Communion, an English-American hard rock band, consists of four studio albums, one live album, four singles, one video album and nine music videos. Formed in Los Angeles, California in 2009, Black Country Communion is a supergroup composed of bassist and vocalist Glenn Hughes, guitarist and vocalist Joe Bonamassa, drummer Jason Bonham and keyboardist Derek Sherinian. Working with producer Kevin Shirley, the band released its self-titled debut album through J&R Adventures and Mascot Records in September 2010. The album reached number 54 on the Billboard 200, number 13 on the UK Albums Chart, the top 20 of the US Billboard Hard Rock Albums and Top Rock Albums charts, and topped the UK Rock & Metal Albums Chart.
Live from the Royal Albert Hall is the fourth live album by American blues rock musician Joe Bonamassa. Recorded on May 4, 2009, at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England, it was released on September 22, 2009 by J&R Adventures.
The discography of Joe Bonamassa, an American blues rock musician, consists of 16 studio albums, 18 live albums, three collaboration albums, 30 singles, 15 video albums, 13 music videos and 54 other appearances. After growing up in Utica, New York, Bonamassa began his career as a member of the band Bloodline, before beginning his solo career in 2000 with the release of A New Day Yesterday. The album reached number 9 on the US Billboard Blues Albums chart. The guitarist continued to see success in the blues genre, topping the chart with 2002's So, It's Like That and 2006's You & Me, before making his debut on the Billboard 200 in 2007 with Sloe Gin, which reached number 184. Bonamassa's albums have continued to increase in chart success over the years, with The Ballad of John Henry reaching number 103 on the Billboard 200, Black Rock, Dust Bowl and Driving Towards the Daylight reaching the Top 40, and Different Shades of Blue and Blues of Desperation reaching the Top 20. Several of the musician's video albums have also topped the Billboard Music Video Sales chart.
Seesaw is a cover album of soul and blues classics recorded by American singer Beth Hart and blues rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa in 2013. It follows up on the success of their initial collaboration for the Don't Explain cover album in 2011. Seesaw was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Blues Album of 2013.
Different Shades of Blue is the eleventh studio album by blues rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa. It was released on September 22, 2014.
Beacon Theatre: Live from New York is the fifth live album by the American blues rock musician Joe Bonamassa. The album was recorded across two nights on November 4 and 5, 2011 at the Beacon Theatre in New York and released by J&R Adventures on DVD on March 8, 2012, and later on CD on September 24, 2012.
Eels: Royal Albert Hall is a live album by Eels, released as a 2-Disc CD, 3-Disc clear purple vinyl and a DVD on April 14, 2015. The recording is from London's Royal Albert Hall, June 30, 2014. It is the third Eels live DVD.
Slowhand at 70 – Live at the Royal Albert Hall is a November 2015 album by Eric Clapton recorded live at the Royal Albert Hall on 21 May 2015 during his "70th Birthday Celebration" tour. A film of the concert was released on 14 September 2015 via cinema broadcasting in various territories. The cinema release included a report on Clapton's history at the Royal Albert Hall. A DVD, Blu-ray, compact disc and gramophone record release of the performance was released on 13 November 2015.
Blues of Desperation is the twelfth studio album by American blues rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa. It was released on March 25, 2016 through J&R Records.
Rock Candy Funk Party is an American jazz-funk band from Los Angeles, California. It was formed in 2009 by drummer Tal Bergman and guitarist Ron DeJesus, who had previously released Grooove, Vol. 1 in 2007. After adding guitarist Joe Bonamassa, bassist Mike Merritt and keyboardist Renato Neto, the band released its debut album We Want Groove in 2013, which reached number 5 on the US Billboard Jazz Albums chart and number 6 on the UK Jazz & Blues Albums Chart. Percussionist Daniel Sadownick joined after the album's release, featuring on the band's first live album Rock Candy Funk Party Takes New York: Live at The Iridium in 2014.
Live at Carnegie Hall: An Acoustic Evening is the fifteenth live album and video by American blues-rock musician Joe Bonamassa. Produced by Kevin Shirley, it was released on June 23, 2017 by J&R Adventures. The album documents Bonamassa's two performances at the Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall in New York City on January 21 and 22, 2016. It is the guitarist and vocalist's second all-acoustic live collection, following 2013's An Acoustic Evening at the Vienna Opera House.
Black Coffee is the third cover album recorded by American singer Beth Hart and blues rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa, released on January 26, 2018 on J&R Adventures and Mascot Label Group. It follows their 2013 cover album together titled Seesaw.
Redemption is the thirteenth studio album by American blues rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa. It was released on September 21, 2018 through Provogue / Mascot Music Productions.
Home Invasion: In Concert at the Royal Albert Hall is the second live Blu-ray/DVD and third live album by progressive rock musician Steven Wilson, released on 2 November 2018. It was filmed on the final night of Wilson's three-night residency at the Royal Albert Hall in London, which was part of the To the Bone tour. A 5-LP Vinyl edition was released on March 29, 2019 with six extra tracks not present on the CD edition.
Time Clocks is the fifteenth solo studio album by American blues rock musician Joe Bonamassa, released through J&R Adventures in North America and Provogue Records in Europe on October 29, 2021. "Notches", "The Heart That Never Waits" and the title track were released as singles prior to the album.
Blues Deluxe Vol. 2 is the sixteenth solo studio album by American blues rock musician Joe Bonamassa, released through J&R Adventures in North America and Provogue in Europe on October 6, 2023. "I Want to Shout About It", "Twenty-Four Hour Blues", "Well, I Done Got Over It", "Lazy Poker Blues" and "Hope You Realize It " were released as singles prior to the album. It serves as a successor to the original Blues Deluxe, released 20 years earlier.
Video albums
| Live albums
|