Lick It Up World Tour

The Lick It Up World Tour was a concert tour by American hard rock band Kiss, in support of their eleventh studio album Lick It Up. It was the last tour to feature lead guitarist Vinnie Vincent.

Lick It Up World Tour

Tour by Kiss
Associated album	Lick It Up
Start date	October 11, 1983
End date	March 17, 1984
Legs	2
No. of shows	94
Kiss concert chronology

Background

It was the first tour the band performed without wearing their trademark make-up, following the reveal of the members without them on MTV in September 1983,^[1] basing it on how bands, fans and the times change.^[2] The tour began in Cascais, Portugal on October 11, 1983 when they performed for the first time without the usage of makeup.^[3] According to Simmons, fan reaction in Europe was 'greater than ever' and had sold out in advance.^[2] When asked if the removal of the makeup meant that it was a farewell tour, Simmons stated that it was not, saying "If that were the case, I'd rather let the thing fade away. We're only doing this because, after the tour and making Lick It Up, we feel stronger than ever."^[4]

The "tank" stage design from the preceding Creatures of the Night tour was used again, keeping all the same gimmicks.^[5] The January 11 show in Nashville was recorded, and an edited version aired on The King Biscuit Flower Hour.^[6] At the January 27 show in Long Beach, Kiss were presented with their first gold records since 1980 for the Lick It Up album.^{[citation needed]}

Lead guitarist Vinnie Vincent was fired after the European Tour due to "unethical behavior". Kiss did not have enough time to search for another guitarist, so they re-hired Vincent for the North American leg until his firing became permanent after the tour ended.^[7] Bass guitarist Gene Simmons stated in various interviews that Vincent's dismissal was because he never signed his contract as an official member of Kiss and for unethical behavior.^[8] Stanley later admitted that Vincent had to go, stating that he was getting worse and stalling the shows with lengthy guitar solos.^[9] There were also issues regarding Vincent over his salary, who wanted a better deal and complained about the contract and working conditions, who eventually drove Stanley and Simmons to fire him when they accused him of trying to hijack the band.^[10]

In the tour program for the band's final tour, Simmons reflected on the tour:

The Lick It Up tour was a challenge, at least initially, as it was the first tour we did without makeup and I had to re-calibrate from being the fire-spewing Demon with eight-inch heels to a mere mortal playing rock and roll music. But Kiss are survivors. We survived in makeup and out of makeup; we survived all different kinds of music-thrash, disco, dance, grunge, new romance and we survive, persevere and thrive. It means we win! Kiss has always marched to the beat of their own drum.^[11]

Reception

A local reporter who attended the Lakeland performance on December 29, 1983, opened their review by stating that before the removal of the make-up, it was easy to laugh at Kiss - referring to them as clowns that weren't amusing. However, they noted the positivity of the changes in the band's personnel and the band's hopes to retake the lead in the heavy metal industry. They praised the song "I Love It Loud", citing it as a song to capsulize the revitalized band's performance to 6,000 fans that night.^[12]

Chuck Gates, a reporter from the Deseret News, who had attended the Salt Palace performance on February 5, 1984, opened his review by stating that the band was 'mediocre then and still is'. He noted on the inclusion of songs from the band's album Lick It Up, but had inquired about the exclusion of the band's two hit songs "Beth" and "I Was Made for Lovin' You". Regarding the stage, he acknowledged the lack of theatrics and makeup, and the absence of both Ace Frehley and Peter Criss - to which he stated that all that was left was a mediocre heavy metal band playing at deafening volumes.^[13]

John Laycock from the Windsor Star who had attended the Cobo Arena show opened their review by stating that the band continued to roar without their makeup. He acknowledged the usage of Simmons' fire-breathing effects and the new wave haircuts that band members had. Even with the sight of no makeup, he reported the sturdiness of the band's songs during the performance, as well as noting on how the band's clothes had changed and not the music. He concluded his review, saying that the show remains a vividly staged break from sanity.^[14]

Setlist

These are example setlists of what was performed during the tour on each leg, but may not represent the majority of the tour.^[15]

European setlist "Creatures of the Night" "Detroit Rock City" "Cold Gin" "Fits Like a Glove" "Firehouse" "Exciter" "War Machine" "Gimme More" "I Love It Loud" "I Still Love You" "Young and Wasted" "Love Gun" "Black Diamond" Encore "Lick It Up" "Rock and Roll All Nite"

North American setlist "Creatures of the Night" "Detroit Rock City" "Cold Gin" "Fits Like a Glove" "Firehouse" "Gimme More" "War Machine" "I Love It Loud" "I Still Love You" "Young and Wasted" "Love Gun" "All Hell's Breakin' Loose" "Black Diamond" Encore "Lick It Up" "Rock and Roll All Nite"

Tour dates

Date	City	Country	Venue	Opening Act(s)
Europe[15]
October 11, 1983	Cascais	Portugal	Pavilhão de Cascais	Helix
October 13, 1983	Madrid	Spain	Pabellón de Deportes del Real Madrid	Helix Tigres de Oro
October 14, 1983
October 15, 1983	San Sebastián		Velódromo de Anoeta
October 16, 1983	Barcelona		Palau dels Esports de Barcelona
October 18, 1983	Toulouse	France	Palais des Sports de Toulouse	Helix
October 19, 1983	Clermont-Ferrand		Maison des Sports
October 21, 1983	Leeds	England	Queens Hall	Helix Heavy Pettin'
October 22, 1983	Stafford		Bingley Hall
October 23, 1983	London		Wembley Arena
October 24, 1983	Leicester		De Montfort Hall
October 25, 1983	Poole		Poole Arts Center
October 27, 1983	Glasgow	Scotland	Glasgow Apollo
October 28, 1983	Edinburgh		Edinburgh Playhouse
October 29, 1983	Newcastle-upon-Tyne	England	Newcastle City Hall
October 31, 1983	Paris	France	Espace Balard	Helix
November 1, 1983	Offenbach am Main	West Germany	Stadthalle Offenbach
November 2, 1983	Munich		Löwenbräukeller
November 3, 1983	Basel	Switzerland	St. Jakobshalle
November 4, 1983	Sindelfingen	West Germany	Messehalle
November 6, 1983	Neunkirchen am Brand		Hemmerleinhalle
November 7, 1983	Linz	Austria	Linzer Sporthalle
November 8, 1983	Vienna		Wiener Stadthalle
November 9, 1983	Graz		Eisstadion Liebenau
November 10, 1983	Essen	West Germany	Grugahalle
November 11, 1983	Kassel		Eissporthalle Kassel
November 12, 1983	Lille	France	Palais de la Foire
November 13, 1983	Brussels	Belgium	Forest National
November 15, 1983	Lausanne	Switzerland	Halle des Fêtes de Beaulieu
November 17, 1983	Risskov	Denmark	Vejlby-Risskov Hallen
November 18, 1983	Gothenburg	Sweden	Scandinavium
November 19, 1983	Stockholm		Johanneshovs Isstadion
November 20, 1983	Malmö		Malmö Isstadion
November 21, 1983	Hillerød	Denmark	Frederiksborg Center
November 23, 1983	Helsinki	Finland	Helsinki Ice Hall
November 25, 1983	Oulu		Oulu-halli
North America[15][16]
December 26, 1983	Atlanta	United States	The Omni Coliseum	Axe Pat Travers Band
December 28, 1983	Augusta		Augusta-Richmond County Civic Center	Axe
December 29, 1983	Lakeland		Lakeland Civic Center	Axe Pat Travers Band
December 30, 1983	Pembroke Pines		Hollywood Sportatorium
December 31, 1983	Jacksonville		Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum
January 1, 1984	Tallahassee		Leon County Civic Center	Axe
January 6, 1984	Birmingham		Boutwell Memorial Auditorium	Vandenberg Riot
January 7, 1984	Memphis		Mid-South Coliseum
January 8, 1984	New Orleans		Kiefer UNO Lakefront Arena
January 9, 1984	Biloxi		Mississippi Coast Coliseum
January 10, 1984	Knoxville		Knoxville Civic Coliseum
January 11, 1984	Nashville		Nashville Municipal Auditorium
January 13, 1984	Dallas		Dallas Convention Center
January 14, 1984	San Antonio		HemisFair Arena
January 16, 1984	Austin		Palmer Auditorium
January 17, 1984	San Angelo		San Angelo Coliseum
January 18, 1984	Houston		Sam Houston Coliseum
January 19, 1984	Corpus Christi		Corpus Christi Memorial Coliseum
January 21, 1984	El Paso		El Paso County Coliseum
January 22, 1984	Albuquerque		Tingley Coliseum
January 23, 1984	Odessa		Ector County Coliseum
January 25, 1984	Denver		University of Denver Arena
January 27, 1984	Long Beach		Long Beach Arena
January 28, 1984	Las Vegas		Thomas & Mack Center
January 29, 1984	Fresno		Selland Arena
January 31, 1984	Reno		Lawlor Events Center
February 1, 1984	Berkeley		Berkeley Community Theatre
February 2, 1984	Bakersfield		Bakersfield Civic Auditorium
February 3, 1984	San Bernardino		Orange Pavilion
February 5, 1984	Salt Lake City		Salt Palace
February 8, 1984	Sioux City		Sioux City Municipal Auditorium	Vandenberg High Fever
February 9, 1984	Omaha		Omaha Civic Auditorium	Vandenberg Heaven
February 10, 1984	Milwaukee		Milwaukee Auditorium
February 11, 1984	Dubuque		Five Flags Center
February 12, 1984	Bloomington		Met Center
February 14, 1984	Green Bay		Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena
February 15, 1984	Chicago		UIC Pavilion
February 16, 1984	Indianapolis		Market Square Arena
February 17, 1984	Saginaw		Wendler Arena
February 18, 1984	Detroit		Cobo Arena
February 19, 1984	Columbus		Battelle Hall
February 21, 1984	Trotwood		Hara Arena
February 22, 1984	Richfield		Richfield Coliseum
February 24, 1984	Worcester		Centrum in Worcester	Accept
February 26, 1984	Hampton		Hampton Coliseum
February 28, 1984	Baltimore		Baltimore Civic Center
March 1, 1984	New Haven		New Haven Coliseum
March 3, 1984	Upper Darby Township		Tower Theater
March 4, 1984	Pittsburgh		Stanley Theater
March 5, 1984	Erie		Erie Civic Center
March 7, 1984	Binghamton		Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena
March 8, 1984	Poughkeepsie		Mid-Hudson Civic Center
March 9, 1984	New York City		Radio City Music Hall
March 10, 1984
March 12, 1984	Quebec City	Canada	Colisée de Québec
March 13, 1984	Montreal		Montreal Forum
March 15, 1984	Toronto		Maple Leaf Gardens
March 17, 1984	Evansville	United States	Roberts Municipal Stadium

Personnel

• Paul Stanley – vocals, rhythm guitar
• Gene Simmons – vocals, bass
• Eric Carr – drums, vocals
• Vinnie Vincent – lead guitar, backing vocals

References

1. Wilkening, Matthew (September 18, 2015). "The Day Kiss Finally Removed Their Makeup". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved December 8, 2021.
2. Bishop, Pete (March 1, 1984). "Kiss the old KISS goodbye". Pittsburgh: The Pittsburgh Press. p. C1. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
3. Wilkening, Matthew (October 11, 2015). "When Kiss Played Their First Show Without Makeup". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved December 10, 2021.
4. "Announcing the plain, unvarnished Kiss". New York: The Telegraph. October 28, 1983. p. 17. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
5. Campbell, Mary (October 21, 1983). "Kiss behind the makeup". Lakeland Ledger. p. 2C. Retrieved December 8, 2021.
6. MacMaster, Claire (November 27, 1984). "Airwaves". The Boston Phoenix. p. 16. Retrieved December 8, 2021. 11:00 (WCBN) King Biscuit Flower Hour. Motley Crue and Kiss
7. Blau, Max (April 8, 2014). "Inside a Hair-Metal Meltdown: Search for Ex-Kiss Guitarist Vinnie Vincent". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 8, 2021.
8. Filcman, Debra (September 2, 2018). "Gene Simmons: Vinnie Vincent Headed for 'More Legal Problems'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved December 8, 2021.
9. Stanley, Paul (2014). Face the Music: A Life Exposed. New York: Harper Collins. ISBN 978-0-06-211406-8.
10. Lendt, C.K. (1997). Kiss and Sell: The Making of a Supergroup. New York: Billboard Books. p. 294. ISBN 0-8230-7551-6.
11. (2019). End of the Road World Tour Program, pg. 20.
12. St. Petersburg Times, December 31, 1983
13. Gates, Chuck (February 6, 1984). "'Kiss' was mediocre then - and still is". Salt Lake City: Deseret News. p. C5.
14. Laycock, John (February 20, 1984). "New-look Kiss: same old sound". Detroit: The Windsor Star. p. D7.
15. Gooch, Curt; Suhs, Jeff (2002). Kiss Alive Forever: The Complete Touring History. New York: Billboard Books. ISBN 0-8230-8322-5.
16. North America show announcements:

    • Haldin, Ken (December 16, 1983). "Concert Groups Are Taking Holiday". Ocala Star-Banner. p. 1C. Retrieved December 10, 2021.
    • "Kiss Concert Set At Center". Columbus: Daily Times. January 20, 1984. p. 7. Retrieved December 10, 2021. Kiss, a popular heavy metal rock group which recently jettisoned its stage makeup, will perform in concert at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 19 at the Ohio Center here.
    • "Kiss in concert Sunday". Salt Lake City: The Deseret News. February 3, 1984. p. 2W. Retrieved December 10, 2021. Kiss - a heavy metal band with a penchant for raucous rock 'n' roll will perform in the Salt Palace Sunday at 7:30 p.m.

Sources

• Gooch, Curt; Suhs, Jeff (2002). Kiss Alive Forever: The Complete Touring History. New York: Billboard Books. ISBN 0-8230-8322-5.