2007 Steve Vai North American Tour dates!

[BTB007]

Dates for Steve's 2007 North American tour have been announced. The tour kicks off on September 7, in Phoenix AZ and heads up the west coast before moving cross country for dates in the east, ending in Westbury, NY on October 6:

Sep 07 - Phoenix, AZ
Sep 08 - Las Vegas, NV
Sep 09 - Anaheim, CA
Sep 10 - San Diego, CA
Sep 11 - Los Angeles, CA
Sep 12 - San Francisco, CA
Sep 14 - Portland, OR
Sep 15 - Seattle, WA
Sep 16 - Vancouver, BC
Sep 19 - Minneapolis, MN
Sep 20 - Milwaukee, WI
Sep 21 - Chicago, IL
Sep 22 - Royal Oak, MI
Sep 23 - Toronto, ON
Sep 24 - Buffalo, NY
Sep 25 - New York, NY
Sep 27 - Philadelphia, PA
Sep 28 - Sayreville, NJ
Sep 29 - Atlantic City, NJ
Sep 30 - Alexandria, VA
Oct 02 - Albany, NY
Oct 03 - Hartford, CT
Oct 04 - Boston, MA
Oct 05 - Providence, RI
Oct 06 - Westbury, NY

I know I'm pretty pissed. Not one freaking Ohio show!

No Texas dates, no Florida dates. I think Vai needs a new promoter.

[Norton]

I wonder how much he gets for one concert.

[Vlover]

SF eh! I might just see him for the 1st time

[jksnhill12]

I was fortunate enought to catch him at a rather small venue about 5 years ago. It was by far the most impressive playing I have ever seen. And his band is amazing. If you haven't seen him it is well worth the time.

[BTB007]

The Breed will not be with Vai on this tour (Tony MacAlpine, Billy Sheehan, Dave Weiner and Jeremy Colson).
I don't even think Vai has announced his new band for this tour yet. I read that he wants a violinist on the tour, though.

[jwoods986]

I was just about to say "WTF, no Atlanta?" but then I looked at all the dates and there is NOTHING in the Southeast! WTF?

[BTB007]

Unfortunately, if local promoters don't make offers when Steve's tour booking is taking place it means Steve won't play in that particular area.

If you want to see Steve in Texas next time he tours, contact your local Live Nation promoters (or other reputable promoter) and tell them you want Vai!

Mikey
vai.com

I wasn't kidding, Vai really needs a new promoter!

[clifffclaven]

I wonder how much he gets for one concert.

my ex g/f owns a ticketing company. they tried to get him here in des moines last tour at a 1200 seat venue here. they needed $22k, i believe.

[slash]

Thats only 30 days on the road. How is he going to be everywhere in 30 days?

[Norton]

my ex g/f owns a ticketing company. they tried to get him here in des moines last tour at a 1200 seat venue here. they needed $22k, i believe.

Thanks!

[jrnic]

That's convienient that he ends in Westbury, NY considering that's the area where he grew up (Carle Place). Probably going to visit family while there. I think I'll have to check out that show, maybe his High School buddy will show up as a special guest!!! (Joe Satriani)

[shobet]

I was lucky to see him when he toured with Whitesnake several years ago, sounded great at the time, but when I heard it on the radio a few days later he was all over the place. Funny how things sound different when you are there surrounded with all the excitement and atmosphere of a gig.

[Wayniac]

Figures - he's in Hartford when I'm in Atlanta... ugh

[BTB007]

Mikey posted this over on Jemsite. A further explanation about why Vai didn't get booked in a lot of cities.

When a tour is booked, here's how it works:

Steve says to his booking agent "I'd like to do a US tour."

The booking agent says "okay - I'll put the word out to promoters and see who is interested in picking up the show on dates where the routing works and the venue is suitable, and available."

In other words, this means that the tour is structured in a way that the bus can make overnight trrips from show to show in a practical way.

Promoters are kind of like gamblers. They pick up a show and put it in a venue and advertise it, guaranteeing a certain number of tickets sold. If a promoter doesn't pick up a show in (insert city or state name here) it means Steve won't (can't) play there.

It's not that Steve doesn't want to play. It's not a diss to anyone in any specific geographic location. But he can't just arrive at a venue and set up his gear.

This is how all tours work.

My suggestion on Vai.com is the same as it is here: if you want Steve to play in your area, you should lobby local promoters and venues (who are often one and the same) to book Steve when the tour is offered by the booking agent. They want to know that they will have an audience that will come see the show.

If my memory serves me correctly, G3 didn't hit Texas either - probably for the same reason. local promoters didn't pick up the show.

I think it's terribly disappointing when a tour is on but no shows are booked in any given areas where fans want to see the show, but as you can see from my long-winded note above, there are many factors at play, and it's often not as easy as it sounds.

Mikey
vai.com

p.s. It's not the first leg. At this time, it looks like these will be the only dates.

[Newc]

Wasn't Eric Johnson in the last G3? And they couldn't get enough fans in his home state to guarantee at least one show in Texas?