The Skyscraper Tour was a North American, European, Japanese, and Australian

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 hard rock singer David Lee Roth. It was his second ever solo concert tour, and is the only tour to have featured the line-up of Roth,

Steve Vai Steven Siro Vai (; born June 6, 1960) is an American guitarist, composer, songwriter, and producer. A three-time Grammy Award winner and fifteen-time nominee, Vai started his music career in 1978 at the age of eighteen as a transcriptionist f ...

, Matt Bissonette,

Gregg Bissonette Gregg Bissonette (born June 9, 1959) is an American jazz and rock drummer and vocalist. He is the brother of bassist Matt Bissonette, with whom he frequently collaborates. He has played on albums by dozens of recording artists, including David ...

, and Brett Tuggle.

History

With the success of the ''

Skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ri ...

'' album and "

Just Like Paradise "Just Like Paradise" is a song by American rock singer David Lee Roth. Released after he left Van Halen, it was produced by Roth and guitarist Steve Vai. The lead single from Roth's second solo album, 1988's ''Skyscraper'', it reached the top 1 ...

" single, an even more extensive tour than its predecessor (the

Eat 'Em and Smile Tour The Eat 'Em and Smile Tour was a North American concert tour by David Lee Roth. It was his first tour since leaving Van Halen in 1985, and is the only tour to have featured the line-up of Roth, Steve Vai, Billy Sheehan, and Gregg Bissonette (as w ...

) was embarked upon – this time visiting outside of just the United States and Canada, and including dates in Europe, Japan, and Australia. Like the prior tour, the setlist featured

Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...

songs ("

Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love" is a song by American rock band Van Halen. It was released in October 1978 as the third single from their 1978 debut album, ''Van Halen''. This song is one of the few David Lee Roth-era songs that subsequent replacem ...

", "

Hot for Teacher "Hot for Teacher" is a song by the American rock band Van Halen, taken from their sixth studio album, ''1984''. The song was written by band members Eddie Van Halen, Alex Van Halen, Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth, and produced by Ted Templem ...

", "

Jump Jumping is a form of locomotion or movement in which an organism or non-living (e.g., robotic) mechanical system propels itself through the air along a ballistic trajectory. Jump or Jumping also may refer to: Places * Jump, Kentucky or Jump S ...

", etc.), solo hits ("Goin' Crazy", " Yankee Rose", the aforementioned "Just Like Paradise"), and cover songs (" Just a Gigolo/

I Ain't Got Nobody "I Ain't Got Nobody" (sometimes referred to as "I'm So Sad and Lonely" or "I Ain't Got Nobody Much") is a popular song copyrighted in 1915. Roger A. Graham (1885–1938) wrote the lyrics, Spencer Williams composed it, and Roger Graham Music Publ ...

", "

California Girls "California Girls" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1965 album, '' Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)''. Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, the lyrics detail an appreciation for women across the world and a wish ...

", "

You Really Got Me "You Really Got Me" is a song written by Ray Davies for English rock band the Kinks. The song, originally performed in a more blues-oriented style, was inspired by artists such as Lead Belly and Big Bill Broonzy. Two versions of the song ...

"). Some of the concert highlights included Roth lowering himself onto the stage via rope (like a mountain climber) for the song "Skyscraper", the entire band playing a steel drum line together, the singer climbing up a ladder and singing the song "Panama" from a boxing ring located at the other end of the venue, and riding a surfboard back to the stage during "California Girls". The stage set can be viewed in the performance footage included in the "Just Like Paradise" music video. The tour included a performance at the

Monsters of Rock Monsters of Rock was an annual hard rock and heavy metal music festival held in Castle Donington, England, from 1980 to 1996, taking place every year except 1989 and 1993. It later branched into other locations such as the Netherlands, Poland ...

festival in England, which also included performances by

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wi ...

, and

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff ...

, among others. This would be the last Roth solo tour to feature Vai in its line-up. The opening acts on the North American leg of the tour included

Faster Pussycat Faster Pussycat is an American hard rock/glam metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 1985 by vocalist Taime Downe, guitarists Brent Muscat and Greg Steele and bassist Kelly Nickels. The group has since gone through numerous lineup changes ...

and

Poison Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...

at various points. Guns N' Roses was originally supposed to open the first month of the U.S. leg of the tour, but cancelled and was replaced by Faster Pussycat. On the European tour, Poison was announced as opener but cancelled. Among the replacements were

Great White Great White is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1977. The band peaked with several albums during the mid-to-late 1980s, including the platinum-selling records ''Once Bitten'' (1987) and '' ...Twice Shy'' (1989), and those albums ...

and Dutch band Zinatra.

Setlist

# "The Bottom Line" # "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love" (Van Halen song) # "Just Like Paradise" # "Knucklebones" # "Goin' Crazy!" # "Hot for Teacher" (Van Halen song) # "Easy Street" (

Edgar Winter Edgar Holland Winter (born December 28, 1946) is an American musician. He is a multi-instrumentalist, playing keyboards, guitar, saxophone, and percussion, as well as singing. His success peaked in the 1970s with his band the Edgar Winter Group ...

cover) # "Skyscraper" # "Hot Dog and a Shake" # "Just a Gigolo / I Ain't Got Nobody" (

Louis Prima Louis Leo Prima (December 7, 1910 – August 24, 1978) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and trumpeter. While rooted in New Orleans jazz, swing music, and jump blues, Prima touched on various genres throughout his career: he for ...

cover) # "Yankee Rose" # "Panama" (Van Halen song) # "California Girls" (

The Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and frie ...

cover) # "You Really Got Me" (

The Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhyt ...

cover) # "Jump" (Van Halen song)

Tour dates

References

{{David Lee Roth 1988 concert tours David Lee Roth