In 1993, Paul McCartney and his band embarked upon The New World Tour, spanning almost the entire year and almost the entire globe. This tour featured a controversial pre-concert film (starting in the U.S leg of the tour), which was shown before all of the concerts and had graphic animal test footage in the film. The tour incorporated painted stage sets (at the time the world's largest, measuring 16,400 square feet), projections, and promotional material designed by a regular McCartney collaborator, the artist Brian Clarke.
The 1993 World Tour was Paul's last tour for nine years, after his wife and band member Linda McCartney was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1995, as well as Linda's last tour during her lifetime, before she died in 1998 at the age of 56.
Promotion The tour was intended to promote McCartney's ninth studio album Off the Ground. Despite having released three albums of live material in the space of the previous three years (Tripping the Live Fantastic, Tripping the Live Fantastic: Highlights!, and Unplugged), the tour was followed by the live album Paul Is Live, consisting of material taken from The New World Tour. However, the release was not embraced by record-buyers, becoming McCartney's lowest-selling live album.
Touring McCartney's touring band consisted of himself, wife Linda McCartney, Hamish Stuart, Robbie McIntosh, Paul "Wix" Wickens and Blair Cunningham. The final North American stop, in Charlotte, North Carolina, was broadcast live across the United States, with some songs replaced by commercials, by the Fox Television Network. This was McCartney's final tour of the 20th century. Several venues on the tour featured McCartney's first concert appearance there since his touring days with The Beatles.
This was the third and second times Paul McCartney toured Australia and New Zealand, respectively. A proposed further tour to Australia in 2002 was cancelled after the Bali Bombings. His next visit to Australia and New Zealand finally occurred for the first time in over twenty-four years on the One on One tour in 2017. In 1993, before Paul McCartney played the South American leg of the tour, Parlophone/MPL released the album Paul Is Live which had songs taken from his concerts in North America and Australia. In 2002, Paul McCartney released a concert DVD from the tour titled Paul Is Live in Concert on the New World Tour.
Personnel Paul McCartney – lead vocals, guitars (acoustic, electric and bass), piano, drums Linda McCartney – backing vocals, keyboards, percussion, autoharp Hamish Stuart – backing vocals, guitars (acoustic, electric, acoustic bass and electric bass) Robbie McIntosh – backing vocals, guitars (electric and acoustic) Paul "Wix" Wickens – backing vocals, keyboards, accordion, acoustic guitar, percussion Blair Cunningham – drums, percussion
Tour dates + List of 1993 concerts Date City Country Venue Tickets sold / Available Revenue 18 FebruaryMilanItalyForum di Assago rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 19 February 22 FebruaryFrankfurtGermanyFesthalle rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 23 February 5 March PerthAustralia Subiaco Oval 9 MarchMelbourneMelbourne Cricket Ground rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 10 March 13 March Adelaide Adelaide Oval 16 MarchSydneySydney Entertainment Centre27,880 / 30,000$1,150,443 17 March 20 March 22 MarchParramatta Stadium rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 23 March 27 March Auckland New Zealand Western Springs Stadium 14 April Las VegasUnited States Sam Boyd Silver Bowl 30,850 / 30,850 $1,002,625 17 April Anaheim Anaheim Stadium 48,560 / 48,560 $1,698,410 20 April Las Cruces Aggie Memorial Stadium 30,058 / 30,058 $1,002,625 22 April Houston Astrodome 38,728 / 38,728 $1,258,660 24 April New Orleans Louisiana Superdome 38,971 / 41,211 $843,850 27 April Memphis Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium 42,003 / 42,003 $1,013,364 29 April St. Louis Busch Stadium 43,866 / 43,866 $1,202,468 1 May Atlanta Georgia Dome 46,352 / 46,352 $1,301,820 5 May Cincinnati Riverfront Stadium 38,000 / 40,000 $1,156,513 7 May Columbia Williams-Brice Stadium 37,646 / 39,662 $858,089 9 May Orlando Citrus Bowl 42,614 / 42,614 $1,163,061 21 May Winnipeg Canada Winnipeg Stadium 37,430 / 45,095 $1,038,964 23 May MinneapolisUnited States Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 40,287 / 40,287 $1,187,680 26 May Boulder Folsom Field 37,245 / 39,137 $1,210,463 29 May San Antonio Alamodome 46,716 / 46,716 $1,513,200 31 May Kansas City Arrowhead Stadium 42,934 / 42,934 $1,132,576 2 June Milwaukee Milwaukee County Stadium 47,013 / 47,013 $1,527,923 4 June Pontiac Pontiac Silverdome 49,378 / 49,378 $1,291,778 6 June Toronto Canada CNE Stadium 32,442 / 40,000 $922,200 11 June East RutherfordUnited States Giants Stadium 53,013 / 53,013 $1,722,923 13 June Philadelphia Veterans Stadium 45,711 / 45,711 $1,288,394 15 June Charlotte Blockbuster Pavilion 17,683 / 17,683 $507,655 3 September Berlin Germany Waldbühne 5 SeptemberViennaAustriaWiener Stadthalle rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 6 September 9 September Munich Germany Olympiahalle 11 SeptemberLondonEnglandEarls Court Exhibition Centre rowspan="3" rowspan="3" 14 September 15 September 18 SeptemberDortmundGermanyWestfalenhalle rowspan="3" rowspan="3" 19 September 21 September 23 September Stuttgart Hanns-Martin Schleyerhalle 25 September Gothenburg Sweden Scandinavium 27 SeptemberOsloNorwayOslo Spektrum rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 28 September 1 October Stockholm Sweden The Globe 3 October MannheimGermany Maimarkthalle 5 October Stuttgart Hanns-Martin Schleyerhalle 6 October Frankfurt Festhalle 9 OctoberRotterdamNetherlandsAhoy Sportpaleis rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 10 October 13 OctoberParisFrancePalais Onmisports de Bercy rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 14 October 17 October Ghent Belgium Flanders Expo 20 October Toulon France The Zenith 22 OctoberFlorenceItalyPalasport rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 23 October 26 OctoberBarcelonaSpainPalau Sant Jordi rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 27 October 12 NovemberTokyoJapanTokyo Dome rowspan="3" rowspan="3" 14 November 15 November 18 NovemberFukuokaFukuoka Dome rowspan="2" rowspan="2" 19 November 25 NovemberMexico CityMexicoAutódromo Hermanos Rodríguez101,910 / 101,910$6,564,416 27 November 3 December São PauloBrazil Estádio do Pacaembu 5 December Curitiba Pedreira Paulo Leminski 10 DecemberBuenos AiresArgentinaEstadio River Plate rowspan="3" rowspan="3" 11 December 12 December 16 December Santiago Chile Estadio Nacional Total303,635 / 315,656 (96%)$7,874,398
Instruments played by band members Songs Paul McCartney Stuart McIntosh Wix Cunningham Linda McCartney"Drive My Car"BassElectric guitarElectric guitarKeyboardsDrumsTambourine"Coming Up"Keyboards"Looking for Changes"Tambourine"Jet" or "Another Day"Electric guitar or Acoustic guitarKeyboards or Acoustic guitarKeyboards"All My Loving"Acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarTambourine"Let Me Roll It"Electric guitarBassKeyboardsKeyboards"Peace in the Neighbourhood""Off the Ground"Bell Stick"Can't Buy Me Love"KeyboardsRobbie's BitNoneNoneAcoustic guitarNoneNoneNone"Good Rockin' Tonight"Acoustic guitarAcoustic bassAccordionDrumsDrum"We Can Work It Out"Tambourine"I Lost My Little Girl" or "And I Love Her"Maracas or KeyboardsShaker or Keyboards"Ain't No Sunshine" or "Every Night"Drums or Acoustic guitarKeyboardsTriangle or DrumsShaker or Tambourine"Hope of Deliverance"Acoustic guitarBassAcoustic guitarDrumsAutoharp"Michelle"Shaker/AccordionMaracas"Biker Like an Icon"Electric guitarAccordionKeyboards"Here, There and Everywhere"Acoustic guitar"Yesterday"NoneNoneKeyboardsNoneNone"My Love"PianoBassElectric guitarDrumsKeyboards"Lady Madonna"Tambourine"C'Mon People"Keyboards"Magical Mystery Tour""Let It Be""Live and Let Die""The Long and Winding Road" (only in some cities)"Paperback Writer"BassElectric guitar"Fixing a Hole" (only in some cities)"Back in the U.S.S.R.""Penny Lane""Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band/Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (reprise)"Electric guitarBass"Band on the Run"BassElectric guitar/Acoustic guitar"I Saw Her Standing There"Electric guitar"Hey Jude"PianoBassTambourine/Keyboards
References