Up Close and Personal Tour was a 2012 North American and European concert tour by the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses.
Background On January 20, guitarist Bumblefoot talked about a possible theater tour taking place in February. Guns N' Roses later announced shows in United States.
The shows themselves varied considerably in comparison to the Chinese Democracy Tour. All of the North American shows took place in smaller-scale clubs, rather than a large arena or stadium. All pyrotechnics were removed from the shows.
The European leg of the tour began approximately one month after the band's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The circumstance regarding a new album were unknown, however lead guitarist DJ Ashba stated that the band had many demos recorded, and were planning on discussing 'how they are going to create the best album possible.'
On June 24, guitarist Richard Fortus gave an interview to the French music site, Rock N' Live, in which he revealed that the band would not tour more that year, but would rather go into the studio to work on the next album by the end of the year. "Right now I'm very focused on Guns N' Roses. We are preparing ourselves to return to the studio, so that is why I want to stay focused. That's all that I think by the end of the year."
Line up The band line-up remained approximately the same since the 2008 release of Chinese Democracy. Co-founder Axl Rose fronted the band, which also included long-term keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Chris Pitman. Newcomer DJ Ashba and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal were lead guitarists, while the rhythm section consisted of Richard Fortus on rhythm guitar, Tommy Stinson on bass and drummer Frank Ferrer.
Support acts
Dick Manitoba (February 10) Chelsea Smiles (February 12) Toilet Böys (February 15) Electric Sun (February 19 / February 23) Sponge (February 21) The Last Vegas (February 24 / February 27) Fall of Envy (March 3) Bob Lee Rodgers (March 5) Falling In Reverse (March 9)
Goldsboro (March 11 / March 12) Thin Lizzy (May 17 – June 1) Vengeance and The Panther Queen (May 17) Black Spiders (May 19) Rival Sons (June 8 / June 22) Within Temptation (June 22) Sebastian Bach (June 22) Killswitch Engage (June 22)
Black Stone Cherry (June 22) Soulfly (June 22) Ugly Kid Joe (May 22 / July 3) AxeWound (June 22) Cancer Bats (June 22) No One is Innocent (June 10–19) The Cult (June 29) The Darkness (July 22)
Tour dates DateCityCountryVenueNorth AmericaFebruary 10, 2012New York CityUnited StatesRoseland BallroomFebruary 12, 2012Terminal 5February 15, 2012The Ritz Webster HallFebruary 16, 2012Hiro BallroomFebruary 19, 2012ChicagoHouse of BluesFebruary 21, 2012DetroitThe Fillmore DetroitFebruary 23, 2012Silver SpringThe Fillmore Silver SpringFebruary 24, 2012Atlantic CityHouse of BluesFebruary 27, 2012PhiladelphiaElectric FactoryMarch 1, 2012AtlantaThe TabernacleMarch 3, 2012OrlandoHouse of BluesMarch 5, 2012MiamiJackie Gleason TheaterMarch 9, 2012Los AngelesHollywood PalladiumMarch 11, 2012The WilternMarch 12, 2012House of Blues Los AngelesEuropeMay 11, 2012MoscowRussiaStadium Live ClubMay 12, 2012May 17, 2012DublinIrelandThe O2May 19, 2012NottinghamEnglandCapital FM ArenaMay 20, 2012LiverpoolEcho Arena LiverpoolMay 23, 2012NewcastleMetro Radio ArenaMay 25, 2012GlasgowScotlandScottish Exhibition and Conference CentreMay 26, 2012BirminghamEnglandLG ArenaMay 29, 2012ManchesterManchester ArenaMay 31, 2012LondonThe O2 ArenaJune 1, 2012June 4, 2012RotterdamNetherlandsRotterdam AhoyJune 5, 2012ParisFrancePalais Omnisports de Paris-BercyJune 8, 2012MönchengladbachGermanyWarsteiner HockeyParkJune 10, 2012LyonFranceHalle Tony GarnierJune 11, 2012StrasbourgZénith de StrasbourgJune 14, 2012ToulouseZénith de ToulouseJune 16, 2012ClissonVal de MoineJune 18, 2012MontpellierPark & Suites ArenaJune 19, 2012ToulonZénith Oméga de ToulonJune 22, 2012MilanItalyFieramilanoJune 24, 2012DesselBelgiumFestivalpark SteneheiJune 27, 2012BaselSwitzerlandSt. JakobshalleJune 29, 2012GrazAustriaSchwarzl FreizeitzentrumJuly 1, 2012BucharestRomaniaRomexpo ArenaMiddle EastJuly 3, 2012Tel AvivIsraelYarkon ParkEuropeJuly 6, 2012IstanbulTurkeyParkormanJuly 8, 2012SofiaBulgariaVasil Levski National StadiumJuly 11, 2012RybnikPolandRybnik Municipal StadiumJuly 13, 2012PiešťanySlovakiaPiešťany AirportJuly 15, 2012Novi SadSerbiaPetrovaradin Fortress July 17, 2012SplitCroatiaSpaladium ArenaJuly 20, 2012BenicàssimSpainBenicàssim Festival GroundsJuly 22, 2012PalmaSon Fusteret
Festivals and other miscellaneous performances This concert was a part of "Hellfest" This concert was a part of "Gods of Metal" This concert was a part of "Graspop Metal Meeting" This concert was a part of "Seerock Festival" This concert was a part of "Tuborg GreenFest" This concert was a part of "Unirock Open Air Festival" This concert was a part of "Sofia Rocks" This concert was a part of "Topfest" This concert was a part of "Exit Festival" This concert was a part of "Festival Internacional de Benicàssim"
Box office score data VenueCityTickets sold / available Gross revenueThe O2London18,901 / 27,817 (68%)$1,357,820Manchester ArenaManchester5,877 / 7,205 (82%)$406,274
Personnel Axl Rose – lead vocals, piano, tambourine Dizzy Reed – keyboards, piano, percussion, backing vocals Tommy Stinson – bass, backing vocals, lead vocals DJ Ashba – lead guitar, rhythm guitar, snare drum Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal – lead guitar, rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar, backing vocals Richard Fortus – rhythm guitar, lead guitar, slide guitar, acoustic guitar, backing vocals Chris Pitman – keyboards, synthesizer, samples, programming, tambourine, backing vocals Frank Ferrer – drums, tambourine Additional Musicians Izzy Stradlin – rhythm guitar, backing vocals, co-lead vocals on "14 Years" (May 31st-July 22nd, 2012)
References