Make it a date with Rihanna and Adele
WITH Adele, Rihanna and Justin Bieber setting the pace, 2016 is looking like a bumper year on the live circuit. ADRIAN THRILLS picks the dates for your diary . . .
RETURNING SUPERSTARS
Touring for the first time in five years, Adele leads a parade of superstars who are hitting the road in 2016. opening on February 29 at the SSE Arena, Belfast, she plays Manchester, London, glasgow and Birmingham, debuting new songs that have the feel of standards. With her European dates finishing in June, glastonbury is a possibility (adele.com).
other big-hitters on the comeback trail include Rihanna, who opens at the ricoh Arena, Coventry, on June 14
(livenation.co.uk) and Justin Bieber, who brings his Purpose tour to Britain in autumn, beginning at the o2 Arena, London, on october 11 (aeglive.co.uk). Also returning are r&B veteran Janet
Jackson, who starts her unbreakable tour on March 30 at the Barclaycard Arena in Birmingham (ticketmaster.
co.uk) and Mariah Carey, who opens her Sweet Sweet Fantasy tour at the SSE Hydro in glasgow on March 15 (ticketmaster.co.uk).
Two big bands are back, too. Coldplay’s recent album is patchy, but they are a great live act and their tour is a mustsee. ‘our new songs were written to be played live,’ says Chris Martin. They start on June 4 at the Etihad in Manchester, before playing glasgow’s Hampden Park and four nights at Wembley Stadium. Don’t rule out glastonbury, either (ticketmaster.co.uk).
Also touring are veteran Aussie rockers AC/DC, who will be shaking the foundations of London’s olympic Stadium on June 4 and the Etihad on June 9 (gigsandtours.com). BriTAin’S pop divas are strutting their stuff. Ellie Goulding takes her shiny dance-pop to the stage this spring, starting at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff on March 8 (elliegoulding.com). Dancing shoes will also be required for Jess Glynne, who starts a tour on February 17 at usher Hall, Edinburgh.
rejected by The X Factor at 15, the flame-haired soul star has topped the singles chart five times (ticketmaster.co.uk).
one band who did benefit from X Factor exposure were Little Mix, who won four years ago. With recent hit Love Me Like You their best single to date, they begin at the Motorpoint in Cardiff on March 13 (livenation.co.uk).
And soulful Lianne La Havas plays her biggest gig as she headlines at the royal Albert Hall on March 14 (livenation.co.uk). iF MooDY young men called James tickle your fancy, you’ll be spoilt for choice. The year opens with Jamie Lawson starting a tour on January 14 in glasgow. The first act on Ed Sheeran’s label, the Plymouth singer-songwriter topped the charts with his self-titled debut album in october (jamielawsonmusic.com).
As spring approaches, two more Jameses will be getting reflective onstage. James Morrison begins a 23-date tour on March 4 at the o2 Academy in glasgow (ticketmaster. co.uk), while James Bay follows debut album Chaos And The Calm with four nights at the Eventim Apollo, London, from March 29 (jamesbay.com).
A trio of boy-bands are also on the road. Busted begin a comeback tour at Wembley Arena on May 11 (livenation.co.uk).
And, looking to fill the void left by last year’s one Direction split, pop scamps The Vamps begin their tour on March 25 at the genting Arena, Birmingham (axs.com), while Five Seconds Of Summer start at the Sheffield Arena on April 5 (5sos.com). ProMiSing an ‘emotional roller coaster’, Barry Manilow brings his one Last Time tour to Britain, opening at the First Direct Arena in Leeds on June 11 (manilowuk.com), while Lionel Richie follows last year’s glastonbury triumph by beginning a tour at the Eden Project, Cornwall, on June 14 (lionelrichie.com). Let’s hope he plays Hello.
other touring veterans include Bryan Ferry, who starts at the Concert Hall, Perth, on April 16 (seetickets.com), Neil Young, who opens at the SSE Hydro in glasgow on June 5 (ticketmaster.co.uk), and Billy Joel, who plays a one-off show at Wembley Stadium on September 10 (livenation.co.uk).
Famous for writing Help Me Make it Through The night, Kris Kristofferson begins at Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, on January 16. But the highlight of the country legend’s visit should be his intimate show at the union Chapel, London, on January 21 (ticketmaster.co.uk).
Another singer adding a personal touch is Elvis Costello, whose Detour show will be punctuated by anecdotes from his autobiography. The tour, which starts on May 9 at Warwick Arts Centre, includes four nights at the London Palladium (elviscostello.com).
others have grander ambitions, with Jeff Lynne’s E.L.O. expected to deliver classical flourishes and pyrotechnics galore on a 14-date tour which starts on April 5 at the Echo Arena, Liverpool, and includes four nights at The o2 Arena, London (livenation.co.uk). CoLDPLAY and AC/DC aren’t the only guitar bands touring. Noel Gallagher takes his High Flying Birds to the SSE Hydro, glasgow, on April 21 for a curtain-raising show
while The Stone Roses headline the Etihad in Manchester on June 15, 17, 18 and 19 (gigsandtours.com) and Primal Scream limber up for the festival season with a tour that starts at the Beach Ballroom, Aberdeen, on March 29 (primalscream.net).
others on the road include the Stereophonics, who bring their gritty tales of small-town romance to Cardiff City Stadium on June 4 (seetickets.com), The Libertines, who start on January 21 at the SSE Hydro, glasgow (axs.com), and James, who begin at Colston Hall, Bristol, on May 2 (gigsandtours.com). gLASTonBurY has yet to announce its line-up, but other open-air events are taking shape. Queen mark the 40th anniversary of Bohemian rhapsody by playing the isle of Wight Festival with vocalist Adam Lambert.
other acts appearing from June 9 to 12 are Stereophonics, Faithless, Busted and The Corrs (isleofwightfestival.com), while Download has named Iron Maiden as star attractions on June 12, with singer Bruce Dickinson flying to the East Midlands on the band’s own jumbo jet (downloadfestival.co.uk).
With British Summer Time reaching its fourth year, the Hyde Park spectacular will feature Florence + The Machine on July 2, Mumford & Sons on July 8 and Take That on July 9, with Kendrick Lamar and Wolf Alice among the support acts (bst-hydepark.com), while Elton John is the pick of an expanded Henley line-up on July 6 (henley-festival.co.uk).
And with reading and Leeds occupying their usual August Bank Holiday slots, acts playing include the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Slaves (readingfestival.com; leedsfestival.com).
GIRL POWER
BOYS ABOUT TOWN
GOLDEN OLDIES
GUITAR HEROES
FESTIVAL PLEASERS