One Woman's Journey Tour

One Woman's Journey Tour
Tour by Olivia Newton-John
Promotional poster for the tour
Associated albumBack with a Heart
Start date16 July 1999
End date4 September 1999
Legs1
No. of shows30 in North America
Olivia Newton-John concert chronology

One Woman's Journey Tour was the eighth concert tour by Australian singer Olivia Newton-John. It promoted her seventeenth studio album, Back with a Heart. The tour was announced after the success of the Greatest Hits Tour, and had 30 dates across the United States.

Background

The song "The Long and Winding Road" was performed as a tribute to Linda McCartney who died of breast cancer in 1998 (her husband, Paul, originally wrote the song for The Beatles). The songs "The Flower That Shattered the Stone" and "(They Long to Be) Close to You", are respectively tributes to the Columbine High School massacre victims and Olivia's deceased personal friend, Karen Carpenter (the song was made famous by the duo Carpenters).[1]

The tour band was the same formed for the John Farnham tour shows (Newton-John performed with Farnham on their The Main Event Tour). Newton-John also talked about her battle against the breast cancer during the 1990s, which originated the names of this tour and her sixteenth studio album, Gaia: One Woman's Journey.

Critical response

The One Woman's Journey Tour received generally positive feedback from critics. Lisa Jann from The Seattle Times wrote: "Sticking with signature songs and old favorites, the Aussie princess of '70s pop and Grease icon surprised with a fun song list that spanned the entirety of her career, her ever-pleasant charisma, and her sweet voice, which sounded as fresh as ever".[2] Kevin C. Johnson from St. Louis Post-Dispatch commented that "[...] One of the better nostalgia tours to catch this summer is Olivia Newton-John's low-profile trek, which drew a crowd of respectable size to Riverport Amphitheatre on Saturday night".[3] The Kansas City Star published a mixed review, writing: "The singer has taken her knocks, some of them well-deserved, for bland interpretations of some mindless pop melodies. If white bread could sing, the classic put-down goes, it would sound like Olivia Newton-John".[4] Thomas Kintner from Hartford Courant stated that: "[The] most important to the two-hour, 27-song show was that none of it seemed dated, not its hardly-looking-50 star, not her still-clarion voice, and not its songs".[5] John Curran from The Press of Atlantic City wrote: "In fact, 'nice' might be the only word to accurately describle Newton-John's two-hour performance Thursday night as she opened a two-night stand at Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort. It was wholesome, it was earnest, it was nostalgic, it was inspirational, it was sugar-sweet".[6]

Opening act

Set list

  1. "Xanadu"
  2. "Magic"
  3. "Don't Stop Believin'"
  4. "Precious Love"
  5. "Sam"
  6. "Let Me Be There"
  7. "Have You Never Been Mellow"
  8. "If Not for You"
  9. "Jolene"
  10. "The Long and Winding Road"
  11. "Take Me Home, Country Roads"
  12. "The Flower That Shattered the Stone"
  13. "Over the Rainbow"
  14. "(They Long to Be) Close to You"
  15. "Not Gonna Give Into It"
  16. "Please Mr. Please"
  17. "Don't Cry for Me Argentina"
  18. "You're the One That I Want"
  19. "Summer Nights"
  20. "Hopelessly Devoted to You"
  21. "Suddenly"
  22. "Don't Cut Me Down"
  23. "If You Love Me (Let Me Know)"
  24. "Back with a Heart"
  25. "Twist of Fate" (selected dates)
  26. "Physical"
  27. "I Honestly Love You"

Broadcasts and recordings

Main article: One Woman's Live Journey

The concerts audio of 26 and 27 August 1999, at Trump Taj Mahal, was recorded for a commercial release. One Woman's Live Journey is Newton-John third live album and was released in 2000, on CD and DVD-Audio.[7] The album only charted in the Newton-John native country, Australia. The tourbook, titled as Olivia: One Woman's Journey features several pictures of Newton-John across the years, with personal comments by herself.

Tour dates

Date City Country Venue Opening Act
North America
16 July 1999 Las Vegas United States Desert Grand Ballroom N/A
17 July 1999
18 July 1999
20 July 1999 Albuquerque Tingley Coliseum
22 July 1999 San Diego Humphreys Concerts by the Bay
23 July 1999 Los Angeles Greek Theatre
24 July 1999 Oakville Mondavi Winery Concert Venue
26 July 1999 Saratoga Mountain Winery Amphitheater
28 July 1999 Eugene Silva Concert Hall
30 July 1999 Reno Grande Exposition Hall
31 July 1999
1 August 1999[a] Paso Robles Mid-State Fair Main Grandstand
4 August 1999 Portland Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
6 August 1999 Spokane Spokane Opera House
7 August 1999 Seattle Benaroya Hall
12 August 1999 Columbus Polaris Amphitheater Jim Brickman
14 August 1999 Maryland Heights Riverport Amphitheater
15 August 1999 Bonner Springs Sandstone Amphitheater
17 August 1999 Noblesville Deer Creek Music Center
19 August 1999 Boston Harbor Lights Pavilion N/A
20 August 1999 Wallingford Oakdale Theatre Jim Brickman
21 August 1999 Hopewell Finger Lakes Performing Arts Center
25 August 1999 Westbury Westbury Music Fair N/A
26 August 1999 Atlantic City Etess Arena
27 August 1999
30 August 1999 Uncasville Mohegan Sun Events Center
1 September 1999 Clarkston Pine Knob Music Theatre
2 September 1999 Grand Rapids Van Andel Arena
3 September 1999 Chicago Chicago Theatre
4 September 1999 Milwaukee Riverside Theater
Festivals and other miscellaneous performances

^ a This concert was a part of the California Mid-States Fair.

Personnel

  • Olivia Newton-John – vocals
  • Lindsay Field – backing vocals
  • Lisa Edwards – backing vocals
  • Angus Burchall – drums
  • Joe Creighton – bass, backing vocals
  • Stuart Fraiser – guitar
  • Steve Williams – saxophone, harmonica

References

  1. ^ "Newton-John connects with her audience performing old and new songs with depth (archived)". Archived from the original on 19 June 2001.
  2. ^ "Olivia's back! And she doesn't miss a beat (archived)". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on 28 November 2010.
  3. ^ a b "No Need to Explain It: Newton-John Show Sparkles (archived)". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Archived from the original on 28 November 2010.
  4. ^ a b "Newton-John Keeps Getting Better, Not Blander (archived)". Kansas City Star. Archived from the original on 28 November 2010.
  5. ^ "Olivia Fills Theater with New, Old Magic (archived)". Hartford Courant. Archived from the original on 28 November 2010.
  6. ^ "Newton-John delivers sentimental show that delights her hopelessly devoted fans (archived)". The Press of Atlantic City. Archived from the original on 19 June 2001.
  7. ^ "Amazon.com – One Woman's Live Journey". Amazon.