Keyboard wizard Rick Wakeman will embark on his first solo tour of North America in 13 years. Wakeman’s The Grumpy Old Rock Star Tour will combine spellbinding piano music with sidesplitting jokes and revealing insights into his 50-plus-year career. Expect an evening of superb musicianship, featuring music from YES, Rick’s own solo epics and early Bowie hits, plus fantastic arrangements of Beatles’ tunes, and much, much more, interspersed with knockabout (and sometimes bawdy!) typically British humor.

Tickets for the newly added dates will be going on sale starting this week. The 25 city tour will kick-off Saturday, September 21 in Annapolis, MD at the Maryland Hall For The Creative Arts and continue through November. Check Rick Wakeman’s website or the theatre’s sites for specific on-sale information.

Professional musician, keyboard player, songwriter, broadcaster and raconteur, Wakeman’s career started as a much-in-demand session player, who performed on recordings by David Bowie, Elton John, Lou Reed, Al Stewart and hundreds more artists. His big break came in 1971 when he joined YES, who went on to become the most successful prog rock band in the world, but Wakeman has also always gone his own way outside the framework of that group.

In the 70s, he achieved chart-topping success with solo albums such as Journey To The Centre Of The Earth, The Six Wives of Henry VIII and The Myths and Legends of King Arthur and the Knights Of The Round Table, which cumulatively sold over 10,000,000 copies in North America alone.

He has written several film scores, amongst them two for director Ken Russell (Lisztomania and Crimes of Passion) and two ‘Harry Palmer’ movies starring Michael Caine (Bullet To Beijing and Midnight in St Petersburg), and in the UK, has built up an impressive reputation as a witty guest and host on shows like Grumpy Old Men, Countdown, Watchdog and the comedy cabaret show Live at Jongleurs. His wickedly irreverent acceptance speech when YES was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 nearly brought the house down.

That same year, he made British chart history when his Piano Portraits record became the first solo piano instrumental album to enter the UK’s Top 10 on release - a feat he then repeated with last year’s Piano Odyssey. Both records feature tunes that have a special connection with Rick’s personal musical journey and his subsequent tours, in which he performs a selection of tracks accompanied by hilarious memories and anecdotes have been instant sell-outs in the UK.

Tour dates:

September
21 - Annapolis, MD - Maryland Hall For The Creative Arts
22 - Derry, NH - Tupelo Music Hall
23 - Boston, MA - The Wilbur
24 - Huntington, NY - The Paramount
25 - Alexandria, VA - The Birchmere
27 - Quebec City, QC - Palais Montcalm
28 - Montreal, QC - Olympia Theatre
29 - Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall

October
2 - Harrisburg, PA - Whitaker Center
4 - St. Charles, IL - Arcada Theatre
8 - Allentown, PA - Miller Symphony Hall
10 - Englewood, NJ - Bergen Performing Arts Center
11 - Collingswood, NJ - Scottish Rite Auditorium
13 - Ridgefield, CT - Ridgefield Playhouse
16 - Seattle, WA - The Triple Door
17 - Portland, OR - Revolution Hall
19 - San Francisco, CA - Castro Theatre
20 - San Juan Capistrano, CA - Coach House
22 - Los Angeles, CA - Theatre at Ace Hotel
25 - Atlanta, GA - City Winery
26 - Clearwater, FL - Capitol Theatre
27 - Orlando, FL - The Plaza Live

Wakeman will embark on an eight-date Christmas tour in December. Rick’s The Grumpy Old Christmas Show will combine spellbinding piano music with side splitting stories and revealing insights into his lengthy and varied career.

Expect an evening of superb musicianship, featuring music from YES, Rick’s own solo epics and early Bowie hits, plus fantastic arrangements of Beatles’ tunes, and much, much more, interspersed with knockabout (and sometimes bawdy!) humour.

Says Wakeman: “It’s a simple choice. Christmas concerts or traipsing round the shops. No contest, really! Seriously, it’s just so lovely to do some Christmas shows. It’s such a great time of year.”

Dates:

December
6 - London, England - Cadogan Hall
7 - Watford, England - Colosseum
9 - Birmingham, England - Town Hall
10 - Harrogate, England - Royal Hall
13 - Buxton, England - Opera House
15 - Poole, England - Lighthouse
18 - Liverpool, England - Grand Central
19 - Manchester, England - Royal Northern College Of Music.

Watch a trailer below: