The Asylum Tour was a concert tour by American rock band Kiss, in support of their thirteenth studio album, Asylum.

Background

On April 3, 1986, the band was set to perform in the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, when a transformer ended up blowing out the lights two hours before the show, cancelling the performance that night and later rescheduled to April 12.

Tommy Thayer, a future member of Kiss, who was in Black 'n Blue at the time, had impressed Simmons when his band had opened for Kiss.

In the tour program for the band's final tour, Stanley reflected on the tour:

Over the years the band has been in existence, the ritual of getting ready has literally stayed the same for the last forty plus years. Since the late Seventies we've had a Superman bed sheet that's taped across the door so that if people walk by and the door is open, you don't get a free glimpse. The time that we spend in the dressing room getting ready gives us a chance to focus on what we have to do and interestingly it's calmest time of the night. It's the calm before the storm.

Reception

Jerry Spangler, a reporter from the Deseret News who attended the Salt Palace performance, stated that the show was another typical Kiss show, criticizing how little there was regarding talent and excitement. He commented that when they take away the special effects, that Kiss was referred to as a dinosaur; concluding that the band should have closed their doors a long time ago, while also noting on the opening act W.A.S.P.'s performance in more paragraphs. Boyd Rogers, a reader who had attended the performance, later sent a response to the reporter to criticize him, and defending the band's performance, stating the number of people attending the concert; noting also on how short the paragraphs were regarding the band - suggesting that the reporter close his 'carnival doors'.

Set lists

These are example set lists of what were performed during the tour, but may not represent the majority of the shows.

1985 Set list "Detroit Rock City" "Fits Like a Glove" "Cold Gin" "Uh! All Night" (with Paul Stanley guitar solo) "War Machine" (with Eric Carr drum solo) "I Still Love You" "Under the Gun" (with Bruce Kulick guitar solo) "Tears Are Falling" "I Love It Loud" (with Gene Simmons bass solo) "Love Gun" "Rock and Roll All Nite" Encore "Heaven's on Fire" "Won't Get Fooled Again" "Lick It Up"1986 Set list "Detroit Rock City" "Fits Like a Glove" "Creatures of the Night" "Cold Gin" (with Bruce Kulick guitar solo) "Uh! All Night" "War Machine" (with Eric Carr drum solo) "Love Gun" "I Still Love You" "I Love It Loud" (with Gene Simmons bass solo) "Heaven's on Fire" (with Paul Stanley guitar solo) "Rock and Roll All Nite" Encore "Tears Are Falling" "Lick It Up"

Tour dates

List of 1985 concerts
DateCityCountryVenueOpening Act(s)
November 29, 1985Little RockUnited StatesBarton ColiseumBlack 'n Blue
November 30, 1985NashvilleNashville Municipal Auditorium
December 1, 1985MemphisMid-South Coliseum
December 3, 1985San AntonioHemisFair Arena
December 4, 1985DallasReunion Arena
December 6, 1985LafayetteCajundome
December 7, 1985HoustonSam Houston Coliseum
December 8, 1985AustinFrank Erwin Center
December 11, 1985RichfieldRichfield Coliseum
December 12, 1985LouisvilleFreedom Hall
December 13, 1985TrotwoodHara Arena
December 14, 1985DetroitCobo Arena
December 16, 1985New York CityMadison Square Garden
December 17, 1985PhiladelphiaSpectrum
December 19, 1985Glens FallsGlens Falls Civic Center
December 20, 1985WorcesterCentrum in Worcester
December 21, 1985New HavenNew Haven Coliseum
December 22, 1985ProvidenceProvidence Civic Center
December 27, 1985ColumbiaCarolina Coliseum
December 28, 1985CharlotteCharlotte Coliseum
December 29, 1985GreensboroGreensboro Coliseum Complex
December 30, 1985AugustaAugusta-Richmond County Civic Center
December 31, 1985AtlantaOmni Coliseum
List of 1986 concerts
DateCityCountryVenueOpening Act(s)
January 3, 1986Johnson CityUnited StatesFreedom Hall Civic CenterW.A.S.P.
January 4, 1986KnoxvilleKnoxville Civic Coliseum
January 7, 1986TampaUSF Sun Dome
January 8, 1986West Palm BeachWest Palm Beach Auditorium
January 9, 1986Fort MyersLee County Civic Center
January 10, 1986JacksonvilleJacksonville Coliseum
January 12, 1986San JuanPuerto RicoRoberto Clemente Coliseum
January 14, 1986NorfolkUnited StatesNorfolk Scope
January 15, 1986CharlestonCharleston Civic Center
January 16, 1986IndianapolisMarket Square Arena
January 17, 1986ChicagoUIC Pavilion
January 20, 1986MilwaukeeMilwaukee Auditorium
January 21, 1986Saint PaulSt. Paul Civic Center
January 22, 1986RockfordRockford MetroCentre
January 23, 1986St. LouisKiel Auditorium
January 24, 1986OmahaOmaha Civic Auditorium
January 25, 1986Kansas CityMunicipal Auditorium
February 2, 1986TucsonMcKale Center1
February 4, 1986Daly CityCow Palace
February 5, 1986SacramentoSacramento Memorial Auditorium
February 7, 1986Las VegasThomas & Mack CenterBlack 'n Blue
February 8, 1986San BernardinoOrange PavilionW.A.S.P.
February 9, 1986PhoenixArizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum
February 10, 1986San DiegoSan Diego Sports Arena
February 11, 1986InglewoodThe Forum
February 13, 1986PortlandPortland Memorial Coliseum
February 14, 1986SeattleSeattle Center Coliseum
February 17, 1986Salt Lake CitySalt Palace2
February 19, 1986DenverMcNichols Sports Arena
February 21, 1986NormanLloyd Noble Center
February 22, 1986TulsaExpo Square Pavilion
February 23, 1986WacoWaco Convention Center
February 24, 1986Corpus ChristiCorpus Christi Memorial Coliseum
February 26, 1986BeaumontBeaumont Civic Center
February 27, 1986AbileneTaylor County Expo Center
February 28, 1986Fort WorthTarrant County Convention Center
March 1, 1986ShreveportHirsch Memorial Coliseum
March 2, 1986New OrleansKiefer UNO Lakefront Arena
March 5, 1986Green BayBrown County Veterans Memorial ArenaKing Kobra
March 6, 1986SaginawWendler Arena
March 7, 1986Port HuronMcMorran Place
March 8, 1986SpringfieldPrairie Capital Convention Center
March 9, 1986SalinaBicentennial Center
March 12, 1986La CrosseLa Crosse Center
March 13, 1986DuluthDuluth Arena
March 14, 1986JamestownJamestown Civic Center
March 16, 1986Des MoinesIowa Veterans Memorial Auditorium
March 17, 1986Sioux CitySioux City Municipal Auditorium
March 18, 1986Cedar RapidsFive Seasons Center
March 20, 1986Fort WayneAllen County War Memorial Coliseum
March 21, 1986CincinnatiCincinnati Gardens
March 22, 1986CarbondaleSIU Arena
March 23, 1986Terre HauteHulman Center
March 25, 1986EvansvilleRoberts Municipal Stadium
March 26, 1986Battle CreekKellogg Arena
March 27, 1986ErieErie Civic Center
March 28, 1986ToledoToledo Sports Arena
March 29, 1986ColumbusBattelle Hall
March 30, 1986HammondHammond Civic Center3
April 1, 1986BethlehemStabler Arena
April 2, 1986UticaUtica Memorial Auditorium
April 4, 1986PoughkeepsieMid-Hudson Civic Center
April 6, 1986SpringfieldSpringfield Civic Center
April 7, 1986RochesterRochester Community War Memorial
April 8, 1986TorontoCanadaMaple Leaf Gardens4
April 10, 1986BaltimoreUnited StatesBaltimore Civic CenterBlue Öyster Cult
April 11, 1986East RutherfordBrendan Byrne Arena
April 12, 1986PittsburghPittsburgh Civic ArenaKix
  • ^Note 1 Paul Stanley dedicated the Tucson, Arizona concert at the McKale Center to the astronauts that were killed in the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion.
  • ^Note 2 The power went out in the middle of "Rock and Roll All Nite", ending the performance early.
  • ^Note 3 Local church groups protested the entire show due to its being scheduled on Easter Sunday.
  • ^Note 4 Opening act King Kobra was invited and appeared on stage to sing "Lick it Up" with Kiss, making King Kobra the first group to ever share the stage with Kiss.

Box office score data

List of box office score data with date, city, venue, attendance, gross, references
Date (1986)CityVenueAttendanceGrossRef(s)
January 8West Palm BeachAuditorium5,063 / 6,400$75,150
January 16IndianapolisMarket Square Arena13,583 / 16,000$196,301
January 20MilwaukeeMECCA Auditorium4,254 / 6,120$57,429
January 21Saint PaulCivic Arena8,700 / 11,000$124,445
January 23St. LouisKiel Auditorium5,949 / 10,532$75,677
January 24OmahaCivic Auditorium6,426 / 8,000$85,746
January 25Kansas CityKemper Arena6,922 / 9,000$96,908

Personnel

Sources

  • Gooch, Curt; Suhs, Jeff (2002). Kiss Alive Forever: The Complete Touring History. New York: Billboard Books. ISBN 0-8230-8322-5.
  • Weiss, Brett (2016). Encyclopedia of Kiss: Music, Personnel, Events and Related Subjects. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 9780786498024.