UW-Madison Concerts
As many Badger alumni and Wisconsin natives are aware, concerts have a deep history on campus and in Madison. UW-Madison has regularly hosted top talent and renowned acts from around the world. From the Memorial Union to Camp Randall and numerous venues in between, for over a century, UW-Madison has hosted many amazing events. Let’s take a look back at some of these shows.
Aerosmith
Formed in Boston in 1970, Aerosmith is a rock band known for its eclectic sound and genre fusion. They pioneered many trends in music, such as the power ballad and the fusion of rock and hip-hop. The band’s Nine Lives Tour was their longest in history, extended first due to injuries, and then due to the success of their #1 song “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing.” The tour visited Madison, WI, in February of 1998 to perform the very first concert at the newly constructed Kohl’s Center. This show was also completed less than two months before band leader Steven Typer dropped a microphone stand on his knee, leading to the cancellation of the rest of their shows for the year. Eventually, they would go on tour again and would find themselves back at the Kohl Center on the Honkin’ on Bobo Tour, named after their 14th studio album. Tickets ranged from $45.00 to $75.00, and the concert featured Cheap Trick as the opening act.
Louis Armstrong
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Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1901, Louis Armstrong had his sights set on becoming a professional musician from an early age. Known for his improvised solos and expressive vocals, Armstrong would go on to write some of the most influential jazz albums in history. After finding success on the radio, in films, and with recordings, Armstrong decided to form a band and go on tour, and never really stopped until he died in 1971. In September 1957, the Wisconsin Union Theater hosted Louis Armstrong and His Famous All Stars. The Performance was hosted by the Wisconsin Union Music Committee as a part of the Wisconsin Union Directorate, and tickets ranged from $1.50 to $2.75.
Ella Fitzgerald
For more than half a century, Ella Fitzgerald was the most popular female jazz singer in the United States, amassing 13 Grammy awards and selling over 40 million albums. Over the course of her career, Fitzgerald would find herself at the University of Wisconsin multiple times, and most notoriously during campus music festivals. Her first appearance took place on October 2nd, 1959, at the Wisconsin Union Theater. Here, she would headline the first campus jazz festival, which has now become a long-standing tradition. Eight years later, in 1967, the UW School of Music and the Music Department hosted the University of Wisconsin Music Festival. Ella Fitzgerald was scheduled to be the festival’s grand finale at Camp Randall; however, due to inclement weather, the concert was moved to the field house.
Pink Floyd
Formed in 1965 in London, Pink Floyd would gain popularity as pioneers in the genres of psychedelic rock and progressive rock. Known for their lyricism and political and social commentary, Pink Floyd would become one of the most popular rock bands of all time. After guitarist and main songwriter Syd Barrettret left the group due to drug use and schizophrenia, the band would turn from focusing on recordings to live performances and tours. The band first came to Camp Randall in 1988 on the A Momentary Lapse of Reason Tour. Featuring over-the-top visuals, pyrotechnics, the band’s famous inflatable pig roaming the sky above, and a melody of their greatest hits, commentators called it “the greatest show you can see for $20.” Six years later, in 1994, the band would return to Camp Randall on what would be the band’s final tour— the Division Bell Tour. This show was widely referred to as the “Pink Flood Show” due to the light showers that turned to torrential downpour, drenching the 60,000 people in the stadium.
Rolling Stones
Formed in 1962, The Rolling Stones are an English rock band and one of the most influential and symbolic rock bands of all time. The band would find themselves at Camp Randall for the first time on their Voodoo Lounge tour in 1994. This tour would overtake Pink Floyd for the highest-grossing tour at the time, and now remains the band’s third-highest-grossing tour. Three years later, in October of 1997, the band would find themselves back in Madison on just the fifth stop of the Bridges of Babylon Tour. Tickets ranged from just $39.50 to $60, and the band drew a sell-out crowd of around 52,000 fans.
U2
Founded in 1976 in Dublin, U2 has released 15 studio albums, sold an estimated 150–170 million records worldwide, and accumulated 22 Grammy Awards. The band has found itself performing at Camp Randall Stadium twice, singing to sold-out crowds of 62,00+ people. The 1992 Zoo TV Tour featured a multimedia spectacle attempting to imprint sensory overload on the audience. Years later, in 1997, U2 returned to take the stage on the PopMart Tour. This tour was built around the idea of a supermarket and consumerism, featuring a 165-foot screen, one of the biggest created, a 100-foot yellow arch that supported the sound system, a giant olive, and a mirror ball lemon in which the band could ride from the main stage to a secondary B-stage.