Boy Tour

Starting in September 1980, U2 went back on the road in support of their new forthcoming album Boy. The album itself was due to be released on October 20, 1980, and the first leg of the tour, through the UK, was in advance of the album. Touring in support of the album continued until June 1981, when the band would take a break from concert tours to work on their new album, October.

The Boy Tour was the first tour to take U2 to North America, playing a small handful of shows in December 1980 throughout the USA, with one stop in Canada.

Boy: Leg One [UK and Europe]

The first leg of the tour saw U2 visiting clubs throughout the UK, starting with an appearance in Coventry, and wrapping up the UK leg of the tour on October 11, 1980. A short trip to Netherlands and Belgium followed, which were U2's first concerts outside of Ireland and the UK, before one final date at the Lyceum Ballroom in London. A date back home at the Project Arts Center to launch the album for the hometown crowd followed, and then more shows throughout England, a stop in Edinburgh in Scotland, and the band's first show in Paris, France.

The last three shows on the tour were supporting The Talking Heads, first in London for two shows, and then in Paris. A few of the other shows listed here were in support of other bands, but the majority saw U2 headlining small clubs.

The fan club album released through U2.Com in 2015, Another Time, Another Place was recorded at the Marquee Club in London on this leg of the tour, on September 29, 1980.

Boy: Leg Two [North America]

U2's first tour of North America was due to start in Rochester, New York on December 5, 1980, but that show was cancelled for unknown reasons, and the band would make their debut the next night in New York City at the Ritz. U2 receive a positive response in New York, but the crowd is small, estimated at only 25 people.

The band move from New York, to Washington DC, and then Buffalo, NY, and onto their first show in Canada, on December 9. The following day U2 have some time off and do a photoshoot in Toronto. The band is in Toronto when they hear of John Lennon's murder. After the single night in Toronto at the El Mocambo, the band returns for five more shows in the USA. Time between this tour and the next is short, after just one day off the band begins again with shows in Ireland up until Christmas.

Boy: Leg Three [Irish Tour 1980]

After returning from North America, U2 hop right back into touring, with a handful of shows before Christmas in Ireland. These shows are advertised as the "Irish Tour '80" in the press and on posters for the shows.

The band play in Belfast, and the remainder of the shows are in the Republic of Ireland. After the show at the TV Club on December 22, U2 will take a break for the holidays and won't start touring again until the new year.

Boy: Leg Four [Europe]

U2 return to Northern Ireland at the end of a Christmas break and restart touring, in an appearance that is filmed by the BBC.

This leg of the tour sees them visit Sweden, Germany and Switzerland for the first time, as well as returning once again to Scotland, Belgium, The Netherlands, and France.

A planned show in York on January 26 is cancelled via notices in the music papers. No reason is given for the cancellation.

Boy: Leg Five [North America]

U2's second tour of North America sees the band traveling the Northeast of the USA before doing three shows in Canada, and then heading to the West coast to resume shows through the USA.

At a stop at the Foghorn Tavern in Portland, Oregon on this tour, Bono misplaces his briefcase which includes his notes on lyrics and songs for the new album. The briefcase is returned to him decades later.

Boy: Leg Five [Europe]

After a lengthy tour of North America, U2 get ready to go into the studio to work on October but do play a small number of shows first, including two shows in England, and one large festival show in The Netherlands, playing to the largest audience the band has faced to date.

Often a show on June 4, 1981 at Salford University is listed in U2 show lists. This show did not happen. The Ents team at Salford had booked and promoted the show, however the week before the show was due to happen, they were notified that U2 would not be back from their North American tour in time to keep the committment and the show would have to be cancelled. The Polecats replaced U2 on the bill.

After these shows the band go into studio to start work on October in Dublin. That process will take them into August, at which time they will once again start booking a handful of shows and festivals, including the first appearance at Slane Castle. These are listed under the Pre-October tour.

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