Primus’ A Tribute to Kings Tour will include a stop at the Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park.
Shows on Primus’ summer tour will feature Rush’s 1977 album A Farewell to Kings in its entirety, as well as other songs. The tour comes to the Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park, June 20, with tickets going on sale Feb. 21 at 10 a.m. (presales begin Feb. 19 at 10 a.m.). Visit ticketmaster.com.
There will also be shows at the Beacon Theatre in New York, June 17; and The Met in Philadelphia, June 19.
Wolfmother and The Sword will open all three shows.
Rush is a huge influence on Primus, and Primus opened for Rush on a 1992 tour, and had covered the band’s songs in the past. In a press release, Primus singer-bassist Les Claypool said band members had been thinking about playing a full Rush album in concert even before Rush member Neil Peart died in January.
“A little over one year ago, (guitarist) Ler LaLonde and I started kicking the idea around of Primus performing a series of shows featuring an iconic Rush album from our youth,” he said. “Being that A Farewell to Kings was the first Rush record I ever heard, and that it contains my all-time favorite Rush tune, ‘Cygnus X-1,’ the choice narrowed quickly. Years ago I had done something similar with Colonel Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade, when we covered Pink Floyd’s Animals in its entirety. It was an insane amount of work, but ended up being one of the most enjoyable live endeavors I’ve ever done.”
The band had originally planned to do A Farewell to Kings shows in the fall, but that was postponed when they had an opportunity to open a tour for Slayer.
Peart and fellow Rush members Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson “had been superheroes to Larry, (drummer) Herb (Alexander) and I in our teens, so when we all became pals while touring together in the early ’90s, we were pretty delighted; partially because of the musical geek-out factor but mostly because the three guys whom we had admired so much from afar, turned out to be truly great, down-to-earth humans, and like us, a tad eccentric.
“The Tribute to Kings Tour will be just as it is implied, a respectful and loving tribute to three spectacular musicians, songwriters, legends and friends.”
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