1980s Tours
| Year(s) | Title | Legs (locations) and dates | Number of shows |
Supporting acts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Kill 'Em All for One | USA: March 5, 1983 – January 22, 1984 | 31 | Raven, Anthrax, Exodus |
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This was the first tour played as a band, and it supported their first album, Kill 'Em All. |
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| 1984 | Seven Dates of Hell | Europe: February 3 – August 29, 1984 | 16 | Venom (headliner), Twisted Sister |
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Metallica played as supporting act for Venom, performing in front of 7,000 people at the Aardschok Festival in Zwolle, Netherlands. |
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| 1984 | Bang That Head That Doesn't Bang | Europe: November 16 – December 20, 1984 | 25 | Tank |
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The band had its first major European tour, with an average crowd of 1,300. |
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| 1985 | Ride the Lightning Tour | North America: January 11 – March 19, 1985 Europe: August 13 – September 14, 1985 USA: September 29, 1985 – December 31, 1985 |
57 | W.A.S.P. (co-headliner), Armored Saint, Tank, ZZ Top, Marillion, Bon Jovi, Ratt, Magnum, Tommy Vance, Exodus |
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The band went on tour to support their second album, Ride the Lightning, gaining an attendance of 60,000 at a show in Oakland, California, at the Day on the Green festival. During the tour, Metallica played for the first time at the Monsters of Rock festival. The concert was at Donington Park, England, in front of 70,000 people. |
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| 1986–1987 | Damage, Inc. Tour | North America: March 27 – August 3, 1986
November 26 -December 20, 1986 - Metal Church |
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The tour supported the band's third album Master of Puppets in which the headliner of the North American portion was Ozzy Osbourne. It was plagued with misfortune for the band, as the guitar technician John Marshall had to fill James Hetfield's place at the rhythm guitar twice due to wrist injury. Later, during the European portion, a bus accident in Sweden killed bassist Cliff Burton. The World Tour that followed introduced the new bassist, Jason Newsted. |
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| 1987 | Monsters of Rock '87 | Europe: August 20–30, 1987 | 4 | Bon Jovi, Dio, Anthrax, W.A.S.P., Cinderella, The Bailey Brothers |
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The group went on the festival tour for the second time, with concerts in England and West Germany. |
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| 1988 | Monsters of Rock '88 | USA: May 27 – July 30, 1988 | 32 | Van Halen (headliner), Scorpions, Dokken, Kingdom Come |
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Metallica went on the same festival tour, the second year in a row, and played in front of crowds numbering 40,000 to 53,000 people. |
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| 1988–1989 | Damaged Justice | Europe: September 11 – November 5, 1988 World Tour: November 15, 1988 – October 8, 1989 |
222 | Danzig, Queensrÿche, Faith No More, Mortal Sin, The Cult |
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The tour supported the band's fourth album, ...And Justice for All. The August 29 and 30, 1989 shows in Seattle were later released in the box set Live Shit: Binge & Purge. |
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Read more about this topic: List Of Metallica Concert Tours