Vote for Change

The Vote for Change tour was a politically-motivated American popular music concert tour that took place in October 2004. The tour was presented by MoveOn.org to benefit America Coming Together. The tour was held in swing states and was designed to encourage people to register and vote. Though the tour and the organization were offically non-partisan, many of the performers urged people to vote against George W. Bush and for John Kerry in the 2004 Presidential election campaign.

Schedule

Every region had a specific night during which the concerts would be held in that region. When concerts were held in the same city, they were at different venues. Acts are listed in opener-to-closer order.

Monday, September 27, 2004

• Washington
• McCaw Hall, Seattle, Washington - Keb' Mo', Bonnie Raitt, and Jackson Browne

Wednesday, September 29, 2004

• Arizona
• Cricket Pavilion, Phoenix, Arizona - Keb' Mo', Bonnie Raitt, and Jackson Browne (with special guests Jack Johnson and Crosby, Stills, & Nash)

Friday, October 1, 2004

• Pennsylvania
• Sovereign Center, Reading, Pennsylvania - Gob Roberts, Death Cab for Cutie, and Pearl Jam
• Wachovia Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - Bright Eyes, R.E.M., and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (with special guest John Fogerty)
• Bryce Jordan Center, State College, Pennsylvania - My Morning Jacket, Jurassic 5, Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, and Dave Matthews Band
• Heinz Hall, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - James Taylor and Dixie Chicks
• F.M. Kirby Center, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania - Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds and John Mellencamp

Saturday, October 2, 2004

• Ohio
• Taft Theatre, Cincinnati, Ohio - Keb' Mo', Bonnie Raitt, and Jackson Browne
• Sports Arena, Toledo, Ohio - Gob Roberts, Death Cab for Cutie, and Pearl Jam (with special guests Peter Frampton, Pegi Young, and Neil Young)
• Gund Arena, Cleveland, Ohio - Bright Eyes, R.E.M., and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (with special guest John Fogerty)
• Ervin J. Nutter Center, Dayton, Ohio - My Morning Jacket, Jurassic 5, Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, and Dave Matthews Band
• State Theater, Cleveland, Ohio - James Taylor and Dixie Chicks
• PromoWest Pavilion, Columbus, Ohio - Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds and John Mellencamp

Sunday, October 3, 2004

• Michigan
• Wharton Center, East Lansing, Michigan - Keb' Mo', Bonnie Raitt, and Jackson Browne
• DeltaPlex Arena, Grand Rapids, Michigan - Gob Roberts, Death Cab for Cutie, and Pearl Jam
• Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan - Bright Eyes, R.E.M., and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (with special guest John Fogerty), late visit by Dixie Chicks
• The Palace of Auburn Hills, Detroit, Michigan - My Morning Jacket, Jurassic 5, Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, and Dave Matthews Band (with unannounced guest Neil Young)
• Fox Theatre, Detroit, Michigan - James Taylor and Dixie Chicks
• Wings Stadium, Kalamazoo, Michigan - Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds and John Mellencamp

Tuesday, October 5, 2004

• Midwest
• Midland Theatre, Kansas City, Missouri - Keb' Mo', Bonnie Raitt, and Jackson Browne
• Fox Theatre, St. Louis, Missouri - Gob Roberts, Death Cab for Cutie, and Pearl Jam
• Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota - Bright Eyes, R.E.M., and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (with special guest John Fogerty) (with unannounced guest Neil Young)
• Kohl Center, Madison, Wisconsin - My Morning Jacket, Jurassic 5, Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, and Dave Matthews Band
• Hancher Auditorium, Iowa City, Iowa - James Taylor and Dixie Chicks
• Riverside Theater, Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds and John Mellencamp

Wednesday, October 6, 2004

• Midwest
• Civic Center, Des Moines, Iowa - John Prine, Keb' Mo', and Bonnie Raitt
• Civic Center, Asheville, North Carolina - Gob Roberts, Death Cab for Cutie, and Pearl Jam
• Hilton Coliseum, Ames, Iowa - My Morning Jacket, Jurassic 5, Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, and Dave Matthews Band (with unannounced guest Neil Young)
• Fox Theatre, St. Louis, Missouri - James Taylor and Dixie Chicks

Friday, October 8, 2004

• Florida
• Moran Theater, Jacksonville, Florida - Sheryl Crow, Keb' Mo', and Bonnie Raitt
• Silver Spurs Arena, Kissimmee, Florida - Gob Roberts, Death Cab for Cutie, and Pearl Jam (with special guests Peter Frampton and Neil Young)
• TD Waterhouse Center, Orlando, Florida - Tracy Chapman, R.E.M., and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (with special guest John Fogerty)
• O'Connell Center, Gainesville, Florida - Jurassic 5, Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, and Dave Matthews Band
• Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater, Florida - James Taylor and Dixie Chicks
• Jackie Gleason Theater, Miami, Florida - Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds and John Mellencamp

Monday, October 11, 2004

• Washington, D.C.
• MCI Center, Washington, D.C. - A final concert combining various artists who participated in the tour including Dixie Chicks, Bonnie Raitt, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Dave Matthews Band, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, John Fogerty, John Mellencamp, Jurassic 5, Keb' Mo', Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, Pearl Jam, and R.E.M. The concert was broadcast live on the cable Sundance Channel and on radio stations.

Wednesday, October 13, 2004

• New Jersey
• Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey - Patti Scialfa, Jackson Browne, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (with special guest John Fogerty) (with unannounced guest Eddie Vedder)

The shows

The Springsteen and E Street Band performances were compressed to two hours in length due to the multi-act nature of the concerts. Especially at the beginning of his sets, Springsteen accomplished this by stripping down the songs, removing elongated outros and false endings from the likes of "Born in the U.S.A." and "Badlands". In doing so, the style of the Vote for Change shows foreshadowed the next E Street outing, the 2007 Magic Tour, when due to age and health issues Springsteen adopted a similar approach.

Results

The tour was generally successful in attracting audiences, generating media attention and raising approximately $10 million for America Coming Together, but failed in its ultimate purpose of swaying the vote in battleground states. None of the states involved went differently than predicted in pre-election polls, and most critically Ohio stayed in the Bush column despite the placement of six concerts there.

References

External links

• Backstreets.com set lists and descriptions for the shows that Springsteen was involved in