The Waterboys Return To The U.S.

The Waterboys has booked the band’s first U.S. tour in six years with a set of September dates including stops in Boston, Los Angeles and Seattle. Plus, Mike Scott and the band are playing Brooklyn and a handful of Canadian gigs in July.

Scott says he’s really excited to take the stage in the U.S. and Canada.  

“North America is just about my favorite place in the world to play and I’m thrilled that this year we’ll play more concerts there than any year of the Waterboys’ existence. Our fall 2013 tour is the longest Waterboys American tour ever and we’re doing it with an American lineup. Apart from myself and fiddler Steve Wickham, all the band members are Americans based in the New York area, players I handpicked myself. I can’t wait to see what kind of a joyful, wild noise we’ll make.” 

Photo: Evan Agostini / Invision / AP
"The Music of Prince," Carnegie Hall, New York City

The setlist will feature tunes from throughout the folk rock band’s career, including tunes from its most recent release, 2011’s An Appointment with Mr. Yeats. The LP was inspired by the poetry of W.B. Yeats.

“I love the way Yeats’ poems lends themselves to music,” Scott said. “But I also like Yeats as a guy – a dandified, opinionated, larger-than-life character. I feel a kinship to him. My purpose isn’t to treat Yeats as a museums piece, but to connect with the soul of the poems – as they appear to me – then go wherever the music in my head suggests, and that means some surprising places.”

With more fall dates to be announced later this summer, here is the North American itinerary so far:

July 12 – Ottawa, Ontario, Lebreton Flats Park ()
July 13 – Toronto, Ontario, Molson Canadian Amphitheatre         
July 15 – St. John’s, Newfoundland, Holy Heart Of Mary     
July 16 – St. John’s, Newfoundland, Holy Heart Of Mary     
July 17 – Halifax, NS     Casino Nova Scotia     
July 19 – Brooklyn, N.Y., Prospect Park Bandshell ()
July 21 – Vancouver, British Columbia, Jericho Beach Park (Vancouver Folk Music Festival)
Sept. 19 – Boston, Mass., Wilbur Theatre     
Sept. 20 – Northampton, Mass., Calvin Theater     
Sept. 21 – New Haven, Conn., Shubert Theater     
Sept. 25 – Englewood, N.J., Bergen Performing Arts Ctr.     
Sept. 27 – Westhampton Beach, N.Y., Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center     
Sept. 28 – Morristown, N.J., Mayo Performing Arts Center     
Oct. 7 – Los Angeles, Calif., El Rey Theatre     
Oct. 8 – Carmel, Calif., Sunset Cultural Center     
Oct. 11 – Seattle, Wash., The Neptune     
Oct. 24 – Salisbury, Mass., Blue Ocean

The band lineup for the July dates features Mike Scott on vocals, guitar and keyboard along with longtime Waterboy/Irish fiddler Steve Wickham, Jay Barclay on guitar and keyboards, bassist Malcolm Gold and drummer Chris Benelli. The fall schedule features Daniel Mintseris on keyboards.

The July 13 gig is an appearance with Great Big Sea.

Select dates are on sale now. Tickets for Los Angeles go on sale June 7.

For more information visit MikeScottWaterboys.com