Fleetwood Mac tour announces North American dates for early 2009

Classic rock legends Fleetwood Mac have announced plans for their first tour in five years. The Unleashed Tour kicks off March 1 at Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, PA, and continues through a March 26 concert at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, ON.

Other highlights of the tour include a March 5 concert at Allstate Arena in Chicago, IL, a March 11 performance at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, MA, and a March 19 show at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY. More spring and summer dates will be announced in the future.

Public onsales for the Live Nation-produced tour begin on December 15, with a variety of VIP packages and premium seating options also available. American Express cardholders will be able to access an early presale that will run from December 8 at 10 a.m. (local time) through December 14 at 10 p.m. (local time).

“We love our band and think the title of the tour ‘Unleashed’ perfectly describes how we all feel when we get on stage together — especially in 2009,” the band’s four touring members said in a joint statement. “We’re so happy to get back out on the road, perform everyone’s favorite songs and see our fans.”

Earlier in the year, speculation had arisen over whether Fleetwood Mac would ask a guest vocalist along for the ride to substitute for retired keyboardist and vocalist Christine McVie. At one point, singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow announced that she was the band’s selected replacement — a statement that the band quickly denied.

“I think we were all a little surprised [Crow] was announcing that to the world with such certainty,” principal member Lindsey Buckingham said in an interview with Billboard.

“We have talked about the possibility of bringing another woman into the scene to kind of give Stevie a sort of foil and shake it up a little bit,” the guitarist continued, adding that the whole situation “kinda got out of hand.”

In conjunction with the recently announced tour dates, Fleetwood Mac will reissue their iconic 1977 album “Rumours” as a CD/DVD boxset. The package will include previously unreleased tracks and video footage from the band’s recording session and subsequent performances.

Fleetwood Mac itinerary:
(Dates are subject to change.)