| Tour byBjörk | |
 Promotional poster for August 22, 2003 concert | |
| Associated album | Greatest Hits |
|---|---|
| Start date | May 24, 2003 (2003-05-24) |
| End date | September 3, 2003 (2003-09-03) |
| Legs | 3 |
| No. of shows |
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| Björk concert chronology | |
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TheGreatest Hits tour was the fifth worldwideconcert tour by Icelandic musicianBjörk. It was launched in support of the release of herGreatest Hits album, her box setFamily Tree, and to coincide with the release of herLive Box collection. The tour was supposed to take place one year earlier, but it was delayed as Björk gave birth to her daughter. The first dates of the tour were announced just two months after the birth. The tour kicked off with two shows inLondon on May 24, 2003, and ended with a rescheduled performance inToronto on September 3, 2003. The tour visited Europe, Asia and North America with 28 shows in total. Björk wore outfits and creations fromJeremy Scott,Alexander McQueen and Shoplifter.
The songs performed were mainly fromVespertine andHomogenic. The tour band was made up of members of previous tour bands: the Iceland string octet (which were featured also in theHomogenic tour), electronic duoMatmos and harpistZeena Parkins (who had previously been part of the touring band forVespertine world tour). Iranian musicianLeila Arab (who had previously been part of the touring band forPost) joined the band for the European and Asian shows. There was a notable lack of focus on material fromDebut andPost. The tour was appreciated by critics, who lauded Björk's performances, presence on scene and fashion choices. This is the only one of Björk's tours not to have had a corresponding DVD or CD release, although many performances were broadcast and a live track of "All is Full of Love" from this tour can be found on the soundtrack to the Icelandic filmScreaming Masterpiece, whilst the film itself contains partial live performances of both "All is Full of Love" and "Pluto".
In 2001, Björk embarked on her fourth tour, theVespertine world tour, which featured the singer playing inopera houses andtheatres backed by the 54-piece orchestra Il Novecento.[1] During a press conference inBarcelona,Spain, before her concert atLiceu, Björk confirmed that there would have been another tour the following year, which would have featured more conventional locations and band.[2] On January 26, 2002, it was announced that Björk would headline theCoachella Valley Music and Arts Festival which was to take place in April 2002.[3] By the time of the show, the singer was pregnant with her second child, the first with partnerMatthew Barney, and the show was the only planned appearance for the year.[4] During the course of 2002, Björk released her first greatest hits album, aptly calledGreatest Hits, and first box set,Family Tree, which followed a string of DVD releases which spanned her first ten years of solo career. Björk stated that the process "was like spring cleaning, complete with nostalgic, boring, and mushy moments, but ultimately, it was liberating to have an absolutely clean attic. Now, I have a brand-new chalkboard on which to work".[5] The singer gave birth to her daughter, Ísadóra Bjarkardóttir Barney, on October 3, 2002. At the end of the year, the first dates for Björk's newest tour were announced inVerona,Paris andHamburg.[6] More dates were later added in March 2003, including two headlining shows inRussia, where the singer had never played before.[7] Björk was confirmed to headline theFuji Rock Festival inYuzawa, Niigata,Japan[8] and further shows were announced to take place inNorth America, including two shows atBrooklynKeySpan Park.[9][10] In April, it was confirmed thatZeena Parkins andMatmos, who have played with her during her last tour, would rejoin her, along with the Icelandic String Octet, that was part of the band during theHomogenic tour.[11]Leila Arab was later confirmed to be a part of the band too, but she appeared only during the European and Asian shows due tovisa issues. On May 16, Björk streamed viawebcast the final rehearsal for the upcoming tour live at the Loftkastalinn Theatre inReykjavík.[9]
The shows featuredpyrotechnics, moving sculptures on stage and video projections. TheLondon-based direction and animation collective Lynn Fox provided the backdrops for some songs on the tour, including "Pluto", "Desired Constellation", "Unravel" and "It's in Our Hands".[12] During the tour Björk wore dresses byJeremy Scott and Shoplifter along with ornaments by young Icelandic designer and, most notably, a pair of ear ornaments byAlexander McQueen.[13][14]
The tour received positive reviews from critics. John Mulvay ofYahoo! Music noted that the show "initially seems [...] a virtual reprise of herVespertine performances. In fact,Vespertine idea - a sort of solemn classical fragility underpinned by volatile, glitchy rhythms - is extended to permeate rarely-visited corners of Björk's back catalogue" and praised the show by saying "it's closer to high art than pop, incorporating performance art, chamber music and radical sound design".[15] David Peschek ofThe Guardian, reviewing the first show inLondon, commented that "there is more rhythmic invention in this show than in the rest of current electronic music. Björk has become a curator of exotic, alien sounds, the latest in a rare lineage that includesMartin Denny,Esquivel,Lalo Schifrin andYello", ultimately labeling the show as "thrilling".[16] Ian Watson ofNME wrote that "With the help of harpist Zeena Parkins and San Franciscan sound sculptors Matmos, who've fashioned lithe, subtle beats from the sounds of cracking ice and shuffled cards, her Bjorkness is moving ever closer to her ultimate dream. A breathtaking fusion of tradition and progress, of electronica and steam, of classical beauty in a groundbreaking frame".[17]
Neva Chonin of theSan Francisco Chronicle billed the show as "one of the most delightfully mind-blowing pop spectacles of the year" and further commented "the pop world’s eccentric dancing queen topped herself by putting on a show as strange, beautiful and playfully joyous as herself."[18] Steven Mirkin ofVariety, reviewing her performance atHollywood Bowl, opined that "her performance did not quite live up the high bar she set", confronting the show to her last concert inLos Angeles at theDorothy Chandler Pavilion, but later added "it was an impressive evening nonetheless".[19] A more lukewarm review came for her two shows at KeySpan Park, with Andy Gensler ofRolling Stone commenting "the sheer spectacle overwhelmed fans at theBrooklyn ballpark - even if the meaning was often lost in the explosions" and further adding that the show was "impressive, but it also prompted a question: Why?".[20]
The show's fashion was critically lauded. David Peschek stated "Björk walks on stage wearing the kind of dress [...] that the people who compile fashion pages like to laugh at, not realising she dresses that way because she finds fashion funny."[16] Gene Stout of theSeattle Post Globe stated that the outfits were "fun, fanciful and typically Björk" and noted how the singer's eclectic fashion choices influenced her fans by saying that they "also expressed their individual Björk-ness with odd costumes and gender-blending accessories. What was most striking about Björk’s fans was their attentiveness. Many appeared mesmerized by the diminutive, fairy-like singer and her soaring, eccentric blend of pop, electronica, classical and old-European musical elements."[21] Ta-Nehisi Coates ofThe Village Voice stated that "she looked exquisitely ridiculous".[22]
This set list is from the May 24, 2003 concert inLondon,England.[23] It is not intended to represent all concerts for the tour.
Notes
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| August 26, 2003 | Toronto, Canada | Olympic Island | Rescheduled to September 3, 2003, due to scheduling and logistic issues[31] |
| August 31, 2003 | Boston, United States | Suffolk Downs | Moved to Fleet Pavilion because of a failure to get a license for pyrotechnics[32] |
Credits adapted from theLive Book.[33]
| Studio albums | |
|---|---|
| Soundtracks | |
| Compilation albums | |
| Remix albums | |
| Live albums | |
| Collaboration albums | |
| Concert films | |
| Video albums | |
| Documentaries | |
| Performances | |
| Other recordings | |
| Books | |
| Exhibitions | |
| Bands and labels | |
| Related articles | |
