News Coverage of Michael Jackson and the Jacksons Victory Tour Rehearsal in Birmingham (Jun 28 1984)

The Victory Tour was a concert tour of the United States and Canada by the American pop band, the Jacksons, from July to December 1984. It was the only tour with all six Jackson brothers, even though Jackie was injured for some of it. The group performed 55 concerts to an audience of approximately 2.5 million.[1] Of the 55 locations performed at, 53 were large stadiums. Most came to see Michael, whose album Thriller was dominating the music world at the time. Many regard it as his Thriller Tour, with most of the songs on the set list coming from his Thriller and Off the Wall albums.

The tour reportedly grossed approximately $75 million ($220 million in 2023 dollars[2]) and set a new record for the highest-grossing tour.[3] It showcased Michael's single decorated glove, black sequined jacket, and moonwalk. The tour was choreographed by Paula Abdul,[4][5] and promoted by Don King. Despite the billing of being a 'world tour', the shows were staged to the United States and Canada alone.

Despite its focus on Michael, the tour was named after the Jacksons' album Victory. The album was released four days before the tour's first show in Kansas City and turned out to be a commercial success. However, besides some ad libbing during the show's encore, none of the album's songs were performed on the tour. Jermaine had a successful new album out as well (Jermaine Jackson, also known as Dynamite, which had been released in April 1984) and some material from that album was performed.

According to Marlon, Michael refused to rehearse or perform any of the songs from Victory and was also reluctant on embarking on the tour himself; it took his mother Katherine and fans to persuade him before he finally agreed. Marlon also stated that Michael had only reluctantly joined his brothers, who needed the income while he himself did not.[6] On the tour, tensions between Michael and his brothers increased so much that at the December 9 concert he announced that it would be the last time they would perform together, ending plans for a European and Australian leg of the tour in the spring and summer of 1985.

The Jacksons and Don King still made money from the tour. Michael donated his share to several charities as he had promised prior to the tour, but the rancor between him and his brothers had a deep and lasting effect on the Jacksons as a family, alienating him from them for most of his later life, and effectively ended the Jacksons as a performing group. The Jacksons made one more album in 1989, but Michael and Marlon only participated in one song on it, and aside from the concert celebrating Michael's thirty years as a solo artist in 2001, they never toured again during Michael's lifetime.

The tour was also a financial disaster for promoter Chuck Sullivan and his father Billy; the losses from the tour eventually forced them to sell the New England Patriots football team they owned after Foxboro Stadium, the team's home field, lapsed into bankruptcy.

Background

In November 1983, the Jacksons announced plans for a major tour in 1984 at a press conference, with boxing promoter Don King offering $3 million ($8.8 million in 2023 dollars) in upfront advances. That spring, the Victory album had been recorded, to be released shortly before the tour itself.

The set list included songs from the Jacksons' albums Destiny and Triumph. Despite the name of the tour, the Victory album was not represented.[8] There were also songs on the list from Jermaine's and Michael's solo careers. Songs from Michael's albums Off the Wall and Thriller were both represented. The set list did not include "Thriller" itself because Michael did not like the way the song sounded live, but it was later performed regularly during Michael's solo tours.

Aside from a few months in mid-1975 and Michael's 30th Anniversary Celebration concert in 2001, the Victory Tour was one of the very few times that all six Jackson brothers worked together at the same time as a band. Jackie missed most of the tour because of a leg injury, which was described at the time as a knee injury incurred during strenuous rehearsals.[21] Margaret Maldonado, the mother of two of Jermaine's children, has alleged that Jackie in fact broke his leg in an automobile accident: his first wife Enid deliberately ran him over in a parking lot after catching him with Paula Abdul. Jackie would, however, eventually recover and was able to rejoin his brothers on stage for the last portion of the tour.[21][22] Michael sang all the lead vocals, except for a trio of Jermaine's solo hits.

Eddie Van Halen made a special guest appearance doing the "Beat It" guitar solo on July 13 in Irving, Texas.[23]

Shortly after the tour ended and the announcement that it was the group's final tour, Michael returned to his solo career[24] and Marlon left the group to start a solo career of his own.