Legendary UK band Culture Club announced east and west coast dates in North America this fall and have confirmed a new album is in the works and due for release in early 2015.

For the first time in 14-years, all the original Culture Club band members - Mikey Craig (bass guitar), Roy Hay (guitar and keyboards), Jon Moss (drums and percussion) and flamboyant front-man Boy George (lead vocals) - will perform together.

Hot on the heels of their UK arena tour announcement, the band also entered the recording studio with legendary producer Youth (The Verve, Killing Joke, The Cult, Crowded House, Primal Scream) and have started working on a highly anticipated new album due for release in 2015.

Culture Club - North American Tour Dates

November 15 - Rancho Mirage, CA @ Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa
November 17 - Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
November 19 - Los Angeles, CA @ Shrine Auditorium
November 22 - Las Vegas, NV @ The Pearl
November 25 - New York, NY @ Beacon Theatre
November 28 - Atlantic City, NJ @ Etess Arena

Good for them! I like to see old bands reunite and with a new album on the way,their fans are in for a real treat

Do you really want to hurt me? Do you really want to make me cry?

Nice, I didn't know they are back together. Looking forward.

let's hope that this reunion runs smoothly.

The main problem is George's voice is so damaged that he can't really sing the older songs anything like they were recorded.

And he has a huge chip on his shoulder about the fact that the public isn't that interested in his new material and really resents and moans about having to perform the 80's stuff. The tour hasn't started and he's already moaning about people wanting to hear the hits on twitter.

I like the other members of CC a lot. There are great guys and great musicians. I feel sorry for them having to put up with George. I saw his solo concert and he had his usual nasty attitude toward the fans.

He really puts no enthusiasm into his performances. He's really quite a terrible live performer. So no matter how much I like the other members of CC, I'm not going to rush out and see this. Maybe if they come to my city.

It's as likely they will be able to get along as it is that the Israelis and the Palestinians will be able to.

There is a difference between a BOY GEORGE solo concert and a CULTURE CLUB reunion tour. Of course they have to do the hits on the CC tours his solo shows he doesnt have too if he doesnt choose.

I'm hoping to buy tickets!

getxxxx said:

There is a difference between a BOY GEORGE solo concert and a CULTURE CLUB reunion tour. Of course they have to do the hits on the CC tours his solo shows he doesnt have too if he doesnt choose.

But he hates performing the hits. He's always moaning about nostalgia. I don't see how he's going to enjoy performing the older music. To a lot of people though Boy George and Culture Club (as much as I love the other members of CC) mean the same thing so in a way for people to enjoy a solo tour he has to perform the older stuff because his new solo music no one knows or cares about. People always give him the benefit of the doubt, but he never fails to project a horrible attitude with or without CC.

Little confused about the timing of this whole thing, wouldn't it be better to do a few one offs before the release (like they're already doing) and then tour after the album drops? I'm going to see them twice in December, and maybe I'm in the minority here, but I'm much more interested in hearing what they've written this time around, rather than watching a bunch of middle-aged guys playing oldies.

Annika said:

Little confused about the timing of this whole thing, wouldn't it be better to do a few one offs before the release (like they're already doing) and then tour after the album drops? I'm going to see them twice in December, and maybe I'm in the minority here, but I'm much more interested in hearing what they've written this time around, rather than watching a bunch of middle-aged guys playing oldies.

Then why are you going twice?

Maybe they'll debut the new songs... Give them a chance to show us what they have...

[Edited 8/15/14 5:26am]

i would expect one or two new tracks in the US Market and not sure about the UK dates.

Annika said:

Little confused about the timing of this whole thing, wouldn't it be better to do a few one offs before the release (like they're already doing) and then tour after the album drops? I'm going to see them twice in December, and maybe I'm in the minority here, but I'm much more interested in hearing what they've written this time around, rather than watching a bunch of middle-aged guys playing oldies.

The timing is a little weird because most artists do release an album first and then go on tour. But maybe they are doing a short tour first to warm up and see if they can play together well, since they haven't performed together in 15 years. Now most bands who release an album and tour after it perform together all the time so they don't have to "warm up".

Now hard core fans like you want to hear new music, but how many hard core fans does George have? Not enough to fill any type of venue. Most people want to hear things they know and can sing along with and maybe a couple of new things. I'm not sure why their age is an issue. With the middle age thing it seems you are making fun of them. It's just a fact regardless of someone's age, people do like to hear songs they know and can sing along with. It just doesn't work when you play a whole concert of songs that people don't know. It's a dead audience and it's not a fun experience for anyone. Don't most bands and artists from the 80's do their older music? Not sure why CC should be made fun of for being middle aged and playing oldies when every other band like Duran Duran does the same thing.

I think the confusion is coming because George has said over and over again that he hates playing the older stuff. But it's just a fact people want to hear songs they know with any artist. So either you play the older hits or you have to write new hits. That's just the way concerts work regardless of what your age is.

chocolate1 said:

Annika said:

Little confused about the timing of this whole thing, wouldn't it be better to do a few one offs before the release (like they're already doing) and then tour after the album drops? I'm going to see them twice in December, and maybe I'm in the minority here, but I'm much more interested in hearing what they've written this time around, rather than watching a bunch of middle-aged guys playing oldies.

Then why are you going twice?

Maybe they'll debut the new songs... Give them a chance to show us what they have...

[Edited 8/15/14 5:26am]

I assumed it would be like the BG shows, the big hits, one or two of the old album tracks, and then new stuff. I'll see what the US shows are like, if it's all oldies I'll probably off-load one set of tickets.

Glindathegood said:

Annika said:

Little confused about the timing of this whole thing, wouldn't it be better to do a few one offs before the release (like they're already doing) and then tour after the album drops? I'm going to see them twice in December, and maybe I'm in the minority here, but I'm much more interested in hearing what they've written this time around, rather than watching a bunch of middle-aged guys playing oldies.

The timing is a little weird because most artists do release an album first and then go on tour. But maybe they are doing a short tour first to warm up and see if they can play together well, since they haven't performed together in 15 years. Now most bands who release an album and tour after it perform together all the time so they don't have to "warm up".

Now hard core fans like you want to hear new music, but how many hard core fans does George have? Not enough to fill any type of venue. Most people want to hear things they know and can sing along with and maybe a couple of new things. I'm not sure why their age is an issue. With the middle age thing it seems you are making fun of them. It's just a fact regardless of someone's age, people do like to hear songs they know and can sing along with. It just doesn't work when you play a whole concert of songs that people don't know. It's a dead audience and it's not a fun experience for anyone. Don't most bands and artists from the 80's do their older music? Not sure why CC should be made fun of for being middle aged and playing oldies when every other band like Duran Duran does the same thing.

I think the confusion is coming because George has said over and over again that he hates playing the older stuff. But it's just a fact people want to hear songs they know with any artist. So either you play the older hits or you have to write new hits. That's just the way concerts work regardless of what your age is.

I'm not saying this because I'm a CC fan, I expect it of any artist I go to see. If I'm watching someone (anyone) perform live, I want to see them perform stuff that they're living *now*, not what they were living in ten/twenty/thirty years ago, even if that was their 'heyday' or whatever. I realise that I'm in the minority here and that most people want to hear the hits, so I get why artists do it and I'm not criticising them for it, but personally I don't want to pay to see it. If I wanted to watch CC (or anyone) perform stuff from the 80's, I'll turn down the lights and put on a concert from that time. It'll never be the same of course, but to me that's a better compromise than watching them play those same hits as they are now, without any context.

getxxxx said:

This isn't about Madge... Tho

I know....but I thought of her when the discussion turned to George's thoughts about performing old songs.He hates to do it,but he really has no choice.He probably wishes he was in her position.

SoulAlive said:

Madonna is one artist who never does "greatest hits shows".Her tours are always based on whatever new album she has out at the time.She'll throw in a few oldies, but not many.She is in an enviable position because most veteran artists wouldn't be able to get away with that and still sellout arenas.

There's a big difference between Madonna and Boy George/Culture Club. Madonna consistently releases albums on a regular basis so even if all the songs aren't on the radio, there are many people that follow her closely and so will know the new album. But it's totally different if you are a band like Culture Club that doesn't release albums regularly.

The second difference is Madonna's shows are very theatrical with dancers, videos, special effects etc so people go to see what she is going to do as a performer not necessarily what songs she is going to do specifically. Boy George and Culture Club aren't that kind of artist. They do just sing and play their instruments without all those effects.

I'm the biggest Madonna fan there is and love her shows. but even with her even though she sells out her shows, a lot of people do want to hear more hits and they are dead periods in her concerts when she does a lot of new stuff. I think it would help her if she were willing to add in a few more older songs.

[Edited 8/16/14 9:24am]

Annika said:

I'm not saying this because I'm a CC fan, I expect it of any artist I go to see. If I'm watching someone (anyone) perform live, I want to see them perform stuff that they're living *now*, not what they were living in ten/twenty/thirty years ago, even if that was their 'heyday' or whatever. I realise that I'm in the minority here and that most people want to hear the hits, so I get why artists do it and I'm not criticising them for it, but personally I don't want to pay to see it. If I wanted to watch CC (or anyone) perform stuff from the 80's, I'll turn down the lights and put on a concert from that time. It'll never be the same of course, but to me that's a better compromise than watching them play those same hits as they are now, without any context.

So what are you saying? You want an artist to play nothing but their new material and none of their older hits? I don't know of any artist that does that. Now I do like to hear some new material but not at the expense of ignoring your biggest hits. Even Madonna who is mentioned here does put in some of her most iconic hits such as Like A Prayer and that is a part of her shows that a lot of fans enjoy. What makes a song a hit and memorable? To me usually the biggest hits are timeless and have universal lyrics that can apply to today as well as the past. They still have meaning and sound good today so it's not true an older song is only applicable to them 20 or 30 years ago, but still continues to have meaning today. Now some material of artists does sound dated with the production or whatnot but usually those are not the biggest hits that people remember or that they won't to hear.

You could say the same thing about playing their new cd in its entirety. If I wanted to just hear their new material I could say the same thing. I'd sit home and listen to the new cd. What I like about concerts is how artists blend together their old and their new material.

And watching a DVD of a concert is not anything like as the excitement of seeing an artist live so I don't see how you can compare the two. When you say as they are now, what does that mean? It seems sort of ageist and based on around looks. It seems you are saying you don't want performers to age and that if they do, that somehow affects your enjoyment of the songs. But to me the biggest hits of most artists are because they are great songs and are not based around looks or age.

[Edited 8/16/14 9:31am]

I think playing new stuff is a double edged sword. People always say oh we want artists to play new stuff and not do their hits and don't want them to live in the past, but when they do they are met with silence. So I don't think people really meant that. Most audiences respond better to the older material because without the older stuff you wouldn't have become a fan in the first place.

[Edited 8/16/14 9:37am]

Glindathegood said:

Annika said:

I'm not saying this because I'm a CC fan, I expect it of any artist I go to see. If I'm watching someone (anyone) perform live, I want to see them perform stuff that they're living *now*, not what they were living in ten/twenty/thirty years ago, even if that was their 'heyday' or whatever. I realise that I'm in the minority here and that most people want to hear the hits, so I get why artists do it and I'm not criticising them for it, but personally I don't want to pay to see it. If I wanted to watch CC (or anyone) perform stuff from the 80's, I'll turn down the lights and put on a concert from that time. It'll never be the same of course, but to me that's a better compromise than watching them play those same hits as they are now, without any context.

So what are you saying? You want an artist to play nothing but their new material and none of their older hits? I don't know of any artist that does that. Now I do like to hear some new material but not at the expense of ignoring your biggest hits. Even Madonna who is mentioned here does put in some of her most iconic hits such as Like A Prayer and that is a part of her shows that a lot of fans enjoy. What makes a song a hit and memorable? To me usually the biggest hits are timeless and have universal lyrics that can apply to today as well as the past. They still have meaning and sound good today so it's not true an older song is only applicable to them 20 or 30 years ago, but still continues to have meaning today. Now some material of artists does sound dated with the production or whatnot but usually those are not the biggest hits that people remember or that they won't to hear.

You could say the same thing about playing their new cd in its entirety. If I wanted to just hear their new material I could say the same thing. I'd sit home and listen to the new cd. What I like about concerts is how artists blend together their old and their new material.

And watching a DVD of a concert is not anything like as the excitement of seeing an artist live so I don't see how you can compare the two. When you say as they are now, what does that mean? It seems sort of ageist and based on around looks. It seems you are saying you don't want performers to age and that if they do, that somehow affects your enjoyment of the songs. But to me the biggest hits of most artists are because they are great songs and are not based around looks or age.

[Edited 8/16/14 9:31am]

Not in the least. I usually find artists' later work more compelling than their earlier stuff. From CC, my favourite albums are Don't Mind If I Do and From Luxury To Heartache. My favourite Michael Jackson albums were History and Blood On The Dancefloor. Age means experience, and experience usually translates into more interesting art. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy CC's early stuff, but I find the later albums much more compelling (although I will say that their early stuff was more complex than that of most young pop artists, especially on the first album).

Annika said:

Not in the least. I usually find artists' later work more compelling than their earlier stuff. From CC, my favourite albums are Don't Mind If I Do and From Luxury To Heartache. My favourite Michael Jackson albums were History and Blood On The Dancefloor. Age means experience, and experience usually translates into more interesting art. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy CC's early stuff, but I find the later albums much more compelling (although I will say that their early stuff was more complex than that of most young pop artists, especially on the first album).

I do really like From Luxury to Heartache a lot. but isn't that an older album too? I don't care for Don't Mind If I Do too much though George though doesn't like From Luxury to Heartache at all. I doubt he will perform much from that. George doesn't like Don't Mind If I Do at all. In fact, one of the reasons he wanted to make another album was he was very unhappy with DMIID. He said it was all Roy Hay, the guitarist's fault for messing it up and producing it wrong. DMIID was too slow and mature for me. I hope the new album is more uptempo, fun and more rhythmic and not so many ballads and reggae.

I think the best set lists include songs from all of an artist's albums. They should include their biggest hits, a few more obscure older songs and a few new songs.

I don't know if age always leads to better music though. As artists get older, they have the money and success they've always wanted so sometimes they don't try as hard or work as hard at writing good songs as when they were younger.

The CC reunion show in NYC at the Beacon sold out in a few hours even though the top ticket price was over $100. I'm a big Culture Club fan but even I'm surprised at that one. I think George has always been kind of miffed that people don't want to buy tickets to his solo show but go crazy buying CC tickets.

that DMIID never saw the light stateside, Luxury from 1986 was the last america release CC besides the several hits packages that followed

Glindathegood said:

I think playing new stuff is a double edged sword. People always say oh we want artists to play new stuff and not do their hits and don't want them to live in the past, but when they do they are met with silence. So I don't think people really meant that. Most audiences respond better to the older material because without the older stuff you wouldn't have become a fan in the first place.

[Edited 8/16/14 9:37am]

When I went to see Cher in May, I think I was the only one in a sold-out arena who knew the new songs (she did 4). The crowd didn't come alive until she "turned back time".

chocolate1 said:

I'm hoping to buy tickets!

Got 'em (NYC)... crappy seats, but I'm there...

Annika said:

Little confused about the timing of this whole thing, wouldn't it be better to do a few one offs before the release (like they're already doing) and then tour after the album drops? I'm going to see them twice in December, and maybe I'm in the minority here, but I'm much more interested in hearing what they've written this time around, rather than watching a bunch of middle-aged guys playing oldies.

i'm seeing them in december too & can't wait! alison moyet is supporting & i'm equally excited about seeing her as well

hoping for ALL the oldies, although i know they'll throw in new & solo tracks. that's what i'm expecting anyway

Glindathegood said:

Annika said:

Not in the least. I usually find artists' later work more compelling than their earlier stuff. From CC, my favourite albums are Don't Mind If I Do and From Luxury To Heartache. My favourite Michael Jackson albums were History and Blood On The Dancefloor. Age means experience, and experience usually translates into more interesting art. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy CC's early stuff, but I find the later albums much more compelling (although I will say that their early stuff was more complex than that of most young pop artists, especially on the first album).

I do really like From Luxury to Heartache a lot. but isn't that an older album too? I don't care for Don't Mind If I Do too much though George though doesn't like From Luxury to Heartache at all. I doubt he will perform much from that. George doesn't like Don't Mind If I Do at all. In fact, one of the reasons he wanted to make another album was he was very unhappy with DMIID. He said it was all Roy Hay, the guitarist's fault for messing it up and producing it wrong. DMIID was too slow and mature for me. I hope the new album is more uptempo, fun and more rhythmic and not so many ballads and reggae.

I think the best set lists include songs from all of an artist's albums. They should include their biggest hits, a few more obscure older songs and a few new songs.

I don't know if age always leads to better music though. As artists get older, they have the money and success they've always wanted so sometimes they don't try as hard or work as hard at writing good songs as when they were younger.

The CC reunion show in NYC at the Beacon sold out in a few hours even though the top ticket price was over $100. I'm a big Culture Club fan but even I'm surprised at that one. I think George has always been kind of miffed that people don't want to buy tickets to his solo show but go crazy buying CC tickets.

FLTH is definitely an older album too, I was just using it as an example of a later album I find more interesting/listen to a lot more than the earlier 'big hit' album Colour By Numbers.

It seems none of them like DMIID. I seem to remember Jon Moss at some point saying he felt it departed too much from their earlier stuff, and blaming it on George for bringing in his own writers/collaborators. Oh well, I still enjoy it!

chocolate1 said:

I'm hoping to buy tickets!

I was a pretty big CC fan back in the day. IN FACT back in '84/'85 I was all about CC and couldn't stand Prince not one bit!


I wouldn't mind going to see this show, but I'm recovering from my travels and getting ready for the kids' Back-To-School shopping so I don't know if I can swing ticket right now. In fact Fleetwood Mac is coming to NYC in October and I'm positivelly depressed that I can't buy tix.

However, if I do manage to go to this...I would love to hear tracks from their "last" LP - "From Luxury To Heartache". Even though it's considered a bomb (and you can't even find it for sale anywhere) I think that it was a great album.