# Triumph Tour

The Triumph Tour was a concert tour by the Jacksons, covering the United States and Canada from July 8 to September 26, 1981. The tour grossed a total of $5.5 million ($19 million in 2024), setting a record breaking four sold out concerts in Inglewood, California.

## History

By 1981, the Jacksons had regained success as a platinum-selling recording group with two albums, Destiny (1978) and Triumph (1980). Additionally, lead singer Michael Jackson was in the final stages of promoting his 1979 multi-platinum album, Off the Wall. This tour allowed Michael to bring in new show production ideas more to his liking. Inspired by Earth, Wind & Fire's live shows, Michael created the costumes and designed the stage. It was on this tour that he first wore his sequined glove, which later became world-famous after his Motown 25 performance. He and his brothers also collaborated on an intro that signaled similarities to their "Can You Feel It" music video. As it had been for many years, the choreography was done by Michael, Jackie and Marlon Jackson. The shows included magical elements designed by Doug Henning—for example, Michael disappearing in smoke during "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough".

### Touring tenure

The Triumph Tour began in Memphis, Tennessee, and ended with a sold-out week of shows in Inglewood. Each show earned highly positive reviews, in part due to Michael's leadership and showmanship. His brothers also earned praise, particularly for Randy's and Tito's musicality, and Marlon's dance ability. The tour marked the last truly integrated group effort, as Michael's solo career would soon eclipse his success with his brothers. The tour was so well-received and popular that Epic had the brothers record a variety of shows, and compile them for an upcoming live release. It is rumored that the tracks were recorded during stops in Memphis, New York City, Buffalo and Providence. The live album, The Jacksons Live!, came out in the winter of 1981, and went gold in its initial run. Current sales are two million.
After the tour ended, Michael went back to record Thriller, his follow-up to Off the Wall (1979). It would be three years before the Jacksons would go back on the road again. Rolling Stone later named the Triumph Tour one of the best 25 tours between 1967 and 1987. To showcase the success of the Triumph Tour, Michael Jackson commented that it was their first show without any marginal material. Michael patterned the Victory Tour (1984) and his Bad World Tour (1987–1989) after the Triumph tour.

### Stage

The stage was dark and had three groups of strobe lights, all of them containing different colors of lights, facing the stage diagonally. The stage also had a spotlight that followed the main performers. In addition to the lighting, the musicians played their instruments on fixtures (the horn section to the left of the stage, the drums to the center, and keyboards to the right; with the exception of the guitarists and Randy Jackson who played the piano, keyboards, and different percussions).

## Opening act

* Stacy Lattisaw

## Tour dates

The tour dates are adapted from both The Jacksons: Legacy and Michael Jackson FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the King of Pop, although there are sources that state that some shows took place on different days.
List of 1981 tour dates, showing date, city, country and venue :
| Date (1981) | City | Country | Venue |
| July 8 | Memphis | United States | Mid-South Coliseum |
| July 10 | Oklahoma City | United States | Myriad Convention Center |
| July 11 | Dallas | United States | Reunion Arena |
| July 12 | Houston | United States | The Summit |
| July 15 | San Antonio | United States | HemisFair Arena |
| July 17 | Baton Rouge | United States | Riverside Centroplex Arena |
| July 18 | Mobile | United States | Mobile Municipal Auditorium |
| July 22 | Atlanta | United States | Omni Coliseum |
| July 24 | Greensboro | United States | Greensboro Coliseum |
| July 25 | Charlotte | United States | Charlotte Coliseum |
| July 26 | Hampton | United States | Hampton Coliseum |
| July 28 | Lakeland | United States | Lakeland Civic Center |
| July 31 | Landover | United States | Capital Centre |
| August 1 | Landover | United States | Capital Centre |
| August 2 | Buffalo | United States | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium |
| August 4 | Montreal | Canada | Montreal Forum |
| August 5 | Toronto | Canada | Maple Leaf Gardens |
| August 7 | Uniondale | United States | Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum |
| August 8 | Cincinnati | United States | Riverfront Coliseum |
| August 9 | Richfield | United States | Richfield Coliseum |
| August 13 | Pittsburgh | United States | Civic Arena |
| August 14 | Philadelphia | United States | Spectrum |
| August 15 | Hartford | United States | Hartford Civic Center |
| August 16 | Providence | United States | Providence Civic Center |
| August 18 | New York City | United States | Madison Square Garden |
| August 19 | New York City | United States | Madison Square Garden |
| August 21 | Detroit | United States | Joe Louis Arena |
| August 22 | Indianapolis | United States | Market Square Arena |
| August 23 | Trotwood | United States | Hara Arena |
| August 26 | Milwaukee | United States | MECCA Arena |
| August 28 | Chicago | United States | Chicago Stadium |
| August 29 | Lexington | United States | Rupp Arena |
| August 31 | Nashville | United States | Nashville Municipal Auditorium |
| September 1 | Kansas City | United States | Kemper Arena |
| September 2 | St. Louis | United States | Checkerdome |
| September 3 | Denver | United States | McNichols Sports Arena |
| September 5 | Chicago | United States | Chicago Stadium |
| September 6 | Winchester | United States | Las Vegas Convention Center |
| September 8 | San Diego | United States | San Diego Sports Arena |
| September 10 | Daly City | United States | Cow Palace |
| September 15 | Tempe | United States | ASU Activity Center |
| September 18 | Inglewood | United States | The Forum |
| September 19 | Inglewood | United States | The Forum |
| September 22 | Oakland | United States | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena |
| September 25 | Inglewood | United States | The Forum |
| September 26 | Inglewood | United States | The Forum |

## Box office score data

| Venue | City | Tickets sold / available | Gross revenue |
| Mid-South Coliseum | Memphis | 11,999 / 11,999 | $118,528 |
| Reunion Arena | Dallas | 15,602 / 15,602 | $153,252 |
| Lakeland Civic Center | Lakeland | 10,000 / 10,000 | $107,000 |
| Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Buffalo | 11,000 / 11,000 | $115,000 |
| Riverfront Coliseum | Cincinnati | 15,898 / 15,898 | $166,038 |
| Omni Coliseum | Atlanta | 15,667 / 15,667 | $163,773 |
| Spectrum | Philadelphia | 17,842 / 17,842 | $224,881 |
| Hartford Civic Center | Hartford | 11,153 / 11,153 | $121,490 |
| Providence Civic Center | Providence | 13,000 / 13,000 | $146,000 |
| ASU Activity Center | Tempe | 7,230 / 14,000 | $75,915 |
| The Forum | Inglewood | 55,000 / 55,000 | $633,029 |
| Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena | Oakland | 12,435 / 14,000 | $149,633 |
| Total | Total | 196,826 / 205,161 (95%) | $2,174,539 |

## Personnel
### The Jacksons

* Michael Jackson – vocals
* Jackie Jackson – vocals, percussion
* Tito Jackson – guitar, vocals
* Marlon Jackson – vocals, percussion
* Randy Jackson – vocals, congas, piano, keyboards

### Band

* David Williams – guitar
* Bill Wolfer – synthesizer
* Mike McKinney – bass
* Jonathan Moffett – drums
* Wesley Phillips, Cloris Grimes, Alan (Funt) Prater, Roderick (Mac) McMorris – horns (East Coast Horns)

## Footnotes

* ↑ Conflicting newspaper sources: Atlanta Providence Kansas City