Fort Wayne • Monday, June 3, 2019

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From paulmccartney.com, September 10, 2018:

PAUL McCARTNEY 
The ‘FRESHEN UP’ Tour 2019
THREE NEW U.S. DATES ANNOUNCED OF NEW TOUR

Thursday 23rd May: New Orleans LA – Smoothie King Arena 
Monday 3rd June: Fort Wayne IN – Allen County War Memorial Coliseum 
Saturday 26th June: Phoenix AZ – Talking Stick Resort Arena 

Paul McCartney has added three new dates to his eagerly anticipated ‘Freshen Up’ tour, making for a total of eight confirmed shows on Paul’s first Stateside run since the ‘One On One’ Tour that played to some two million fans around the world during 2016 and 2017. […]

The U.S. leg of ‘Freshen Up’ will now open with Paul’s return to New Orleans on May 23, where he will rock the Smoothie King Arena for the first time since 2014. On June 3, Paul will make his live debut in Fort Wayne IN, playing the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. And On June 26, Paul will visit the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix AZ, another city he hasn’t played since 2014. […]

From Forbes.com, June 5, 2019:

Monday night in Fort Wayne, Paul McCartney returned to Indiana for the first time since 2013.

But it’s been nearly 55 years since he first performed in the midwest state at a pair of Beatles concerts during the 1964 Indiana State Fair.

Following dates in Europe and South America, McCartney’s “Freshen Up” tour seems to be making a concerted effort to get off the beaten arena and amphitheatre path outings from artists of his stature usually wind up on, putting him in front of as many new faces as possible. The tour has already made stops in Greenville, South Carolina and Lexington, Kentucky and resumes this week with shows in Madison, Wisconsin (June 6) and Moline, Illinois (June 11).

As they have on all of his most recent tours, tickets for Monday’s sold out show started at just $27, belying the importance McCartney clearly feels of keeping his shows affordable for anyone who wants to attend, a rarity within a live music sphere where ticketing more often resembles an arms race than an affordable night out.

With an impressive history of its own, the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum acted as the perfect setting for the “Freshen Up” tour.

Since opening in 1952, the 13,000 seat arena (10,500 for concerts) has been a tour stop for legendary artists like Elvis Presley, Louis Armstrong, Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Queen and the Rolling Stones, with McCartney providing another chapter in the historic venue’s story Monday night. […]

From Beatlesfan:

Excellent show. Voice seemed better than it did at the 2016 and 2017 shows I attended. He drank something — it looked brown, so maybe a honey and tea mix — a couple of times. The horns are a very good addition, and made “Letting Go” a major highlight (and really enhanced “Got to Get You Into My Life” and “Lady Madonna”). There was some distortion out of one of the speakers when Paul was at the piano (particularly noticeable on “My Valentine”). During “Let It Be” I thought I saw him look toward the ceiling, maybe wondering what was up.

Crowd was responsive but generally more subdued than in other places I’ve seen him.

Oh, letting more gray come through is a definite improvement over the brown hair dye!

From Paul McCartney.com, June 21, 2019:

Funny thing you’ll notice over a decade or so of touring with Paul McCartney: The loudest roars often come from the smallest towns. Not that a 10,000+ throng could be considered small by any measure—unless you’re talking about the biggest arena in a city sandwiched between 40-60,000 capacity sold out South and North American stadium gigs.

And this most intimate stop on the first U.S. leg of ‘Freshen Up 2019’ made a mighty noise indeed as Paul stepped onto a Fort Wayne stage for the first time ever—generations of hoosiers bellowing approval from opening trifecta of ‘A Hard Day’s Night,’ ‘Junior’s Farm’ and ‘All My Loving,’ and maintaining top volume all the way through the perpetually tearjerking final lines of ‘The End.’  THE FORT WAYNE JOURNAL GAZETTE raved that it “will be long remembered by anyone who was there”… and we certainly haven’t forgotten a note.

From Steve Martin, Paul’s US Publicist

Last updated on March 13, 2021

Allen County War Memorial Coliseum

This was the 1st and only concert played at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum.

Setlist for the soundcheck

Setlist for the concert