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Earth, Wind & Fire/Rufus Featuring Chaka Khan Tour Announced
08/07/2001 12:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Bruce Simon
(8/7/01, 12 p.m. ET) -- Earth, Wind & Fire (EWF) will take to the road next month on a bill with a reunited Rufus Featuring Chaka Khan. Called the Cool Blue September tour, the outing is sponsored by Viagra and its maker, Pfizer, and the pharmaceutical giant will have a booth at every show where men can learn more about their health and what steps they can take to help themselves. It's part of an overall men's health initiative on the part of EWF and the group's founder Maurice White, who's battling Parkinson's disease. The current itinerary runs September 1-30, and more dates (including an October tour leg) are expected.
Lead singer Philip Bailey said, "There's no way that we'd be able to do what we do on stage night after night for 30 years if we didn't take good care of ourselves. Verdine [White], Ralph [Johnson], and I all turned 50 this year, so maintaining our health is of primary concern. But not enough people out there, especially men, see their doctors for regular checkups. Basically our message to our fans is to please take care of themselves."
Working with the American Academy Of Family Physicians (AAFP) Foundation, Pfizer will offer free health checks at the shows, along with other checkpoints in some of the cities. These examinations will show the early warning signs for illnesses including diabetes and cardiovascular disease, which can go undiagnosed. The program's ultimate goal is to encourage people to take better care of themselves
A portion of the proceeds from the tour's merchandise sales will go to the AAFP Foundation, which aims to improve overall health and to support improvements and initiatives in family practice.
The Earth, Wind & Fire/Rufus Featuring Chaka Khan itinerary (subject to change):
September 1 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - National Car Rental Center September 3 - Atlanta, GA - Chastain Park Amphitheater September 5 - Antioch, TN - AmSouth Amphitheater September 7 - Washington, DC - MCI Center September 8 - Charlotte, NC - Verizon Wireless Amphitheater September 9 - Raleigh, NC - Alltel Pavilion at Walnut Creek September 11 - Wallingford, CT - Ctnow.com Oakdale Theatre September 14 - Philadelphia, PA - First Union Center September 15 - Wantagh, NY - Jones Beach Amphitheater September 20 - Detroit, MI - Fox Theatre September 22 - Chicago, IL - Arie Crown Theater September 26 - Seattle, WA - KeyArena at Seattle Center September 28 - Mountain View, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre September 29 - Marysville, CA - Sacramento Valley Amphitheatre September 30 - Concord, CA - Chronicle Pavilion at Concord
-- Bruce Simon, New York
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