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U2 was the perfect choice to open Sphere. They created a clear vision of what this new performance space is & how to use it, & while the visuals are massive, they used them perfectly, bringing balance between spectacle &, believe it or not, intimacy. They also managed to tell a “story” with the music & visuals during the encore (set 2?). After the darkness & intensity of Achtung Baby (relieved somewhat by the acoustic 4 song set), they ended with a celebration. The final image on the screen at the end of “Beautiful Day” evokes a cathedral in a breathtaking manner. This was an incredible musical-visual experience that only U2 might be capable of.
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I felt like a zombie after the previous night's show, staying up late, and checking out in the morning. But..
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My second show at the Sphere & I think the band was better than the 10/7 show, which was, to..
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One of the most incredible things I've ever seen! Finally seeing The Edge play the guitar solo for "Love..
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After 24 hours of processing last night’s performance, here are a few of my thoughts on Bono’s “Stories of Surrender” show.
THE ART OF OVER-DELIVERING
This event was promoted ONLY as a “book tour”. Expectations were that Bono would make an in-person appearance, possibly participate in a moderated interview/conversation, and maybe perform 2 or 3 acoustic songs at the most. This would have been a compelling event that would have satisfied and pleased both fans and critics alike.
No one was expecting this to even be “a concert” much less a fully imagined, tightly scripted, choreographed, staged theatrical production that told a cohesive overarching narrative story showcasing completely new and reinvented musical interpretations.
The theatrical dynamic of this show was a complete and unexpected surprise that no one saw coming.
AMBITION & THE INHERIT RISKS
Bono was clearly NOT “winging it”. This show obviously required significant preparation, planning, and practice. From the script, to the stage and lighting design, to the blocking, to the casting of the supporting musicians - this was not Bono simply phoning-in his version of “Springsteen on Broadway”.
This ambitious storytelling vision was VERY HIGH risk. I can’t think of many artists that would even dare to try and attempt to pull something like this off with a straight face without the safety net of irony.
This bold creative choice required FULL commitment and a fearlessness of slipping into the pit of pretentiousness (i.e. “Turn Off the Dark 2.0” with a young Paul Hewson as Peter Parker’s understudy.)
MONEY DOESN’T MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND
This is the smallest tour in Bono’s career in the smallest venues he’s played since the second leg of the “War” tour in 1983. Producing and performing a show with this scale and creative risk with relatively minimal financial gain for a proven stadium act only adds to the shock and awe.
Call me naïve, but in an age of cynicism with art in the midst of a long losing streak versus commerce. Maybe it IS possible to "dream it all up again". Now, more than ever, “We need new dreams tonight”.
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Little can be said about Bono that hasn't already been said a thousand times. Rivers of ink have been poured..
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A truly memorable evening that it was a privilege to be at. It was great to hear Bono sounding and..
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The venue was situated in the centre of Cheltenham in Montpellier Park in a temporary festival setting. It held around..
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I was born in February of 1999 and basically ever since then i have been listening to this band, especially the Joshua Tree album. My parents were U2 fans so i got my interest from them and once i learned how to work the CD player, i would listen to them non-stop. So when this tour was announced i decided to do as many shows as possible, meaning crossing the pond and heading over to Auckland.
I came alone and had no idea what to expect. I was told at a fan meet up about the check-in system and the 8:00 wrists band so i made sure i got to the ground early. After getting the wristband and and getting some rest, at 1 i headed down to the stadium to line up, buy merch (which i bought everything there was) and great ready for a great show. i got to know some people and found that socializing with U2 fans was easier than people i went to high school with. We got let in at 5 and went straight for the Tree stage, that way i had a good view of the screen and could still be close to the band.
at 7 Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds came on, i was not an oasis fan but i did know Wonderwall and Don't Look Back In Anger, i had bought Noel's latest album, but hadn't listened to it much so i wasn't really aware of his solo stuff either. "Wow" i said at the end, it really surprised me how good he was and his interactions with the audience was nothing i had ever seen before. He made a real good impression on me and i was looking forward to seeing him at the other Australian shows.
8:45 rolls around and The Whole of the Moon starts, which was cue that U2 were about to start. Finally after waiting 9 years i finally get to see my favourite band and also i'm seeing them in a different country, this idea was ludicrous to me just a few years ago and yet here i am in Auckland waiting for Larry to walk out and launch into Sunday Bloody Sunday, which he did. I'll never forget when the syth to Bad started, i lost it, this was one of my favourite U2 live songs, i have never heard a version of Bad that didn't stop me in my tracks and made the world disappear, and this was no exception; this was amazing, i still struggle to find the words for that moment, you could have come up bend me and stabbed me as many times as you like and i still wouldn't have paid attention to you, i was going to live in this moment for as long as i could.
After Pride had finished the intro synth to Where the Streets Have No Name started, again i was gone. This wasn't like any other concert where U2 were about to play streets; They were about to start The Joshua Tree. One by one the songs came along, Still Haven't Found, With or Without You, Bullet the Blue Sky and on and on. Bullet is one of my favourite U2 songs, but i though version was a bit flat (there would be better versions to come); Running to Stand Still, however, brought me to tears again, except this time it was unexpected. I'd always loved the song but in that moment something happened and any emotions i was feeling just came out, love, anger, joy, remorse, it all laid bare to see. The album continued on, i enjoyed every minute, but once was got to One Tree Hill, things got serious. Part of the whole reason i came to NZ was to hear them play One Tree Hill in that country, and it didn't disappoint. Exit was next that was amazing, the Trump reference and Bono playing the character of this dark, mysterious cowboy was fantastic and how he adapted to stage movements to the dynamics of the song was amazing to see, he truly is one of the great front-men. Finally ending with Mothers of the Disappeared was just perfect, however that didn't end the main set, they decide to celebrate Rattle & Hum and the Lovetown tour by playing Angel of Harlem, which was fantastic, no complaints here.
The encore was a reference to the eXPERIENCE + iNNOCENCE tour from last year, it had a short version of the show from when the intermission ends. Bono came on in his MacPhisto get up (from the e+i tour) and they did Elevation, Vertigo and Even Better Than the Real Thing. they then went into Every Breaking Wave, returning to the proper tour setlist for the first time since the end of the iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE in 2015. Then did the feminist section with Beautiful Day, Ultra Violet (so happy to hear that, love that song) and Love is Bigger Than Anything In Its Way. That was rumored to be the end of the show but i noticed out of the corner of my eye, while the band was bowing, Dallas put Edge's Les Paul on the Guitar stand. Bono gave a speech about the terrorist attacks in Christchurch earlier this year and how it was great how NZ responded with such grace, then Edge begun the riff for One. On the screen behind them they had a Muslim symbol and then slowly all the names of the victims appeared on the screen. This was the perfect way to end a great concert.
This was my first time seeing U2 since the second Sydney show of the 360 tour and it easily topped that show. Everything was great so far, the people were awesome and i had a great time talking to every single person and then seeing this show feed an appetite i had been working up for the last 9 years. Although there were better shows to come, this night, still, was amazing and a night I'll never forget.
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U2's first performance at the sacred Adelaide Oval - and their first in Adelaide since the Vertigo Tour in 2006..
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Having missed seeing U2 over the years for a variety of reasons (family, work), I made sure I got the..
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Organization of lines for seated, GA, and Red Zone were amazing. The staff really knew what they were doing! My..
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On the morning of 28.10.2018 I was with my family in the Titanic Museum and therefore drove past the SSE Arena. There was nothing big to see except the trucks of U2 and some employees of the SSE Arena. When we drove back to the city center I saw a big crowd with cameras near by the trucks and saw the guys from U2 - but it was to despair, because I did not get out of the bus and it felt like the next stop was 200,000 Kilometers away. Of course, then no one was there when I went back to the trucks.
I had sold my seat ticket for half price and got a GA ticket from a friend. I was so excited, I lined up at the GA queue, where everyone stood peacefully and chatted with each other. Then, all of a sudden, I saw Remy talking to a young lady, thinking he looked the same as in the interviews. Of course, he did not recognize me, but it was nice for me in my still moment to see him.
Then it started slowly that we came bit by bit way to the inlet. The inlet itself was unspectacular, very different than in Berlin. Inside, it was still relatively empty, so we got a great spot at the baricage, very close to the main stage. I was able to watch the crew's preparations, the final soundcheck, checking the drums from Larry, the guitar from Edge, the bass from Adam and of course the microphone from Bono, Technik Check ...
The four boys then came through a passage below the stage and went upstairs. The show started and it was breathtaking from the start. It was well thought out, the songs very well matched, the mood increased. It was nice to see how the boys enjoyed their game, how they interacted with the audience. I like all the songs from Innocence and from Experience but with the “new” songs from AB it’s more fresh, more enthusiastic.
When it was over after the encore, it is sorted outside, no scramble. Outside, huge crowds went over the pedestrian bridge, causing it to wobble. There were many taxis ready, but they were already occupied. At this time drove no more buses. This little town of Belfast stood by the U2 concert head. There was a hunt for due taxis. - And finally, after an hour, completely frozen, happily intoxicated by the U2 concert, I found the taxi driver Patrick, who drove me to our apartment. It was a great show and I'm excited. I'm looking forward to the final show in Berlin.
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We made our way to the concert way too early, but the rain had stopped, and we had little else..
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We are from the Chicagoland area, and were very excited to travel for a weekend getaway to St. Louis. ..
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This was my 34th U2 show, and only one on this tour sadly, and I went with the mindset that..
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American landscape in Belgium
That show has been special to me. I went to USA for the first time in May-June 2017. I went in Arizona and California and saw the kind of landscape the band saw and used for their album "The Joshua Tree" but also for the visual of this tour. So seeing them two months after my USA trip was special to me. I went to my fifth U2 gig with my father. We had GA tickets and well Belgium is not known as a good organized country. Doors were supposed to be opened at 4pm. To enter in GA in King Baudouin stadium there are two doors. With a bit of logic and organisation you open those two doors on same time but they didn't and one of them has been opened before the other one. I was not on the lucky door but it didn't matter. We had a good spot. If you look at the drums on main stage we were in front of it and if you look on B-stage it was on our left at maybe five meters. So we had a great view on B-stage and we were not too close of the huge screen of the main stage, we actually had a good view on the screen, not too far and not too close. I mean in my opinion being in first row of the main stage for this show wouldn't be great because stage and screen are too large and you wouldn't enjoy the show the best. Of course if I would be in first row of the B-stage it would be the best but my spot was great like I said. So after a few hours of waiting we had the opening act and what an opening act. It's like having two gigs for price of one and half. We enjoyed Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds concert. "Champagne Supernova", "Wonderwall", "Don't Look Back In Anger" it was a nice moments. I mean the atmosphere was the one you can have on a hot summer day. Lot of sun, hot weather, nice sunlight on stage, people were in good mood and in peace with lot of smiles listening good music from Noel and his band it was really cool. Crowd sung some songs like the ones I mentioned before and Gallagher joked with the crowd wich was pleasant. Also a word about the stage. Well like usual U2 didn't make it small and minimalist. A large main stage (59 meters), behind it a large screen (61 meters long and 14 meters high) with a high resolution (7200 x 1560 pixels). On the screen we could see the shape of the Joshua Tree. That shape made the 14 meters of the screen high but also 9,1 meters higher than the screen, so 23,1 meters high. Then there is a catwalk and a B-stage wich looks like the Joshua Tree. The tree trunk stage is 37 meters long and on the end of the trunk around it there is a 17 meters wide B-stage in form of the Joshua Tree. So a cool stage.
During all the waiting, before the opening act and after it, poems in English has been showed on screen. Then "The Whole of the Moon" from The Waterboys could be heard from the speakers and people gets excited because everyone knew it's mean showtime.
We saw Larry Mullen Jr walking on catwalk to the B-stage and then launched the concert with "Sunday Bloody Sunday", The Edge appeared second, followed by Bono and then Adam Clayton. All the band is on B-stage so pretty close of my dad and I. Of course a classic song like "Sunday Bloody Sunday" made the crowd happy and some of them jumping and it's an energic start. Nobody in sit in seats place. Band then played a new version of "New Year's Day". They actually played and sung the last verse they usually skipped. The song was so longer than usual and in a kind of new version. People were happy so my father and I were too. Crowd made clapping during the song. Band was energic and our view were good. They were playing and moving all around the B-stage so everyone could see each of them closer to them from time to time.
Then came THE moment. After four gigs without my favorite song (even if that song was on the printed setlist of my first U2 concert they didn't play it on that night) they finally played it. I heard "Bad" in concert for the first time. To be honest if I could had "A Sort Of Homecoming" and "Bad" like they did in Seattle on 14th May 2017 it would be perfect. But back to "Bad". As soon as first keyboard introduction notes started, the crowd really appreciated it. I could hear "Aaah" all around me. I remember that when first notes has been played I turned back to see my father face and said "Yes" happily. It's my favorite song and I do really love that one. I can't explain. It's just a beautiful song with a nice sounds and atmosphere like U2 can created and it start quiet to became wild and wild and it put lot of energy and emotions on same time. And if you look the video of this concert you will see that the crowd is wild during "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "New Year's Day" but on "Bad" the crowd is just listening and seems quiet but it's not the boring quiet, it's the kind of quiet when a crowd is into the song and enjoyed it and the kind of quiet when a crowd is astonished by a performance. I'm a guitarist myself and during my first small concert I did at my college with friends we lived something similar but way less good than U2 of course. It was an exhibition and we were there to play music while people were looking at pictures. And we had three songs to play, it was our first gig and we only made a few quick rehearsals. I didn't talk on microphone because I was so stressed. So we just started to play a first song and to be honest nobody were really looking at us and I think nobody realised we started to play and everyone was talking. Then we started to play the second song and during it I made a guitar solo and suddenly in 20 seconds step by step the crowd became silent and quiet and they looked us until the end of our small gig in a deep quiet and it's that feeling in much bigger and deeper I recognize in the crowd during "Bad".
Even if it's my favorite song I didn't recorded with my phone, I wanted to be into it and to enjoy it from start to end and I did. Lot of people didn't used their phone during it. There were lot of phone for first two songs but not here wich was better. I can play it at guitar so I know how wonderful is it to play it but listen it is great too. And the "Heroes" snippet is a good one as well and everybody recognized it and sung it. Anyway good song that make everyone in the audience alright and agreed on it. There were clapping and singing. I think I kept my eyes on the band singing all the time and making the clapping when it need to do it. Well Bono messed a bit in the lyrics but it didn't matter. Also everyone in seats place were still standing. Intense performance.
"Pride (In the Name of Love)" followed and well I would prefer "A Sort Of Homecoming" or another song but only because I already heard it at almost each of my fifth U2 gig and so yes even if I like the song and think it's a good one I would like some change but it's only to me. Crowd appreciated it and made the "Oh, oh" wich lead us to "The Joshua Tree" part of the set.
At the end of "Pride (In the Name of Love)" the screen wich always been off before turned on to show some messages before turning all red with the shape of The Joshua Tree in black while the orgue introduction of "Where The Streets Have No Name" was starting. Larry Mullen Jr walked at the end of the B-stage to give his drums stick and then rejoin other members all standing in silence on B-stage. Then the band walked on main stage, stand at the foot of the tree for a few seconds and then The Edge launched the song. Like usual during this one crowd became wild and when the screen show an West american road trought the desert we could see the crowd like us appreciate the quality of the video. Visuals were really good and of course reminded me my recent USA trip wich was awesome. Something I really appreciate in that live version is the fact the introduction lasted quiet long like in the album version, it's something which give me the magic feeling of the song as well as seeing thousand of people jumping and singing it. Energic and great moments.
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" followed and visuals were once again really cool. Bono drunk a Belgian beer at the start of the song. Crowd sung the first two verses and the chorus and in this live version drums and bass started at the beginning of the song wich was nice. There has been some clapping from the crowd too. Everyone really enjoyed the song as well as me and my father. It's the first one I ever learnt to play at guitar after all so it's a bit particular for me. Song end on people singing the chorus.
"With or Without You" followed and as soon as it started the crowd make a huge noise of satisfaction. A live version closer of the album version as ever. Nice visuals from the Death Valley and crowd singing the song and also making the "Oh, oh". Some lightfire in the audience and some clapping. Band walked on main stage on this one. Good moments.
"Bullet the Blue Sky" came then. Darker song, visuals still showing USA, and what a great live version. Close of the 1987 version with The Edge also using a "Wah Wah" effect and a bottleneck. Great guitar parts, nice crowd wich sung and was energic. Solid drumming too, in two word, amazing song.
"Running To Stand Still". Quiet song played on keyboard. This song is a great one too and is maybe underated. There is emotion in it and it was cool to heard it. Bono ended it with some harmonica parts. People sung it a bit and used lightfire again. Nice moments.
"Red Hill Mining Town" followed. First time for me I heard that song live and well I was expecting better. I was expecting the guitar parts like in the album version and well I was dissapointed by the keyboard but also the small orchestra playing it. So glad to saw it live but I was expecting better.
"Welcome to the side two of the Joshua Tree itself" said Bono to launch "In God's Country". I love that song and since the snippet Bono made of it in "Beautiful Day" in Rose Bowl in 2009 I wanted to heard it live and tonight this became true. I loved the guitar, bass and drumming parts, the energy in it and visuals were nice especially at the start with the Joshua Tree, the mountains and the sun. I also appreciated the Irish flag on the landscape and the end.
"Trip Through Your Wires" was the next one. I like that song. For me there is the typical American sound U2 was looking for. A bit of country and south music in it. I also liked the visuals again, with the woman painting the USA flag on her house. Guitar parts were good as always. For a first time hearing this song I was happy of it.
"One Tree Hill" followed. And really I was so happy to heard it. It's one of my favorite song of that album. I like the sound in it, the guitar parts and when The Edge lets himself go to a good guitar solo. And I always thought I will never hear that song live unless I go to Australia but I finally saw it live and I really appreciated that performance even if the guitar solo was not the best I heard for this song. Also visuals were once again really beautiful.
"Exit" was the next one. It began with a short video clip showing western and cow-boy. One of them looked a bit like Fred Trump, the father of Donald Trump, but was not him. However his name in the clip was Trump and he made the promise to protect the village by building a wall around it. One of the villager said he is a liar. I learned after the show that this short clip came from a 50's TV series called Trackdown. Then the song started and two hands apparead on screen with messages on them. One had "Love" the other had "Hate" on them. During the song Bono came on B-stage for the first time since the start of The Joshua Tree set so we could see it closer wich was great. That live performance was a great one. Lot of tension, intensities, energy in it. Musicaly song was awesome but guitar parts were really great. Bono had energy as well and light show was cool.
Bono stayed on B-stage during most part of "Mothers Of The Disappeared" before going back on main stage. Visuals showed a dozen of women holding a candle in their hands. Song was nice and I loved it and was glad to heard it for the first time live. Song ended on crowd singing the "Oh, oh". Band came then in front of stage to applause the crowd while Bono made a speech of thank you and said the stage has been build in Belgium. End of The Joshua Tree set and time for the first encore. During the wait the stage was in dark and the shape of The Joshua Tree was in blue.
Then a face apparead on the screen, probably a Syrian woman, and a speech was written on the screen. Well unfortunately almost nobody could see it. Speech was too low on screen and behind the drums set. Pictures of devastated Syria followed and "Miss Sarajevo" renamed "Miss Syria" was played. Not my favorite song but not a bad one neither, it's a nice and emotional one. Visuals were a war and ruined Syria. During Pavarotti singing part, a giant flag with a woman face on it travelled on seats place and it's a prerecorded Pavarotti singing wich could be heard. Crowd was quiet but listening it carefully. Bono thanked them.
Bono then launched the crowd with a "Oh, oh" while a pretty visual similar to an aurora borealis was on screen and while a prerecorded remix version of "Beautiful Day" could be heard from the speakers. This of course launched the song itself. Bono was on B-stage for that one so close to us for our pleasure. Also a funny fact from "Exit" to the end of the concert, Bono didn't wear his sunglasses wich is rare for him. Anyway back to "Beautiful Day" it was a bit of a different version played here. Introduction was a bit new and the verse "See the world in green and blue" was sung by Bono but also by robotic voices. Song is still nice and give energy to the crowd. I heard it at each of my five U2 show I attended so yes in a way if they would play another I would be happy but I was fine with hearing it.
"Elevation" was next, here too it's a nice song wich gave energy to the gig. Third time i heard it after 2005 and 2010 but I liked hearing it. Visual of Larry Mullen Jr waving to the crowd was fun and cool. "Vertigo" followed and well even if it's a good song, first it's not their best one but also hearing it at each gig became tiring. I heard it six times in five concerts, it's enough. Please skip it and play another one instead. Crowd reacted good but my father and I were maybe the only one who were boring by this song. Same way of playing it since 2005, same joke about Spanish lessons since 2005 and even same visuals of red and black circles since 2005. Really guys on next tour just forget about that song.
Bono walked back to main stage at the end of "Vertigo", so he stayed on B-stage for "Beautiful Day", "Elevation" and "Vertigo". A word about stage and how band used it. Main stage was 59 meters long but mainly the band stayed in the middle of it on about 15 meters almost all the concert. They rarely walked along the stage so why having a 59 meters stage long when you used maybe 20 meters of it. And about B-stage, members used it for the four first song and then only Bono came on it during "Exit", "Mothers Of The Disappeared" and the three song I mentionned before. So Bono used it good but other members didn't go on B-stage often wich was a bit dissapointing. It's not so bad but if The Edge or Adam Clayton would go on B-stage once or two after The Joshua Tree set it would be good.
"Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" followed and I was happy to heard it. Pictures of many, many women with their names apparead on screen during that song. I recognized many of them and discovered many as well. I remember of Anne Frank, Hillary Clinton, Marie Curie, Queen Mathilde, Patti Smith, Nafissatou Thiam, Emma Watson, Malala Yousafzai, The Suffragettes and The Pussy Riot. Good songs and Bono again came on B-stage half of the song and stayed on it for next one.
"One" was the one. Stadium became dark with only phone lights from the crowd who sung some parts of the song. Classic one but good one with great guitar parts on it. Happy to heard it. Bono then thanked us the crowd but also remembered that U2 has a special connection to our country. A lot of innovation and staging came from Belgium. After all his thank you he launched the last song of the night "I Will Follow". That one of course make all the stadium happy and wild. A great old rock song to close the show. I loved it especially when he made some Werchter references saying it's happy memories. We could clearly see they were happy to play it and to made that show in Belgium. And in conclusion I would say I lived a great show and concert, a good afternoon and night, a nice opening act, a nice setlist and some impressive visuals and I had a nice spot in GA to watch all of that so yeah I loved that gig.
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“FULL CIRCLE”
A circle:
-a perfectly round shape
-a line that is curved so its ends meet and every point on the..
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This was the first of two shows at the Rose Bowl, and the first two night stay of the tour...
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Thoughts of a fan (not Uber) that has not missed a North American Tour since TJT87 and been following them..
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The Edge side
Fourth U2 show for me, the first one in my own country. I was there with two friends and my father. We were there early because we had GA tickets and we did good. We were right in front of The Edge and we were like in fourth row so pretty close and we had a very good view on The Edge, Bono and Larry Mullen Jr.
It was the first U2 concert for my two friends, the fourth for me and the fifth for my father (he saw them in 1985 in Werchter). Not much to say about the before show. We just wait there, talked, drank, ate and bought memories. No opening act this time. Stage, especially the screen is massive.
Songs I never see live before this show were : "The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)", "Iris (Hold Me Close)", "Cedarwood Road", "Song For Someone", "Raised By Wolves", "Invisible", "Even Better Than The Real Thing (Fish Out of Water Mix)", "Angel of Harlem", "Every Breaking Wave", "October" and "Zooropa".
"People Have the Power" can be hear on the arena it's mean showtime. Everyone is looking at the B-stage and finally Bono is there. He walked to the main stage and the crowd repeated after him "Oh, oh" while the other members came on main stage. All lights are on and after the intro drumming of Larry Mullen Jr arena is in dark except stage lights wich were in red and guitar is starting so is "The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)". Nice song and Rock atmosphere is there even if crowd is a bit calm.
"Out Of Control" followed and crowd awaked and became wild. I already heard it live but it was in 2005 so it was nice to heard it again especially seeing The Edge making his solo at 3 meters from us. Like usual Bono throwed water bottles in crowd. He then introduced Adam Clayton as the jazzman of the group, said about Larry Mullen Jr "The man who give us our first job" and about The Edge he said something like he won against Univers because he surrendered to music.
For the fifth time in four show I had "Vertigo". Well the song has energy, it's not a bad song and crowd reacted good. The start of the show is wild and it's a good thing but if the band would skipp that song for another I would be happy.
When I was talking about an energic start of the show well the next song was a part of it "I Will Follow" made the people jumping so do I. Classic song and maybe overplayed but it's only the second time I heard it live so it was good to me and when I saw the crowd jumping I think it was good to the majority of them. During the song The Edge walked playing for the back of the arena and Bono sung for them too before walking in direction of the B-stage.
Time for the first quiet moment of the gig wich came earlier than before. In my previous U2 show they used to play six to eight energic songs before a first speech and here it was only four songs. I don't blame them thought they were older than "Vertigo" or "360°" tours.
Bono did a speech to introduce "Iris (Hold Me Close)". Screen turned on and an old short movie of the wedding of Bono's parents was on it. I like that song which show a good exemple of U2 sounds. Especially guitar parts. And visual on screen were pretty too.
The screen became even more impressive in the next song "Cedarwood Road" as Bono went inside it and the visual showed the street but also Bono walking in it as he was inside the screen. Great visual wich went along with a nice intense song. And since we were in front of The Edge on the fourth row we also had a good view on the screen but also on other members even if The Edge walked to the B-stage for that song and his guitar solo.
"Song For Someone" followed and I really appreciate that song and the guitar in it as well as the visual on the screen. A classic song but in a new version came next "Sunday Bloody Sunday". Like I said classic song, crowd was happy and sung the song. It was a different version wich was good to have some change. It was more quiet. Larry Mullen Jr was below the screen on the long catwalk between the main stage and the B-stage while drumming as well as all members. Song ended on the BBC news announcing three explosions wich I learned later was actually about Dublin and Monaghan bombings in 1974. Larry Mullen Jr was still drumming while we can hear news and witness and it's lead to "Raised By Wolves". Guitar parts in that song are just great really so are bass, keyboard and drums parts. Bono sung it quiet good too. The genius guitarist was back in front of us while Bono was still standing alone on the catwalk but at the end of the song he was on the B-stage reading a book (the bible ?).
"Until The End Of The World" started then for my great pleasure. As a guitarist myself I just love this song wich is truly a Rock song. Crowd was jumping on it. The Edge made his guitar solo inside the screen while Bono was joking his image on the screen spitting water on the guitarist. My eyes were on The Edge but then I turned my head back to the main stage as Adam Clayton came saying hello to our side of the stage. End of the song was wild and energic with incredible guitar parts and an impressive visual on screen while thousand of papers were falling from the ceiling in the arena. I kept a few ones as memories. Arena then has been divided in two by the screen but also a kind of wall coming from the ceiling. Visual was like a giant Berlin yellow wall. All of this still under end of guitar solo. First part of the gig ended on that under a torrent of applause.
"Everything You Know Is Wrong" was written on the wall and so during the break "The Fly" was played not by the band but in speaker and it was a remix version made by Gavin Friday.
Second part started with "Invisible" with band inside the screen. Visual were good. Song was nice even if U2 can do better than that I liked some guitar parts.
"Even Better Than The Real Thing (Fish Out of Water Mix)" followed, still inside the screen with a nice visual. I never heard that song live so I was quiet happy to saw the band played it. I would prefer to have the album version instead of the remix thought. For all those songs played inside the screen or on B-stage my view was not the best because I was in front of main stage The Edge side in fourth row so I had to look in my back with a weird angle but I still appreciate the gig. At the end of the song the band left the screen to go on B-stage.
"Mysterious Ways" has been played then. Second time I heard that song live but still a nice one with nice guitar parts and it put energy in the crowd. Bono took a girl called Helene on B-stage to dance. Cool moments and song. He kept Helene on B-stage to record the next song with a smartphone for livestream. Band played "Desire" in an electric version wich I really enjoyed. I saw the band playing it in 2009 but it was in an acoustic version so seeing them playing it in electric one was a good thing. Crowd reacted quiet good too especially when Bono started to sing "Love Me Do" from the Beatles. Next song has been "Angel Of Harlem" with a fan pulled on stage to play guitar. As a guitar player I wanted to be at his place. First time I saw this song live so good memory of course. Band played it on B-stage and my father was like "I hope they will be back on main stage soon" because of course they were far away for us. Crowd sung the song too and was jumping for some of them. People on seats place were almost all standing so yeah it was a good song.
Then we had a more intimate ambiant with almost no light at all. Bono and The Edge were alone on B-stage and the guitarist became a pianist. They played a quiet version of "Every Breaking Wave". I know my friends appreciated this version but my father and I would prefer the album version. I had feeling Bono just wanted his moment when he can show his voice and he doesn't need that. Song is much better in album version rather than this quiet one. Anyway "October" followed and this is the first time I heard it live and so I was glad they did it. Then we had "Bullet The Blue Sky" wich my father and I appreciated. We also appreciated to see the band coming back on main stage to be able to see them better. It was the second time I saw "Bullet The Blue Sky" live, first one was in 2005, so it was a nice one to listen. I also really like that song, the atmosphere it create and the guitar parts and solo. Pictures of war were visible on screen. I prefer when Bono sing in his microphone instead of in a megaphone because we can hear better what he is singing. Anyway the effect was not the best but it was decent and the song was good to hear. I talked about guitar parts but drumming and bass parts are also nice such as Bono singing and lights show.
"Zooropa" was next song in a version quiet different than the album version and I really liked it and prefer that version to the album one. It was calm but atmospheric with guitar sounds quiet like U2 sound and well for a first time hearing it live I really loved it as well as the transition to the next song "Where The Streets Have No Name". Transition that crowd could feel by the sound and the red lights and screen. Before first note of The Edge the crowd was already getting excited. About "Where The Streets Have No Name" well it's the song that made everyone in the crowd alright about the show and the band. I heard it to each U2 gig I saw so far but if the band play it at next show I would still be happy to hear it. Crowd was excited and happy, some were jumping and nobody in seats were actually sit. What I liked about it it's the fact the introduction and the first guitar parts seems to me lasting longer than in 2010 were the introduction seems too short for me. I think part of the magic in that song is the introduction and if the band do it too short it's less good and so that live version was great with a longer introduction than 2010. I also appreciate the visual of the Joshua tree on screen at the end of the song.
U2 then played "Pride (In The Name Of Love)" and well even if I like that song, even if I found it's a great one, even if it make the crowd happy and put a nice atmosphere, even if it's a classic one and even if I was not unhappy to heard it I was not happy to heard it too. I like the "Oh, oh" parts of the crowd and like I said it's a good song but I'm tired to heard it live at each tour. I saw it in 2005 and 2009, not in 2010 but here we go again in 2015. It has been played at each tour since 1984 so yeah I would prefer that the band play another one. Why not "A Sort Of Homecoming", "Wire", "Bad", "Elvis Presley and America" or even a song not from the same album like "A Day Without Me" or "An Cat Dubh" and "Into the Heart" or "Van Diemen's Land", "Heartland", "All I Want Is You", "Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World", "Acrobat", "One Tree Hill, "Please", "Kite", "Fez — Being Born". I just said a few songs from a few albums but I could say more songs. But just to say that I liked this gig, I love U2, I liked to heard "Pride (In The Name Of Love)" and I do think it's a good song but instead of playing same at each tour when you have so much songs and a so large catalogue of great songs they could play different stuff and do better. "With or Without You" followed and I could say the same about that song. My fourth U2 gig and fourth time I heard it. I like the song really and I was glad to hear it again but if the band would play another one instead it would be good too. For my friends it was different, it was their first U2 gig and so hearing "With or Without You" was a good moment for them especially because they are a couple and they danced and kissed each other during the song, it was their romantic moment of the night.
"Stephen Hawking Global Citizen" made the interlude before the encore with pretty visuals on screen. "City Of Blinding Light" has been played then followed by "Beautiful Day". Nice songs even if it's the fourth time in four gig I heard them live. I was happy to heard them because it's good songs but if the band would play another I would be fine too. Crowd reacted good and visuals and lights were great especially on "City Of Blinding Light" with flashtube of lights everywhere on stage it was good and guitar parts were cool. Let's be honest even if I heard them for the fourth time I enjoyed them. "Beautiful Day" can put lot of energy in a gig and it's a great song. It's like a bridge song to me, the kind of song able to linked an 80's song to a 90's song, a good transition song. Then we had a speech of Bono and him and The Edge played "Mother And Child Reunion" with explanation on screen about HIV in Africa and about medication. Then I knew band would either play "One", "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" or "Bad" with "40". My favorite song is "Bad" and I never saw live yet. I haven't see "40" live as well. So of course I was hoping for "Bad". I'm a guitarist and I can play "Bad" and I was in front of The Edge in fourth row and had a good view on him and his guitar and I saw him putting his fingers on the way of playing the first chords of "Bad" but without the sound and he did it just before starting "Mother And Child Reunion". So at this point I was happy and thought I will hear "Bad" and maybe "40" as well, what a great end of a wonderfull night. But then the band played "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" as closing song. Well I had a little bit of dissapointment but only because I knew there were a chance they would play "Bad" and only because I saw The Edge ready to play it. I honestly wasn't dissapointed to heard "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For".
This song is a great one and most of the crowd sung it, The Edge had his eyes closed while playing it, people clapped their hands and it was a good moment to close the night. Band left the stage one by one by walking on the catwalk and going on B-stage and then leaving stage in the middle of the crowd like Bono made his enter two hours and 15 minutes earlier. Band left the stage under the crowd singing "But I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" and under their applause. Bono sung "People Have The Power" from Patti Smith while leaving the arena, same song as introduction one, circle is closed. In conclusion, it was a great night, good show, nice visuals and stage, good moment with friends, energic band, nice songs and on twenty-five of them eleven was first time hearing them live so no complainng about them. Of course if the band would skip some of them like "Pride (In The Name Of Love" to play another one it would be better and of course if the ending would be "Bad" and "40" it would be better but everyone in every gig of every band has preference and would like to hear that song or that song so for tonight show I would say it was still a wonderful gig and I enjoyed it with my friends and my father close of The Edge with a nice view so yes great memories no doubt about it.
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#4 of 4. This was U2's last night in Spain.. and I was there! Got up nice and late -..
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I'm french and I do not write properly in English, sorry.
Paris, Sunday, December 6, 2015. A fabulous concert, amazing,..
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After much organisation, the day finally arrived to head to Glasgow to see U2! I even got ready early enough..
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A family Oddity
My second U2 gig. Like the first one it was in France Stadium, like the first one my father was there too, like the first one we took the road from Belgium but this time my mother and my brother were with us.
The first one I saw U2 I knew the band but not all of their songs and I had no idea wich song they were going to play. It was my third gig ever and the first one outdoor and I was only 12. This time was a bit different. I knew almost all of their songs (not very much the album "October" and "War" except the hits). It was my 8th concert ever, my third time in a stadium, I was 16 years old and I knew what songs they were going to play, thanks to internet for that. In a way I like when you have no idea what song the band will play and in another way I can't wait until the day of the gig because I want to know everything about a tour.
Anyway after the road, the U2 music and discussion on car, the stop on highway (to heaven ?) we finally arrived in Paris. Like the first time it was a huge U2 party around the stadium. The first time we were on GA and here we were on seats in K9 so behind the stage and Adam Clayton side. Since we have reserved seats and not GA we arrived shortly before doors opened this time. We bought tee-shirts, drinks and a poster and then we wait. I remember when I went to buy a tee-shirt I went near doors for GA just to have a view from the floor on the massive stage. It was impressive. Opening act was Kaiser Chiefs and they were super good, very energic and lot of motivation. Usually an opening act doesn't receive lot of attention from the crowd but this time the crowd were enthousiastic. I remember singer screaming after each song "Nous sommes Kaiser Chiefs". Like the first time, there were a good ambiant and crowd made some ola.
But then "Space Oddity" of David Bowie began and crowd applaused as it was the opening song. It's a change since the first time I saw U2 in 2005. In 2005 not everyone knew the opening song or the setlist but seems in 2009 almost everyone knew them. There were almost no phone or camera in 2005 but much more in 2009. Right after "Soon" of U2 started and we saw the four Irish guys coming but only one was on stage. Larry Mullen Jr walked alone on stage and started to play "Breathe". The Edge and Adam Clayton came shortly after on stage and finally Bono too. I started to play guitar in 2006 so I really appreciate the solo on "Breathe". I always appreciate guitar parts and solo but between 2005 and 2009 I became a guitarist and so I was appreciating guitar with a different view.
"No Line On The Horizon" followed and crowd was singing it and then "Get On Your Boots" arrived. I like the first one but I think "Get On Your Boots" is like the band wanted to make another "Vertigo" and so it's not really my favorite song. But we could see Bono jumping on it. Actually I could see the whole band much better than the first time. I was still not very close but view was good. The Edge and Adam Clayton went on B-stage circle using the two bridge during "Get On Your Boots". After it "Magnificent" has been played and it's a good song. Crowd reacted positively and sang the "Oh, Oh". Guitar parts and solo were great. Bono was on B-stage circle for this song. After those four energic new songs, U2 decided to play "Beautiful Day" with a special introduction "Paris mon amour" also knows as an unreleased song "We love you". Both songs were appreciate by the band. They seems to be full of energy and in a good day. I could see Bono jumping, playing with the crowd and doing the show. He probably did the same in 2005 but I was too far and too small to saw it. This time however I saw him giving all he had.
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" was special to me because it's the first song I ever learnt to play on guitar. Before playing it the band took their first calm moment after a solid 30 first minutes of full energy. Bono did a speech in English wich has been translated on the screen. It's always an impressive moment when you see 93.000 people singing a full verse and the chorus of a song. "Movin' On Up" snippet was also very good.
After that I got four songs I haven't saw on my first U2 gig. "Desire" wich was sung by the whole stadium with a special "Billie Jean" and "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough" snippet. Michael Jackson died on 25th June 2009 and it was the 11th July 2009. Anyway a nice song with full of energy. During "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" and "Desire" Larry Mullen Jr was in front of the back of the stadium for our great pleasure.
"In A Little While" was the second of those four songs. The rest of the band played it like Larry Mullen Jr did, in front of the back stadium. A quiet song but a good one. Back in front of the stadium for Larry Mullen Jr and the rest of the band for the third song which was "Unknown Caller". That song has been preceded by a talking with ISS and the Belgian Frank De Winne. The conversation has been recorded before the show but Bono acted like if the conversation was in live. Translation in French were on the screen. "Unknown Caller" was good despite a bit too much "Oh, oh" but the guitar solo was very cool.
Last of the four was "The Unforgettable Fire" wich was a great one to hear and the crowd really appreciate it. I particulary appreciate guitar parts. The screen began to grow and to grow and it was pretty impressive. Bono played with the crowd on the bridge. It has been followed by "City Of Blinding Lights". Good song and nice guitar parts and once again the screen effects was amazing. "Vertigo" followed for the pleasure of the crowd but less for mine since in two concerts I heard that song three times but I participate to the party with the crowd and sung it too. "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" followed. I prefer the album version to the one they did in live but it was nice to hear it, after all I never heard it in a gig before and it was like a giant discotheque. It was also the chance to see Larry Mullen Jr walking on the stage. And to be honest it was pretty energetic and I did appreciate it. Larry was back in front of us for "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" and "Sunday Bloody Sunday"
"Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "Pride (In the Name of Love)" were playing right after. Not much to say about them. Classic songs, crowd appreciate so do I and at the end of "Pride (In the Name of Love)" crowd sung the "Oh, oh" wich lead us to "MLK" that I haven't see live before so it was a pleasure to hear it. I can say the same for the following one "Walk On". I love that song and guitar parts in it. I really appreciate to hear it. Lights on stage were pretty and people walking on stage at the end made that pretty nice.
Time for first encore with a Desmond Tutu speech that lead us to "Where The Streets Have No Name". What can I say about that song ? It's incredible. The giant stage all in red, the organ pipe introduction with the bass, the crowd who knew what was coming and finally the first note from the guitar wich lead the people to madness. The song gave even more life to the show. The Edge was running on the stage while playing and came in the back of the stage saying hello to us. Magic moment. The only less good thing is that the guitar introduction was a bit too short.
"Sexy good looking crowd" said Bono. Then he did a speech before "One". It was another magic moment. Stage and stadium in dark with only 93.000 mobile phones as lights (and some people used actual lightfire). I remember I used my mobile phone at that moment. Nice song, nice "Hear Us Coming" snippet and nice memories. Bono ended the song by saying in French "Ce soir ceci est pour vous, bonsoir".
Second encore was there. A video introduced us to the song "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" that I didn't know before that tour and that I heard for the first time that night. A nice discover. Bono and his red light jacket and microphone was a nice visual. I don't remember if the red stick we received at the gate before the show were for this song or for "Where The Streets Have No Name" but many people used them for this song. White lights coming from the stage like a mirrorball for this song and for "With or Without You" gave a real nice effect in this giant stadium. "With or Without You" was nice to hear especially when the crowd made the "Oh, oh" while the light show them. Concert ended with "Moment of Surrender". This is not my favorite song but it was nice to see it for the first time live. Band then left the stage under lot of applause. It was a real good gig with a good crowd, good visual effect, good songs and band had energy like often and seeing so many times 93.000 people singing togheter was truly magic moments.
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A Magnificent birthday
My third U2 gig, still in France stadium but this time we were far away from the stage...
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This was my 1st GA show for any U2 show, i'll say that this was my greatest concert experience ever...
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Real Thing: I wish that Zoo Station was used to open 360 shows with the AB set. That would be..
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An impressive bloody Sunday
I remember that day, I was 12 years old and I was going to see my favorite band. Four years before it I already tried to see them during their Elevation Tour but I couldn't have ticket. This time my father got two tickets by doing queue at a real shop (not on internet) and on the D-day we took the road from Belgium direction Paris. The night before I had difficult to sleep because I was so much excited and on the morning of the concert I woke up with a headache but I was still very much happy. We took the road and I was so excited that I couldn't stop talking and we listened U2 music during all journey. It was not my first concert ever. I already saw Peter Gabriel in 2003 and 2004 but my favorite band of that time was U2 and so being able to see them in concert seems nearly impossible for me (We tried twice in 2001 and in 2005 we didn't have ticket for Brussels or for Paris 1). So it was nearly impossible for me to see them and however I was on the road to the gig.
A dream was coming true. I remember how impressive I felt when I saw the France Stadium from the highway for the first time. The building seems huge to me. We drove the car under the stadium and after some security check on the car and on my father and I (three day before there were the London terrorism attack) we walked to the Z gate of the stadium. It was about 2pm and I remember I was feeling impressed by all small shops selling U2 articles and U2 music could be hear anywhere (in each bars, each shops) and everything, everywhere was like a huge U2 party. It's something that even now make me think that atmosphere at a U2 concert is particular. Now I saw about one hundred of gigs and even if we could hear some music of the band near the concert place, it's never as huge and impressive as we could see or hear around a place where U2 will play a gig. It's different, more intense, more shops, more bars, more music, more excitement. I remember that before that day I already hear some comments saying that atmopshere around a U2 concert is unique and I can say that on that day when I was walking around the France Stadium those comments hitted me and seems really appropriate. I was impressed. Then We reach the Z gate and just sat down waiting for the opening. I remember my father calling my mother and brother to tell them we were arrived safe. As a big reader I started to read my book "Bono by Bono" written by Michka Assayas and I was not the only one reading that book. A little bit before 4pm excitation was there for everyone. Everybody just stand up and rush near doors which were still closed. It was my first experience as an outdoor concert and I was impatient to come in but false alerts like my father said came often.
Then a bit after 4pm doors opened. I remember climbing steps and steps and I was almost in top of the stadium while going inside and I had my first view of the whole empty stadium and my first view of the stage. It's difficult to express the feeling I had when I saw that stage. I was 12, it was my first outdoor gig and there is a massive stage in front of me and it's on same time massive and impressive but also just like normal like the stage is just quietly there. It was a mix of the both feeling. I think seeing the whole stadium from the inside for the first time also astonished me. We walked down the stair to join the ground and tried to went as close as we could to the stage. Unfortunately there were two GA categories and we were not in the front one. Also as a 12 years old boy I was not tall and so couldn't see things very good but I didn't care I was there. After a while of course we wanted to buy a tee-shirt, drinks and need to use the bathroom wich where in the back of the GA. Since my father didn't want to let me go there alone (I was only 12) we lost our spot but when we went out of bathroom and walked to the front I realised that since there were less people in front of me my view was better on the stage. So we still went to the front but not as close as before and like that with less people in front of myself my view was correct. Even if we were not particulary close of the stage.
I don't really remember the first opening act, The Music. I have some memories of the second opening act, Snow Patrol. After that stadium was full and excitement was there. Some ola in the seats but also in the GA. It was the first time I was seeing that and it was huge to me to see so many people connected between them.
Then the song "Wake Up" of Arcade Fire has been played. Time for U2.
"Larry Mullen Jr, Adam Clayton now, say hello, bonsoir, hello hello" said Bono and immediatly the crowd repeated the hello, hello. "Un, deux, trois, catorce" and the show began. The band already caught the crowd in their hands, I was jumping and screaming lyrics of "Vertigo" in a bad English (I didn't speak it at that time). I also remember I phoned my mother and brother at home to let them hear the first song of the concert.
"Out of Control" when Bono kicked a glass of water in the crowd has been followed by "The Electric Co". It's during the solo of that song when The Edge came on B-stage that I saw him for real with my eyes for the first time. A few seconds later I saw Bono on the other B-stage. Seeing them in real for the first time was like a dream coming true for me.
After that very energic start band began to play "Elevation" and the crowd immediatly started to sing the "Ooh, ooh, ooh". Bono didn't need to lauch them. Right after "New Year's Day" started and my father pressed my arm and made me a wink and a smile because he loves that song (so do I). Adam Clayton walked on the B-stage during The Edge solo and I could see him for first time. "Beautiful Day" followed and it was indeed a great day for me and my father.
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" was also a good moment. At the end of it seeing and hearing for the first time a whole stadium singing a song togheter while seeing Bono walking on B-stage is kind of impressive for a 12 years old boy.
I learned a few years after that the band scheduled to play "Bad" at that moment but didn't. When I learned that I was dissapointed because it's one of my favorite song. But during the show I never been dissapointed and when "City Of Blinding Light" has been played I was still very happy. Screen turned on and it was very pretty.
"I want to say an happy birthday to my godchild who is here tonight, Hollie, it's her 21st birthday, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Hollie, happy birthday to you" said Bono before asking to the crowd "En Français" wich the crowd answered by singing "Joyeux anniversaire" to Hollie who is The Edge daughter. This cute moment has been followed by "Miracle Drug" and "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" (when Bono made an appareance on B-stage). Great songs, nice singing by Bono and The Edge and of course nice guitar parts. I remember the giant character on the screen.
"Love and Peace or Else" was the opportunity to see Larry Mullen Jr for the first time since he was on the B-stage. Actually the whole band moved on two B-stage during that nice song. I could see them and I enjoyed the song that I found good with a nice guitar solo. Followed by "Sunday Bloody Sunday". It was a pleasure to hear it, sing it, scream the "No more" and jumped on it. My father really appreciate "Bullet The Blue Sky" and I did too. I clapped my hands in rythm at the end of "Bullet The Blue Sky" like the majority of the crowd.
I didn't know "Running To Stand Still" at that time but I enjoyed it and tried for the first time to do like everyone using a light during a gig. I was looking around me all the time to see that spectacular view of thousand and thousand of small light. I remember I burned myself at the end because the light became quiet hot after a few use.
Then one of my favorite U2 song of that time "Pride (In the Name of Love)" has been played and I was jumping and singing. I was also screaming the "Oh, oh" at the end and was impressed by all the crowd singing and didn't really realise I was a part of them doing the same. I hear Bono talking in French "Mais ce soir, c'est un rêve Africain". And all the crowd kept doing the "Oh, oh" until the first notes of "Where The Streets Have No Name" started. I also remember all the African flags. The crowd turned crazy during "Where The Streets Have No Name" and I was not the only one then jumping and screaming the song. That moment definitely put a great ambiant during the show.
Just before "One" Bono did a French speech to the crowd. I remember me and my father applausing and thinking "well said, he is right". "One" was truly a great song that night.
The band then left the stage with a "Bonsoir Paris".
After a few minutes a screen divided in four turned on with Zoo TV era pictures. Then like a slot machine four faces of four unpopular people at that time appeared on the screen. I remember Michael Jackson was there. Crowd reacted badly to those faces. Then two faces were replacing with the Zooropa face and two other faces apparead and once again crowd reacted badly to them. Those two faces were replacing by Zooropa faces to make four Zooropa faces on screen. Crowd was finally happy and "Zoo Station" began with lot of positive reaction from the people. Bono on screen was acting like in the introduction of the Zoo TV show and came into the B-stage again (for my great pleasure since I could see him again even if it was far away from me). The Edge also came on the other B-stage.
When "The Fly" started both my father and I were happy because we loved the "Elevation Tour" version. Screen was a reminder of the Zoo TV era it was astonishing and song was energic, The Edge solo was good, crowd was happy and I was jumping and singing. I remember I was still jumping and screaming when "With Or Without You" started and I saw a woman looking at me with a smile on her face. She maybe thought this kid is crazy but I think she was more like smiling like an adult sometimes do when they see a child being very happy. Anyway "With Or Without You" was good. I used the light again and burned myself again. I remember Bono took a girl from the B-stage with him and leading her to the main stage. She said hello to each member and I thought she was lucky. I sing most of the song too and like all the crowd made the "Oh, oh". We learnt at the end of the song that the lucky girl was Fanny. Band left the stage and it was time for a second encore.
It began with "All Because Of You" which was followed by a wonderful acoustic song "Yahweh " who has been singing by the crowd too. Just before singing it Bono thanked The Music and Snow Patrol for opening the show. The last song of my first U2 gig was the same as the first one "Vertigo". It's weird to play twice the same song and I wished we could have another song to conclude but oh well I was happy to see that band. Words "The End" then apperead on the screen to conclude the show. Crowd of course applaused the band long time after the end of the concert.
My day dream didn't end yet. My father bought me a poster and I recorded some songs of the show on my old Sony Ericsson and listened them while talking about the show to my father on the way back home. I remember we paused on a highway shop. He took a coffee and I took a tea. There was a sign "Out of service" on the slot for money and I was so tired I didn't get it and removed the sign and was about to put my money in the machine but my father stopped me and lead me to another machine where I got my tea. I was exhausted but truly happy and it's on that funny little story that my review end.
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I was there , that amazing night. I'll try to be objective . Bono s voice is not the best..
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20 years of my life waiting to see them, and this is what I got.
The crowd was disappointing, even before..
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I have this same record but split into 4 parts, 5 or 6 songs in each one. so, if you..
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U2 in Chicago is always a good combo. U2 playing the last night in a city is always a great combo. So I had high expectations for this show. I had listened to this before but I didn't remember anything in partucular. This is a very good show but for me it lacks that special element that can "elevate" (:P ) a concert and take it to another level. Anyway, as I wrote, the performance is really good, there are very few mistakes and Bono almost gets all the lyrics right. Bono is also in a festive mood because his son John Abraham will be born soon. Anyway, on to the show.
The first part of the setlist is pure ZOO TV revival. Songs 2-7 are the exact same as they were in 1992/1993. In addition to that, you also get 6 new songs (almost everything you could get at the time with the exception of In A Little While and The Ground Beneath Her Feet). Elevation starts the show in the right way with a good snippet of Be My Baby. Then there's the ZOO TV set which is performed really well. The Fly has a shorter intro than usual, Even Better Than The Real Thing makes one of the last appearances in its traditional arrangement, One sounds really good this early in the setlist and it has an amazing snippet of Wake Up Dead Man. New Year's Day is another highlight of the show that brings us to the more familiar part of the setlist. The surprise here is the great performance of New York. It has a strange tin whistle intro and Edge makes a small mistake at the beginning but it just rocks. Bono's low notes at the start are amazing, Adam shines in the middle 8 and the ending is pure gold. Then on to I Will Follow which has a great middle 8 improvisation by Bono about the early days in Chicago. Sunday Bloody Sunday is very good as well with a funny moment at the start of the solo. Then comes the true highlight for me: Sweetest Thing is performed in a perfect way with an amazing bass part by Adam and a very good piano playing by Bono. The acoustic part of the show sees a good (although a bit slow) performance of Angel Of Harlem followed by a reinvention of I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For (played here for the only time in the first two legs of Elevation Tour). It has a funny intro and the harmonics created by the voices of Bono and Edge are just incredible. All I Want Is You (with Bono playing some acoustic guitar) followed by Streets (with a great drum part by Larry as usual in the Elevation Tour) and Pride (In The Name Of Love) end the main set. The encore is a standard one with the exception of Beautiful Day (very rarely played this late in the setlist during the Elevation Tour) and a great Joey Ramone tribute, the cover of I Remember You. Bullet The Blue Sky sees a very inspired The Edge who gifts us with a stellar solo.
HIGHLIGHTS
One
New Year's Day
New York
Sweetest Thing (best performance of the night)
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
LOWLIGHTS
No real lows, just missing that "plus" that other shows have. Anyway, download this and I'm sure you won't be disappointed
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From the outside, this is simply the best Elevation concert and the most special one. It was way more important..
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As this was my first GA experience, I took the day off with my brother and stood in line in..
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Brian and I had just recovered from Miami, and decided we could not miss this. Climbed in a car..
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No lows, just highs really!
This was one of the first bootlegs I listened to and is since then my fave one because it really started my fandom and can be seen (actually both heard and watched!) as a perfect example of how great a U2 concert is.
Although it's hard to, some of my personal stand out songs here are
"Mofo" as it is the best live version of the song ever (imo)! I love especially Bono's greatly flowing singing and the little improvs he does here, too.
"I Will Follow" is a top notch performance as well. When I first heard this live version of I Will Follow, I was really blown away by the distinct difference from the 'normal' version. Simply Popmart-style.
"Pride" because of the passion the audience brings. When you watch the DVD you can see how impressed Bono is because he purposely stops starting singing the 3rd verse.
"Still Haven't Found" because if the audience (again), Bono's emotional talk and the powerful and emotional live rendition itself.
"All I Want Is You" because of the "Never Tear Us Apart" snippet. I remember clearly that the first time I listened to this I wasn't aware of Bono sometimes singing snippets from other songs, and when I suddenly heard him singing the lines from this INXS song I was close to tears for its power and meaning.
"Desire" ... priceless: Bono forgetting lyrics and trying to save his ass with "La Bamba" 
....so to speak.
"Sunday Bloody Sunday" has Edge singing it solo, only armed with his acoustic guitar. Awesome!
"Bullet The Blue Sky" from this concert is my fave Popmart rendition. Awesome guitar by the Edge!
"Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me" as it is pure, mean rock by U2 . Great lyrics, great live.
"Mysterious Ways" for Edge's funky play/moves and Bono's singing at the end.
And "One" rather obviously for the Michael Hutchence reference and emotional performance.
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On Thursday, June 12th, 42,270 U2 fans were ready to welcome the band to the prairies. It was the Canadian..
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Well,as I said,I was down on the band at this point.Thank God they woke up and went back to basics..
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To me, this is the best Popmart show of the first leg. Crazy things happened to U2 in Washington. The..
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5/3/1992 - Atlanta, Georgia - This review has heavy spoilers
This show honestly caught me really off guard - there's some really interesting things here that I want to talk about. Firstly, something more minor, Bono’s ad libs are all over this show. I’m pretty sure every song contains at least one unique ad lib. Secondly the “fade away” section of Bad is super energetic and charismatic, as always, but there's something super charming about this version which makes it stand out from the pack. Even Better Than The Real Thing’s final verse has entirely different phrasing from Bono, and this is also one of the only times I’ve heard the “still running” verse at the end of Running To Stand Still on Zoo TV. There’s two other things to note mainly - Bullet The Blue Sky and Desire. Firstly, this version of Bullet goes on for quite a while due to the solo being extended and generally being ENTIRELY different to how it usually is on Zoo TV, and then, something I’ve NEVER heard before, Edge goes into the classic Bullet The Blue Sky solo after Bono screams “outside it’s America”, making this version incredibly special. I’m pretty sure this was done on the spot too, mainly from the completely random, yet humorous addition of Bono shouting “shut the fuck up” during this solo. It just seems very sporadic but it actually works incredibly well and I’m curious to see if they ever did it again on this tour now. Desire meanwhile features additional guitar work throughout the bridge of the song, an extended outro and the "Not Fade Away" snippets from Lovetown, all of which are very welcome additions and add a lot to this version. Overall, this show is hugely unique and its standout moments are nothing like anything I’ve heard from Zoo TV. There are a couple sloppy moments here and there, such as the beginning of Pride, but you can easily look past small moments like it and appreciate it as one of the best Zoo shows.
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At that time, I was overwhelmed by the sheer size, dimension and loudness of the event. It was my first..
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Overall, a performance nearing the conclusion of the indoor European leg of Zoo TV that is nothing short of phenomenal...
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Highlights: One, Zooropa, Babyface, Stay, I Will Follow, Bad-Bullet The Blue Sky, Running to Stand Still-Where The Streets Have No..
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Sometimes I wonder why I was born in December 1988, one year before this lovely concert in Rotterdam. I was probably in my cradle as a 1-year old boy when Edge hit the first tabs of Where the Streets Have No Name in Ahoy Rotterdam on that special 6th of January 1990, 90 kilometres from my hometown.
I often ask myself the question: what would it have been like to be part of the audience during a Lovetown-show. I fell in love with the Point Depot gigs in Ireland, and the Rotterdam-shows from early January were even better, some say. Lovetown:the name itself explains it, like BB King spells during When Love Comes To Town: L-O-V-E. Yes, I love rock, I love U2, but I especially love Lovetown. Don't get me wrong, because I know the Joshua Tour was enormous and awesome. And Zoo TV was one big happening, followed by Popmart, whether you like it or not. Also Elevation gives me special feelings and was my favourite tour for a long time. But Lovetown is top-notch. The mix of songs between the Joshua Tree and Rattle and Hum, performed in small places with BB King's Orchestra makes Lovetown the best tour for me. I didn't take long and U2 didn't even cross the world with it. But the modesty of it does it for me. Like Bono says at a Point Depot show: 'After all these big places, we wanted to play a small place'Â.
Lovetown also marked the end of a decade in which U2 finally showed itself to the world in full glory. Live Aid in 1985 was a very important turning point, sealed by the release of The Joshua Tree. But U2 felt that every end had a start. U2 was looking for a new direction and needed time.
The energy and commitment of U2 was awesome back then. Bono was at his prime. His voice was a mix between the Joshua Tour and the upcoming Zoo TV. And U2 really enjoyed what they were doing. Lovetown was not a show, it was no entertainment like Zoo TV or Popmart. It wasn't a show with political context, like Vertigo. It was based on music, pure music, pure rock and roll. And you can feel the excitement and joy of U2 trough these shows. I guess they enjoyed every bit, like the audience.
U2's first European success was actually founded in Holland, where the single I Will Follow became a giant hit. Bono mentions this during this Rotterdam show when they start Love Rescue Me, when he says: 'And this is also a good place to end, because we more or less started here ten years ago. You've been very good for us, thank you!'Â. The crowd was ecstatic.
This show is awesome. It has reached a nice spot in my top ten favourites, I think. It's equal to the Point Depot shows, with U2 really on fire. I missed New Year's Day and Bad, but I know U2 played 4 shows at Rotterdam. The Bad from the 10th of January is one of the best there is.
This show is quite memorable as The Unforgettable Fire was played for the last time. I listened to this show trough my Sennheiser CX300 and my eyes shut. I transferred myself to Ahoy, Rotterdam, 18 years ago, being in the audience. I felt the energy, I experienced U2 in their best days
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Very strong show!! Dirty Old Town at the end of RTSS always gets me. God Part II is excellent, Edge..
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I like Lovetown because it throws up some real surprise sets and this tops the lot. Opening by playing..
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Great show in Tokyo, They knew all the songs and sang to them. WOWY was played 5th, earliest in a..
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The atmosphere was very foul. It was my first U2 concert, but not my first stadium concert, and I remember it well. The rain had started in the afternoon, but in the morning and around noon it had been very hot. There was a terrible pushing and shoving of the audience waiting at the entrances for doors open, and many seemed to be well drunk and I did see many, many empty drinks containers, beer cans, wine packs and bottles outside. The doors open seemed badly organised. Some a few yards away opened before others did, the seemed to be little coordination. People were pissed off by that, they wanted an equal chance in the run to the centre stage spots.
The openers, I remember The Pretenders, Big Audio Dynamite and Lou Reed, were all booed and generally badly accepted, at least in the part of the audience I happened to be stuck in, which was third, second row, slightly to the right of centre stage. The place looked like an open battle for the first row and of course I participated first, being rather stoutly built and not one to back off easily. This concert had meant the world to me, after I had gotten hold of a ticket, through a multitude of different lucky concurrences.
I believe, I cannot be sure anymore about it, that The Daltons opened last. I might confuse that, though, with a show I might have seen on the internet of that time, after all, it's been 28 years.
When WTSHNN began with its droning synth-sounds and the guitar's delayed arpeggios, and the band appeared one by one, the crowd went mad and the stifling squeeze got worse. But when the bass and the drums joined and slowly built up the song's hard pushing, driving beat the crowd went berserk. I had a fight with an American, a GI by his crew cut and confidence, and the security did not notice. He hit me in the nose, but luckily he could not swing properly, for lack of room to move. I could not get my arms up enough, so I hit where I could. The security were highly unprofessional (I did that job later in life myself) and completely taken aback with the sheer violence of the crowd's pushing forward, the yelling and the screaming of girls who obviously were in acute fear. The waves of people’s shoving often moved me ten or more yards away from where I had been before. I remember the moment when the band jumped into the first song and the red lights flooded all over the rain-drenched crowd. The heat from the electric lights washed over the people and actually felt quite warm on the face. Seconds afterwards clouds of vapour of the drying rain partially took away the sight of the stage.
I had had enough by then. I withdrew to the seats ranks, found myself a place and watched from about a hundred yards away. I was deeply disappointed with the on-goings and felt betrayed and let down. I had thought that we had all been there together to celebrate the same thing. I had been wrong. U2 had become a phenomenon and had stopped being a rock and roll band. They were a sensation, not music to dance and sing the lyrics and to feel alive by, because the songs spoke to you about your life and you inner self. This was a spectacle, not a concert. No one danced. They all fought. No one sang. Everybody screamed. No one had fun. They all tried to hold on to their place or get a better one by being more brutal than the opponent, because that is what everybody was, an adversary and a rival in trying to be as close to the band as possible. Do not think that I was naive about it. I understood as I do now that people want to be as close as possible to their lucky stars. But I wasn't expecting the brutality I encountered, and it did not seem to make sense, and I was not prepared to put up with it, as I would not be today. I do not think that it was anything else but sheer good fortune that there wasn't anyone killed in the throng in front of the stage. It was brutal enough for that. None of my later U2 shows had that quality and quantity of ruthlessness and viciousness.
When 40 began I was on my way out, walking outside the stadium trying to hitchhike my way back to where I was due. I remember feeling like hell. It took me weeks to be able to enjoy the music again.
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When the Where The Streets Have No Name organ sounded over the 125k people on the stadium and lights went..
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First concert I ever went to age 17. I haven't missed a U2 tour since. Listening to this was like..
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My first time watching the boys and is still my favourite.
Travelled from Liverpool as a 17 year old with my..
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Everything I WASN'T looking forward to about this show, I loved. "Pride" and "Maggie's Farm", I wasn't all that cracked up about listening to. The former is on just about every show I ever listen to, and it gets tiring, the latter I just didn't care much about. They ended up both being phenomenal.
The "Norwegian Wood" intro to "Bad" is outstanding, and chorus gives me goosebumps. Listen to some recent shows (Vertigo, 360°), and then give this one a spin- Yes, folks- Bono DID used to sound like that 
Everything about this show is simply gorgeous. Download it RIGHT. NOW.
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Oh my fu...in` goodness what a brilliant show.
Today first time Iistened/watched this awesome concert. What an oustanding performance, especially..
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We were all young. The place was crammed. U2 were already massive in Glasgow by the end of 1982 and had played bigger venues (the legendary Apollo). In 1984 it was a difficult ticket to get.
The Barrowlands is essentially a dancehall with a spring-loaded wooden ballroom floor but quite a low ceiling. This all made for much 'bouncy-bouncy' and the very definition of a sweat-filled room! Condensation was literally running down the walls and dripping from the ceiling (I even remember it dripping from my elbows !). You could wring it your t-shirt.
The Watherboys were support who were also very big at the time& they did sing of course All of the Moon !
The energy in the crowd and from the band was incredible. New songs from TUF and older songs went down a storm. Jim Kerr and Charlie Burchill (from Simple Minds, local Glasgow boys and friends with U2) were at the back and the crowd all spotted them & sung to them. (Bono a month later in January 1985 joined the Minds on-stage at the same venue for New Gold Dream which blew the roof off).
We only had tickets for the first night but it was so good we went back up the next day and queued up for on-the-door tickets with probably 100 or more others. I remember a scuffle broke out in the queue as some people started singing sectarian/Irish Celtic songs. They were quickly shouted down by others stating '...we are U2 fans, we are not here for that, the band would not want it, we are better than that'! We got in again having barely recovered from the previous night dehydration.
...and U2 brought the house down again.
A mere 7 months later they would conquer the world at Live Aid and everyone would know what all the fuss was about.
...and 34 years later I still want to get tickets for the next tour in 2018 !
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I was 19. I didn't drive.
We were more or less 10 kids from my neighborhood who went to this show..
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mazing! It was the first ever Unforgettable Fire tour bootleg I listened to. It exceeded my expectations. It’s a very..
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One of the most special UF shows and the best setlist of the tour! At the beginning Bono said they..
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Rated high, because I really enjoyed this early show. Sometimes the early ones (pre-TUF, in my opinion) really just don't connect with me, and I can't feel them. This one was a spectacular listen, though- one I can see myself revisiting when I feel like hitting up a familiar early show.
Highlights:
-Party Girl!!! "That was the first time that song has ever been performed! [under his breath] And probably the last..." Oh, Bono...little did you know...
-New Years Day was very fresh
-Gloria/Brick/Day Without Me was pulled off well
-Only time "Like a Song" has ever been performed
So much to enjoy about this show, it would be a shame for you to not hear it. Download it!!!!
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First of all, the FM broadcast is NOT from this concert, it is actually from the show next day, so..
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So, for my 1st ever show I've done from the War tour and the Pre-tour leg in particular I have..
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The only reason I gave this bootleg a 4 star rating is because Like A Song is performed live.
This..
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U2 in the Netherlands. Enough said. There's always something in the air when the band plays here and this show is no exception. For the October tour, the band reworked some of their Boy songs and they sound better than ever. Another Time, Another Place, An Cat Dubh/Into The Heart, Stories for Boy are highlights of the show. The October songs are always better than their studio counterparts and the broadcast has great sound for them here. During 11 O'Clock Bono plays with the audience and it sounds incredible (he did that for the whole tour, I love these October versions). After Fire, they sang Happy Birthday to Larry. By taking pieces of all 3 sources of this show, you can form a great, complete bootleg for this show. This is the first great full October bootleg and one of the best.
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This and Lido Beach are perhaps the best October bootlegs you'll find. The setlist is great and some songs had..
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A good friend of mine was at this show and was billed as U2's homecoming show in Dublin in January..
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An interesting show. Not great, but not as bad as the band cracked it up to be. Many of the..
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As I remember it, this was a free show or cost next to nothing to attend. It was held in the student union ballroom of San Jose State University. This room was built to be earthquake proof and the floor was suspended on something like springs. When the floor got packed and the music started and people started moving in time with the music the floor started to act like a trampoline. No kidding. If you timed your jump you could launch yourself 3 to 4 feet off the floor. They had to have crew guys hold the P.A. system in place as everything started to wobble. I saw XTC, Huey Lewis, Fabulous Thunderbirds and more in this room and all the shows were amazing with a very intimate vibe. I miss those days.
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I rediscovered this gig and it is truly fantastic. I listened to the old source a long time ago and..
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Excellent early show, with just about all the Boy Tour material represented. The band are energetic and really doing a..
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This is one of the best Boy tour bootlegs around and has all the songs you'd expect to hear at..
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2/26/1980 - Dublin, Ireland
Executives at Island Records saw this show, and after it, signed U2. Ireland Records choice was understandable, as this gig contains so much energy from all four of the guys. Though, even though how much energy there was, Bono's voice is no where near as good as it would be in the coming months on Boy, and its tour. A funny part of the show is when right before Trevor(which would later become Touch) some guy gets on stage and starts swearing at the band. Security was good at National Stadium though, and he was taken off stage in a matter of seconds. After this incident, Bono makes the cheeky remark of "Thank you, dont mention it". The crowd, besides the guy that stormed the stage at the beginning of Trevor, were absolutely loving up the show. It is very cool listening to a lot of U2's early unreleased / not released in its form played songs.
Some of the examples of these songs that would be vastly changed are the previously mentioned Trevor, and Silver Lining(which would eventually become 11 O' Clock Tick Tock).
A must listen for that, because they are all great versions, along with Shadows and Tall Trees (the only Boy song not played on the Boy Tour), Another Day (U2's actual first single, and also wasnt played on the Boy Tour), Twilight (which is surprisingly better than the single version), Out of Control, and Another Time Another Place (which along with the other Boy songs played, sounded very different from their Boy counterparts), and also because of how significant the show is in U2's history. A great first taste of U2.
Official Release: Cartoon World on the Boy Deluxe edition
Fun Fact: Allegedly The Electric Co. made its debut at this show and was great, though there is no recording of this encore
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Nothing spectacular, fun but inexperienced performance and mediocre sound. The main selling point for this boot is the number of..
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I love this show / recording. All the old, unreleased tunes are stellar Punk/New Wave and hint at what U2..
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Silver Lining is an early version of 11 O'Clock Tick Tock. Musically it's nearly identical (except a few neat little..
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I didn't have a ticket to this show and I got a single 5th row ticket as a return at the box office on the night of the show. There were several acts playing that night doing one or two songs including Ian Dury and the Blockheads, The Style Council, Mari Wilson and the Wilsations, Mike Peters and Dave Sharp from The Alarm and finishing the night were U2. The audience was littered with celebrities and I found myself sitting next to Paul Eddington (Yes Minister) and Michael Palin at one point. As U2 came on stage I ran down the front so had a perfect front row seat. After U2 had done Knocking on Heavens Door with Mike Peters (Mike taught Bono how to play the song) U2 burst into New Years Day. The next thing I know is Bono is bending down with his arm out to me and I take his hand and he pulls me up on stage. Wow!! I am onstage with U2. In those days it was customary for Bono to pull up a girl onstage during 11 O'clock Tick Tock so this was totally unexpected. Bono gets me to sit down on a monitor onstage whilst performing the song and then sits next to me, puts his arm around me and continues to sing. It is an experience I will never forget and is still the best moment of my life... Thank you Bono
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The fact the band went out of there way, to perform at this festival, in the middle of their North..
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Wow. Just wow. Of the little hype this act was given, the band certainly came out and hit it out..
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Good set with the famous extended 12-minute version of Bad. Worth a download
Highlights
Sunday Bloody Sunday - quite a tight..
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