" ~~~ U2 ~~~ "
Bathgate66
Posts: 15,813
STARS COME OUT TO BID VERTIGO FAREWELL
December 10, 2006
The stars came out tonight in Honolulu to help U2 close out the 5th and
final leg of the Vertigo Tour. Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong joined
the band for "The Saints Are Coming," and that was followed immediately
by a cover of "Rockin' In the Free World" with members of Pearl Jam.
Larry had the final words of the night: "See you soon...."
see the full set list at U2tours.com >>
http://www.u2tours.com/detail.src?ID=20061209
December 10, 2006
The stars came out tonight in Honolulu to help U2 close out the 5th and
final leg of the Vertigo Tour. Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong joined
the band for "The Saints Are Coming," and that was followed immediately
by a cover of "Rockin' In the Free World" with members of Pearl Jam.
Larry had the final words of the night: "See you soon...."
see the full set list at U2tours.com >>
http://www.u2tours.com/detail.src?ID=20061209
For the ones who had a notion, a notion deep inside
That it ain't no sin to be glad you're alive
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That it ain't no sin to be glad you're alive
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Advertiser Staff
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Entertainment Writer
"We can be as one tonight."
A full 342 days after his band's concert was officially announced, Bono
finally sang those words to a near-sellout Aloha Stadium crowd as U2's
long and winding Vertigo tour came to a monumental close last night.
Over 2 1/2 hours and 24 U2 classics, the lead vocalist of America's
favorite rock band from Dublin sang to, preached to and occasionally
reached into the masses, trying to move them spiritually, politically
and emotionally.
A concert equally as entertaining as it was massive in scale and
execution? Definitely. A rock show perhaps a bit too tightly
choreographed in the theatrics and special effects department? Kind of.
But such grand-scale proceedings were nothing unexpected from a band
long proficient in moving stadiums with the exacting professionalism of
brain surgeons at the top of their skills.
A crawl of every date on the Vertigo tour on a towering stage-length
LED wall of light behind them, U2 slowly emerged from the shadows to
begin the show. Guitarist the Edge offered subtle riffing, with drummer
Larry Mullen Jr. and bassist Adam Clayton building tight rhythm.
And finally, there was Bono — appearing from the shadows on one of two
long audience-extending catwalks, waving an American flag and kicking
things off with the soaring "City of Blinding Lights." Dressed entirely
in black with his now signature wraparound sunglasses snug, he wasted
little time leading U2 through an entirely satisfying run through its
illustrious song catalog.
"Vertigo," "Elevation" and "I Will Follow" kept the crowd's energy up
early on. After launching a sea of clapping hands on the stadium floor,
Bono urged the gathered to "take it to church now" by singing along to
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For."
Rock solid as always, Clayton, Mullen and the Edge got deserved
audience props whenever they took a solo or ambled down the catwalks
into the crowd. (Each barely said a word the entire show.) But it was
clear from his first note, and response to every word or act that
followed, that Bono held the bulk of the crowd's attention and
affections.
A shout out to O'ahu's North Shore and a slight change of a "Beautiful
Day" lyric to "Honolulu right in front of you," by Bono? Roars.
Switching an "Angel of Harlem" verse to "New York like a Christmas
tree/Tonight Honolulu belongs to me" accompanied by a wide smile? Even
louder roars.
Other highlights early on:
* Bono blowing a soulful harp on "Angel of Harlem" on one catwalk while
the Edge jammed on the other.
* The band allowing a very excited fan plucked from the crowd to play
keys on "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses."
* A hushed reading of the rarely-heard-live fan favorite "The First
Time" with little more than Bono on vocals and the Edge on acoustic
guitar, and a warm embrace by the two at song's end.
Through it all, U2's innovative and massive wall of light LED screen
and two raised video screens delivered animations, visuals of the band
and other images to the farthest corners of Aloha Stadium, creating a
surprising intimacy in the huge venue.
"Love and Peace or Else" effectively launched a seven-song suite of
politically-charged U2 faves bridged by the politics of Bono. Donning a
headband with symbols representing Christianity, Islam and Judaism
partially spelling out the word "coexist," Bono dedicated "Sunday
Bloody Sunday" to U.S. military personnel. He finished with his now
ritual hoisting of a child from the crowd on stage to chant the song's
"No more!" coda.
"Bullet the Blue Sky" ended with Bono crawling down one of the catwalks
blindfolded by his "coexist" headband, finally lighting a bright red
flare — the only moment in the set and show that came uncomfortably
close to unfortunate political parody.
Thankfully, the band redeemed itself with an inspired finish of "Pride
(In the Name of Love)," "Where the Streets Have No Name" and "One,"
rounding out the main set. Prior to "One," Bono asked the crowd to hold
their mobile phones aloft and text the Make Poverty History
organization. Their freshly added names were later scrolled on the
stage's giant LED screen.
U2 offered a couple of apologies during the evening for the show's
postponement. (The final 10 concerts of the Vertigo tour, including the
Honolulu finale's original April date, had been postponed due to an
illness in the Edge's immediate family.)
"Thank you for giving us a second chance," said Bono to the crowd, a
few songs into the concert. "Thank you for hanging around."
The crowd roared that it was all OK. Bono then turned to the Edge and
thanked him for staying strong.
"For a carbon-based life form, this cat can play," said Bono.
A first encore that featured crowd favorites "The Fly," "Mysterious
Ways" and "With or Without You" preceded a second encore that finally
brought the concert its first wonderfully little-rehearsed surprise.
Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong appeared on stage at Bono's request to
accompany U2 on guitar and vocals for both bands' hit "The Saints Are
Coming." Welcomed back after Pearl Jam's incendiary hourlong opening
set, vocalist Eddie Vedder and guitarist Mike McReady rocked with Bono
& Co. on a cover of Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World."
The spectacle of Bono and Vedder sharing a spontaneous dance on stage
and McReady and the Edge trading soaring solos even had Kid Rock
nodding his head and Anthrax's Scott Ian air guitaring with friends in
a field-level sound booth.
Done co-leading a stadium-wide "We love the Edge!" chant with Vedder,
Bono broke from script and motioned the band for one more song. With
just Bono, the Edge, Mullen and Clayton on stage, U2 ended its Honolulu
visit quietly with the lovely "Rattle and Hum" ballad "All I Want Is
You."
The song slowly coming to an end, each member disappeared from the
stage with a wave. First Bono, then Clayton, then a final note from the
Edge, until Mullen, bringing his beats slowly to a close, was the only
soul left on stage.
"Thank you for waiting," he said, clearly moved. "See you soon."
No group hugs or bows for U2 at the end of another long road trip. They
were ready to go home.
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Aloha Stadium is overrun by fans for the finale of the band's Vertigo
world tour
By Gary C.W. Chun
It was the last night to attend the church of U2 at Aloha Stadium
Saturday, and the near sell-out "congregation" literally rocked the
stands to end the band's Vertigo World Tour. As Bono mentioned early
on, it was "a gathering of the faithful," and thanked the fans that had
gathered last night from the world over for their patience and faith in
the band.
To celebrate the many months spent on the road, first all 131 dates
scrolled on the giant video projection screen on stage, ending with a
roar from the crowd on "131. Honolulu." With that, guitarist the Edge
launched into the opener "City of Blinding Lights."
The versatile staging, high-definition video screen, and the two
192-speaker banks that emitted a crisp, clean sound, made for one of
the more technically sophisticated shows at the stadium. It was proof
positive that U2 does put on the best concerts around.
The band's set and two encores were filled with songs that have been
staples on this last Pacific Rim leg of the world tour. After the
opening power of "City...," "Vertigo" and "Elevation," U2 delighted the
roaring crowd with a ringing rendition of their very first '80s hit, "I
Will Follow."
The staging included two semi-circular ramps extending from the stage
and into the eager audience in the field area. When the band members,
at times, walked down the ramps to be amongst the crowd, there was an
intimate and comfortable rapport between U2 and their adoring audience.
People in the crowd were sometimes invited on stage to interact with
Bono. One lucky audience member actually had the guts to get up on
stage, position himself behind the Edge's keyboard setup, and actually
lead the band through an unexpected and impromptu rendition of the
rarely played "Who's Gonna Ride Your White Horses." At song's end, he
gleefully ran down the stage right ramp and leapt for joy back into the
crowd.
Bono showed he was in fine voice as well, getting cheers and
spontaneous applause for his singing on "Sometimes You Can't Make It on
Your Own," a tribute to his late father, and "Miss Sarajevo," where he
negotiated his way around the original Luciano Pavarotti Italian
operatic tenor part very well.
But along with the declarations of faith, both spiritual and secular,
was the sociopolitical statements, highlighted by the one-two punch of
"Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "Bullet the Blue Sky." Bono exhorted the
crowd to honor the faiths of Christianity, Judaism and Islam as the
word "coexist" was shown behind him in large red letters.
The articles of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights also scrolled
behind the band during a hearty version of "Pride (In the Name of
Love)," the song that honors the memory of Martin Luther King and had
its actual roots during the band's last Hawaii visit way back in 1984.
U2 ended the set proper in a darkenend stadium lit up by cellphones,
with the song "One" also a plea to the audience to join the nearly
half-a-million people who have signed up for Bono's One campaign to
fight AIDS and poverty, particularly in Africa.
The band would encore twice: first, with a visual dazzle on "The Fly"
and "Mysterious Ways," then stark and sombre with a moving "With or
Without You."
But the final encore of the tour was the big surprise. After doing one
of their new singles "Window in the Skies," Green Day's Billie Joe
Armstrong came out to join the band on "The Saints are Coming," a song
he and his bandmates did with U2 when the football New Orleans Saints
came back to a once devastated gulf city and its Louisiana Superdome to
open its home season.
Right after that, guests Eddie Vedder and Mike McCready of Pearl Jam
joined the band on a revised rendition of Neil Young's "Rockin' In the
Free World," complete with new lyrics that spelled out the two bands'
work to end extreme poverty.
U2 would have the last word, however, as the night would end on a
gentle "All I Want Is You." And with that, the large crowd happily
dispersed into the Hawaiian night, knowing that they had seen a very
special concert.
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December 10, 2006, 2:00 PM PT
Jonathan Cohen, Honolulu
U2 wrapped its box-office busting Vertigo tour last night (Dec. 9) in
front of a packed house at Honolulu's Aloha Stadium with a show that
featured guest turns from members of opening act Pearl Jam as well as
Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong. Several members of the
audience were pulled onto the stage as well, including one lucky man
who got to play piano with the band during "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild
Horses."
The 24-song set began as usual with "City of Blinding Lights," from the
group's 2004 album "How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb," as Bono ran the
gamut of the heart-shaped stage extension waving the American flag.
Other early set highlights included "I Will Follow," "Angel of Harlem"
and "Sunday Bloody Sunday," during which a little girl sat with Bono
atop the stage monitors.
U2 guitarist the Edge was saluted on a number of occasions, with Bono
crediting his "grace under pressure, faith and perseverance." Although
no formal announcement was ever made, it is understood U2 postponed
several Vertigo dates from spring to this fall while a member of the
Edge's immediate family underwent treatment for a life-threatening
disease.
The main set wound down with a trio of smash hits: "(Pride) In the Name
of Love," "Where the Streets Have No Name" and "One," with fans
encouraged to hold their cell phone aloft during the latter as a show
of solidarity for the Make Poverty History campaign.
Armstrong was a surprise guest for a cover of Scottish punk band the
Skis' "The Saints Are Coming," which U2 and Green Day recorded as a
charity single for the Music Rising initiative. Armstrong had only
performed the track live with the band once before.
Afterward, Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder and Mike McCready joined U2 for
Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World," which they debuted, with new
lyrics, last month during an anti-poverty benefit in Australia. The
show closed with a subdued rendering of "All I Want Is You," as drummer
Larry Mullen Jr. sent the crowd home with a smile: "See you soon."
Soon will likely be in 2008, U2 manager Paul McGuinness tells
Billboard.com. U2 will first regroup in the studio, with an eye on
releasing its next album by late 2007. And although final numbers are
not yet in, the Vertigo tour is already the second-highest grossing
trek of all time behind the Rolling Stones' A Bigger Bang, with its
total expected to exceed $377 million.
In a rare opening slot, Pearl Jam charged through a 13-song set heavy
on favorites like "Corduroy," "Better Man," "Elderly Woman Behind the
Counter in a Small Town," "Even Flow" and "Alive." The Seattle band
wrapped its performance with a cover of the Who's "Baba O'Riley" that
worked the crowd into a frenzy.
A number of Hollywood celebrities were on hand for the show, including
Jeremy Piven, Mira Sorvino and Alyssa Milano.
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:drool:
:choke:
:gag:
Where I'm not ugly and you're lookin' at me
You have been banned for the following reason:
inappropriate post.
'Too many people on this earth. We need a new plague.' - Dwight Schrute
and what will you be contributing , besides downloads ?
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What do you want?
You have been banned for the following reason:
inappropriate post.
'Too many people on this earth. We need a new plague.' - Dwight Schrute
you lucky devil !
i'm green in envy
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he meant having the patience to wait for the postponed tour to restart. he said it in brisbane at the gig i was at and doubtless more times at other
re scheduled gigs. when i saw U2 in brisbane i had to blow off pearl jam #1 in sydney.
take a good look
this could be the day
hold my hand
lie beside me
i just need to say
old music: http://www.myspace.com/slowloader
those European crowds in those Stadiums make us Americans in our Arenas look silly,... :eek:
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And The Winners Are...
More than 3,000 of you entered our competition to win a copy of the Deluxe Edition of 'U218 Singles' . Hundreds of you got all five correct answers and prizes are on the way to ten of you. Winning answers here.
Here's the original questions - this time with the answers.
* Pete the Chop (whatever happened to him?) was on the b-side of New Year's Day.
* It's in the Sky and you can see through it in 2007. Window in the Skies, the upcoming single, released on January 1st.
* The bonus track on the UK edition of ‘U218 Singles’. Answer: I Will Follow.
* It's the song in which Bono insists he is 'not a hopeless case'. Beautiful Day, as in 'Touch me, take me to that other place/ Reach me, I know I'm not a hopeless case'
* This single featured a b-side which, much later, became a single itself and is also on U218 Singles. This single is Where The Streets Have No Name - it came out in 1987 with 'Sweetest Thing' on the b-side, which was itself released as a single in 1998.
Thanks to all those of you who entered - of the hundreds who got the correct five answers, we randomly selected the ten winners and their prizes will be with them soon.
We'll be launching a new competition for U2.Com Subscribers in the next few weeks. Stay tuned!
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December 15, 2006
Just as they did with "The Saints Are Coming", U2 are using YouTube to
premiere the music video for their new single, "Window In The Skies."
The video is a veritable who's who of music history crammed into 4:19
of archival footage, with many artists magically appearing to sing the
lyrics of U2's song. Terrific editing! The only U2 appearance I could
see was a shot of Edge in the crowd at about the 3:50 mark....
watch 'Window In The Skies' on YouTube >>
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VskbxuehP3I
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~it is shining it is shining~
By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Columnist
SHIP SHAPE: U2 didn't have to journey far for its party after
Saturday's rock-out at Aloha Stadium. A reception aboard the Battleship
Missouri Memorial docked at Pearl Harbor was hosted by Bill Gates, the
Microsoft billionaire, with Bono and U2 welcoming 300 folks including
actor Pierce Brosnan, philanthropist Warren Buffett and
deejay-entrepreneur Tom Moffatt. ...
On Sunday Bono joined U2ers at The Kahala resort's Veranda and Plumeria
Beach House. ...
On another night, The Edge dined with pals at Jose's Mexican Restaurant
in Kaimuki. ...
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The band members can be spotted in the crowd shots.
Bono at 3:28
Larry at 3:33
The Edge at 3:50
Adam at 3:54
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Exactly, I saw U2 in dallas Tx with the arena stage, and saw them too in Mexico city and hawaii and I think that the Stadium stage and show is so much better.
Indeed they do make us American crowds and stages look silly. Hopefully one day we'll see a full release of that show. Although it doesn't get any better than U2 at the Garden, when is the US gonna get a stadium tour?
Although we got 2 arena legs for both Elevation and Vertigo, it just seems like the stadium shows are on a different level. Not dissing the arena shows {they're great} or anything but a stadium tour in America would be great.
SUMMER 07!!!
I was lucky enough to catch them at Yankee Stadium a few tours back . Even in this historic, monumental venue- ( and it was great as hell ) it didnt have that pizzazz that the European Stadium crowds seem to have ..
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How many artist can you see on that video ??
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VskbxuehP3I&eurl=
...also, it begins and ends with a Frank. Interesting.
see above
The band members can be spotted in the crowd shots.
Bono at 3:28
Larry at 3:33
The Edge at 3:50
Adam at 3:54
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A Window on Rock'n'Roll
The video for Window in the Skies, the new single released on January 1st, can safely be described as ‘legendary’.
A work of brilliant editing, the video stars a dazzling cast of rock’n’roll icons from Elvis Presley to Marvin Gaye, Patti Smith to Frank Sinatra.. and dozens of others. And everyone is on on lead vocals.
As for U2 themselves – you’ll be hard pressed to spot them. (But you just might).
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Review by John Waters of U2 by U2, from The Irish Book Review,
autumn/winter 2006
The Irish Book Review, December 19, 2006
by John Waters
This is a difficult book to argue with. It's a large format coffee
table volume weighing about five pounds. It has 350 pages of text and
photographs. More than half a million copies have been printed in ten
languages. It will almost certainly go into a second and probably
subsequent editions. As far as the book is concerned, there isn't
really all that much to "review". The format is straightforward: a
chronological journey through U2's career by means of interviews with
all four band members and their manager. The interviews were conducted
by Neil McCormick, former Hot Press writer and schoolfriend of the
band, nowadays rock critic with the Daily Telegraph.
The temptation for the reviewer is to use the book as a means of
reviewing the band, or its career, or its meaning for society, but
that's a tall order for a short review. The strongest sense from this
book is that it takes us nowhere new. It has much in it that is
interesting, challenging, moving and important, but, when you have
finished flicking through it, looking at the pictures and reading
quotes here and there, you are left with the sense that it represents
merely the raw research for some further assessment and analysis.
Full review:
http://www.atu2.com/news/article.src?ID=4522
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December 19, 2006
Bono Slams Dems' $1B AIDS Dodge
By Ian Bishop
WASHINGTON - Even with Democrats poised to control the government's
purse strings next year, U2's Bono still hasn't found what he's
looking for when it comes to U.S. funds to combat AIDS.
The disappointed U2 frontman stormed away from high-level meetings
with incoming Democratic leaders late last week without assurances
that $1 billion in proposed U.S. support would become a reality next
year.
"I'm alarmed we could not get a commitment from the Democratic
leadership to prevent the loss of $1 billion in the continuing
resolution to fight AIDS, malaria and extreme poverty," the rock star
said in a statement.
President Bush had proposed that amount in the past.
"I don't know who's to blame. Democrats are blaming Republicans,
Republicans are blaming Democrats," Bono added.
Congressional leaders are expected to freeze the budgets of federal
agencies, making it unlikely additional funds will be provided.
© New York Post, 2006.
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December 17, 2006
True blue to U2
Band pays gospel-like homage to itself in biographical tome
By Thomas Conner
Throughout the encyclopedic "U2 by U2," members of the band sigh a
lot and lament their deification. "I meet people out on the street
who approach me like I'm Mahatma Ghandi," Bono complains. Drummer
Larry Mullen Jr. bemoans how the band is often "described in some
mythic sense." By the end of this story -- though it's only the
present, not the end -- Bono is on stage telling a new creation myth,
about guitarist the Edge coming down to Dublin in a spaceship: "And
Adam said, 'Where are you from?' And Edge said, 'I'm from the
future.' And Larry said, 'What's it like?' And Edge said, 'It's
better.' "
For a band allegedly chafing from the burdens of fame and nearly
religious glorification, "U2 by U2" sure feels a lot like gospel.
An oral history of the band based on more than 150 hours of exclusive
interviews with members Bono, the Edge, Adam Clayton and Mullen Jr.,
as well as manager Paul McGuinness, U2 by U2 chronicles the life of
the quartet that inadvertently became the megastars of a generation
and described by fans with sometimes disturbing seriousness as "rock
gods."
• We have the near-virgin birth: Mullen's now-legendary flier, which
read simply, "Drummer seeks musicians to form band."
• We have a sermon on a mount, the Red Rocks concert captured
on "Under a Blood Red Sky" (and an interesting admission from the
Edge: "You might notice if you watch the Red Rocks video, there are
very few crowd shots. The reason for that is the place was only a
third full").
• We have saved souls: Bono humbly confesses to turning Bob Dylan's
life around when the icon joined the band on stage for "Knocking on
Heaven's Door." "He sang beautifully and the crowd went ballistic,"
Bono says. "I think that night reminded him just what a feeling there
was for his music."
There's the requisite fall from grace (Zoo TV through the
unfortunate "Pop" record) and redemption ("All That You Can't Leave
Behind"). And all of it is told in God knows how many hundreds of
thousands of words crammed into densely leaded pages of small text,
often printed over a graphic background, making it even harder to
read.
The book coincides with a new greatest hits package, "U218," which
lends the whole thing an air of copying the Beatles' "Anthology."
That package also featured a book, in the same oral history-and-
photographs style, whose only marked difference is that it weighed
approximately one pound more than "U2 by U2" (which is nearly 6
pounds). If this is a coffee-table book, you or the object of your
gift giving had better have one sturdy coffee table -- and as strong
a faith in the band as they clearly have in themselves.
© Sun-Times News Group, 2006.
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