Thursday
Sep152005
U2 Report
Thursday, September 15, 2005 at 11:05AM
Well, last night was my first big-time concert. My mother, who once protected me from such things, baby-sat our kids so we could go (does that make her complicit?). The crowd was remarkably tame, split between kids and old folks. I belonged to the second group. At one point we spotted a stretcher waiting by an exit, and Charlene mentioned that she hoped it wasn't for me. It's funny to be in a public place and to smell marijuana smoke for much of the evening. If it were tobacco, they probably would have had the guy in jail by now. Not many bands can play to 20,000 people, but U2 did. The concert started out a bit flat - Vertigo seemed off somehow. It got better and by the end, we didn't want it to end. Unfortunately, it was twenty minutes shorter than Monday night's concert. Some fan reaction here. I spent a lot of time enjoying the design of the tour. Great use of multimedia, great transitions and set design. These guys know how to put on a show. I thought I might be tempted to buy a t-shirt - we even joked about buying my mother one to thank her for babysitting. I'd love to see her in a U2 t-shirt. But at $45-65 a shirt we overcame the temptation. Great night; fun to share it with Charlene. Update: A review from Buffalo here. They thought the first song was okay. Flickr pics here, and the official U2 account here.
Reader Comments (6)
Terrible opening act, but U2 put on a fantastic show! I've been a fan since the Unforgettable Fire days, so it was a real thrill to have them end the show with a song from that album. We had awesome seats- it was wonderful to be so close to the band. I had a great time, succumbed to temptation and now have a $45 t-shirt! A nice souvenir of an amazing evening!
ok. Is jealously really that wrong? I'm feeling it quite heavily right now....
Darryl, did Bono lift high the name of Jesus?
Yes, in a number of songs. This one hit me: One man come in the name of love One man come and go One man come, he to justify One man to overthrow I appreciate lyrics like these from U2, but I think you can enjoy music for its own sake too.
I know you are a huge fan so I won't bug you about it. I personally don't see what the big deal is with him but I know he is such a darling for many in the Christian world and I'm still trying to figure that out. Does he ever come out and tell people that he is a follower of Jesus Christ? Does he ever use his icon status to share the simple gospel message of Hope that the world so desperately needs to hear? Again, I'm not much of a fan so I'm hoping you can help me out.
I started to enjoy U2 around the Joshua Tree years and then lost track of them for a while, until the All That You Can't Leave Behind days. I like the music and they are great performers. There is also some depth to the lyrics, and whole books have been written about their faith. I also appreciate Bono's concern for justice. That being said, they're four guys who put on a good show. I agree they shouldn't be idolozed. They have some good points but they also do things I'm not comfortable with. They're just people. But I don't mind enjoying the music.