Photographs documenting the gritty beginnings of U2 in the smoky pubs and clubs of 1970s Dublin are being unveiled Thursday at an exhibition in the band’s home city. Much of the exhibition by photographer Patrick Brocklebank has never been seen before.
Happy Birthday Bono: 10 Facts About
- His various humanitarian work around the globe and his efforts to raise awareness of Aids in Africa earned him the Nobel Peace Prize’s Man of Peace title in 2008. He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003.
- His favorite food is fish and chips, and his favorite drink is Jack Daniels or tea.
- Bono is a keen chess player, falling in love with the game at the age of 12 after he became “fascinated” with its grandmasters.
- In 2007, he was given an honorary knighthood by Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II for his tireless campaigning.
- The singer’s trademark sunglasses are not just a rock ‘n’ roll fashion statement - his eyes are over-sensitive to light.
- Bono has enjoyed several forays into acting - he had small roles in Million Dollar Hotel and Across The Universe.
- During U2’s Zoo TV Tour in the early 1990s, Bono’s onstage alter-egos included The Fly, Mirror Ball Man, and Mr. MacPhisto.
- Bono and his U2 bandmates were nominated for a Best Original Song Oscar in 2003 for the track “The Hands That Built America,” which featured on “Gangs of New York” - but lost out to Eminem’s “Lose Yourself,” from the movie “8 Mile.”
- He has collaborated with a huge range of artists in his career - including Bruce Springsteen, Johnny Cash, Jennifer Lopez, Frank Sinatra, and Luciano Pavarotti.
No Longer Christian Band
Bringing U2 into a conversation with a group of Christians can be a dangerous occupation. Once up held as the prime examples of Christians in the music business, many people now view the band as arrogant and egotistical, having long since abandoned their early religious fervour.
In fact, many churches will point to U2 as evidence of the fact that the music industry is too full of corruption and depravity for even the most committed believers to hold out against, almost as mothers used to frighten their children into good behaviour with stories of the hobgoblins that awaited the ill-behaved child! Viewing U2 on the surface this can be understandable, but a deeper look at what the band are doing portrays a very different story.
Without a doubt U2 have changed a lot since their early albums. Many believe that U2 no longer possess the Christian beliefs which so obviously underpinned these albums, and in many respects amidst the images which U2 have created their beliefs can be difficult to unearth.
Often such use of artistic subterfuge is deeply frowned upon by Christian fundamentalists who argue that the gospel message should be perfectly clear; however, this is ignoring the fact that much of the Bible is itself written in artistic prose, rich in hidden meanings and multi-faceted nuances, whilst several books merely contain poetry - the most artistic of all writing forms.
Jesus himself taught in parables, using the images of the day to bring across truths about God, and most of the time leaving the people scratching their heads and wondering what he meant.
Tony Nomination
U2’s Bono and The Edge were delivered a bittersweet award nomination today, when Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark was nominated for two Tony Awards: for Best Scenic Design Of A Musical and Best Costume Design Of A Musical.
That’s good news for designers George Tsypin and Eiko Ishioka, though arguably less flattering for the musical’s two rock star composers.
U22, the live from U2360
It’s looking good for an early May release - we’ll be emailing everyone who’s resubscribed for the coming year as soon as we have final details.
Meantime, they added another DOWNLOAD from ‘U22’ and they don’t come any more special: ‘All I Want is You/Love Rescue Me’ .
Bono's Note: 'Hope is like a faithful dog'
Its not uncommon for entertainers to leave notes or items in hotel rooms for the housekeeping team to find.
Bono’s poem titled we think ” In Jerusalem, hope springs eternal,”
“Hope is like a faithful dog, sometimes she runs ahead of me to check the future, to sniff it out and then I call to her: Hope, Hope, come here, and she comes to me. I pet her, she eats out of my hand and sometimes she stays behind, near some other hope maybe to sniff out whatever was. Then I call her my Despair. I call out to her. Here, my little Despair, come here and she comes and snuggles up, and again I call her Hope.”
Signed “With great thanks for great room in great hotel in great city, Bono.”
Bono arrives Israell
U2’s front-man Bono caught Israeli music fans and paparazzi off-guard when he dined at a popular restaurant in the Jaffa Port on Monday (April 9).
Local media reports cited today that the musician, also known as Paul David Hewson, is in Israel on a private visit.
Some reports linked Bono’s visit to business ventures - both he and The Edge are investors in the Dropbox company — which has ties with an Israeli high-tech firm. Others cited that Bono - known as a leading human rights activist — may be in town for an international peace conference.
Bono, who is also a human rights activist, announced in February, 2010, that the band would play in Israel the following summer, but it was never arranged, following an outcry from pro-Palestinian groups that urged him to boycott the Jewish state. He had turned down an invitation to play in Israel two years before that.
One Direction and U2 Team Up ?
U2 want to spruce up their act - and sell more records - by working with boyband One Direction’s songwriters, according to reports. Bono and the boys have been rumored to start working with Carl Falk, who is behind One Directions hit “What Makes You Beautiful” which one a BRIT Award for single of the year 2012.
Falk is quoted in the Sun saying “There’s a long way to go but we are doing something with U2”
They (U2) have been working on their 13th studio album, the follow up to 2009’s ‘No line on the horizon’. The boys expressed disappointment with the sales of their last album, despite the record shifting over five million copies.
Hey lets not forget about RedOne who also has been rumored to be working with the boys