U2 Weekend wrap up and Kimmel performance
U2 / Tim Durkan / U2TOURFANS.com
New York: Bono pays tribute to Chris Cornell, who died by suicide last week at age 52, during the Rose Bowl show by dedicating The Joshua Tree cut “Running to Stand Still” to the late Soundgarden frontman.
Bono introduced the song by calling Cornell a “lion” and a “beautiful, sweet soul” before launching into the 1987 track, which follows a Dublin couple struggling with heroin.
Survival was on the band’s minds. (At least we can presume Bono spoke for everyone, since, as usual, the Edge, Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen remained mighty but mute.) “Here we still are. Here you still are. What a blessing,” Bono said, not needing to state that no other group with the same stature in rock history has survived with its original lineup intact for 35-plus years. And: “Let’s do this again in 2047.”
Coming up Tuesday, Jimmy Kimmel welcomes U2 as his guests on Tuesday, May 23, as part of their Joshua Tree tour. It will be “their only sit-down TV interview and performance while on the road in the U.S. for The Joshua Tree Tour 2017,” ( Note the press release did state performance )
U2's Visual Experience Arrives in Santa Clara
Bono/ Tim Durkan /U2TOURFANS
To the 50,000 fans who filled Levi’s Stadium to capacity on May 17, this was not merely another concert. It was the start of summer, the revisit of those years gone by and much more.
30 years in the making a return to something bigger, more significant than the news today of Mr. Trump and his issues. All of that was pushed aside to witness again "The Joshua Tree" the complete album from start to finish, mix in a couple of staples and you have the summer's biggest concert.
Great does not define the experience. Great describes a cold beer, a great meal, the trip to the venue.
U2 / Mark Peterson / U2TOURFANS
A visual experience with a human touch that defies time limits yes the band did blow right past the local curfew which should have been assumed by any local agency if they took the time to see how long show could be. Ask any fan they surely would have given some suggestions.
Anyway, skip that BS for now, back to the visual experience. The wall which stands right in front of you provides the backdrop to the album and well your life. It's personal, yet it is also a venue for 50,000 people. The images explode upon the screen forcing you to step back and take a second and feel the connected vibe of image and sound. This tour is about the music. Get emerged into the music forget about all that other bullshit of mortgages, work, and blah blah politics just push that all aside for tonight your take back in time.
The setlist and a few videos located our extended coverage page. Did you attend the show? Have some photos or images you want to share? Send them to us directly concertphotos@u2tourfans.com
Next U2 Album, Next Year, Maybe
Photo Credit: Mark Peterson/U2TOURFANS
New York: A story comes out of the Irish Times this morning that reviews the suggesting that the new album may not be released until 2018.
Bono also revealed that their next single was directly inspired by sports pundit Eamon Dunphy.
“Eamon said this beautiful thing about me once in a bar in Dublin - he said “Bono, Ali is the best thing about you,” referring to Bono’s wife, Ali Hewson.
Fans waiting for quality is not as easy as you might think however U2 has always been able to find its way to the next release. This one proves to be the most challenging and most likely well crafted, Grammy Award winning and album to come.
Enjoy the summer shows as the new album continues to develop.
Credit: Irish Times
Happy Birthday Bono
Bono / U2 / Mark Peterson / U2TOURFANS
New York: Bono 57 years old today as he and the rest of the band get ready to launch The Joshua Tree Tour. Bono's given name Paul David Hewson born May 10th 1960.
Born in Dublin, Ireland. He is not only a musician, venture capitalist, businessman; he is well known for hs philanthropist leadership for AIDS and crimes against humanity.
Bono / U2 / Mark Peterson / U2TOURFANS
Bono is a passionate lead singer with his expressive vocal style and songwriting. His lyrics are known for their social and political themes and religious, a spiritual tone.
The last album Bono's lyrics became inspired more by personal experiences shared by the rest of the band. Bono and the band have received 22 Grammy Awards and inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Frame
Bono / U2 / Mark Peterson / U2TOURFANS
Happy Birthday Bono from all of us @U2TOURFANS
Bono Live with Chris Evans on BBC2
Bono calls Chris to tell us about U2's special release for Record Store Day and how the band is celebrating the 30th anniversary of The Joshua Tree album. A brief conversation into the rehearsals and the release of the remixed Red Minning Town single due out this Saturday
U2 Back in Studio with Lilywhite
Watch for a new magazine profile come out early next week about the boys and their studio plans as well as the upcoming tour. A noteworthy comment about a remix of "Red Hill Mining Town" to be pushed out before the tour starting later this year. Ah, wait a minute we also heard that "Songs Of Experience" may be ready late 2017 ahead of a tour kicking off Spring of 2018.
The band is expected to head back into Electric Lady Studios with magic man Steve Lillywhite to fine tune the album.
We can expect that some of the lyrics may be getting uplift now that the US elections are over and Donald Trump is in office. Clayton suggested that they have about 15 to 16 songs however the album will only produce 12 songs.
This long-awaited album has been the focus for many, the band, fans and of course Live Nation that wraps the tour around a successful release. Waiting can be settling for most. However, U2 has always worked on releasing on their schedule.
Nothing comes out before they are totally decided on the vibe, the feeling and the ability to perform those songs live. A couple of tracks have been named, yet to be confirmed. "The Showmen" “The Little Things That Give You Away,” “Red Flag Day” and “Summer of Love,” the last two of which deal with the refugee crisis. Another track is called “The Best Thing About You Is Me,” all reported in the next edition of MoJo
U2 Singapore, U2 Holidays and 2017
New York City: In a strange way, sort of me too statement U2 also will be on their way to Singapore next year (2017) for a possible stadium tour. Coldplay announced their 2017 tour dates with a stop over in Singapore National Stadium.
Some noise around the boys from Dublin suggests that the long-awaited "Songs Of Experience" may be released in 2017 with a massive global stadium tour. The Singapore stop would the first time that U2 has performed in Singapore. Don't start packing as of yet. The boys have not confirmed anything, and sources inside the band have not commented.
We know everyone has been waiting for the next release even talks of a release before Grammy voting season dashed by not releasing anything before October the boys have effectively knocked themselves right off the list of contenders for 2016 which could have been a solid showing for the boys.
Now it surely looks to be a 2017 release. Which as we stated before this is a big album for U2. The release needs a solid entry on the Billboard charts, not just one hit, a couple of solid placements within the top 10 Rock charts to remain relevant and bring along those new fans from the previous album.
Now long-time U2 fans will say that they would rather have a solid album and not care too much about the business side. However, this is a business, and the band has been acutely aware that the machine needs to be treated and fed with a successful release. We hear from U2 fans often that say the business side does not concern them, which our view frankly states that the music has a hard time getting exposure without a solid business plan. In other news, the holidays just around the corner and we have been busy with restructuring the operations side of our community.
Totally not ready for any major announcements however we can say we plan to scale up in some parts of our social communities and scale down within some. The bottom line is that we are looking to streamline our communities to reduce our costs and provide a better experience. Hiring will start in 2017 early for some key members which we will announce shortly.
Holidays !
Yea this is the time of the year we all gather around our friends and family to enjoy some holiday cheer. We have been working with Mark Peterson to produce a couple of exclusive items for this holiday.
Watch for a release in a few days for Holiday Cards that you can personalize, Calendars and two brand new U2 Photo books and as a bonus a digital access key to the picture vault to download some very exclusive items. Yea we thought this was a pretty cool way to finish out the year. All proceeds go directly to Mark's touring budget which if you have been following we had Mark around a few cities during the last tour. Cheers and Be well U2 fans 2017 is right around the corner.
Bono To Trump Wake Up Dream Over
Salesforce.com was the sponsor of the last U2 concert. Have you ever attended the DreamFest party? The party is the annual fundraising benefit for UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals. Ticket prices for the fundraiser are sold out and started at $1,000 and ran all the way up to a $1 million sponsorship package that includes perks such as access to exclusive viewing areas. The total fundraising goal for the event was $10 million.
We all know that Bono speaks his mind about politics, live and the concept of treating people with respect. He and the boys took the stage on Wednesday night ( using the Vertigo stage)
Last night's version of Bullet was a political version taking aim at Donald Trump. Bono engaged in a lengthy mocking "conversation" with Trump, criticizing his temperament and a range of his policies, and also accusing him of trying to steal the "American dream" and hurt many groups of people. The song turned out to be a very long because of the interaction with Donald. A very powerful message just weeks before the election.
Now, candidate, you understand it’s not just Mexican people who are going to have a problem with this wall of yours,” he said. “It’s everyone who loves the idea of America. Like the Irish, for example, or the French, or the Brazilians. Everyone who believes what they read at the foot of the Statue of Liberty: 'Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.’”
U2 pretty much played the hits from their earlier works. No surprises unless you count just one song from the 90's. A total of 15 songs, no breaks straight thru performance. The gig pretty much a solid corporate gig.
The full setlist was:
- Vertigo
- Elevation
- I Will Follow
- Beautiful Day / Zooropa (snippet) / Blackbird (snippet)
- California Dreamin' (snippet) / California (There Is No End To Love)
- Angel Of Harlem
- Stuck In A Moment
- Every Breaking Wave
- Bullet The Blue Sky
- The Hands That Built America (snippet) / Pride (In The Name Of Love)
- One / My Sweet Lord (snippet)
- Mother And Child Reunion (snippet) / Where The Streets Have No Name
- With Or Without You
- I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
- 40
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