Another toe-tapper from Boy, "Out of Control" has the distinction of being the first song the guys heard played on the radio. Bono wrote the lyrics in the wee hours of the morning following his eighteenth birthday. "It was one dull morning/I woke the world with bawling/I was so sad/They were so glad . . ." The song is about being born -- or rather objecting to it -- and feeling that you have no control over your life.
The band’s 100-date 18-month world tour will see the multi-millionaires clock up an incredible 70,000 air miles in their fuel-guzzling private jet. U2360 tour also features three 390-ton stages criss-crossing the globe, along with 200 crew and backstage staff. U2’s CO2 emissions are the equivalent of the waste created by 6,500 average British or Irish people in an entire year, or equal to leaving a standard 100 watt lightbulb on for 159,000 years.
The band’s vast emissions are dozens of times bigger than Madonna’s carbon footprint on her 2006 world tour, despite her extravagant demands and 250 staff. She produced 1,635 tons in air transport.
U2’s PR agency RMP did not return a request asking if the band were buying carbon offsets to contribute towards the damage of their enormous emissions.
Carbonfootprint.com’s environment consultant Helen Roberts said: “The carbon footprint generated by U2’s 44 concerts this year is equal to carbon created by the four band members travelling the 34.125 million miles from Earth to Mars in a passenger plane.
“You also have to add the carbon emissions from the same number of concerts again next year.
“Just looking at the 44 concerts this year, the band will create enough carbon to fly all 90,000 people attending one of their Wembley concerts to Dublin. To offset this year’s carbon emissions, U2 would need to plant 20,118 trees.”
Pollution experts said U2’s 44 concerts in Europe and North America this year will produce 20,117.50 tons of CO2 emissions, unless the band unexpectedly decide to ship to equipment to the US, in which case the footprint would be 5091.41 tons.
Bono and his bandmates will generate 64.42 tons of CO2 by flying 22,037 miles to this year’s gigs in their private jet, currently stationed at Nice airport, near their Cote d’Azur holiday villas in the south of France.
Most of the carbon footprint comes from transporting the three 390-tons stages, using 3,286.60 tons of CO2, with another 916.07 tons for extra equipment. Next year they are expected to play 20 concerts in North America in June and July and 20 dates in Europe in August and September.
Yesterday’s epic Wimbledon men’s final, launched the commercial featuring the music of U2 first flickered on the screen. “Wait, is that an iPod ad?” I thought as a series of lens flares flew around my TV, behind Bono and his band of merry men. As it turns out, everyone was wrong–but not that wrong. The new video has that look and feel of an Apple ad. However its pure Blackberry.Guess what song they used for the first commercial. Enjoy and please be sure to comment. Cheers.
This peppy 1980s tune, released on the Boy album, is still as fresh today as when it debuted nearly three decades ago. The song is charged with Edge's gritty guitar riffs and a pounding drum beat by
I was on the outside when you said
You said you needed me
I was looking at myself
I was blind, I could not see
A boy tries hard to be a man
His mother takes him by his hand
If he stops to think he starts to cry
Oh why
If you walkaway, walkaway
I walkaway, walkaway...i will follow
If you walkaway, walkaway
I walkaway, walkaway...i will follow
I was on the inside
When they pulled the four walls down
I was looking through the window
I was lost, I am found
Walkaway, walkaway
I walkaway, walkaway...i will follow
If you walkaway, walkaway,
I walkaway, walkaway...i will follow
I will follow
Your eyes make a circle
I see you when I go in there
Your eyes, your eyes...
If you walkaway, walkaway
I walkaway, walkaway..i will follow
If you walkaway, walkaway
I walkaway, walkaway...i will follow
I will follow
I will follow...
Opera, like rock and roll, is about vowel sounds more than it is about constanants. To hit high notes, As and Bs, or even top Cs you need those wide open words like Amore, like Love. In a lyrical sense, ‘Pride, In the Name of Love’, one of U2’s songs began as Opera.
I guess you could say I was in love with Italy even before I knew there was an Italy. I knew it as soon as we arrived. Our version of soul music did not have to be explained the way it did in Northern Europe. It was immediately understood. U2 never bought into the Northern European version of cool -- which was just another word for cold. We were Italians who didn’t know how to dress. Ours was a Latin temperament, furious at injustice, loving being alive. Loving The Life, food, drink, friendship, family. We too had an unusual relationship with the concept of religion. Annoyed often by its conservatism, and buoyed often by its fundamentals, of faith, hope, and love. We marveled at Italian genius, from da Vinci to Marconi, from Fellini films to futurism, from Ferrari and Fiat to Armani and Diesel.
I teach my children to take mental snapshots that they can play back later. Me too. These are my snapshots of Italy: the shows… my voice being drowned out. by the crowd's bel canto … escorted by armoured car through a riot outside one of our shows in the early eighties and noticing how no one was hurt , how it was more of a dance. Up early in the morning to discover the ghosts and relics of Turin and see the shop fronts being dressed in Milan…The treat of a Bellini in the Villa San Michele on my 40th birthday in Florence… In Rome, soaking up the light in the dark room compositions of Caravaggio… Understanding why the poet Keats would choose to die there – and trying not to understand why he chose as his epitaph: “Here lies a man whose words were written on water”. Visiting also Shelley and observing his epitaph: “Seize the day.”
And that’s it right there, that’s the Italian energy: seize the day. ….now cut to 1999, in Castel Gandolfo with Bob Geldof, Quincy Jones and the world reknowned economist Jeff Sachs. The Pope puts my glasses on as we talk about debt cancellation… 2001, in the tense tear-gassed streets of the Genoa G8, marching with the great Jovanotti for debt cancellation and greater resources for the poorest countries.
Fast forward to now and 34 million more children are going to school in Africa because people got out on the streets around the world. Three million people in Africa are on life-saving medication since the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria was created that year in Genoa. This is all good news.
But the good news makes the bad news worse. Overall, the fanfare and parade promises made by the G8 to the poorest of the poor have not been kept. What does it mean to break a promise to the most vulnerable?
At a fundamental level, it calls into question the moral underpinnings of the Judeo Christian? Enlightenment? value system of the West. On a practical level, it threatens to erode existing good will towards us based on past support we have shown. On a political level, it undermines the credibility of gatherings such as the G8, about to take place in L’Aquila.
The hosts, Italy, have fallen behind more than any of the other G8 countries, promising to increase aid to Africa, but the brutal fact is that this aid has been slashed. So we find ourselves here loving Italy as much as ever, but agitating once again. This agitation on the subject of extreme poverty comes mainly from mothers, school teachers, students, churchgoers. When it comes from spoiled rotten rich rock stars it gets more attention, but it’s much harder to take -- particularly when those rock stars are Irish. We know that’s an absurdity. But so is a child dying of a tiny mosquito bite in the 21st century.
I remember Il Professori, Prime Minister Prodi, up all night at a G8 meeting, having to listen to Bob Geldof and myself berate him on Italian aid. His grace and patience and determination I can never forget.
And now, in recession and tough times, Mr Berlusconi has to listen to the same exhortation and exclamations as his G8 comes around. Who would want to be a politician in these times? Now more than ever we need leaders who have an ability to leap forward in time to a world differently envisioned, then spring back and make the changes required to realize it. What will we see of that this week, here in this dynamic country whose generosity of spirit infects everyone who visits?
Values are as important if not more important, than value in the markets. If we can stop hardship and deprivation by relatively cheap and easy interventions such as malaria nets, AIDS drugs, or a handful of seeds and fertilizer, then we have no other choice. Because we can we must.
Love thy neighbour is not advice -- it’s a command. There seems to be a contradiction. The biggest heart in Europe, Italy, with its head on the wrong way for now… suffering amnesia. But I can't think about that for now.
As I prepare for the privilege of performing in San Siro later this week, opera once again fills my head. Memories of Pavarotti…his microphone at the end of his bed in Modena. His putting off singing Miss Sarejevo with me until he ate, slept and, from the look on his face, made out with Nicoletta! His volcano of a voice, spitting fire, erupting. A volcano that blew a hole in the sky, and in my heart -- in the heart of anyone who ever heard him sing. Serious interpretive talent…next to charmer, performer, lover, husband, father, friend, child and man. Paradox always. Like his country.
U2 fans have expressed fury after it emerged the three Croke Park concerts in Dublin for its 360 tour will not be fully "in the round" as concerts at other venues around the world will be. Fans been posting comments on twitter."Pretty annoyed to find out were only getting 270 of the stage," The "claw" stage at the centrepiece of the show wowed fans in Barcelona at its launch last week and allowed the band to effectively play to all sides of the all-seated Nou Camp stadium. The stage was situated at one end of the stadium in Barcelona, and will be in the same position at Croke Park, with Hill 16 as a backdrop. However, no seats will be fitted on the Hill and no tickets have been sold for the famous terrace -- which means that the band will effectively be playing to 270 degrees of the Jones Road venue. "There is no reason why it can't be in the middle." A seating chart for the concerts -- which take place on the 24th, 25th and 27th of this month -- shows that all stands at Croke Park will be filled, and there will be space for fans on the pitch. However, there will be no standing space behind the stage, as it backs on to the Hill.
September 1976: A 14-year-old drummer posts a notice at school that he's looking to start a band. Rehearsals are held in his parent's kitchen
The name didn't last, but more than 30 years and 22
The keys to U2's longevity include respect for each other and their fans; the ability to continuously reinvent themselves and their musical style; and powerful music with a message.
But the meanings of most U2 songs are subject to interpretation. Bono is a genius at writing ambiguous lyrics, allowing listeners to decide what each song means to them. Read on to take a musical journey with the band that Time magazine once named "Rock's Hottest Ticket."
We just heard back from Twitter via email, and they said : “Spamcloud hit. We’re working on restoring accounts.”
We just need to be patient. The suspended accounts will be restored.
Update: We have no idea exactly what a “spam cloud” means. It is probably Twitter staff lingo for a massive spam attack.
Update: We have seen during previous spam attacks that Twitter tends to shoot first and ask questions later and indiscriminately lay down carpet bombing when their system comes under a spam attack. A lot of innocent-bystander accounts get massacred in the process, which they then have to restore afterwards. This is most likely what has happened again.
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For the next 29 days on top of our concert series we will be working on a series of 29 songs that their history. We will include photos, videos and more. Sign up and follow us via Twitter, *Retweeting is cool or on our site direct. Also remember if your attending a show over the next few months we would like your video, photos and comments. Sign up and share. Thank you everyone that as supported our new design we cleared 40 thousand new visitors last week. The return visitors was just over 100K. We would like to thank our sponsors and readers for a wonderful tour start. We have launched a youtube site as well.
So whats your take on this ?
American musician and label owner
The Irish band's sleeve for 'No Line On The Horizon' features the same image as Deupree's 2006 album 'Specification. Fifteen'.
Both covers are based on a photograph by Japanese artist
U2 will be releasing a 25th anniversary edition of The Unforgettable Fire later this year. According to U2tour.de, a plastic bag found at one of the Camp Nou merchandising stands had this printed on the outside: Coming October 2009 The Unforgettable Fire 25th Anniversary Edition. The bag also has a photo of an Unforgettable Fire box set similar in size to The Joshua Tree box set released in 2007.
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Now playing: U2 - Elevation - Tomb Raider Remix
via FoxyTunes
Tuesday night saw the launch of (RED)ZONES at the first U2 360 Degrees concert in Barcelona where U2 kicked off their new tour to a rapturous sold out crowd of 90,000 fans.
(RED)ZONES are prime location areas directly adjacent to the stage which will be present throughout the U2 tour. The tickets for the (RED)ZONES are available through auction with the band’s portion of the ticket sales going to the Global Fund to help fund AIDS programs in Africa.
“We’re really proud and grateful to have the support of U2 in our work. In a short time, (RED) has raised over $130 million for the Global Fund through partners and events and that money has already supported programs that have reached more than four million people,” said Susan Smith Ellis, CEO, (RED).
“(RED)’s contribution to the Global Fund in just three years is over $130 million. This is not only helping hundreds of thousands of people in Rwanda, Swaziland, Ghana and Lesotho where the money is at work on the ground but (RED), through its partners’ marketing efforts is also having a tremendous impact on public awareness of the HIV pandemic in Africa. We are honoured to have both the crucial support of the money flowing in, and the vote of confidence in the Global Fund’s way of providing aid,” said Professor Michel Kazatchkine, Executive Director of the Global Fund To Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
The U2 360 Degrees Tour will play 15 cities in Europe finishing at Cardiff’s Millennium on 22nd August before heading to North America, 20 shows starting in Chicago September 12th. In 2009, in just 44 shows the tour will perform for over 3 million fans. And (RED) will be at all shows, with our sister organization ONE, letting people know how they can get involved in both helping eliminate AIDS in Africa through (RED) and fighting extreme poverty through ONE. Along with ONE and (RED), the tour is also associated with the Burma Campaign, Amnesty International, Music Rising, the Angiogenesis Foundation and Mencap.
(RED)ZONES are a continuation of (RED)’s growing musical partnerships including (RED)WIRE (http://www.redwire.com/), an online music service that raises money for the Global Fund, and (RED)NIGHTS, a series of concerts that engages artists and their fans to raise awareness for the issue of AIDS in Africa.
The U2 360° Tour is a worldwide concert tour by the Irish rock band U2. Launched in support of the group's 2009 album No Line on the Horizon, the tour will visit stadiums from 2009 through 2010, whereas the previous two tours, the Elevation Tour and the Vertigo Tour, were primarily played in indoor arenas. The U2 360° Tour is named after the 360-degree staging and audience configuration it uses for shows,which U2 claims is "the first time a band has toured in stadiums with such a unique and original structure." In an era of declining CD sales, the tour is expected to be a major source of income for the band.
the tour features a 360-degree configuration, with the stage being placed closer to the center of the stadium's field than usual.] The stage has no defined front or back and is surrounded on all sides by the audience. The stage design also includes a cylindrical video screen and will increase the venues' capacities by about 15–20%. Only tiered football stadiums can be used with this scheme; flat fields and baseball stadiums are not possible venues. Willie Williams, who has worked on every U2 tour since 1982, is again a designer for this tour;Mark Fisher serves as the architect.
Williams had been toying with ideas for 360-degree stadium staging for U2 for a number of years,and presented sketches of a four-legged design to the group near the end of their Vertigo Tour in 2006.The inspiration for the "spaceship-on-four-legs" design, nicknamed "the Claw", came from the landmark Theme Building at Los Angeles International Airport. The steel structure will be 164 feet tall – doubling the size of the stadium set for The Rolling Stones' A Bigger Bang Tour, the previous highest – and will require 120 trucks to transport. Each leg of the structure will contain its own sound system. U2 will purchase carbon offsets to take into consideration the environmental impact of the massive production. As with many large-scale tours of its era, the U2 360° Tour will have both the workforce and the revenues associated with a medium-sized company.
As the tour was announced, U2 guitarist The Edge said of the show's design: "It's hard to come up with something that's fundamentally different, but we have, I think, on this tour. Where we're taking our production will never have been seen before by anybody, and that's an amazing thing to be able to say. For a band like U2 that really thrive on breaking new ground, it's a real thrill." Lead singer Bono said the design was intended to overcome the staid traditional appearance of outdoor concerts where the stage was dominated by speaker stacks on either side: "We have some magic, and we've got some beautiful objects we're going to take around the world, and we're inside that object." He also said that the group's goal was for the show to not be too choreographed. Williams said the goal is to establish a physical proximity: "The band is just sitting in the palm of the audience's hand."
Masterbeat.com really seems to be getting the scoop on U2 remixes lately. Available on Masterbeat.com now are the Dirty South remixes of I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight and an exclusive remix of Magnificent by Richard Vission. Its worth checking out. They seem to have all of the remixes before most of the mashup sites. I Mastbeat now too. Sure its a play on words. -
U2 played their second night of the 360 tour in Barcelona. From what we have heard less people in queue( we are guessing it was because of the heat) and getting to the front of the stage was easier. The sound check included Electrical Storm and both the remix and album versions of Crazy Tonight. Reports came in that 30 minutes before the show there is no sight of Bono’s monitor.
It quickly becomes apparent U2 have come to ROCK. Surprise after surprise emerges from the stage: Desire, Party Girl and the big fan favourite ‘Electrical Storm’ sees its live debut. Then they really put the crazy in Crazy Tonight, playing *BOTH* the remix and the album version. The album version, which came during the second encore, was filmed. Perhaps a video for its single release.
Setlist
Barcelona authorities may fine U2 for excess noise in their tour of Spain
Sent via BlackBerry by U2
Barcelona authorities may fine U2 for excess noise in their tour of Spain more to follow on U2tourfans.com Sent via BlackBerry by U2
The future never quite works the way you want it to !
Well thats what you think. We have scored the video and audio from the show on Tuesday night. Currently we are cleaning it up adding the credits and we will soon post it for down load on U2tourfans.com. We will have to ask you to subscribe to us and we will provide a link to get the video.
Second night and we have heard from sources that those little bugs have all been worked out. We shall see.
Remember those of you attending the show you can send videos, photos, tweets and comments direct to us. We will be posting updates as often as we can.
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For now kick back, relax its going to be a great show !
All that we ask is that you visit our website. Sign up, click and visit our sponsors. We have reports coming in worldwide for the whole tour. Enjoy. Hurry up the audio is sure to be pulled -