Oops Billboard! Loose Lips, Creates A Buzz

New York City:  24 hrs may seem like a long time, however, have learned very early sometimes you better wait before reporting a source's statement.

It looks like Billboard's reporter Lipshutz may have jumped out a bit early on a story that suggests U2 2017 concert schedule.

Jason Lipshutz ( which we are a fan of his work) published a story suggesting sources told him that U2 would do a series of dates and even suggested a headline slot a major festival. However, within a short time, the whole article has been edited to remove the rumors and any of the proposed details. 

U2 marketing machine would want to be in full control of the timing and release of any tour news.  Too bad for Jason that all of the outlets picked up on his story and ran with it as if it was gospel.  U2 fans don't worry the tour news will be forthcoming in due time.

U2 2017 Tour ?

New York City:  Who has that magic eight ball? Call the psychic hotline! Anyone's guess as to what is up with U2 right now. The boys have been in and out of the studio for some time. 

The challenge to make an album that can stand the test of time, push the band over the edge of yesterday's mega rock band into tomorrow's hipster cool Williamsburg, Brooklyn craft beer drinking fans next musical phase.

Oh shit, we sure to piss off yesterday's fans now. Shit, We have done it. U2 hardcore fans just want a fresh new album. Not really caring about charts, Grammy awards any of that other crap associated with the business of music.

Truth told. Its a business and the boys do earn a nice living from our support. To think that they are not interested in new fans is very naive of us. The music business has changed. Downloads, Steaming are king! Bands must tour to achieve mega cash. U2 is no different a solid album leads to a mega tour combining the old and new fans. This last album right or wrong, indifference to what we think the album did bring some new fans to the party. MSG was sold out for a week, and while looking around the crowd, we could spot fresh faces singing the new and yes old songs.  

Mark Peterson 2015 Copyright

It's Christmas time in New York and all we could ask Santa for this year is a taste of some fresh new U2 beats and oh yea some tour calendar info. Well U2 fans around the world. We are blessed beyond measure, and we trust that you enjoy your holiday season with friends and family and most of all remember to help someone achieve their goals helps you make yours. 

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.

U2 Tour Fans Opens U2 Italiano

New York City:  As we said we have been working around the clock to start building a truly global U2 news community. We have already vetted many reporters and we have been looking at thousands of videos and images and we are almost ready to introduce a brand new area dedicated to you. We have always been a global community. Providing U2 news to fans around the world. Now we are going to expand our coverage to include in country, in language news, reviews and updates.

We are pleased to introduce U2TOURFANS Global. Our newest project will have in country support around the world. Yes we will be reporting in your language. This is a great opportunity for us to expand our scope our vision and our interest in connecting all of us via our common interests. Its a work in progress and we will be making some changes as we move along.

For now please welcome our first writer to the team Sarah Castree will be writing on our "U2 Italiano" page.  We will post in English too.  We invite you to read Sarah's first entry and please share your comments. 

Boston 3 Down, Gretchen 1 Up

U2/ U2TOURFANS / Nick Walker 2015

Boston: Show #3 down and the band can see New York on the horizon. The bright city lights await the boys arrival.

The North American leg will come to a fast wrap up later in the month with New York as the final North American city for the bands U2 iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour 2015, 

Some very upset fans waited outside and inside a bar that passed around a secret event that even some blog sites picked up on. The band was not scheduled to perform on Monday night. We have a long standing policy not to engage in rumors or anything that we can not confirm.

Boston #3 had a few surprises with some movement around the setlist. The Crystal Ballroom made an appearance and Beautiful Day entered into a well deserved encore slot. The show closed with "I Shill Haven't Found, What I Am Looking For"  The highlight for the evening was "Gretchen" who Bono met earlier outside the venue. Bono asked her to join the band on stage and perform. "All I Want Is You"  Well played Gretchen, the crowd enjoyed the performance.

Venue Boston TD Garden July 14, 2015

1. The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone)
2. The Electric Co. / Send In The Clowns (snippet) / I Can See For Miles (snippet)
3. Vertigo
4. I Will Follow
5. Iris (Hold Me Close)
6. Cedarwood Road
7. Song For Someone
8. Sunday Bloody Sunday / When Johnny Comes Marching Home (snippet)
9. Raised By Wolves / Psalm 23 (snippet)
10. Until The End Of The World / Love And Peace Or Else (snippet)

(Intermission)

1. Invisible
2. Even Better Than The Real Thing
3. Mysterious Ways / Burning Down The House (snippet) / Young Americans (snippet)
4. Elevation
5. The Crystal Ballroom / Miss You (snippet)
6. All I Want Is You
7. Every Breaking Wave
8. With Or Without You
9. City Of Blinding Lights
10. Bullet The Blue Sky
11. The Hands That Built America (snippet) / Pride (In The Name Of Love)

encore(s):

1. Beautiful Day / Ultra Violet (Light My Way) (snippet) / I Remember You (snippet)
2. Mother And Child Reunion (snippet) / Where The Streets Have No Name / California (There Is No End To Love) (snippet)
3. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For / People Have The Power (snippet)

*snippets provided by U2GIGS

U2 iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour 2015 Updated

Most U2 fans have already used their pre sale code for announced earlier dates. We have heard from some of you about your displeasure in the whole process. The process has been a bit challenging however this is nothing new for large bands trying to be sure that they sell out venues before adding dates. 

U2 continues to sell out shows and we can expect to see more dates added as the tour continues to grow.  Like we know that Dublin has to be on the schedule. Its going to be a busy tour schedule.  We updated all of the dates we have confirmed.  We will keep you informed as we find out more info. 

We can suggest that you download the easy to use mobile app that will give you the most current tour schedule and lots other great features.

NORTH AMERICA 2015
May 14th, Vancouver, BC, Rogers Arena
May 15th, Vancouver, BC, Rogers Arena
May 18th, San Jose, CA, SAP Center at San Jose
May 19th, San Jose, CA, SAP Center at San Jose
May 22nd, Phoenix, AZ, US Airways Center
May 23rd, Phoenix, AZ, US Airways Center
May 26th, Los Angeles, CA, Forum
May 27th, Los Angeles, CA, Forum
May 30th, Los Angeles, CA, Forum
May 31st, Los Angeles, CA, Forum

June 3rd, Los Angeles, CA, Forum - On Sale Friday, January 30th
June 12th, Montreal, QC, Bell Centre
June 13th, Montreal, QC, Bell Centre
June 16th, Montreal, QC, Bell Centre
June 17th, Montreal, QC, Bell Centre
June 24th, Chicago, IL, United Center
June 25th, Chicago, IL, United Center
June 28th, Chicago, IL, United Center
June 29th, Chicago, IL, United Center

July 2nd, Chicago, IL, United Center - On Sale Tuesday, February 10th
July 6th, Toronto, ON, Air Canada Centre
July 7th, Toronto, ON, Air Canada Centre
July 10th, Boston, MA, TD Garden
July 11th, Boston, MA, TD Garden
July 14th, Boston, MA, TD Garden
July 15th, Boston, MA, TD Garden
July 18th, New York, NY, Madison Square Garden
July 19th, New York, NY, Madison Square Garden
July 22nd, New York, NY, Madison Square Garden
July 23rd, New York, NY, Madison Square Garden
July 26th, New York, NY, Madison Square Garden
July 27th, New York, NY, Madison Square Garden
July 30th, New York, NY, Madison Square Garden - On Sale Tuesday, February 10th

EUROPE / UK 2015
Sept. 4th, Turin, Italy , Pala Alpitour
Sept. 5th, Turin, Italy, Pala Alpitour
Sept. 8th, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Ziggo Dome
Sept. 9th, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Ziggo Dome
Sept. 12th, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Ziggo Dome
Sept. 13th, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Ziggo Dome
Sept. 16th, Stockholm, Sweden, Globe
Sept. 17th, Stockholm, Sweden, Globe
Sept. 20th, Stockholm, Sweden, Globe
Sept. 21th, Stockholm, Sweden, Globe
Sept. 24th, Berlin, Germany, O2 World
Sept. 25th, Berlin, Germany, O2 World
Sept. 28th, Berlin, Germany, O2 World
Sept. 29th, Berlin, Germany, O2 World

Oct. 5th, Barcelona, Spain, Palau Sant Jordi
Oct. 6th, Barcelona, Spain, Palau Sant Jordi
Oct. 9th, Barcelona, Spain, Palau Sant Jordi - On Sale Tuesday, February 10th
Oct. 13th, Antwerp, Belgium, Sportpaleis
Oct. 14th, Antwerp, Belgium, Sportpaleis
Oct. 17th, Koln, Germany, Lanxess Arena
Oct. 18th Koln, Germany, Lanxess Arena

Oct. 25th, London, UK, O2
Oct. 26th, London, UK, O2
Oct. 29th, London, UK, O2
Oct. 30th, London, UK, O2

Nov. 2nd, London, UK, O2 - On Sale Friday, February 6th
Nov. 6th, Glasgow, UK, The SSE Hydro
Nov. 7th, Glasgow, UK, The SSE Hydro
Nov. 10th, Paris, France, Bercy
Nov. 11th, Paris, France, Bercy
Nov. 14th, Paris, France, Bercy
Nov. 15th, Paris, France, Bercy

Top 15 U2 Songs of Love, Faith, Sex, War and Family

Top 15 U2 Songs

By Robert E Hunt Jr

Perhaps more than any other rock band, these four Irish lads get deep inside your head and even deeper into your heart. They've reinvented their sound several times over yet they still manage to write and perform great songs dealing with a wide range of subjects ... Love, religion, politics, sex, war, family, friendship, personal tragedy as well as the simple pure joy of playing music itself.

 U2 is both technically precise and deeply personal and human at the same time. Larry Mullen Jr and Adam Clayton anchor a driving thunderous rhythm section while The Edge stands out as an amazingly unique and dazzling guitar player. And then there's Bono. Arguably the best frontman in rock and roll, he also manages to support if not drive several world-wide political causes while at the same time living the life of the pampered rock star. Perhaps no other celebrity alive has managed to mix the trappings of fame and glory with the dedication to helping others as well as Bono.

 While other U2 fans may disagree, here are this fan's top 15 favorite U2 songs .

 15. Mothers of the Disappeared

This five-minute gem closes out "The Joshua Tree", U2's biggest and best selling album. It's a brooding, haunting, spooky song that starts with just a faint percussion line and some sporadic guitar feedback. Then it settles into a slow, rhythmic almost dirge-like beauty.

Bono and Edge combine for an achingly gorgeous falsetto chorus while the song gently moves along. The title refers to the Asociación Madres de Plaza de Mayo, a group of Argentine mothers who lost their children, "The Disappeared", during Argentina's Dirty War from 1976 to 1983. As such, this is one of U2's most politically driven songs and it clearly demonstrates the band's interest and commitment to human rights. In a legendary 1989 performance in Buenos Aires, many of the Mothers came out on stage and stood as one holding up posters of their children as the band played this song. Very few rock bands can do that.

 14. Mysterious Ways

 This song is dedicated to that most beautiful of all creatures ... Women. It's a very loud but sensuous song with another of Edge's superb opening guitar riffs. This song is off their successful 1991 album, "Achtung Baby". Baby was a distinct departure from the band's earlier sound as this disc was their first venture into a new techno-dance sound that they would continue exploring throughout the 90's. During their 90's live shows, a belly dancer would join the band on stage during this song. In a case of life imitating art, Edge even married one of the belly dancers, Morleigh Steinberg. Clearly, she moved in Mysterious Ways.

 13. City of Blinding Lights

 "Lights" is from the band's 2004 album, "How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb", and it opened up most nights of the 2005-06 Vertigo Tour. It has a shimmering "wall of sound" feel to it but it's also a kickass rocker with another of the band's trademark sing-a-long choruses. The song is about New York City in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. U2 has had a long and fascinating love affair with America and felt the loss much the same way Americans did. As the story goes, they were flying in to New York at night some time after the attacks and could see the city lit up from above like it always has been. "Oh, you look so beautiful tonight" was the result.

 12. New Year's Day

 From 1983's "War", this was U2's first big hit single. Originally a love song, it was reformed as a tribute to Lech Walesa's Polish Solidarity movement. It's about starting over fresh and new and it features Edge on both organ and guitar. He plays both instruments during live shows as well. Adam's bass line is also one of his best and carries much more of the song's texture than he typically does. And Larry's drums are up front and razor sharp too. Instantly recognizable, "Day" is a concert staple and still one of their most popular and well-known songs.

 11. The Fly

 One of the great "character" songs in the band's catalog, "The Fly" also features one of Edge's most distinctive and agressive "techno" riffs. This "Achtung Baby" song is the definitive break between the band's original sound and their new 90's "industrial" direction. "Fly" still has all the required U2 elements but they're played and mixed in a new way that instantly illustrates two conflicting themes ... Yes, this is U2 and no, we've never heard them like this before. From this point forward, "The Joshua Tree" was history. On stage, Bono assumes the character of "The Fly", a preening, strutting, leather-clad rock star in black wraparound sunglasses. When that phone call from Hell comes, it might as well be "The Fly" answering it. This song is 90's U2. It was their past, present and future.

 10. Running To Stand Still

 A truly lovely song about a sad subject, drug addiction, and heroin in particular. It's an achingly beautiful song filled with pathos and sympathy. Another one from "The Joshua Tree", "Still" has some of the band's most painful and poignant lyrics and some of their best slow song melodies. When played live, the crowd usually gets quiet and then softly sings along with Bono ... "Singing ha, ah la la la de day, Ah la la la de day, Ah la la de day". This is one of the band's songs that really gets down deep inside you. Very few fans can hear this one and not feel the pain and empty sadness. "She will suffer the needle chill, She's running to stand ........ still."

 9. Elevation

 This is a loud, raucous, joyous, all-out, infectious number dedicated to either heaven above or just plain old joy and exhiliration down below. During the band's 2001 tour, they took the unusual step of opening each show by casually walking onto the stage with the house lights still on and then ripping into this song driving the crowd into a pogo stick frenzy. With Edge's raging feedback guitar and Bono's kickboxer poses, "Elevation" was the perfect opener for that tour. The band also played this song during a Saturday Night Live gig that year and drove that crowd and the show host, Val Kilmer, wild too. A mole, living in a hole, digging up my soul.

 8. Pride (In The Name Of Love)

 This is one of the U2's best known songs and it's also one of their best. As most fans know, it's about the Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. Edge plays a fiery guitar on "Pride" while Adam and Larry provide their customary solid backbeat. But this one is Bono's all the way. Yes, there is a mistake in the lyrics. Dr. King was assassinated in the early evening of April 4, not the early morning. But it doesn't matter. This is a song that crosses over racial boundaries as well as the Atlantic Ocean to recognize a true human hero. And Bono makes sure we know that. The band is rarely more urgent or more intense when they kick into this one.

 7. "40"

 A short and simple song but very powerful, "40" is often played to close down a live show. It's off the band's 1983 album, "War" and the title and lyrics are a reference to Psalm 40 in the Bible. Typically, they play it while the band leaves the stage one at a time. Bono usually exits first leaving the crowd singing the chorus line of "How long to sing this song" over and over. Edge leaves next while Adam and Larry remain. After Adam takes his bow and leaves, Larry and his drums are all that's left. But the crowd is still singing. Then Larry leaves. And we all stay and sing. Over and over. How long to sing this song. How long, how long. Then the lights slowly come on.

 6. When I Look At The World

 This is an obscure little-known track from U2's 2000 disc, "All That You Can't Leave Behind". It was not released as a single and to date, the band has not played it live in concert. But they should. "World" starts with a simple Edge guitar riff, hesitates for a brief pause and then explodes into a beautiful melody with soaring guitar notes and the usual airtight rhythm. Edge is all over this one moving up and down the scales while Bono sings another gorgeous set of lyrics about faith and spirituality. This song is a reminder of just how good U2 is because any other band would have rushed this one out as a single, shot an expensive video and then featured it at every live gig for the rest of their lives.

 5. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For

 The boys do gospel. Oh yes, they do. "Found" is perhaps their most beautiful song. The melody is unforgettable and the chorus is so easy and so much fun to sing along with that most fans never mind when this one gets stuck in their heads. "Found" is about faith, religion, redemption, salvation, all mixed into one peaceful simple tune. It's the second of the "Big Three" songs off their mega-hit 1987 album "The Joshua Tree". This is the album that exploded U2 onto the world scene and cemented their legend for all time. And this song, among others on this incredible record, helped seal that deal. For an extra treat, watch and listen to "Found" in the band's 1989 movie, "Rattle and Hum". The boys team up with a Harlem church choir to show everyone what gospel can be. Heaven.

 4. Sunday Bloody Sunday

 "Sunday" is one of U2's first and most famous overtly political songs. It's about the bloody struggle in Northern Ireland and sends a plaintive almost desperate call for peace in that tortured land. Larry's drums provide a tight almost militaristic cadence while Edge uses a simple but powerful guitar riff throughout. This is another song that the band never plays casually. "Sunday" is an intense song meant to force you to wonder just how long this madness, The Troubles, has to go on. U2 opened their Live Aid set with "Sunday" as it was their most well-known song at the time. And they didn't disappoint.

 3. Where The Streets Have No Name

 The signature song from "The Joshua Tree", "Streets" has one of the band's most mesmerizing openings. It starts with a long church organ solo followed by another classic Edge riff. Then Adam joins in with a pounding bass line followed shortly by Larry's hypnotic drums. Finally, at the 1:45 mark, with the buildup at maxiumum intensity, Bono drops in with the opening line "I wanna run, I want to hide." The video for "Streets" is legendary as well. The boys made an unannounced visit to a rooftop in Los Angeles and started playing. A large crowd quickly gathered and soon the LAPD came and shut it down for fear of traffic and crowd control problems. U2 also played "Streets" during halftime of the 2002 Super Bowl just a few months after 9/11. As they played, the names of each victim scrolled behind the band on an enormous screen. At the end of the song, with millions watching on TV, Bono simply opened his jacket to reveal an American flag inside. Nothing else needed to be said.

 2. One

 This is the song that "saved" U2. As the story goes, the band was on the verge of breaking up while recording "Achtung Baby" in 1991. Edge and Bono wanted to explore the new techno-dance sound while Adam and Larry didn't. Finally, Edge came up with the arrangements for "One" and it changed everyone's outlook and approach to going forward with renewed optimism. The lyrics to "One" are ambiguous. Some interpret it as a love song although not a pain-free one. Others see it as a song about individuality as in "We're one but we're not the same." Regardless, the song is simply stunning and shows the band at its very finest. It's an encore number at all shows and has been covered by several other artists including Mary J Blige and Johnny Cash. "One" is the band's highest ranked song showing up on numerous "best ever" lists. It is the "One".

 1. Bad

 The best of the best. This sad but intense song about drug addiction is a huge crowd favorite. It opens with Edge repeating just two simple but unmistakable chiming notes over and over until the rest of the band kicks in and drives it harder and harder. U2 played this song at Live Aid and all but stole the entire show with it. When Bono went down off the Wembley Stadium stage and into the rapturous crowd, the band kept playing past the time they had planned to end the song and so U2 missed out on playing "Pride", the final song of their set. Legend has it Bono brooded over his "mistake" for weeks after the show until finally being convinced that "Bad" was just that good. If you listen to no other U2 song, this is the one. You'll be wide awake. You won't be sleeping.

New Year Brings New Music and More

The year is coming to a close and this surely was an interesting year.  We have had our share of rumor stories, release dates, tour dates and push back dates and yet it all seemed to work out in the end. 

The album release was interesting, who would have thought about releasing an album for free worldwide on iTunes would have caused such a stir among music fans.

Next we had a scheduled appearance on "The Tonight Show" canceled because Bono was tooling around Central Park and no one seemed to notice. The Edge said it was  because he was disguised as a Hasidic Jew.

Which later was proven untrue.  This week filming the next video, it seemed a bit to noisy for the locals and yet production remained on schedule.   Now we heard that Songs of Experience  will be released early next year. No idea how they plan to release it.

We at U2TOURFANS have been busy too. We have redesigned our website to be more of an interactive place for fans to be able to engage in community interaction with other fans. We launched our forum community both versions now available. The community is rather small right now however we do expect it to grow.  We also made a call out for our tour street team to support the shows coming up. You still have time to sign up and be apart of the fun.   Our tour pages have been built and ready to publish tour news by location. 

We do have to announce that we have reached a major mile stone. We have had over 10 Million interactive U2 fans engaged during the year. This was outstanding ! Finally we have been working on something pretty big for next year.  We believe this will put all our properties together in a single easy to use environment.  We have made some new partners over the years and we believe that we are ready to launch the next phase of U2TOURFANS.  We hope you come along for the ride.  

Cheers Mates,  May the season be a blessing to you and your family and may you find joy and peace within each tune you play.