29 Years Ago in Larry's Kitchen

It was a miserable Sunday night, as far as the weather goes. There was a driving rain, with occasional flashes of lightening and crashes of thunder.

It was the kind of night that you would not want to be on the road, the kind of night to stay snuggled inside; but not for me.

I'd been looking forward to this late September Sunday night for months and all I cared about was what was going on inside the Bradley Center.

Last night, U2's concert was a celebration. Each of their concerts are celebrations of sorts. This one, however, was special. It was an anniversary.

After opening with "City of Blinding Lights," then going into "Vertigo," and following with "Elevation," U2 revisited the early days.

Twenty-nine years ago, in Larry's kitchen, the four lads gathered for the first time and played together as a band.

There's a lot of history in twenty-nine years. It's more than a third of a lifetime.

Bono said from the stage, "Twenty-nine years to this day, this band met for the first day. Little boys with big ideas - probably just big heads."

Those little boys, with their big ideas, and heads, grew up to become one of my all-time, must see, favorite bands.

As a special nod to their anniversary, U2 performed some oldies but goodies from Boy, their first album. It was great to hear "Electric Co." and "The Ocean."

I'm not certain exactly what Bono said just before launching into "Electric Co. It was something to the effect, and I paraphrase, "Some of you may not know these songs, but who cares?" As a longtime fan, I enjoyed that. I knew them well.

I don't know if this was intentional, but after dipping into their distant past, the band performed "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." I think there was a message there. The band took us all the way back to the beginning and then reminded us that twenty-nine years and tremendous success don't necessarily mean complete fulfillment.

That was followed by "Beautiful Day" (which it was, in spite of the rain); and then three songs from their most recent release, all of which were fantastic.

I'm not sure when this happened, but it wasn't all that long into the show. After finishing a song, Bono took a swig from a bottle of water. Then, he splashed the remainder out onto the crowd. It made me think of a priest blessing the faithful with Holy Water.

Our seats were GREAT, on Edge's side at mid-circle of the stage.

They all genuinely seemed to be enjoying themselves. Of course, U2 never phones in their shows, at least not ones that I've attended. The energy is always there; but I sensed a greater closeness between them last night. Maybe it was because this time I was close enough to really see the smiles they exchanged with each other. None of it seemed forced. It smacked of sincerity.

I last saw a U2 show in May. Many of the elements of that performance were the same as this one.

Naturally, Bono talked about Africa and strides being made to alleviate poverty there. He thanked everyone in the audience that had signed on to the One campaign.

He also spoke of the suffering and devastation here at home with Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita. Bono said that one of the reasons the four members of the band were so fond of America is because when our country gets hit, we all pull together to help.

An interesting little twist--Bono sang a few lines of "Old Man River," from the musical Showboat.

I didn't see that one coming!

At one point, I think after "Sunday, Bloody Sunday," holding the Irish flag, he talked about the pride he felt for his home country. Today, the Irish Republican Army is expected to announce that it has destroyed its arsenal of weapons. Bono applauded these men and women for taking this bold step to end "the Troubles" in Ireland.

Bono said that years ago, he would cut the green and orange strips from the Irish flag and just hang onto the white portion. On the eve of the disarmament, Bono claimed to finally be comfortable with what the entire flag represented.

As in May, with Edge playing keyboards, Bono dedicated a song to the "brave men and women of the military." In May, it was "Running to Stand Still." This time, it was a haunting version of "Miss Sarajevo."

A U2 concert wouldn't be a U2 concert if Bono didn't run off at the mouth a bit; but that was kept to a minimum. He presented a positive message and acted as a cheerleader for his causes without being condescending or offensive, like the Dixie Chicks and Kanye West, for example. The list of celebrities who use their status to ram their politics down their audiences' throats is a long one. Bono, in recent years anyway, has learned to gently slide it down, making it far more effective.

With age, Bono's pontificating has taken on a much mellower tone. I think he wants to be a uniter, not a divider. If only others were willing to adopt his approach.

As always, the fifth band member on stage was God. Again, sincerity of personal convictions was in abundance.

The encores offered some endearing moments.

The first encore began with one the band rarely plays live, "First Time." It was a simple arrangement, with Edge playing acoustic. Absolutely lovely.

Then, a very funny, yet sweet thing happened on the next song. Again, with Bono and Edge standing at the tip of the circular walkway, they went into "Wild Horses." There were some miscues. Bono was a bit lost on the lyrics.

The song came to a complete stop. With Bono saying, "Just give us a minute," he and Edge had a little conference and started over. After finishing that one up, Bono shrugged his shoulders and made a thumbs up and a thumbs down sign, in effect asking the crowd, "What did you think?"

I gave it two thumbs up. Although it seemed like I was witnessing a rehearsal rather than an encore, I loved it.

For "With or Without You," Bono pulled a woman on stage with him. He embraced her for the entire song and bowed down to kiss her hand at the end.

The second encore had a terrific, high-energy version of "All Because of You."

That was followed by a beautiful, stripped down rendition of "Yahweh." As a believer, that one really hits home. Bono altered the lyrics a bit at the end.

Instead of "What no man can own, No man can take, Take this heart, Take this heart, Take this heart, And make it break," he sang:

What no man can own,
Only God can take,
Take this heart,
Take this heart,
Take this city's heart,
And keep it safe.

The show ended just as it did in May, with "40" and Bono shining a hand-held spotlight on the crowd.

After saying his final goodbye, Bono exited first. The three remaining on stage continued as the crowd sang. Adam was next to say goodbye and leave. Edge and Larry played on. Then, the music stopped. Edge left, with Larry sitting at the drums, silently staring at the crowd. He then punctuated the night with a solo blast, came out in front and waved his goodbye.

After all these years, U2 is still a band in every sense of the word.

Last night displayed what an incredible journey it's been for those four teenage boys who met in Larry's kitchen twenty-nine years ago.

I'm so glad I've been along for the ride.




Set List

City of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
Elevation
Cry / Electric Co.
The Ocean
I Still Haven’t Found What I'm Looking For
Beautiful Day
Miracle Drug
Sometimes You Can’t Make it on Your Own
Love and Peace or Else
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Bullet The Blue Sky
Miss Sarajevo
Pride (In the Name of Love)
Where the Streets Have No Name
One

First Time
Wild Horses
With or Without You

All Because of You
Yahweh
40