Originally posted by iTim:Ross, Remy, Sergio...you missed out.
Originally posted by pllsaph:Someone was mentioning being unsurprised, or sleeping through the show. I've listened to almost every show on this tour that we've got bootlegs from so far. And while the setlist was mostly unsurprising, I've got say that bootlegs, no matter how great the quality, do no justice to seeing these guys live!
I can't remember how many times I've seen them, but I STILL get goosebumps when Bono walks out on the stage and the show begins. And this time, when Power to the People came on, I could feel it start. And then Bono walked out on to the 'e' stage, and there I was, 17 again, at the Worcester Centrum, for my first ever U2 show on the JT tour.
They did not fail to deliver. I got all my favorites, Sunday Bloody Sunday (the very first video I saw of theirs that got me hooked in the early '80s), Even Better Than the Real Thing (which, I think has shown the most improvement of all songs ion this show, Larry's drumming is UN-EFFING-BELIEVABLE on this!), Elevation, One, With or Without You, Pride, and, of course, my 2 all-time favorites, Bad and 40.
Boston has always been a special place for them, and I've always felt extremely lucky to live here and see them here on most every tour. Last night was no exception, and they played for 2 hours, 45 minutes. I don't think they've ever played much past 90 minutes when I've seen them in the past. This tour, without an opening act (also completely unprecedented for them) is allowing them to play longer, which I love, and I'd like to think that last night's Boston opener was a little longer than average (though the stats will prove me wrong, I'm surebecause it was Boston, and their home-away-from-home in the States.
As for Bad & 40 being special, I couldn't agree more. They are, in my opinion, the 2 best songs. Bad, because is such a great song, and 40, because of what Dennis made it into; a crowd participation that rings out the show and the fans can carry out into the streets. I will never forget seeing them that first time on the JT tour and how they ended all shows back then. Personally, I wish they had never stopped. Shows seemed to lose just a little bit of magic when 40 doesn't end the show.
And, while EBTtRT has gotten so much incredibly better, and Larry really shows off his drumming chops on that song, I can't help but feel that Bad has gotten just a little bit more mundane when they do play it. Last night's performance of Bad was okay. But it was a long way from the days when Maggie's Farm made an appearance and they would make that song last 10-15 minutes with ramblings through Maggie's Farm, Sympathy for the Devil, Ramajam, etc. And that makes me a bit sad. Bad used to be THE quintessential "Bono's going on a tangent" song. And now he's barely doing snippets of other songs in random other places. In other words, what used to make Bad so special isn't there any more.
Of course, this is all just my opinion. And I'm still flying high off of last night's show which, as I said, is quite possibly the best over-all show I've seen them put on in 30+ years of seeing them live.
Anyway, I have about 200 or so photos from last night I need to upload for y'all, so I'll stop rambling now and get on to doing that
--
Paul
Originally posted by bartajax:[..]
I love Bad, so don't get me wrong but I hope they'll keep it this way. U2 is very good in overplaying songs, Bad needs to be special and not play every night,
Originally posted by INCA:[..]
Disagree, It was played every night on the Elevation tour unless All I want Is You was played. That never got dull.
Originally posted by Bloodraven:amazing write-ups Paul!
One thing though, SBS and RBW are not about the same event, although they've adapted SBS in this tour to it for narrative purposes. Either way your point is still equally valid.
Originally posted by AllBecauseOfU2:[..]
Paul - where were you sitting? I sat next to a gentleman last night who fits your description and who videotaped a lot - we spoke, but I never got his name.
