I love blogging the A to Z Blog Challenge - blogging everyday in April, except Sundays, on a specific theme. I loved doing it last year, and I enjoyed it even more this year. I think I enjoy the challenge so much because I am one who likes to to lists things, rank my favorites. This year’s theme, in case you missed it was ‘My U2 from A to Z’ – about what aspects of U2 that has influenced me. It was fun, and it seemed I may have introduced a few new U2 topics. Just in case you were away from the internet in April, the following is what I wrote about: Achtung Baby, Bono, Can’t Help Falling in Love, Drums, Elevation Tour, First U2 Show, Get on Your Boots, Hallelujah Here She Comes and all B Sides from R & H and JT, I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, Joshua Tree, Kentucky Lexington Elevation 5.4.01, Larry Mullen Jr, Memphis Mullen, No Line on the Horizon, October, Popmart, Quest Field Seattle 360, Rattle and Hum, Storm Electrical, Three-Sixty (360) Tour, Unforgettable Fire, Vertigo Tour, War, X-Factor Fake U2 Audition, Yahwey, and ZooTv.
Larry hugging me
I also blogged the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z. I am not sure what I am going to write about U2 now since the new album and tour won’t be for several months, so if you have any suggestions please let me know.
The ZooTv Tour was my first U2 tour. U2 announced they would be touring America in the Spring of 1992, in support of their Achtung Baby album. I was a sophomore in college, so I could now go to concerts! I had a subscription toPropaganda, U2’s fan magazine, which gave me an opportunity to buy tickets to one or two concerts before they went on sale. But me being me, I wasn’t satisfiedto go to just one or two shows. No, I had to go to as many as I could, and for the ZooTv tour I went to eight shows. The months between the release of Achtung Baby and the ZooTv Tour were spent constantly watching and listening to U2. My U2 buddy Mike and I would spend hours and hours just watching U2 footage over and over that we had taped on VHS – MTV specials, interviews, videos, etc. It was during this time that I went from a U2 fan to, dare I say, U2 fanatic. 1992 was going to be a great year!
At the age of 19 ½, I saw my first U2 show. It was on the ZooTV tour on March 7, 1992 at Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia. It was the 5th show of the tour. My best friend, Cindy, went with me. We made the four-hour drive from Baltimore to Hampton and immediately walked over to the arena. We saw Bono standing in the middle of a bunch of fans and reporters. I didn’t speak with him, but got close enough to hear what he was saying to everyone else. For my first show, I was 4th row. Bruce Hornsby and Phil Joanou were also in attendance. The Pixies opened, and I did not like them at all. But then again, I just wanted to hear U2. I had waited 5 long years to see them!
my first U2 show
my first U2 tour shirt (front)
back of my 1st U2 tour shirt
My second U2 show was 3 days later on in March 10, 1992 at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, just under a two-hour drive from Baltimore. For this show, I was 9th row. I again saw Bono entering the arena and speaking with fans. I hid in the bathroom when the Pixies played.
ugliest U2 shirt ever, that I still sleep in (front)
back of ugliest U2 shirt
I don’t remember the actual concerts, as far as the songs that were played, from this first leg of the ZooTv tour and I didn’t keep a journal back then, so I am relying on u2 fan sites for setlists. The setlists were pretty much the same for both ZooTv shows I attended on the first leg: Zoo Station, Even Better Than the Real Thing, Mysterious Ways, The Fly, One, Until the End of the World, Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses, Trying to Throw Your Arms Around the World, Angel of Harlem, Satellite of Love, Bad, All I Want is You, Bullet the Blue Sky, Running to Stand Still, Where the Streets Have No Name, Pride, I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, Desire, Ultraviolet, With or Without You, Love is Blindness. The only difference was Love is Blindness was not played in Hampton and The Fly was played second in Philadelphia.
ZooTV tour program
In the summer of 1992, U2 ditched the arenas for stadiums for their ZooTv Outside Broadcast Tour, and I went to the first five shows and another one a month later. Living in Maryland made it easy to travel to most of the East Coast shows. Washington DC, Philadelphia, and New York were all within a 3 hours drive. Plus U2 usually played two nights in each city. It was on this leg of the tour that I started meeting U2 fans and touring around with them. Mike and I traveled to all these ZooTv shows together and met the same folks along the way. Unfortunately, we did not keep in contact with our new friends after the tour ended. Mike and I found out U2 was going to be rehearsing for their tour in nearby Hershey, Pennsylvania. They wanted to rehearse at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, but the community freaked out and protested. So we went up to Hershey a couple of nights and sat outside to listen to the rehearsals, but we never saw the band. We did hear them play Acrobat andSo Cruel though. We got tickets to the rehearsal show on August 7, 1992 at Hershey Park Stadium. Tickets were only $15 and went to local charities. We were way in the back, but at least we were there and it was a great show. Instead of starting off the show with Zoo Station like all the other shows, U2 began with Sunday Bloody Sunday, New Year’s Day, and Pride before going into their regular set list starting with Zoo Station. Pride was played again before the encore. This was the first time I had heard New Year’s Day and Sunday Bloody Sunday, since they didn’t play them on the first leg. Edge sang Van Dieman’s Land, the first and only time I have heard it live. This show was the day before Edge’s birthday, so Bono led the audience in singing Happy Birthday.
On August 11, 1992 three friends and I drove up to New Jersey for the official opening of the ZooTv Outside Broadcast tour at Giants Stadium. Opening night had been pushed back one night to August 12th. Mike and I went over to the stadium anyway and ended up sneaking in and getting up on the stage and touching the trabants, which were used to light the stage. We eventually got kicked out of the stadium. We tried to figure out where U2 was staying. Even though it was August, it was cold at night, so while waiting on the curb for U2 to show up at the hotel, we huddled next to a bus keeping warm from the fumes. There were a bunch of fans standing outside Giants Stadium on the afternoon of August 12th waiting for U2 to arrive. Bono came out and went down the line talking with each of us, signing autographs and taking pictures. When Bono came to me, he noticed the tee shirt I had made with ‘One’ on it.
I handed Bono my Outside It’s America book for him to autograph. I noticed he was taking a while, so I looked at what he was doing and saw he was misspelling my name. I said, “No, Deena is spelled with two e’s.” Bono kind of gave me this sly smile. In my book, he wrote, “A nice t-shirt Din…Deena Bono 92”
Then I threw my camera to Mike, so he could take a picture of me and Bono, both with our big sunglasses. Bono’s head is on my shoulder. It’s a great picture! He autographed it a few days later in DC.
And if that wasn’t enough, Larry drove by us on his motorcycle and waved. He didn’t stop unfortunately, but I did get a picture. Then I ran away screaming – he just has that affect on me. I wouldn’t meet Larry for another 9 years.
Our seats for opening night on August 12, 1992 were in the second section on the floor in the fifth row. Larry sang Dirty Old Town as only he can! I was so excited that Jonathan tried to hold me back, so I hit him causing him to fall off his chair. Lou Reed joined U2 on the b stage for Satellite of Love, and his performance was used for the rest of the tour via video.
The next night on August 13th, we were in the front floor section in the 8th row. I remember running past security to get to the B Stage as Bono was walking down. I got a Zoo Dollar that night as they flew through the air during Desire.
Two days after Jersey on August 15th, Mike and I were back in our hometown for two more ZooTv shows. Well, sort of. As close as the ZooTv tour was going to get to Ellicott City, Maryland. We were at RFK Stadium in Washington DC in the rain. I met Bono again and he autographed the picture of the two of us from Giants Stadium. He wasn’t as talkative as in Jersey. I think the rain made him grumpy.
U2 ended both shows on August 15 & 16, 1992 with Can’t Help Falling In Love in honor of the 15th anniversary of the death of Elvis Presley on August 16, 1977. For the first show, I was third row and Bono knelt in front of us and sang it. As an avid Elvis fan as well, this was an amazing, unforgettable moment for me! My worlds were colliding! For the rest of the tour, U2 ended their shows with Can’t Help Falling in Love.
My final ZooTv show was on September 3, 1992 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. There were two shows in Philadelphia and I was supposed to go to both shows, but was moving back to College Park so I only went to the second show. It was raining again, so they let the few of us waiting outside Veterans stadium in Philly inside for the sound check. We were also excited because our friend Maggie, who wrote a fanzine, got us Hospitality passes, but all that got us were some soda and chips. We didn’t see U2 back stage at all. But we did get to hear Whiskey in the Jar andWhen Loves Come to Town.
Primus and Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprosy opened the all the shows I saw on the ZooTv Outside Broadcast tour, except for the rehearsal concert in Hershey. Primus had a popular song called Jerry Was a Racecar Driverand U2 had been using Disposable’s Television Drug of a Nation to open their shows. This went along well with their television themed tour, complete with big screen tvs and Bono’s channel flipping. The setlist for the Outside Broadcast Tour was pretty much the same as the first leg with a couple of additions here and there. A few things that stand out in my memory are Adam introducing Trying to Throw Your Arms Around the World and the grocery cart, the belly dancer for Mysterious Ways, Larry twirling the trabant car light on the b stage for Satellite of Love, Bono’s grand entrance during Zoo Station, but mostly the Hallelujah chorus at the end of Running to Stand Still – it gave me chills every time, and still does. The ZooTV tour will always hold a special place in my heart as it was my first U2 tour.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
There wasn’t a lot to pick from for U2 topics starting with Y. It is really only Yahweh or Your Blue Room. Neither one are particular favorites of mine. Your Blue Room is off of a Passengers album which is not a real U2 album according to Larry – and me. So Yahweh it is! It is off of How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. My memory of Yahweh is watching Larry walking out onto the elipse and playing on the Vertigo tour.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
I apologize because I could not find an X that is significant for my love of U2. If you think of one, please let me know. I could have chosen Xanax and Wine like I did last year when I wrote about my favorite U2 songs A to Z, but I thought I would try something different. So I found this fake U2 audition for X-factor. I hope you find it as amusing as I do.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
War is significant to my U2 fandom because the same day I bought The Joshua Tree cassette, I also bought Under a Blood Red Sky, which was a concert on the War Tour. That tape was just as important to me as JT. Although I prefer U2′s music post-War, it has a special place in my heart and was crucial in molding me into a U2 fan. My favorites off War are New Year’s Day, Two Hearts Beat as One, Sunday Bloody Sunday, and 40. Although I appreciate the Under a Blood Red Sky concert video more than the War album itself. In fact, when I think of War, I actually think of the Under a Blood Red Sky concert.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
In November of 2004, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb and the special edition U2 ipod were released. I didn’t fall in love with Atomic Bomb as I had with All That You Can’t Leave Behind, but there are a few songs that I love from it including Original of the Species, Love and Peace or Else and Sometimes You Can’t Make it on Your Own. I bought the U2 special edition ipod – my first ipod. It had 20 gigs and came with 400 U2 songs called The Complete U2 on itunes. In 2005, U2 toured in support of How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb with the Vertigo Tour. I was as disinterested in the Vertigo tour as I was interested in the Elevation Tour. Originally, I had tickets to 15 shows, but I only went to 8 – haha only. And only three of those shows were GA. I thought I hadn’t been so into Vertigo because I wasn’t that into the How to Dismantle An Atomic Bomb album, and I was very into Lisa Marie Presley who was on tour at the same time, and I had just adopted my puppy Elvis and didn’t want to leave him – plus Larry had really bad hair on Vertigo. But from reading my journal from those days, I realized that it was also because I had joined a church and gotten very involved, including leading the youth group, bought a house, and gotten a 9-5 job for the first time in my life, so I didn’t feel as free to travel all around to U2 shows. But I did make it to Philadelphia, New Jersey, New York City, Washington DC, and Las Vegas. Luckily I still kept a journal then because I don’t really remember those shows, except for Larry beating that drum in front of me during Love and Peace.
Saturday May 14, 2005 Philadelphia
The best things happen whey you don’t plan on them. Today Tasha and I were supposed to meet at the Wachovia Center at 7 and planned to sit in our seats behind the stage. But Jenny called around 3 to say she got us GAs. Tasha and I went in around 7:30. Kings of Leon opened. We stood about halfway between the catwalk and soundboard. During the fourth song, Electric Co, this lady from U2 came up to us because Tasha was dancing and gave us wrist bands to get inside the ellipse. We stood one person back in front of Adam. When Larry sang during Love and Peace, I ran to the back of the ellipse. I was jumping up and down as if I was on a pogo. U2 played Running to Stand Still, An Cat Dubh, 40, Zoo Station, Into the Heart – all which they did not play on Elevation. It was a really good show, and I was very excited but I don’t feel the craziness as in past tours. Maybe that’s a good thing.
Tuesday May 17, 2005 East Rutherford, NJ
I left Philadelphia the morning after the U2 show and drove to Asbury Park, for the Lisa Marie Presley concert at the Stone Pony on Sunday May 16th – her last of the tour. It was amazing! I stood up front right at the rail at the stage. Priscilla was there, and Lisa shook my hand and said, ‘Thank you’ at the end of the show. After the show, I drove 2 hours to my hotel in East Rutherford – I got lost and was exhausted.
Paola and Gina arrived about 1am last night/this morning. I got up at 4am and got a cab into New York City to see Lisa Marie on Good Morning America. They didn’t let us in until after 7am, and Lisa didn’t come on until about 8:45. She only sang one song, Idiot, but it was pretty cool. I was SO close to her and apparently I was on tv because my mom called to say she saw me on tv singing along. Now I’m going back to the hotel to rest for a bit before the U2 show.
The U2 concert tonight at Continental Airlines Arena in Jersey was better than the one in Philly Saturday. Kings of Leon opened again, and I do not like them. This show, Jersey1, was the same as Philly except U2 played Original of the Species (my favorite off the new cd) and they played Vertigo twice – closing the show with it. I had a seat for this show – a great seat. I was behind the stage – behind Edge about 7 rows up. It was very close and a very good view. As good as the concert was, I’m just not as into it anymore. I’m considering selling my tickets for the Fall shows and my ticket for the Philly show on Sunday.
U2 Vertigo New Jersey 5.17-18.05
Wednesday May 18, 2005 East Rutherford, NJ
This U2 show was the best of the week so far. Saturday in Philly was great because it was my first one of the tour, and we were on the floor up front in front of Adam. Yesterday’s concert had amazing energy – both from the band and the audience. And they played Original of the Species. Tonight, Jersey2, was the best set list. U2 played Gloria, The Ocean, Bad and I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For with a band they pulled out of the audience. I went to the show with Jenny. We had seats side stage the last row up top, so we just stood behind our section so we had room to move around. It was a fun time!
Vertigo tour tee (front)
Vertigo Tour tee (back)
Saturday May 21, 2005 New York City
The morning after the U2 show in Jersey Jenny and I drove into NYC. We went to Lisa Marie’s free concert in City Hall Park. I was front row at the rail center stage. It was a great show! After walking around the City for a bit, I went to Broadway to see All Shook Up, which was great! The next day, Friday May 20th, I went back into NYC to go to the Daytime Emmy Awards. It was so cool! I saw all my favorite stars from As the World Turns. It was a great night!
Today was the U2 show at Madison Square Garden. It was actually my least favorite of the four I’ve seen this week. Kings of Leon opened again – ugh! I saw the show with Tasha, and we had good seats behind the stage not too far up. The only thing different U2 played was a David Bowie cover. They played Original of the Species again. At least I got to hear every song they are playing over the 4 shows I went to. It’s sad, but I’m just not as into it anymore. I want to go home. I’m not going to the Philly show tomorrow.
U2 Vertigo NYC 5.21.05
U2 at the Garden
Wednesday October 19, 2005 Washington, DC
My first U2 concert of this leg, and I had a blast, but I am so glad I’m only going to 4 shows this leg. I knew this show, DC1, would be good because it is the 4th anniversary of the Baltimore Elevation show where Larry hugged me. And since they are not playing Baltimore this tour, DC is the next best thing. I went to this show first show in Washington DC at the MCI Center with Jennifer, and Paola was also there. Damian Marley opened. Jennifer and I got into the ellipse. We stood in the back at the catwalk, so when Larry came out during Love and Peace, I was right in front of him. He smiled at me and waved. It was a great show! Traci from work also went. After the show, about 5 of us met up and went to the Double T Diner. I’m wiped and doing it all again tomorrow, but at least I’m not working like I did today.
U2 Vertigo DC 10.19-20.05
Thursday October 20, 2005 Washington DC
Tonight’s U2 show, DC2, was the best one I’ve seen this tour. They played four out of my top five U2 songs – Still Haven’t Found, Bad, Pride, and Wild Horses. Plus I saw the show with Jennifer, Paola and Gina. It was great to be able to see it with everyone. We were again inside the ellipse right where Larry played Love and Peace. Tonight I got the subtle Larry nod.
Saturday November 5, 2005 Las Vegas
I love Vegas! Cindy and I arrived yesterday morning at 11am. We checked into Ballys and then had pizza at New York New York. We walked over to MGM to check out the U2 GA line situation, even though I had a seat for the show. We gambled at Boardwalk Casino, shopped at the Venetian and Alladin and had dinner at Café Lux.
I went to the U2 show (Vegas1) at the MGM Grand Arena last night, which was really great. My seat was behind the stage in the second level. Damien Marley opened. There was an Elvis impersonator on the floor, so Bono sang ‘Love and Peace’ like Elvis and then sang ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’ after ‘One.’ U2 played ‘Wild Horses’! It was a really good show. I was up for over 22 hours yesterday and then only slept for 4 hours.
Today we went to the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Freemont Street, Treasure Island, Mirage and the Flamingo. I’m really getting into this gambling thing. I love the slots now! We had a fantastic dinner at Paris.
I went to the U2 show (Vegas2) again tonight at the MGM Grand Arena. It was absolutely amazing! Mary J Blige sang ‘One’ with Bono. The lead singer from the Killers sang ‘In a Little While’ with Bono. U2 played ‘Zoo Station’, ‘The Fly’, ‘Until the End of the World’ and ‘Mysterious Ways’. After the show, I met up with Cindy at Paris casino to gamble some more.
U2 Vertigo Vegas 11.4-5.05
my Vertigo tour program
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
Technically it’s The Unforgettable Fire, but I always refer to it as Unforgettable Fire - and for the rest of this post I’ll just use UF. UF has always been one of my favorite U2 songs. It is also one of my favorite U2 albums, and it is a great video. I love when Larry looks up and flashes that sweet smile. UF is probably my favorite Larry look.
I had never heard UF live until the US 360 tour opener in Chicago 2009. I was SO excited, and very emotional, to finally hear UF in concert, but unfortunately they changed it and cut out my favorite part – “Stay this time, stay tonight in a lie. I’m only asking, but I, I think you know. Come on take me away, come on take me away. Come on take me home, home again.” But it was really cool when Bono sang the first verse of UF to us in Charlottesville a month later.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
I really don’t think I can fit everything about U2′s 360 Tour into one blog post. It changed my life, literally. I saw 8 shows on the first US leg in 2009 and all 16 shows on the second US leg in 2011. The 2009 US leg of the 360 tour was what I normally did on U2 tours – saw as many shows as was geographically and financially possible with my old U2 friends. It was the 2011 US leg of the 360 tour was what changed my life. I took three months off of my life and drove across the country with my two dogs to all 16 US shows – and saw so much of America along the way. I made so many new friends, visited many great cities, started this blog, wrote a book (which I’m still trying to publish) about my adventures on the road with U2.
My rate the shows I saw on the U2 360 2009 Tour as follows: Las Vegas my favorite and DC, Oklahoma, Chicago1 are close seconds. The other four are probably in the order of Raleigh, Charlottesville, Chicago2, then Atlanta being my least favorite. For me how I rank a U2 show is more than just how the actual U2 concert was, although that’s a big part of it. It’s about who I saw the show with, what city we’re in, where in the concert we’re standing and unfortunately what happened that day leading up to the show. And if I’m going to be completely honest, what sort of Larry moment I had. The Las Vegas show was my favorite because it was a great U2 show, and it was in my second favorite city Las Vegas. It was a great set list that included ‘Viva Las Vegas’ as well as a snippet of In God’s Country. During the band introductions, Bono said Larry was the ‘Elvis of U2.’ Those two Elvis moments really made the show for me. Another great moment was when Larry smiled and waved to me at the beginning of I’ll Go Crazy. The Vegas show was also great because the whole day was relaxed, hanging out with everyone outside before the show and having the freedom to move around wherever I wanted during the show. The DC, Oklahoma and Chicago1 shows were tied for second for very different reasons. I loved the DC show even though it had my least favorite set list because U2 did not play No Line on the Horizon and didn’t replace it with anything. Even though I went alone, the DC show had a great energy from both the audience and the band. This was my hometown show plus it was my first time at the front rail on this tour, and the most centered I ever was. And I did have my Larry moment when he smiled at me from the drumkit while I was jumping up and down in my Larry Mullen Band shirt. And I didn’t imagine it either because someone came up to me after and told me she saw Larry smile at me. Oklahoma was great because it was the first time I was really relaxed and moved around the concert. The first time I went back behind the stage to watch Larry and have room all to myself – not worrying about ‘my spot.’ Larry smiled and waved at me at the beginning of I’ll Go Crazy. Chicago1 was amazing because it was my first show of the tour, and it had the best set list of the tour. I heard Unforgettable Fire for the first time and Pride and Bad, two of my all-time favorite songs, were played for the only time of the eight shows I saw that leg. Chicago1 was very stressful though and very exhausting because we waited in the GA line all day in the hot sun and then had people all around us smushed up against us during the concert. The Raleigh show was good because it was my birthday show (a day early), and I heard In a Little While (my favorite song off All That You Can’t Leave Behind) for the first time since the Elevation Tour. We also go to hear the sound check and had the perfect spot on the catwalk where Larry, Adam and Edge each stopped in front of us during I’ll Go Crazy. The Charlottesville show was good because we stood at the front rail on the side of the stage, Bono sang a verse of Unforgettable Fire to us, and I could really hear Larry’s ‘HEY HEY HEYs’ during Get on Your Boots because the vocals were SO loud. At the time, I did not appreciate the Charlottesville show because of all the horrible traffic we encountered getting to the show. The Chicago2 show was good because Your Blue Room was played for the first time ever, and it was a very relaxed show. The Atlanta show probably would have been better if I wasn’t sick and alone. I had a great spot at the front rail in front of Adam and Larry gave me a nod from the drumkit during Beautiful Day even without my Larry Mullen Band tee. For the first time in my life, and I hope the only time, I left a U2 show early. I left during One because I was so sick, but at least I got to see a little of the show from across the stadium for the first time. A great thing about 360 2009 was that I got to see U2 in cities I had never seen them in before and obviously visit cities I’ve never been to. My whole life I had wanted to visit Chicago and go to Wrigley Field. Because of U2, I got to do that and now I love Chicago! I had always wanted to visit Atlanta as well and got to do that. Although I’m not a huge fan of Atlanta, but I am glad I got to visit the Martin Luther King sites. I had never really wanted to go to Oklahoma, but it was cool to see it. And I had been to Las Vegas twice before, so any excuse to go to Vegas. I love Vegas! 360 2009 was also great because I got to see and hang out with a lot of friends that I hadn’t really seen since the Elevation Tour, because I wasn’t really into the Vertigo Tour.
I had always wanted to drive across the country, and I had always wanted to follow U2 on tour – the whole tour. And last summer that is exactly what I did. I wasn’t working and barely had enough money, but I packed up the car and Elvis, Cilla and I left our house for three months to drive to every U2 show in the US on the last leg of the 360 Tour. Along the way, I visited great American sights, saw 16 fantastic U2 concerts and met many great people.
the traveling threesome
We drove over 18,000 miles through 31 states – some states we drove through multiple times. We drove through and/or stayed in Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, Georgia, Florida, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Delaware, New Jersey and Minnesota. I visited Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, and Deadwood in South Dakota, Red Rocks in Denver, Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Reno and Lake Tahoe in Nevada, the Experience Music Project and Kurt Cobain’s house in Seattle, Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco, Harmony Hotel, Joshua Tree Park and Elvis’ homes in Palm Springs, took a bus tour of LA and Hollywood, visited Johnny Cash’s grave outside of Nashville, Bronz Fonz and Summerfest in Milwaukee, the Football Hall of Fame, and saw Soundgarden in Philadelphia. My favorite places were Mount Rushmore, Palm Springs, and Milwaukee.
I saw all 16 U2 360 shows in the US. My favorite moments (my squealing moments) of each U2 360 concert were the following: watching U2 walk through the crowd and walk to the stage, Larry banging the drums to open Even Better Than the Real Thing - boom boom! boom! boom boom!, when Larry and his drums turned around to face behind the stage (where I was) during Mysterious Ways, Larry standing up (back to back with Bono) banging the drums singing “LET ME IN THE SOUND” during Get on Your Boots, Larry walking around with his conga during I’ll Go Crazy, Larry and his drums turned around to face behind the stage (where I was) and then Bono rapping at him during Sunday Bloody Sunday, Larry’s drum solo during Scarlet, and watching U2 leave the stage and walk through the crowd to the tunnel leaving the stadium.
it’s all about Larry
My favorite U2 360 shows were Anaheim2, Chicago, St. Louis, Pittsburgh and Seattle, but each of the 16 US shows were special. The Denver show was special because it was the first U2 show in the US on the last leg of 360, it was the first time I heard Zooropa and Scarlet, it was in the stadium where my beloved Denver Broncos play, and I met Beth. The Salt Lake City show was special because I heard Love Rescue Me, one of my favorite songs, for the first time. The Seattle show was one of my favorites because I talked with Bono before the show about meeting Larry, Larry walked over to me smiling and shook my hand as he walked to the tunnel as he left the stadium, I watched the show with Jenny, and I met Chuck. The Oakland show was special because Larry sang a part of Lou Reed’s A Perfect Day and I talked with Bono again before the show about meeting Larry. The first show in Anaheim was special because it was the first time Paul McGuinness had ever been on stage. The second show in Anaheim was my favorite 360 show because U2 brought back my favorite song I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For for the first time that leg and I cried, and they completely changed the set list by opening the show with five straight songs off Achtung Baby then played Streets. The Baltimore show was special because it was the loudest audience of the tour, Larry took off his shirt on the way to his car after the show, I got the set list and I watched the show with Tasha. The East Lansing show was special because it stayed light through Elevation and U2 entered through the bleachers up top behind the stage. The Miami show was special because it was the first time U2 played North Star in the US. The Nashville show was special because it was the first time U2 played The Wanderer, in honor of Johnny Cash, they brought up a blind guitar player at the end of the show to play All I Want Is You, and it was the first time I saw Larry get out of his car at the stadium. The Chicago show was one of my favorites because it was the first time I had ever heard One Tree Hill, which was completely spontaneous and the first time it was played in the US since 1987, U2 played Out of Control for the first time in the US that leg, and I shook Edge’s hand before the show. The Philadelphia show was special because U2 brought back the original version of Magnificent and moved it down in the set list, I watched the show will old Elevation friends, and I met Natasha. The St. Louis show was one of my favorites because of the amazing energy both from the audience and U2, and I got a little shout out from Bono about the Larry Mullen Band. The New Jersey show was special because it ended with Out of Control, it was the longest show of the tour, and I met Anisha. The Minneapolis show was special because it was the only show in the US that leg that it rained, a drenching downpour complete with lightning, and I danced in the rain throughout the show with Deb and her husband. The Pittsburgh show was one of my favorites because it was the last US show, Matt and Melissa danced on stage during With or Without You, U2 closed with Bad (one of my favorite songs which was played for the first time in the US that leg), watching the show with Abbey, and my favorite moment of the entire tour was when Larry hugged me on his way to the stage.
I had the best summer of my life on the U2 360 Tour. I learned there really is humidity in Southern California, to never drive around Chicago or Atlanta (especially on July 4th weekend), don’t avoid an outdoor concert in Miami in the summer because you think it is going to be too hot because the shows in St. Louis, Baltimore and Nashville were much hotter, and U2 fans really are the greatest. But the most important thing I learned is to always follow your passion, even if you think it’s impossible or impractical. If I had thought logically and practically, I would have skipped the second Anaheim show to make it an easier drive from California to Maryland to make it to the Baltimore show, but then I would have missed my favorite show of the tour. And if I had been thinking logically and practically, I would have never even gone on the trip to begin with because I couldn’t really afford it, but then I would have missed out on the best summer of my life On the Road with U2 on the 360 Tour.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
Sorry, but I had to fudge this one a bit. I really wanted to include Electrical Storm video in ‘My U2 A to Z’ and I couldn’t leave out the Elevation Tour, so here you have it Storm, Electrical aka Electrical Storm. It is a good song, but it is even a better video. Electrical Storm is really U2 porn. Seriously, watch the video below and you’ll see – especially if you love Larry Mullen like I do. The video is all about Larry – Larry wet, Larry in the tub, Larry in the ocean, Larry kissing. Sigh! Every time I listen to Electrical Storm, the video plays in my head.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
Almost 25 years ago, on November 4, 1988, exactly one month after my 16th birthday, I piled a bunch of my friends into my GMC Jimmy and drove to the movie theater to see the premiere of Rattle and Hum. People were dancing in the aisles. It was almost like being at a concert, not that I knew what a concert was actually like. Unfortunately, I was not allowed to go to concerts in high school, so I missed The Joshua Tree tour. Rattle and Hum the movie was my Joshua Tree tour. As if seeing U2 perform in concert wasn’t exciting enough, Rattle and Hum also showed me U2 recording in Sun Studio and touring Elvis Presley’s Graceland. Talk about my worlds colliding.
Rattle and Hum
Nov 4, 1988
I loved Rattle and Hum the album almost as much as The Joshua Tree. To me it was just an extension of it, sort of a Joshua Tree part 2. My favorites off of Rattle and Hum were and still are Heartland, Love Rescue Me, Angel of Harlem, and b-sides Hallelujah Here She Comes and A Room at the Heartbreak Hotel. I have never heard Heartland performed live, but I asked Bono about it once on the ZooTv tour. He agreed it was a great song, but skirted the question of ever playing it live. I was lucky enough to hear Love Rescue Me, or at least part of it, last summer at the 360 show in Salt Lake City in honor of Bob Dylan’s birthday.
I don’t think I can truly express how special Rattle and Hum is to me, and how crucial it was in growing my love for U2 – in my musical journey.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
The U2 360 show in Seattle was better than the previous two shows I had been to in Denver and Salt Lake City. Even though it was the same set list, the audience was much more into it, the band was having a blast and actually seemed a little more into as well, Lenny Kravitz was a better opening act than The Fray, and oh yeah I talked with Bono before the show about Larry and Larry shook my hand as he was leaving the show.
U2 360 Seattle 6.4.11
To conserve energy on that rare sunny day on June 4th, Jenny and I took a cab to Qwest Field – even though it was just under a mile away. We got to the stadium at 3:00, got in the GA line just long enough to get our wristbands and then walked around to wait for U2 to arrive. We met some new folks and talked with old friends. I met Chuck and Michelle whom I’ve stayed friends with. Chuck and I would go on to see many other shows together. They told us Larry had just went in, so I was a little disappointed – but they were wrong.
U2 in Seattle
Qwest Field
After a short time, we saw the flashing lights of the police escort and black SUVs. Edge, Bono, Adam AND LARRY drove into Qwest Field right in front of us. We looked down the long driveway and saw Bono get out and head back toward us. He hopped on the back of the policeman’s motorcycle and in seconds was talking with us. Jenny and I were in our ‘Larry Mullen Band’ shirts as usual. I shouted, “Is Larry ever coming out to greet the fans?” Bono responded, “He only likes you. I love you.” Then Bono went on to say, “You like that kind of cold stare” (referring to Larry). Before Bono was about to leave, he asked the small crowd of about 30 people, “Where are the Larry Mullen people?” I shouted, ‘Right here!” and pushed my way toward Bono. He read my shirt as if to make sure I was the ‘Larry Mullen Band’ girl he had been talking to earlier. Then Bono asked, “Do you have a message I can deliver?” I was confused and frantic. I thought he was going to tell me a message from Larry, but I quickly realized what he had said and I replied, “Yes, tell Larry to come out in Oakland since he didn’t come out here.” He said, “OK.” I then went on to tell him that I would be at all the US shows, but I don’t think he heard me. Bono then asked my name and repeated it back to me, “Deena.” When he got in his golf cart to go back, I saw him write something down. I was hoping it was my message to Larry. I had no idea what this conversation would eventually lead to almost two months later in Pittsburgh.
Chuck, Bono and me
The Larry Mullen Band
We got in the GA line and had about an hour wait in the hot Seattle sun before we were let into Qwest Field. While waiting we got to hear the sound check. I was quite excited to hear The Fly, but disappointed it wasn’t included in the set list later. Once inside, we got a nice spot in the inner circle on Adam’s side – a great view for Lenny Kravitz. Lenny was a great opening act, a lot better than The Fray. He didn’t take the stage until 7:30 and only played 45 minutes, but played the four songs I know – It Ain’t Over Til It’s Over, American Woman, Fly Away, and Are You Gonna Go My Way. Lenny had these great female backup singers that reminded me of Elvis’ Sweet Inspirations. Lenny also did karate moves that reminded me of Elvis. Could Lenny be a fan of The King? Please watch my video of an overview of Lenny Kravitz opening in Seattle.
Lenny Kravitz
After Lenny Kravitz’ performance, we went over to Edge’s side and stood behind the stage to wait for U2 to enter. It was odd getting our neck’s stamped (instead of our hands) for re-entry to the inner circle, but this was to be the practice for most of the tour. Security kicked us off the rail where we were waiting for U2 to enter, claiming the fire marshall wanted that space cleared. So instead of having us lined up along the rail like we were, they had us lined up horizontally sort of blocking the way to the inner circle. Not sure how that wasn’t a fire hazard. This was also to happen for most of the tour. But as soon as U2 came out of that tunnel, security couldn’t hold us back and we were again on the rail. Larry came by and smiled at me, and I think he may have waved – of course I was screaming his name and wearing my Larry Mullen Band shirt. We decided to stay on Edge’s side for the show, and it was a good decision. We had a great view of the show. It was side view, but we could see everything. During Even Better Than the Real Thing, Bono shouted, “The Emerald City shining in the sun.”
the Edge
During Get on Your Boots right before my favorite “LET ME IN THE SOUND”, Bono said, “Larry Mullen!” Apparently he did this at most shows, but I never heard him because I was too busy screaming. I would get SO excited for Get on Your Boots! Before Magnificent, Bono said, “Here comes the Boss – the Arch” (referring to Arch Bishop Desmin Tutu and his part in the Magnificentremix.
U2 in Seattle
Before Until the End of the World, Bono sings, “It’s the end of the world as we know it. Edge feels fine.” Some folks from REM were at the show. During the band introductions, Bono talked about how June 4th was a date we are all going to remember. He again mentioned the rare sunny day in Seattle. He said the band was going to start again and we should pretend we didn’t know them. Bono said, “You think of him as a tough guy, but he’s a very thoughtful man. On the drums, Larry Mullen Jr!”
Bono
For the first time, video of Commander Kelly at the Space Station is shown before Beautiful Day. He is holding words from the song and then says, “Tell my wife I love her.” Video of Kelly is shown later in the song as he recites the lyrics. Commander Kelly is married to Gabby Gifford who was shot months earlier. This video was played before Beautiful Dayfor the rest of the tour. The audience would get really excited each time he would say their city’s name. I don’t think they realized it was recorded and he was actually talking to us from space.
where’s adam?
At the end of Vertigo, we went behind the stage to wait for Larry and his conga to start his walk for I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight. He again smiled at me as I screamed his name and jumped up and down – actually I think he was laughing at me, but I’ll take it. For Moment of Surrender, we moved behind the stage to wait for U2 to leave. Instead of standing by the stairs at the stage where we could have gotten a good picture, we waited back toward where the tunnel is. As Larry was walking out, Jenny shouted, “Larry!” He smiled and made a b line for us. He shook Jenny’s hand and then mine – still smiling. I thanked him. Excited as I was, I thought to myself that this does not excuse Larry from coming out to meet me in Oakland, assuming Bono gives him my message.
my favorite picture of Larry I took this tour
As we were walking through the crowded parking lot, we passed by Eddie Vedder and his bodyguard looking for their car. I of course ran after them to try to get a picture, but was unsuccessful. I did manage to snap one just before Eddie was getting into the car, but it was of course blurry and of the back of him.
chasing Eddie Vedder
The set list for the June 4th 360 show in Seattle was as follows: Even Better Than The Real Thing, I Will Follow, Get On Your Boots, Magnificent, Mysterious Ways, Elevation, It’s the End of the World as We Know It / Until the End of the World / Where Have All the Flowers Gone, All I Want Is You, Stay, Beautiful Day / Space Oddity, Pride, Miss Sarajevo, Zooropa, City of Blinding Lights, Vertigo, I’ll Go Crazy / Discotheque /Life During Wartime / Psycho Killer, Sunday Bloody Sunday, Scarlet, Walk On /You’ll Never Walk Alone, One / Will You Love Me Tomorrow, Where the Streets Have No Name / All You Need is Love, Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me, With or Without You, Moment of Surrender.
That Seattle show is still one of my favorites of the 360 tour. It had a much a better energy than the previous two I had seen in Denver and Salt Lake City. Also, it was great to see it with my old Elevation friend Jenny – I had been alone at my first two shows. It was also the show where I met Chuck, whom I have stayed friends with and saw many shows with on 360. Seattle was where I met and spoke with Bono about meeting Larry and where Larry shook my hand as he left. It was a great night!
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
Pop was released in March of 1997. I remember seeing the video forDiscotheque and loving it because U2 was dressed like The Village People. A lot of people criticized Pop for being too techno and not enough of like U2, but I really liked it. The lyrics were just as strong as always. In fact, one of my favorite U2 songs of all time, Gone, is from Pop. My other favorites from Pop are Staring at the Sun, Please, Discotheque, and Last Night on Earth. U2 started their Popmart Tour in America in support of their new album Pop. For this tour I again went to 8 shows, but I traveled further than I had for ZooTv. I had just graduated college and just broken up with my boyfriend. Fun Lovin’ Criminals, who had a song out called Scooby Snacks, opened the six shows I saw on the first leg of Popmart. The setlists for these Popmart shows were pretty much the same, but were quite different from ZooTv. The order of songs were changed all around and of course all the new songs were played, but the most unique performance was Edge singing karoke to either Sweet Caroline or Daydream Believer. I really enjoyed the Popmart tour. I don’t think it gets the credit it deserves, but there were some great performances. It was visually pleasing as well. There was a giant golden arch like McDonald’s, a giant martini and a giant discoball traveling lemon that brought Larry, Bono, Edge and Adam to the encore. It was also the only time I have seen the band in a uniform of sorts. They each had their own tee shirt: Bono was Bono Man, Larry was Hit Man, Adam was Pop Tart, and Edge was Mr. the Edge. And by the end of tour, If You Wear That Velvet Dress became one of my favorites off Pop.
My first Popmart show was on May 22, 1997 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We I drove the five-hour drive from Baltimore. While waiting outside the stadium I met Ken, one of the guys on the crew who drove one of the trucks that carried parts of the elaborate Popmart stage from city to city. Ken was to be a source for a couple cool U2 experiences. A couple of days later, we drove three hours from Pittsburgh to Columbus, Ohiofor our second Popmart show on May 24, 1997 at Ohio State University.We saw Bono get off the bus, but he was swarmed by fans. It wasn’t orderly as it had been on ZooTv. We got a few pictures though. We also signed the banner hanging outside the stadium. Our seats weren’t too close for this show.
The Popmart show at RFK Stadium Washington, DC on May 26, 1997 was great. I was 5th row from the stage. Everyone I knew was there, since I had gotten tickets for most of my friends. It rained as it had on ZooTv, but it really poured this time. The set list for this show was the same as the ones in Pittsburgh and Columbus, except Unchained Melody was not played in Columbus and Edge sang Sweet Caroline in Pittsburgh. The set list for Popmart DC was as follows: Mofo, I Will Follow, Even Better Than the Real Thing, Gone, Pride, I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, Last Night on Earth, Until the End of the World, If God Will Send His Angels, Staring at the Sun, Daydream Believer (Edge Karaoke), Miami, Bullet the Blue Sky, Where the Streets Have No Name / Playboy Mansion, Discotheque, If You Wear That Velvet Dress, With or Without You, Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me, Mysterious Ways, One, Unchained Melody.
My next Popmart shows were at Giants Stadium in New Jersey on May 31 and June 1. My friend Laurie went with me. We were on the floor for the first show, but our tickets were in the stands on the side of the stage for the second. Ken, the crew member I had met in Pittsburgh, walked us down to the floor for the second show, so we could be close to the stage. As he was walking us around, it was time for the band to come out. We were walking around behind the stage as the guys were walking out. We stood right at the stairs as Larry, Bono, Edge and Adam walked onto the stage. I wasn’t allowed to scream obviously. I almost passed out from holding in my excitement. It was at this second show on June 1 that Bono and Edge performed Staring at the Sun acoustically for the first time.
My 6th Popmart show, and final one on the first leg, was on June 8, 1997 at Franklin Field at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. I went to this show with my best friend Cindy. We arrived to see Bono and Larry get off the buses, but like in Columbus they were swarmed by fans and we couldn’t get close. I managed to get a couple of pictures though.
Ken invited me out to Oakland for the U2 show. I went, but for a reason that escapes me now we didn’t go to the show. I did meet Fenton, of Rattle and Hum’s ‘could you pass me a tissue Fenton’ fame, and I got a VIP laminated pass for the show, but we never went to the U2 show. I remember having a great time exploring all around San Francisco, but no U2 show. I would have to wait a few more months for another Popmart show.
I traveled to Florida for the third leg of the Popmart tour. My parents have a condo in Ft. Myers, so I had a free place to stay. We flew down to attend the shows in Tampa and Miami, both about a two hour drive from Ft. Myers. At the time, the Popmart show at Houlihans Stadium in Tampa on November 10, 1997was my favorite U2 show I had seen, including all of ZooTv and Popmart. I think mainly because I stood right on the b stage, rather than staying in my seat. There was nothing between me and the stage. And for Popmart, U2 entered through the crowd and onto the b stage. I thought they sounded better than the shows I had seen on the first leg. It was raining and the top deck of the stadium was empty, but it was a great show! Third Eye Blind opened, and I really liked them. Instead of karaoke like in the first leg, Edge sang Sunday Bloody Sunday, and a belly dancer from the audience came on up on stage for Mysterious Ways, like during ZooTv. I didn’t know it at the time, but that belly dancer was Melissa Pruitt who would become my friend four years later. A few days later on November 14, 1997 we drove over to Pro Player Stadium in Miami for my last Popmart show. We again did not stay in our seats and stood right at the b stage. I grabbed onto Bono’s leg (sort of hugged it actually) as he leaned over into the crowd. Although I have always been a Larry fan, I was really digging Bono during Popmart. The set lists for both the Tampa and Miami Popmart shows were the same (except they played Miami in Miami): Mofo, I Will Follow, Gone, Even Better Than the Real Thing, Last Night on Earth, Until the End of the World, New Year’s Day, Pride, I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, All I Want is You, Staring at the Sun, Sunday Bloody Sunday, Bullet the Blue Sky, Please, Where the Streets Have No Name, Discotheque, If You Wear That Velvet Dress, With or Without You, Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me, Mysterious Ways, One, Wake Up Dead Man.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
October is one of my favorite U2 albums and one of my favorite U2 songs. October is my favorite month, my birthday month. To me, October symbolizes the changing of the seasons and the beginning of my favorite time of year. So I love U2′s October. Other favorite songs of the October album are Rejoice and Gloria, but I really love the whole album. The song October is a haunting song that says that even though things have changed, you still go on. It may a short song, but October‘s lyrics are powerful!
October and the trees are stripped bare
Of all they wear.
What do I care?
October and kingdoms rise
And kingdoms fall
But you go on
And on.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
No Line on the Horizon was released in March 2009, and I immediately fell in love it with as I had with All That You Can’t Leave Behind. U2 promoted their new release with five consecutive nights on the David Letterman Show and a mini concert and interview at Fordham University broadcasted on Good Morning America. My favorite songs off of No Line are Get on Your Boots, I’ll Go Crazy if I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight, Breathe, No Line on the Horizon, and Moment of Surrender. U2 went on the road to support No Line on the Horizon with the 360 Tour. For this tour, U2 went back to stadiums. I will write about my adventures on the 360 Tour later in the challenge (on the ‘T’ day), and I already wrote about my love for Get on Your Boots.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
I don’t remember if it was when I moved to Memphis or right before the U2 360 Tour that I changed my social media name to Memphis Mullen. I do remember that it was my friend Jenny who gave me that name. I changed my email and twitter name to Memphis Mullen, as well as my blog and youtube channel. The Memphis was because I lived in Memphis and also represented Elvis, and the Mullen was for Larry Mullen. So there I was Memphis Mullen. I started posting my new U2 blog ‘On the Road with U2′, written by Memphis Mullen. On the U2 360 tour in 2011, I wore the same thing to every concert so I was easily recognizable – straw cowboy hat and black ‘Larry Mullen Band’ tee. (I had 3 of the same tee shirts that I rotated over the 16 shows.) I even made ‘Memphis Mullen’ shirts for non-show days – driving days. I would meet other fans who would call me Memphis Mullen, or just Memphis. Shortly after the end of the U2 360 Tour, I moved back to Maryland. I thought I could not be Memphis Mullen any longer since I didn’t live in Memphis. I thought about changing my name to Maryland Mullen, but in the end I went with Deenas Days to match my other blog and other youtube channel. But to be honest, I do miss Memphis Mullen.
Memphis Mullen
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
I love Larry Mullen Jr, U2′s drummer. He is my favorite drummer, and my second favorite man – a close second behind Elvis. And ironically Larry is a huge Elvis fan and even named his son Aaron Elvis. I have been a U2 fan for 25 years. I was a freshman in high school when The Joshua Tree was released in 1987. I remember hearing With or Without You and realizing it was by the same band that sang that song Pride I had heard a few years earlier. Luckily a classmate had a picture of U2 because at the age of 14 it is VERY important what the band that you might be interested in looks like. Out of the four guys, one stood out. His name was Larry Mullen Jr., and I have been in love with him ever since. Besides being gorgeous, Larry is my favorite member of U2 because he is very matter of fact, no nonsense, and always says exactly what he is feeling. I admire that about him. He loves Elvis Presley, and I have loved Elvis since I was five. My favorite part of Rattle and Hum, is when U2 visits Graceland and Larry talks about how much he loved the Elvis movies. The first time I saw a Sun Studio tee shirt was on Larry in Rattle and Hum.
I have had a few personal encounters with Larry Mullen over the years on various tours. The first time I saw Larry in person and not on stage was at Giants Stadium on August 12, 1992 before the opening of the ZooTv Outside Broadcast Tour. A bunch of us fans were waiting outside the stadium in the afternoon before the show, and Larry drove by us on his motorcycle. He did not stop, but he did wave. I got a picture and then ran away screaming – he just has that affect on me. That night in concert Larry came to the front of the stage and sang Dirty Old Town as only he can. I was so excited that my friend Jonathan tried to hold me back, so I hit him to get him off of me and he fell off his chair. During Popmart, the only time I saw Larry outside of the shows was in Philadelphia on June 8, 1997 walking from the bus into the stadium. I do have a HitMan shirt though – like the one he wore in concert.
On the Elevation tour, I had three fantastic encounters with Larry, including the only time I have ever met him. But before any of those, a Larry Mullen Band shirt was thrown onto the stage in Philadelphia on June 11, 2001. Larry placed it on his drum kit where it stayed for the rest of the show. I found out later that Paola had thrown this shirt on stage. It was her birthday, she is a huge Larry fan and had made the shirt for him. Because I took pictures of this and posted them online, Paola, Jenny, Tasha and I became friends. Paola made us all Larry Mullen Band shirts, which I wear to every U2 show. On June 21, 2001 in New Jersey at the end of the show, Larry walked to the front of the stage, leaned over, looked into my eyes and handed me his drumstick. I cried. I clutched that drumstick as I walked out of the arena. It is now in a glass case on my shelf.
On October 19, 2001 in my hometown of Baltimore, I finally met Larry Mullen Jr. This was the first time U2 had played Baltimore, so when they arrived for sound check Larry, Bono, Edge and Adam walked out to meet us fans waiting outside the arena. When Larry walked over to me I said, ‘I don’t have anything for you to sign, so can I have a hug?’ Larry looked at me a little strange, then smiled and said yes. After Larry hugged me, I thanked him. Tasha hugged me and then I cried like a baby. I was so overcome with emotion. I had been waiting to meet Larry for 14 years! Then less than two weeks later, I attended my favorite U2 concert ever – Larry’s 40th birthday in Providence, RI, October 31, 2001. This is what I wrote about that night:
This was the best show ever! There will never be another one like it! I woke up outside around 8am – pretty good sleeping outside in 30 degrees for 5 hours. I went up to the warm hotel room until about 10am, then had some breakfast. I stayed in the GA line all day without leaving, except to take a shower around 3:30. I got everyone in the GA line to sign the big orange birthday card I made for Larry. I put my name and email address on the back just in case. The band didn’t arrive until after we were inside. Me, Tasha and Paola wore our Larry Mullen Band shirts. We got our spots at the rail up front and center between Bono and Adam. I held up my birthday card for Larry as they walked on stage, but he didn’t notice it. There were many, many signs including one saying, ‘Bono let Larry sing.’ During Elevation, Bono sang, ‘ Celebration’ then said, ‘Happy Birthday.’ After Stuck in a Moment, Larry’s 40th birthday celebration began. We sang Happy Birthday to Larry. A birthday cake was brought out and Larry pretended to throw it out into the audience. Larry took the mic and came to the front to talk while Bono sat behind the drums. Larry said, ‘Bono couldn’t play drums. It took me 40 years to get up front. I’m glad I’m spending my birthday with 18,000 of my closest friends. I feel like I could borrow money from you.’ Then Bono asked for a bottle of champagne, which he shook up a la ZooTV and sprayed the audience. Edge took a swig, then Larry drank and continued to drink for the next few songs. After Kite, Larry got off the drums and made a B line for me. I got my card and shirt in hand so I could give it to him, but that’s not why he was there. He gave me the champagne bottle – with champagne still in it. I drank some and shared it with Paola and Tasha. Larry wanted to share his birthday with ME! He wanted ME to have a drink on his birthday. I was SO excited I didn’t even know they played Wild Honey. I thought it was Staring at the Sun. I didn’t really come around until Please. After Pride, Larry came back over to me so I could give him the birthday card and Elvis tee shirt. I said, ‘Thank you. Happy Birthday.’ He smiled and said, ‘Thank You.’ He looked into my eyes, just like he had in Jersey. Then Paola gave Larry her Larry scrapbook, which contains the picture of him hugging me. Later on, Bono noticed our shirts, shook his head and smiled. Before leaving the stage Larry took Michelle’s Elvis sunglasses with sideburns and put them on. I was so elated after the show – walking around hugging the champagne bottle. I told my story on video for this woman making a U2 GA documentary. I’m sure I made a fool of myself, but I was just VERY excited. What an amazing Larry night!
I did not have any encounters with Larry during the Vertigo tour, except when I would jump up and down screaming when he sang ‘RELEASE’ during Love and Peace or Else. I may have gotten a nod. On the 360 Tour in 2009, Larry gave me a few waves, smiles and nods during the shows when he saw me in my Larry Mullen Band shirt jumping up and down screaming his name. Of course no one else was behind the stage waiting for him to walk down with his conga during I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight.
I had a few great encounters with Larry on the 360 tour, including one I still can’t quite believe. Since I was driving to all 16 US shows, I thought it was a good opportunity to try to meet Larry. I arrived at each stadium by 3pm to wait for U2 to arrive. I wore my black Larry Mullen Band shirt and straw cowboy hat to every show. At the first show in Denver, Bono and Edge stopped and met with everyone but there were too many people around for me to get close. For the next show in Salt Lake City I didn’t wait for U2 to arrive because I came across the GA line first and started talking with people, so I just got in line at 4pm.
I arrived to the stadium in Seattle just before 3:30. There were about 20-30 fans waiting who said that Larry already went in, so I was really upset. But they were wrong – can’t believe they didn’t even know what Larry looks like! A few minutes later U2 arrived, including Larry. Bono came back out riding on the back of a policeman’s motorcycle. He was talking with the fans, and I interrupted and shouted, “Is Larry ever coming out to meet the fans?” Bono replied, “He only likes you. I love you. You obviously like that kind of cold stare don’t you?” He continued to talk to others, I walked away, and then Bono shouted, “Where are the Larry Mullen Band people?” I responded, “Right here!” and then pushed my way toward him. Bono asked me, “Do you have a message I can deliver (to Larry)?” So I asked Bono to please ask Larry to come out and greet the fans in Oakland, which was the next show. Bono asked my name and then repeated it back to me. When he got in the golf cart to leave, it looked as if he wrote something down. At the end of the concert, I stood by the tunnel to watch U2 leave. Larry saw me, smiled, walked over, and shook my hand. So maybe Bono did say something to Larry.
Three days later in Oakland, I arrived at the stadium by 3pm to make sure I didn’t miss Larry arriving because I was sure that Bono would deliver my message and I would finally talk with Larry. U2 arrived and Bono was in the first car as usual and stopped right in front of us. As soon as Bono got out of the car, I pointed at him and then at my Larry Mullen Band shirt and said, “Now Bono…” He put his hands in the air and said, “I tried.” He walked over to us, and I said, “So he’s not coming (referring to Larry)?” Bono said, “I tried.” While he was signing autographs, I told him that it’s ok because I’ll be at other shows. Bono asked me, “What is your name Deah?” I said, “Deena.” He said, “Yes, I remember.” He went on to talk to others. Before he got back into the car to go inside, Bono looked over to me and shouted, “I’ll try again.”
For the next month, U2 did not stop on their way into any stadium in the US. But luckily in Nashville we were able to stand in the parking garage overlooking the area where U2 got out of the cars and went into their dressing rooms in the building next to the stadium. Larry waved to everyone as he walked by.
A few days later in Chicago, Edge stopped on his way into Soldier Field. I shook Edge’s hand – his guitar playing hand! I asked him if Larry was coming out. He said, “I can’t say for sure. I can’t speak for Larry.” I thanked Edge for coming out to greet us, but I think it was too late and I had already offended him. I don’t think Edge had a sense of humor about it like Bono did in Seattle. A week later, Bono came out to greet everyone before the show in Philadelphia, but people were crazy and swarming him so I couldn’t get close enough to see him let alone talk with him. In St Louis a few days later, there were only a few of us waiting for U2 to arrive, but no one stopped to greet us. Larry did wave as he drove by though. Inside the stadium, I stood at the stage to watch U2 walk to the stage (as I did every show), and Larry and Bono noticed me (as they did most shows) and smiled and waved. During the band introductions Bono said, “Larry is still upset that we changed our name to U2 from the Larry Mullen Band and there are some people here that agree with him” – and Larry busted out laughing. Everyone thinks Bono was referring to me, and maybe he was. A few days later Edge stopped on his way into the stadium in New Jersey stopped to greet the fans, but since I had already met him in Chicago I stood back and let others meet him – besides he didn’t seem too interested in delivering a message to Larry for me.
A week later at the final US show in Pittsburgh both Bono and Edge came out to greet the fans. I couldn’t get close enough to talk with them, but I did see Larry and Adam get out of their cars and walk inside. My friends Matt and Melissa talked with Bono and selflessly told him about me and how I’ve driven to every US show and would like to meet Larry. Brian, Bono’s security guy, told them to wait there and he would see what he could do. Brian came out later and told me Larry was in a meeting, but he told Larry about me and Bono told Larry about me. Maybe Bono and Larry knew he was talking about me, since I talked with Bono in Seattle and Oakland about meeting Larry and Larry sometimes waves to me as he walks to the stage – and Brian said he’s seen me at the shows. Brian took my phone number and said he would look for us inside. I waited on Edge’s side of the inner circle to wait for U2 to enter, as I always do. Brian came over and told me that he was still working on getting me to meet Larry. When U2 walked out of the tunnel (on Adam’s side) I noticed that Larry wasn’t first as usual. Adam and Edge were first and Larry and Bono were behind them, so I kind of thought something was up. But then somehow Larry moved up front.
As Larry walked up the ramp, he locked eyes with me and was smiling. He walked across the platform and then down to me and hugged me. He didn’t say a word, he just put his arms around me. I think I muttered a ‘thank you.’ Larry gave me the biggest, best hug ever and then went on stage. I burst into tears. Everyone around me congratulated me and hugged me, which made the moment even more special. I was so excited that I don’t really remember Even Better Than the Real Thing or The Fly. I don’t think I came to until Mysterious Ways when Larry’s drum kit turned around and faced me behind the stage. I never thought Larry would walk over to me and hug me on his way to the stage before the show. That was my favorite moment of the U2 360 tour and a perfect ending to my Musical Journey! I keep replaying it over and over in my head. Larry walked toward me, smiling, jumping down to me, putting his arms around me without saying a word, and hugging me. It seemed like it lasted forever, but after watching videos, it was only a few seconds – but those were some magnificent few seconds!
Because of Larry Mullen, there is U2. He started the band with a note on the school bulletin board. And for a few minutes, the band was known as The Larry Mullen Band. Because of Larry Mullen, I got into U2. I heard With or Without You, saw a picture of U2 and noticed Larry, and my passion for U2 quickly grew. Because of Larry Mullen, I have met many great people and visited many great cities.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
For some reason, it is really difficult to write about U2 topics that start with the letter K. Last year when I wrote about my favorite U2 songs from A to Z, I chose Kite for my K choice – even though it isn’t one of my favorite songs. This year I struggled again with picking a K for My U2. I chose the Lexington, Kentucky Elevation show, which isn’t even one of my favorite U2 shows, let alone one of my favorite Elevation shows – although they were all fantastic. But it was a great show and it took place in a state that begins with K. So here is what I wrote after the Elevation show in Lexington, KY on May 4, 2001:
Best U2 concert ever!! I know I write that after each concert, but they get better every time I see them! Vicki and I flew into Lexington around 11am, went to lunch, shopped a little, then I got in the GA line at Rupp Arena around 2pm – Vicki had a seat. Bono came out around 4pm and thanked us. He was only out there for a few minutes, but I got a few pictures. I hung out with a bunch of nice people in the GA line, including Brad, who I met in Charlotte.
Even though I was within the first 150 people in line, I still stood at the tip of the heart. The best place to stand – you can’t convince me otherwise. PJ Harvey opened again. I heard Kite and Stay for the first time. U2 also played an acoustic version of Desire, but they did not play Gone, Staring at the Sun, Discotheque or Ground Beneath Her Feet. I touched Bono’s hand once – the first time he leaned into the crowd. And then I patted his shoulder as he ran between the catwalk and us (where security is) – first time for that. I think Pride may have been my favorite this time. Bono was much more talkative tonight and much more political. I took my camera in this time and got some nice shots. What a night! Best U2 show!
Tomorrow on to Louisville for the Kentucky Derby!
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
26 years ago U2′s The Joshua Tree, my favorite album, was released. It was March 9, 1987, and I was a freshman in high school. I heard With or Without You and liked it. I realized that it was by that same group who sang that song Pride I had heard before. But I had to check out and see what U2 looked like because at 14 it is very important to a have a crush on the band you like. I noticed a picture of U2 that a classmate had. Larry stood out right away as the attractive one and someone whose pictures would soon decorate my locker. I immediately bought The Joshua Tree. That summer, I remember walking along the beach in Ocean City, Maryland with my big boom box blaring I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, which became my favorite song and still is today. I noticed U2 because of With or Without You, but I fell in love with U2 because of Larry Mullen and I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.
Even though I had all of U2′s albums, The Joshua Tree was what I listened to constantly from 1987 to 1991 – along with Rattle and Hum. Besides I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, my favorites off The Joshua Tree are Red Hill Mining Town (I was obsessed with this song!), Running to Stand Still, Trip Through Your Wires, In God’s Country, and b-sides Luminous Times (one of my all-time top 5 favorite songs), Walk to the Water, Deep in the Heart and Spanish Eyes. I love the b-sides of The Joshua Tree as much as, if not more than, the songs that actually made it onto the album. The Joshua Tree was also all I watched for five years. I taped everything off MTV – the documentaries, the videos, the concerts, the award show appearances, and the interviews. My favorite is the the first U2 I ever taped off tv, the documentary Outside It’s America– I know it by heart because I used to watch it everyday.
Even though it has been 26 years, The Joshua Tree is still my favorite album. It is truly a part of me. I think because it was my first U2 album and all I listened to and watched for five years. It’s just so ingrained in me. Its songs are second nature to me. Like being home, they are comforting. The Joshua Tree changed my life.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
My favorite song of all-time, U2 or otherwise, is I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, off my favorite U2 album The Joshua Tree. It was my first favorite U2 song and what solidified me as a U2 fan, along with Larry Mullen Jr. With or Without You introduced me to U2, but it was I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For that made me a fan. And 26 years later, I still have not found what I am looking for. But I love the journey, the quest for what truly makes me happy. Besides being a fantastic, spiritual and uplifting song, I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For is an amazing video – my favorite. It captures U2 during The Joshua Tree era in Las Vegas, my second favorite city. I cried when U2 played I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For at the second show in Anaheim on the 360 tour in 2011 because they hadn’t played it yet that leg. Even though I had heard it at lots of shows before, it was a special moment in Anaheim when U2 played I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For. I find it interesting that Larry is on the cover of the single of my favorite song.
I have climbed the highest mountains
I have run through the fields
Only to be with you
Only to be with you.
I have run, I have crawled
I have scaled these city walls
These city walls
Only to be with you.
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for.
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for.
I have kissed honey lips
Felt the healing in her finger tips
It burned like fire
(I was) burning inside her.
I have spoke with the tongue of angels
I have held the hand of a devil
It was warm in the night
I was cold as a stone.
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for.
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for.
I believe in the Kingdom Come
Then all the colours will bleed into one
Bleed into one.
But yes, I’m still running.
You broke the bonds
And you loosed the chains
Carried the cross of my shame
Oh my shame, you know I believe it.
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for.
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for.
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for.
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
Some of my favorite U2 songs are the ones that didn’t make it onto their albums – the B Sides, especially the B-Sides from The Joshua Tree and Rattle and Hum. My favorites are Luminous Times, Walk to the Water, Spanish Eyes, Deep in the Heart, Sweetest Thing, A Room at the Heartbreak Hotel, and Hallelujah Here She Comes. Luminous Times is actually my second favorite U2 song ever. This song gives me chills every time I hear it, even though I have listened to it over and over again the past 26 years. The lyrics are so passionate and the way Bono sings them is so heart wrenching. I absolutely love it! My favorite part of Luminous Times, the part that really gets to me is, “I love you ‘cause I need to, not because I need you. I love you ‘cause I understand that God has given me your hand. He holds me in a tiny fist, and still I need your kiss. Hold on to love.” U2 has never played Luminous Times in concert. When I met Bono in 1992 on the ZooTv tour, I told him how much I loved Luminous Times and asked if they would ever play it in concert. Bono answered me by saying they were thinking of putting out a b-sides album. (Huh? That’s not what I asked.) Then before the 360 tour began in2009, Edge mentioned that they were thinking of playing some b-sides that they had never played before like Luminous Times - but unfortunately that did not happen.
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge about ‘My U2′ – what I love about U2 from A to Z. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog Deena’s Days about ‘My Music’ – music I love from A to Z.
My name is Deena Dietrich, and I am living back home in Ellicott City, Maryland with my 2 dogs Elvis and Cilla. My passions are Dogs, Elvis, U2, LMP, NKOTB, the Denver Broncos, the Baltimore Orioles, blogging, social media, biographies. It is better to regret something you have done, than to regret something you haven't done, so ... Pursue your passion!
