U2

U2 is rock band from Ireland featuring Bono (Paul David Hewson), The Edge (David Howell Evans), Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. Formed in 1976, U2 has consistently remained among the most popular acts in the world since the mid 1980s. The band has sold over 50 million albums in the US and over 170 million worldwide, including six #1 albums in the US. The band has won 22 Grammy awards more than any other recording artist.

U2 participated in the Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium in July 1985, which was seen by more than a billion people worldwide. U2 were not expected to be one of the main draws for the event, but the band provided the show with one of its most memorable moments, a relentless 13-minute version of "Bad" in which Bono hurdled off the stage to dance with a fan. The other band members were upset with Bono for spending the time they had planned for playing "Pride (In the Name of Love)," and Bono was convinced he had squandered a chance for promoting the band to a greater audience. Larry Mullen Jr. admitted that the rest of the band had considered leaving the stage as he was performing. The Live Aid version of "Bad" has however become one of U2's most renowned performances, and was an indication of the personal connection that Bono could make with audiences.

I saw them in Detroit the first time in 1987 and they were amazing. A band called "Lone Justice" opened. I've seen them twice more since then--Boston and Chicago but that was the best. Give a listen to some of my favorites for the music: "Pride," "Angel of Harlem," "Where the Streets Have No Name," and "Elevation." Here are some of my favorite lyrics.


"Running To Stand Still"
And so she woke up~Woke up from where she was
Lying still
Said I gotta do something~ About where we're going
Step on a steam train~Step out of the driving rain, maybe
Run from the darkness in the night Singing ...
Sweet the sin
Bitter taste in my mouth
I see seven towers~But I only see one way out
You got to cry without weeping
Talk without speaking
Scream without raising your voice
You know I took the poison~From the poison stream
Then I floated out of here ~Singing...
She runs through the streets
With her eyes painted red
Under black belly of cloud in the rain
In through a doorway she brings me
White gold and pearls stolen from the sea
She is raging~She is raging
And the storm blows up in her eyes
She will...Suffer the needle chill
She's running to stand...Still.

"Bad" (in part)
This desparation
Dislocation
Separation
Condemnation
Revelation
In temptation
Isolation
Desolation
Let it go
And so fade away

"One Tree Hill"
We turn away to face the cold, enduring chill
As the day begs the night for mercy love
The sun so bright it leaves no shadows
Only scars carved into stone
On the face of earth
The moon is up and over One Tree Hill
We see the sun go down in your eyes
You run like river, on like a sea
You run like a river runs to the sea
And in the world a heart of darkness
A fire zone
Where poets speak their heart
Then bleed for it
Jara sang, his song a weapon
In the hands of love
You know his blood still cries
From the ground
It runs like a river runs to the sea
It runs like a river to the sea
I don't believe in painted roses
Or bleeding hearts
While bullets rape the night of the merciful
I'll see you again
When the stars fall from the sky
And the moon has turned red
Over One Tree Hill
We run like a river
Run to the sea
We run like a river to the sea
And when it's raining
Raining hard
That's when the rain will
Break my heart ...