U2 should be my favorite band. But unlike Springsteen, Wilco, Dylan or even Radiohead, I’ve never been able to fully embrace them. When I took in their recent live show outside Washington, DC (in a circle of Hell known as FedEx field-More on that in a later post) I wondered if that finally might change.

I used to tell myself that I first noticed U2 when they performed at the first Live Aid. But I know now it had to have been sooner. In the year previous, the band had its first US hit with “Pride (In the Name of Love).” and Bono had appeared on the Band Aid song to benefit Ethiopian famine,  “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”.

From the start U2 has made little secret of their ambition. Early on, the band was known as The Hype. Their two lead members, quite pretentiously, are known by their single, self-appointed names. The collection of four very earnest Dubliners really seemed to think that rock and roll could change the world and thought they were just the group to do it. And in pursuit of this goal they would, undoubtedly,  become the world’s biggest rock band. What’s never really been clear is whether they preferred to save the world or rock it into perfect harmony. Thirty years after the band’s formation that’s still an open question.

In their infancy, U2 concerned itself with more parochial matters such as their Irish upbringing. Undoubtedly, this was one of the things that drew me to the band as I’m half-Irish, which really means that I care about all things Eire but not enough that I can call it the home country. I’ve only been there for a total of two days, one of which was spent in an old pub in Dublin whose name I’ve long since forgotten. I drank pint after pint and asked the locals about ancient traditions and James Joyce. I don’t remember what they said. 

These days most Americans have a fairly Romantic view of Ireland, fostered in no small part by notable authors and travel agents. But, when U2 took the stage that July day in 1985, before 80,000 fans at Wembley Stadium (and millions more on TV-back when MTV was in the music business) for many  people, Ireland was looked at as a country perpetually torn apart by war, poverty and religious strife. U2 seemed like messengers from a Third World country. Bono’s songs chronicled personal and political tumult, and his booming voice was backed by soaring, percussive guitar chords and pounding drumbeats that suggested an imminent escape and a verdant optimism that something better was just around the corner.

In other words there was nothing small about U2. They were never too interested in telling stories, writing rueful love songs  or chirping about the good old days. Instead, they wrote universal songs that were both beautiful and inspiring with alarming ease. Their songs were inherently political while—and this is U2’s true gift—still being anthemic and stadium-ready.  In retrospect, their performance from Live Aid has an air of inevitability. They were ideally suited for the venue, the occasion and the cause. I suspect a lot of other people besides me also became U2 fans that day.

They had been together for eight years by the time of Live Aid, but having been properly introduced to the world they set their sights on the United States, which is a requisite for any band considering world domination. From early in their career America was a source of wonder. They wrote songs about Elvis and not one but two songs about Martin Luther King that were inspirational if not necessarily factual.  Their best album of the 80s, was named after a rather unremarkable tree native to the desert Southwest. It was hard to tell whether the obsession with all things American was genuine. They toured extensively in support of “The Joshua Tree” and released a live album and a documentary, both called “Rattle and Hum“, that was meant to pay tribute to musical ancestors like B.B. King and Billie Holiday. Rising out of the British post-punk movement, their connection to such artists, American artists, was tenuous at best. The fact that they were roundly criticized as being disingenuous or opportunistic by critics did nothing to deter their popularity.

They returned with “Achtung Baby!” an album filled with songs of existential sadness and loss. At the end of the subsequent tour in 1993 it could be fairly argued that U2 was, in fact, the best rock and roll band on the planet. At a minimum, they were a major force in popular music.

But, the band faltered in the rest of the 90s, struggling to find a message while singing about the trappings of fame, the media landscape and coping with pre-millennial madness. Their experiments with electronica, glam rock and club music were failures. They rarely include songs from this era in their live shows, which is a pretty solid indicator of the band’s own feelings about the “Pop” and “Zooropa” albums. But they still sold millions of records and performed sold-out shows. Perhaps, they felt, with peace in Ireland and prosperity in much of the industrialized world they had nothing worthy of their angst. Then again, other bands rocked better, or had a cooler message, or both. 

Chastened, (well, chastened as much as a band whose lead singer regularly wears tinted sunglasses can be) U2 released “All That You Can’t Leave Behind” in 2000. The fact that the band had endured critical, if not commercial, failure had humbled them and Bono admitted as much in interviews.  The record combined the rollicking anthems of their earlier work with solemn, reflective ballads.  I would argue that it is the band’s most complete album from start to finish. Its best songs might not hold up to earlier classics but it is a cohesive, cogent piece of work.  Whatever confidence that the band lost had been regained in spades. When U2 released “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb” to wide praise in 2004 Bono and the boys were further emboldened. Indeed, Bono became even more voluble for causes near to his and the band’s heart. His platform was no longer limited to stadiums or concert venues. He wrote editorials in newspapers, met with high-ranking officials, spoke at the UN. All unchartered ground for a rock star.

Their newest album, “No Line on the Horizon” has garnered mostly positive reviews and yielded a pair of catchy singles, but it has neither the sustained quality of the last two albums nor the urgency of their finer songs. Receiving far more attention than their music was their massive tour. 

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The last time I saw U2 in concert was on the remarkable Elevation Tour which followed “All That You Can’t Leave Behind.” It’s one of the five best concerts I’ve ever attended.  Upon hearing a song with deep personal resonance I wept unashamedly.  It was only about six weeks after the terrorist attacks and emotions were particularly high and, to their credit, the band understood this. I was comforted by my companion but also by complete strangers who were undoubtedly still grieving about more recent loss. We sang and bounced along, drank Guinness, waved the Irish flag, and tried to smile a little. Somehow, Bono connected with over 20,000 people on a personal level. Just watch.

I could tell the moment I walked into FedEx Field that that feeling would not be replicated. I saw very few Irish flags. Although there were 90,000 or so on hand, it felt more like 20,000 groups of four or five. There was no sense of community. I thought everything, including the band, would be overshadowed by the Orwellian claw that was the stage and video screens. There would be no personal connection with the audience.

And it is precisely this type of overkill that has kept me from fully committing to U2. As a person deeply concerned with preserving and conserving the natural environment attending the concert of a band that will lug 200 trucks worth of equipment around for the next two years presents more than a little bit of a conflict. Then there’s the fact that while Bono is talking about eradicating poverty and debt forgiveness he’s leading a tour that is more than a little ostentatious.  Furthermore, tickets were not cheap; some were as high as $250. Adding to the hypocrisy dilemma, is that this is standard operating procedure for the band. This level of extravagance is only marginally bigger than the last tour. What’s next, a performance in a rocket above the earth’s atmosphere that’s beamed to neighboring galaxies?

As enamored as U2 appears to be with the excesses of fame and fortune there are no tales of philandering, drunken rages, destroyed hotel rooms or drug abuse. Quite the opposite actually. Bono has been married for over 25 years. Larry Mullen, Jr. is similarly committed. The Edge is deeply religious and once thought of forming a Christian band.

So, U2 came out and for about two hours played several songs from the new album and many of their most popular hits. They should not be criticized for this because this is what established bands do; to play all of their favorites would require a concert of marathon proportions.

As always, politics was on the tip of Bono’s tongue. He made sure to acknowledge the presence (in a luxury box, no doubt) of the Speaker of the House, a Senator, a Bishop and a former Chief of Staff.  In contrast, on the Elevation Tour he made a point of calling out Dee Dee Ramone, whose bandmate Joey had recently passed away. On the video screens that created a huge silver beehive of multi-media, the crowd was implored by the Bishop Desmond Tutu and urged to support the emerging democratic movement in Iran. In the least subtle (and most obviously staged) sequence of the evening, Bono pulled a Sikh, who just happened to be sitting in the front row, and just happened to be waving a US flag, onto the stage to join him in song. Even if it was spontaneous and the man was the biggest U2 fan in the building, it seemed a bit much. It’s these sorts of demonstrations that make me and other people cringe.

The knee-jerk reaction is to tell Bono and his mates to just shut up and play. Indeed, there are times when watching U2 feels like you’re attending one of those 1/2 credit continuing education courses mandated by your employer. But, it’s not as though U2 are staking out particularly controversial positions. Who is against democracy? Or against Desmond Tutu? Really, who is against the poor? Ok, besides crazy right-wingers who are opposed to universal health care. Nobody. And Bono did, in fact, bring attention to a rather obscure issue like debt forgiveness for African nations. This is not a front page issue. Perhaps I should be grateful that Bono is so engaged with the world when so many other musicians are not. Try to imagine say, John Mayer, talking about say, the importance of providing healthy school lunches. Yeah. That ain’t happening.

Maybe Bono would be better served if he actually went to Tehran and marched in the streets. Or maybe if he had stood with the protestors in Bali to demand action on climate change. But he hasn’t. Maybe we should be thankful. He could turn into Ted Nugent.

It’s entirely possible that the Starbucks-drinking, Barnes and Noble book-clubbing, overwhelmingly white, upper middle class people that were in attendance in Washington cared only about seeing a good show. They, even in a recession, would gladly right out a check or two for their favorite progressive causes anyway, so why not allow Bono to give them a nudge? That’s all the vast majority of people can do because, really, there’s only so much time in a day. They have jobs and families.  And, yes, I too have fallen prey to this thinking on several occasions. It is a lot easier to just write the check than doing the day by day dirty work that is necessary to affect some sort of change. But I still feel guilty about it.

And yet, you know what? U2 delivered an energetic, often magical show. Just as they always do. The huge stage and giant video screens were awesome and trying to ignore them was a pointless exercise. They actually enhanced the experience rather than obscuring it as I initially feared. The songs were soul-stirring;  you don’t need to be Irish to get a chill hearing “Sunday Bloody Sunday” live. It strikes at something very basic to the human existence. And yet. And yet the experience left me feeling remote.

When they first arrived on the scene, nobody sounded like U2, now a lot of bands do. Because of their powerful music U2 is able to pull off stuff that no other band would even attempt. They know how to use the media and shape their image for a 24-hour news cycle. The quintessential 21st Century band, U2 gives us exactly what we want and deserve. Even their name is perfect for our shorthand, text-messaging culture. 

There’s something preposterous about thousands of people showing up at a particular place at a particular time to listen to a band play music and maybe, sing along. Most bands deal with this absurdity by being loud, ironic or eccentric. U2 approaches it with complete honesty. They want to be the greatest band in the world so they can spread their message of peace and love. Or is it the other way around? That’s the thing with U2, it’s never just about the music.

Katy and I saw U2 on Saturday night at Chicago’s soldier field.  It was the perfect North American setting for this concert.  Soldier Field is surrounded by Lake Michigan, Chicago’s finest museums and the awesome Chicago skyline.  It is also located only few short miles away from where President Obama lives and launched his community organizing and political careers.   The stadium itself is a futuristic mashup of the old and space-age; a perfect place for U2’s stage/multi-media spaceship w

Bono and friends tried to deliver a transcendent artisitic/political/spiritual experience and the show got some fantastic reviews.  Here is Rolling Stone’s take and the Chicago Tribune blog had some very nice things to say.

Along with a nice mix of old and new songs, we saw images from this summer’s protests in Iran, were encouraged to be in solidarity with Burmeese freedom fighter Aung San Suu Kyi and had a video message from Desmond Tutu.  I normally like this kind of stuff.  Bullet the Blue Sky, Sunday Bloody Sunday, and Pride (In the Name of Love) are my all time favorite songs.  On this night though,  it just felt a bit forced.

From where I was sitting, concert goers were 95% white and old.  It doesn’t look like u2 has much of a following in the under 30 crowd.  There seemed to be more African Americans working at the stadium than attending the concert.  It just gave me a bit of a creepy feeling when a bunch of white folks (myself included) are preaching justice, civil rights, and honoring the anti-apartheid movement when the class and race divisions in the stadium seemed so apparent.

That’s not U2’s fault.  Heck, I wish more musicians, artists, corporations, individuals, took matters into their own hands the way U2 does when it comes to justice and the future of the planet and the human race..

On this beautiful night in Chicago, a day after 9-11, I was just reminded about how far we still have to go.

there’s old school… and then there’s older school.

we normally hear music snobs, modern history purists and all-around geeks complain that nothing can ever compare to an original. to some extent, there is wisdom to that claim. there are, however, sometime glitches in the balance of the universe when bold remakes strike as big an impact as the original. they take their cue from the classics, stamp their crests on them and become classics themselves.

so here are a few examples of old school classics with their even older school predecesors.

older school: the ohio players – love rollercoaster

the ohio players’ chart-topping “love rollercoaster” enoyed the highest spots of both the r&b and the pop charts in the mid-70’s. the song speaks about the ups and downs of dating, thus the metaphor of a popular theme ride, but it was also deeply entrenched in urban legend: the scream heard in the music has long been regarded as either a) a woman being murdered in the studio as they were recording, b) the model for their album cover who suffered permanent disfigurement due to the “honey” used to cover her body for the photo, or c) a woman screaming as a broken down rollercoaster went crashing to her death.

much later, jimmy “diamond” williams explained that the screaming sound was actually billy beck doing one of his “inhaling-type screeches like…mariah carey does to go octaves above.” as the urban legend held the country in mystery and intrigue, the band didn’t bother correcting the story, as it actually made them sell more records. cool.

old school: the red hot chilli peppers – love rollercoaster

the song was picked up by the insanely popular rock band red hot chilli peppers in 1996 with frontman anthony kiedis incorporating rap into the track, and kazoos taking the place of horns. the song achieved it’s great fame when it was featured in the soundtrack of beavis and butthead do america.

in the same era, the movie urban legends briefly mentioned the song and the myth associated with it. then it reared a more eerie appearance in final destination 3 when it played as death stalked two teenage girls in a tanning salon. which goes to show that good stories, no matter how untrue, die hard.

older school: come together – beatles

one of the most remade, if not the most remade, song in history, “come together” is written by john lennon originally for jonathan leary’s campaign for governor of california against ronald reagan. leary’s hopes were dashed to the ground when he was sent to prison for possession of marijuana. it may have been originally played for a failed endeavor, but “come together” has since been named by rolling stone magazine as one of the 500 greatest songs of all time.

in an unrelated story, the song was also banned for a while by bbc, assuming then that the lyrics “shooting coca-cola” is a reference to cocaine. why is it that everything the beatles does is quickly associated with drugs?

old school: come together – michael jackson

beatle paul mccartney, good friend to michael jackson, once gave jacko sound business and investment advice regarding purchasing rights to famous songs. which should mean that when mccartney bid for the rights to the beatles’ tracks, there is no surprise that he was outbid by none other than jackson himself. michael jackson now owns rights to between 159-251 of the beatles songs. so when mccartney had to print lyrics for his 1989 world tour, he had to pay jacko a fee as owner. business is weird that way.

michael jackson covered “come together” for his concert film michael jackson: moonwalker, and it also appears in his album history.

older scoohl: u2 – pride (in the name of love)

“early morning, april 4, shots ring out in the memphis sky”…”one man betrayed with a kiss”. martin luther king, jr. was assassinated in memphis on april 4. and we all know who judas betrayed with a kiss… is there any other song as powerful as this?

the song was the first single released off their the unforgettable fire album, and was received to great acclaim by the public. since then, “pride” has become a staple in every u2 concert, and, like “come together”, rolling stone magazine placed it among its 500 greatest songs of all time.

old school: clivilles + cole – pride (in the name of love)

just when i thought u2’s “pride” can never be remade in passions as profound as the original, clivilles and cole embed their musical genius on it. yes, the clivilles and cole of c+c music factory.

clivilles and cole’s version features a music video of street fighting, battle, hate crime and violent protest, images that will forever remain in our collective consciousness. you see, the duo of clivilles and cole were not all dance and no depth; they understood human emotion and how to make music tell its story. their partnership sadly came to an end when david cole passed away in 1994 after an unsuccessful bout with a rare spinal disorder. but legends are never silenced, so their music rings on for more generations to live by.

On April 4, 1968, 41 years ago today Martin Luther King Jr. was killed in Memphis.  He was a great man and was taken from the earth way too early.  The work and progress he made for all of us can never be overestimated .

U2’s tribute to King, Pride (In The Name Of Love).

Bono belts out the words “Early morning, April 4, shot rings out in the Memphis sky” ” in U2’s classic tribute to Martine Luther King Jr. Pride (In the Name of Love).  Unfortunately, the band got the time of day all wrong when they recorded the tune in 1984.  As many have pointed out, including the band, King was actually shot in the evening of that fateful day in 1968.

Life.com has just released a series of never-before-published photos of the assassination aftermath taken by photographer Henry Groskinsky after racing to the scene while on assignment in Alabama.  The dozen or so images provide a stark and emotionally powerful visual of that historic event.  See the photos for yourself here.

é; poderia eu estar por aqui a escrever sobre a  renovação dos tempos pós-carnaval – com ou sem hífen, para mim, tanto faz -; vai ver um dia eu ainda faça isso.

Mas não.

só resolvi reavivar isto aqui, porque eu ganhei um presente do desconhecido.

em qualquer outra situação poderia eu reclamar da vida, do comportamento humano, da rotina, do destino, mas este último não me permite exprimir qualquer crítica, a não ser aquela sobre a fome mundial e uns quilos além do necessário que me perseguem loucamente.

Ó ENTIDADE ALÉM DA CAPACIDADE HUMANA DE COMPREENSÃO, muito obrigada por criar Saramago e Jean-Pierre Jeunet, por fazê-los meus  ídolos, e graças a isso,dar-me o melhor “tapa-de-luva” que alguém TÃO CÉTICO  e incrédulo pode receber.

por isso, hoje eu corri; corri muito. até cansar. Talvez para colocar em ordem as prioridades, as probabilidades, as consequências; a parte exata gritou dentro de mim.

qualquer dia próximo venho eu aqui, novamente, escrever sobre urtículos ou sobre a subida da IBOVESPA. tanto faz, se quiser, destino meu, fazer-me desenvolver uma tese sobre a descoberta da ciência estatística na espécia humana, farei com gosto.

aprendi que cada assunto pode ser interessante, por mais clichê que isso possa parecer comum; que cada descoberta pode fazer muito mais do que surpreender.

“Get On Your Boots,” the lead single from the upcoming U2 album, which is titled No Line On The Horizon, received its first radio airplay this morning on Irish radio station RTE 2fm. Longtime U2 friend, 2fm DJ Dave Fanning, played the track on 2fm’s The Colm & Jim-Jim Show at 8:10 a.m. GMT. To hear the song receiving its broadcast debut, click below:

To read about how Dave Fanning has been championing U2 since the beginning, click here.

“Get On Your Boots” can also be heard in the music player on U2’s MySpace page.

In other U2 news, the band performed yesterday at the concert in honor of President-elect Barack Obama in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC. U2 performed “Pride (In The Name Of Love)” and “City Of Blinding Lights.” To watch U2’s performance from the HBO broadcast of the concert, click below:

Bono did get a bit political during U2’s performance. When U2 took the stage, Bono told the crowd, “Let freedom ring. On this spot where we’re standing 46 years ago, Dr. King had a dream. On Tuesday, that dream comes to pass.”

Bono added that Obama’s election as President of the United States is “not just an American dream but also an Irish dream, a European dream, an African dream, an Israeli dream, and also a Palestinian dream.”

Bono also spoke about what it meant to the band personally, saying, “What a thrill for four Irish boys from the north side of Dublin to honor you, sir, Barack Obama, to be the next president of the United States.”

Obama addressed the crowd at the end of the event, and said, “I want to thank today’s speakers and performers for reminding us through song and word what it is we love about America.”

To read more about yesterday’s concert in the nation’s capital, see the article from NME.com.

While listening to the umpteenth version of U2’s “Pride (In the Name of Love)” this MLK day, take a moment to hear another, more nuanced version of the same issue. “Legacy” by Pierce Pettis doesn’t mention Martin Luther King, Jr. or even the civil rights struggle. Rather, it comes from the perspective of living in the south, and the predjudices we pass down to our own children and grandchildren, unknowingly or on purpose. This clip features Pettis not only playing the song, but stopping to explain it a bit, too…

Saint Gudule, it is said, carried a lighted candle to church each visit. The devil repeatedly blew out its flame, but could not extinguish the light, for the flame always re-ignited.

As U2 sang yesterday, at the Inaugural concert for Barack Obama, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, in its emotive song “Pride (In the Name of Love)”, the same could be said for Martin Luther King. “Early evening / April 4th / Shots rang out in a Memphis sky / Three blasts: They took your life / They could not take your pride.”

It is a Beautiful Day. Happy Birthday, Martin.

U2’s “Pride (In The Name Of Love)”

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr Day here in the United States, a national holiday honoring its namesake. It is celebrated every third Monday of January since 1986 when it was first observed. Martin Luther King, Jr’s birthdate is January 15, 1929; he would have turned 80 years old last Thursday.
He is a very important figure in U.S. history in that his legacy of civil rights reforms brought consciousness to the mainstream of American society. A Baptist minister himself, his espousal of non-violent actions through civil disobedience was the core of his aim to end racial segregation and racial discrimination in this country. As a result, racial minorities (where I myself belong to) are accorded the same human rights as whites, an example of which is the right to equal opportunity employment. Now people like me in this country no longer have to shun establishments that say “whites only” or “colored people are not allowed here” at their entrances.
The United States of America is built on the hard work and resources of its people, irregardless of racial color or origin. Unless you are an American Indian, everyone in this country has his/her roots from his/her immigrant forefathers. You may have been naturally-born here, which makes you truly an American; but so are millions of other people. Now this of course wouldn’t matter much– unless you’re not white. This is a country made up of diverse individuals united not because of the color of their skin but because they are human beings– capable of love, kindness, respect, tolerance, fairness, decency and unity.
Tomorrow is a milestone in American history like no other. Because tomorrow this country will inaugurate Barack Obama as the 44th president of the United State of America. Who would have thought that a black man would be sworn in as leader of the free world? Never! Until today.
So tomorrow, Tuesday (January 20, 2009 – date here in the U.S.), wherever you are in this world, if you have access to TVs or the internet, watch Barack Obama’s presidential inauguration as he is sworn into office at around noon (Eastern Time) in Washington D.C. Not until this time is the dream of Martin Luther King, Jr realized– “that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.“. . . to “let freedom ring. And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring—when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children—black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics—will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: “Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!“

God Bless the free world!!!

Hoy escuché en mi celular la nueva canción de U2. La discográfica se encargó de enviarla por correo a varias radios para asegurarse que hoy lunes se tocara en todos lados y, como era de esperarse, estaba en la bandeja de entrada de una de mis cuentas de correo electrónico.

Al escucharla recordé con melancolía la “Guerra de las Radios” que ganamos en una estación de radio en 1997 cuando tocamos “antes que nadie” el nuevo sencillo del álbum Pop: “Discoteque”. Hoy el público de U2 está compuesto por treintones y cuarentones y un nuevo disco del grupo no justifica levantar las baterías de ataque radiofónico.

Hoy en día un disco de U2 no va a cambiar al mundo. 

Después de no escuchar nada de U2 por semanas (hay que desintoxicarse de los grupos longevos) este fin de semana ví finalmente el DVD del grupo en su concierto de Red Rocks. Me recordó la clandestinidad que rodeaba al rock en los 80 y a un Zamora que todavía no podía hacer suyos los conciertos de grupos internacionales (no habían) ni la vida nocturna.

El DVD reproducía a un cantante que apenas prometía con banderas blancas lo que después cumpliría en cumbres internacionales. 

Hoy en día el nombre de Bono sigue cambiando el rostro de Africa.

Mientras me vestía encendí la televisión y  ahí estaba de nuevo. Como cada vez que saca un nuevo álbum este irlandés adquiere el don de la ubicuidad, pude ver un fragmento de su presentación en el concierto de Obama en Washington D.C. 

Para los que conocemos al grupo la selección musical era obvia: Pride (In the Name of Love). Una canción que habla de los grupos de lucha por los derechos civiles y que está inspirada en el Reverendo y luchador social Martin Luther King y su discurso “I Believe”.

Tomo una frase del cantante en el escenario: ”On this spot where we’re standing, 46 years ago, Dr King had a dream. On Tuesday, that dream comes to pass.”

Hoy es el día de Martin Luther King en los Estados Unidos y esta unión de fenómenos políticos, sociales y musicales toma sentido.

Por lo menos más sentido que ver a Bono en fotos con Bush. El pequeño gran precio que tuvo que pagar después de “robarle” millones de dólares para ayudar a los africanos más necesitados.

Esta canción, que durante tantos años ha provocado satisfacciones al grupo, hoy se inserta de una manera distinta en la historia de los Estados Unidos a unas horas de que tome el poder su primer presidente negro.

El día de hoy “Get on Your Boots”, primer sencillo del nuevo álbum, no me gustó mucho. Pero como hace 8 años pude decirle a Edge, estoy acostumbrado a que la música de U2 tarde mucho en gustarme, pueden pasar días, meses o años. El grupo, por raro que parezca, no me gustaba en los ochenta, pero cuando una amiga trató de “reclutarme” terminé por robarle todos sus cassettes (aún los tengo).

La foto que aparece fue tomada en el National Prayer Breakfast hace dos años donde Bono, invitado por Bush, asistió para pedir a los Estados Unidos el uno por ciento de su presupuesto federal para ayudar a Africa.

I find it very fitting both to have U2 sing at this event, and the songs they chose to sing (Pride, City of Blinding Lights)

un hombre llegó en nombre del amor
un hombre llegó y se fué
un hombre llegó para justificar
un hombre al que derrocar

en el nombre del amor
que más en el nombre del amor?

un hombre capturado en una vaya de alambre de espinos
un hombre que resiste
un hombre ahogado en una playa vacia
un hombre traicionado con un beso

en el nombre del amor
que más en el nombre del amor?

un 4 de abril por la mañana temprano
un disparo sonó en el cielo de menphis
libre por fin
se llevaron tu vida
pero ellos no pueden llevarse tu orgullo

en el nombre del amor
que más en el nombre del amor?

Recently I have become obsessed about looking into the mind set of some my favourite artists. What inspired them? How did they solve the obstacles all musicians face? How and why did they evolve and change as artists?

Although Bono is a glorious douche bag, I do love his music and will defend him to end. So in my search into the mind of Bono I stumbled upon a Rolling Stone interview completed during their last world tour. In it Bono talks about writing Pride (In the name of Love):

“As a lyric, it’s daft! It’s a missed opportunity to.. to uh…  I mean, I even get the time of Dr. King’s assassination wrong! I say early morning, but it was early evening! It’s no description of him, it’s more of a description of a feeling he unlocked in me.”

To me the lyrics to Pride were always perfect. To be honest, I never really looked at the lyrics because Bono communicates so much through the emotion he sings with. The lyrics painted a picture but it was so fractured that I was able to bend my life to fit the song. I made the song mine. The lyrics were perfect.

But I can understand his point. Artists want every piece of work they do to be their best. If I was Bono and had a major factual error in one of my biggest songs, it would drive me insane. I would want to remedy the situation in any way possible.

Yet sometimes you need to let your art into the world and see what becomes of it.

If Pride were an okay song, the lyrics would be pointed out as a problem. But Pride is not an okay song; it’s a flat out, undisputed classic song. Everything worked on Pride because the band unlocked the same feelings within its audience as Dr. King did within Bono. They communicated emotionally.

That is why Pride is a hit. It is a piece of music that communicates emotionally.

That’s what all classic hit songs contain. Emotion. The efficient communication of universal, emotional, human truths.

Voyno

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U2 exploded after The Joshua Tree was released in 1987 and became the biggest band in the world. A monster world tour followed and from that jaunt, a July 4 concert titled Live from Paris has just been released (I found it on iTunes, but it’s available on other digital sites), and it shows the band in top form.

Songs like ”With or Without You,” “Trip through Your Wires,” and “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For,” and “Bullet in a Blue Sky” sound fresh, and “I Will Follow” and “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” “Bad,” “Pride (In the Name of Love)” and “New Year’s Day” are some of the best live recordings of these songs that I have heard.

This 18-song collection (which was also released in DVD form as part of the deluxe edition re-issue of The Joshua Tree) captures U2 before the arrogance of the Popmart and Zoo TV periods and shows one of the world’s greatest bands during its most creative and exciting periods.

YouTube: Pride (In the Name of Love) – Live in Paris, 1987

YouTube: With or Without You – Live in Paris, 1987

U2 Official Website

For a moving rendition of U2’s “Pride (In the Name of Love)” covered by John Legend, watch the video below. This was recorded for a History Channel special on Martin Luther King, Jr. entitled King. Find out more about the show here.

It’s hard not to be moved by the final words of the video, showing MLK saying the following:

If you can’t fly, run. If you can’t run, walk. If you can’t walk, crawl. But by all means, keep moving.

The theme of love governs plentiful of songs written ever since song-writing existed. This love song is expressed in every possible angle that love can be seen to be at work, be it the love for a person, persons, a whole nation, a belief, an ethnic group, anything. It’s a song that enabled plentiful other love songs to be written more specifically, since writing a love song from more than one angle of love is not what most songwriters would normally do. At least I don’t think so anyway.

Pride, in the name of love.