U2 on Fire at Glastonbury

Last night I sat myself down in front of the TV with a bottle of Errazuriz Merlot (delicious!) to watch U2 perform at Glastonbury.  I love Glastonbury, it's different from other festivals and the eclectic mix of performers is always great.  It took U2 30 years to perform there but at last it was on!  It must have been quite nerve-wracking for the band as there was a significant anti-U2 vibe about them performing there.  So when they came onto the pyramid stage I had my fingers crossed for them.  I needn't have worried, from the start they were brilliant, and within a short time had the crowd very much with them.

They started with a medley of Achtung Baby songs, Even Better, (accompanied by a new video by Damian Hurst on the screen behind the band) The Fly, Mysterious Ways, Until the End of the World, One, and I drifted back in time almost 20 years to the mad Zoo days.  Even some of the video on the large screen behind the band was from those days.  They were crazy, but good times and it was a treat to hear those songs again.  The rain was pouring down, you could see the drops on Bono's glasses and at one time as Edge stamped on the stage the water from little puddles on the stage.  But hey, this is Glastonbury and that means rain and mud!

Then, a nice touch, Bono sang Jerusalem acappella, very appropriate as William Blake's words refer to the possibility that Jesus and Joseph of Arimathea visited Glastonbury.  Whether that is true or not, Glastonbury is a special place and some magic was happening there last night.


Jerusalem segued into an uplifting Where the Streets Have No Name.  Then it was I Will Follow after which was I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking for, the crowd singing a verse on it's own, amazing if you think that this is not a U2 audience, something Bono remarked on - "We haven't played to people who are not our audience for a very long time, so it was just overwhelming for our band."


Then came Stay which was wonderful followed by Beautiful Day which had a pre-recorded introduction by astronaut Mark Kelly in the International Space Station.  Then there was a medley of high energy songs, Elevation, Get On Your Boots, Vertigo, Sunday Bloody Sunday.  Suddenly the high energy stopped and those familiar opening notes that always send shivers up my spine rang out - Bad!  It was a huge surprise for me as they haven't done Bad live on the current leg of the 360 Tour.  I have to admit the tears were running down my face during this, it always gets to me, and this version was fabulous, I was in heaven.  Bono added a few lines of Jerusalem to the lyrics:

Bring me my Bow of burning gold;
Bring me my Arrows of desire:
Bring me my Spear: O clouds unfold!
Bring me my Chariot of fire!


This was followed by Pride, which isn't a favourite but has to be done in a gig like this.  After a short break the band did a encore beginning with With Or Without You, during which Bono took UK and Irish flags and laid them across speakers on the stage.

Moment of Surrender followed, still not one of my faves, and it seemed as if it was all over, then suddenly they launched into Out of Control, another surprise!  Written when they were ordinary kids of 18, and now here they were, world famous 50 somethings, the best band in the world who definitely still have it!  That's pretty amazing.


Though I'm still a fan I've often been critical and cheesed off with U2 over various things in recent years.  But live they are brilliant, never let us down and are simply the best.  And I can't wait until I see them live again myself in Canada very, very soon!

U2 Confirmed For Glastonbury

What we already knew has been confirmed, U2 are headlining at Glasto on Friday 24th June.  U2.com (it occasionally has its uses ) has a short video of Edge which you can watch here.   Below is a summary of what he said.
'We're so excited to get to play in front of the world's greatest festival audience.'

At a ceremony in London tonight, Edge presented the 'Best Festival' award by video to Michael and Emily Eavis of The Glastonbury Festival - and confirmed that U2 would play the festival this summer.

''It's more a way of life than a festival.' he said, describing the great time he had visiting the Festival last year, guesting on stage with Muse.

'We're all looking forward to coming back to pick up where I left off, U2 will be playing June 24th...we'll see you there.'

Sunshine, Glastonbury and Big Brother - It Must be Summer!

We've been having a wonderful few weeks of sunshine, in fact it has een so dry there is talk of a water shortage on the books soon!  For me Glastonbury has always signalled the start of summer.  I've never been in person but have always watched it live on TV and seen many a fledgling act that has gone on to become famous there.  What I love about Glastonbury is how different it is from other festivals,  it has such an eclectic mix of acts and audience who just seem to love every minute of it.  Where else can you see Rolf Harris, Willie Nelson, Vampire Weekend, Pet Shop Boys, Ellie Goulding and Snoop Dogg on the same bill? Even during the many years when the festival has become a mudbath it doens't dampen the fun.

I've just watched Muse's set and, unlike last night's headliner Gorillaz (who were a poor substitute for U2), they were stunning.  And our man the Edge did make an appearance when he played  Where the Streets Have No Name with Muse, Matt Bellamy being a worthy stand in for Bono.  Great to see Edge and the song get a positive reception.  There was an interview with Edge afterwards and he said how much he enjoyed playing with Muse.  When asked how Bono was he said he was working on his rehab and that it would be a "race" for him to be ready for Turin but that he hoped he would be ok for it.  He also said that U2 had to do Glastonbury in the future, but didn't say they would be there next year.  A couple more photos of Edge with Muse can be found here

Here's the Muse/Edge performance of Streets:

Edge with Muse at Glasto?

Read about it here U2 Guitarist Rumoured to Play With Muse at Glastonbury I think this rumour could be true.

U2 For Glastonbury 2010

Well, well, well, after all the years of rumours that U2 would play at Glastonbury it is actually happening! They have been confirmed as playing at the festival next year. It's close shave, they are squeezing the gig in between shows in North America on the 3rd leg of the 360 Tour. I'll get to see it on TV anyway, so that's all the UK and Ireland is getting, I'm not happy. I sometimes think also that they have forgotten they are Irish! Read more here

Glastonbury 2009

This weekend has been Glasto weekend in the UK. The much loved and biggest performing arts festival in the world (175000 attendance), an eclectic mix of artists and delightfully eccentric and unique. Glasto also signifies the start of the summer here, though often there is more rain than sunshine resulting in a mudbath, but that's all part of the experience. However, this year the festival was graced with mainly warm and sunny weather.

Unfortunately I've never been to Glastonbury in person, but I always make a point of watching it every year on TV right into the early hours. And what a great festival it was this year too! Amongst the newer bands The Doves and Fleet Foxes stood out for me, what wonderful harmonies the latter had - reminded me a little of The Beach Boys.

But two long time artists stood head and shoulders above the rest for or me, the first being Neil Young - his Heart Of Gold is one of my all-time fave songs. Looking every day of his 64 years, straggly hair flying wildly and an instantly recognisable voice, he totally wowed the audience. Rockin The Free World was amazing and he had the whole audience rocking along with him, brilliant stuff. There was a magic happening and it was wonderful to watch.

Saturday night's highlight for me was Bruce Springsteen who I've been a fan since before I got into U2. I've seen him play live five times over the years and I've never been disappointed, he is simply brilliant live. He did not disappoint at Glastonbury where he was on stage for two and a half hours - quite short for him, he usually does a three plus hour set . Not bad for a man of 58 (and unlike Neil Young Bruce does not look his age). His energy in amazing and the thing that shines through is just how much he is loving every moment of it. He often talked to the audience and a one point he said about joy replacing sadness and that's exactly what this performance was about, fun and joy, it brought a smile to people's faces - including mine. As I sat in my living room watching I wished I'd been there to be part of that live experience.

Bruce did a great mix of songs including some of my favourites, Badlands, Promised Land, The River (so beautifully performed, the best I've seen), Thunder Road and Born To Run. The encore was Glory Days and Dancing in The Dark, perfect to end on. The energy never diminished, I don't know how he does it! He is very much a man of the people still, and he frequently came off the stage and went down to the audience having physical contact with them. It was all about the music and communication and it was wonderful. We may have lost The King of Pop, but The Boss is still captivating us with what great music and a great artist should be all about.



So now it's goodbye to Glasto for another year, it'll certainly be hard to top this one. I wish U2 would perform there but somehow I don't see it, though Adam is a fan of the event. No other festival is like this one, maybe it has to do with the magical place it is held and the ley lines criss-crossing the area, who knows.....

All photos taken from BBC website