by The Chad

4/15 Glendale, AZ
Show #2
Yesterdays GA line was exhausting and I hadn't been feeling well at all in the heat.. So today the Utah Boyz took it easy. Thanks to Shelby for the GA tickets! We arrived to the GA line around 5:00pm and there were quite a bit of people (1,000?), but for all those wondering, with the new system getting there extremely early may not make that big of a difference. Our tickets were scanned and again we were not in the ellipse.. but that was just fine. We went stage left in the corner about 4 people back from the walkway and it was a great spot. A long time friend and his wife were able to meet us at the show and it reminded me that the only way to make these shows better, was to share the experience with friends. The ellipse sure had a lot of breathing room inside. It looked as if they could have fit 50-100 more people no problem but it is probably better that they don't. As yesterday, there were a few fans that were trying to fight there way up.. all having great and original reasons.. like, "I'm trying to find my friend". I was grateful for the man behind me that told the intoxicated young lady that was shoving everyone that she wasn't going to "mess" up the evening for the rest of us. I'm also grateful that the lady behind me with full chicken dinner didn't pour ranch dressing down my back during the show. :) With that said.. on to the review:
The set list order was completely different from last night as they started with Blinding Lights. I hadn't been checking the set lists before my first show but I guess this is how more of the shows have been. I was surprised to hear Gloria and The Ocean. Gloria is a such a crowd involved classic, it was fun. Miracle Drug was dedicated to scientists, medics, doctors et al. Adam seemed to be in especially high spirits tonight as we wondered off onto the ellipse walk way twice as much as the night before. He came by us again and again, until Bono finally teased him about it. Bullet again drew all my attention to The Edge. That guy is a genious and deserves more credit across the board in the guitar world. No room to argue.. He is just one of the best EVER! At one point in the evening, a very playful Bono picked up a shirt (flag or something) from a fan and set it on his mic stand. Later he picked it up and covered his hand to do a magic trick. When he unveiled his hand he had ONE finger pointed up. All laughed as he made the finger reappear on the opposite hand and then become 2 fingers and back to one. Silly old trick that reminds us all of what a real person he is. Cool guy. One of the highlights for me was BAD! I love the song. I had spent the week before the show listening to my roommate practice it on the guitar and I was hoping to hear it. The last six selections remained in the standard order and the spiritual feeling of grouping All Because of You, Yahweh and "40" together was really a gentle way to let the fans go after such a great night of entertainment. Bono talked about the area and how it has been inspiring for U2. He added lyrics about the camelback mountain and other local references for the fans there. He talked about there being 2 magical sides of Arizona, one being the native peoples and history and the other being this Phoenix city built from glass and stone.. He said he could go on and on about. You have to love that guy.. Even when just rambling his words are poetic. One last thought.. as a young U2 fan, Larry was the one that inspired me to take drum lessons at age 12.. My oldest brother liked Bono and I liked Larry. He has always been so quiet and hidden behind his trap set.. It was great to see him get out and sing with Bono on the ellipse, play the keyboard and ultimately finish the show with a drum solo. Way to step out of your comfort zone Mr. Mullen!
That's all until Seattle!
-The Chad
One of the Utah Boys from SLC

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