by David Allen

It was at the East Lansing show that I decided to go to Pittsburgh. I also decided after having seats for my first eight U2 shows that I was going to do GA for the first time. All I can say is, WOW! There is no going back to seats for me!

The day started very early and fortunately, the high heat, humidity and rain that plagued the concerts of the past couple of weeks took a hiatus for the day. The temperature was in the mid-eighties and there was a nice breeze coming off the Ohio River that extended into the night and made for a comfortable evening. It helped that Heinz Field personnel chose to have us line up under a walkway that shielded us from the sun. I had a very pleasant day with the fellow fans that I was with in line. Kristen from Sandusky and her family, a couple from France and Cathy and Karen from Indianapolis. They shared their GA experiences from other concerts and let me know what to expect. It was a joy being with other U2 fanatics versus being in the seats where many people are there just to be at an event in their town. I would like to thank them for adding to the magic of the day!

I was able to get on the outer-rail on Adam’s side. The two-hour wait for Interpol didn’t seem that long. I like Interpol but I believe that they’re not a good choice to open for U2. Perhaps if they had played more songs from “Turn on the Bright Lights,” they would have gone over much better with the crowd.

When Space Oddity started and EBTTRT took off, I thought to myself, “So…this is what pure happiness feels like!” The couple to my right warned me that they like to jump a lot. I think I did a decent job of keeping up with them. Being on the field, I felt much more connected to the band. The sound mix was vastly improved and Larry’s drums were the best I’ve ever heard them. It really did seem to be more of a club atmosphere. And there was just something about seeing the band I have worshipped for nineteen years walking about eight feet in front of me. I always shed a few tears at U2 concerts and on this night, they came during EBTTRT and Moment of Surrender. Zooropa was amazing! Prior to East Lansing, I never thought I would hear that song live. I thought Amazing Grace was the perfect intro to Streets but I now believe Hallelujah is right up there with it. The song NewYork, played during the Elevation tour, was a song that I appreciated much more after I heard it live. HMTMKMKM is also such a song. THEN, there was the almost nine-minute version of Bad! “And all the colored girls go doo do doo do doo do do doo.” I believe whether or not this performance of Bad is the best ever will be debated many times in the future.

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