by Brett J.

This is for the 11/21 show at MSG.

This first of two nights at MSG was what you would expect from this great band. "City of Blinding Lights" opened the show as it has on every night of this tour, and it did not disappoint. The boys then fire off three pulsating gems in a row - Vertigo, Elevation, and, my all-time favorite, I Will Follow - with reckless abandon. What energy! The boys were clearly in top form. Is there a better guitar player in the universe than The Edge? I think not.

The boys slow it down a bit halfway through the main set and Bono dedicates "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" to his dear 'ol dad, which was quite touching.

"Sunday Bloody Sunday' appears about two-thrids through the main set and brings down the house, as it always does. As the song commences with Larry's classic anthemic drum beats and The Edge's blood-curdling guitar riffs, Bono approaches the crowd and says "this is YOUR song now". Everyone in the arean knew what he meant by this. The classic "no more" cry is shouted by all in attendance who thrust their arms in the air in unison on every cry. The song is highlighted by Bono bringing up a boy from the audience to join him on stage. "Bullet", "Pride", "Streets", and "One" round out the main set and are performed in classic fashion.

There were several encores. A powerful version of "Until the End of the World" starts things off, with The Edge in rare form. Bono dedicates "Stuck In a Moment You Can't Get Out Of " to Michael Hutchence of INXS, who died eight years to the day, November 22nd. The show closes with "Bad", another one of my all-time favorites. Much to my dismay, "Bad" does NOT segue into "40" as many in the crowd had hoped. Some of us did, however, start to sing it upon exiting the arena.

I would have like to have heard one or two more oldies ("Electric Co.", "Out of Control", "Gloria", "New Year's Day"), but all in all a great show. They really do love playing New York and I thank them for adding these two additional MSG shows as I got shut out of both the May 21st show and the October shows. I can only hope it's sooner than another four years before I get the chance to see this terrific band in person again.

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