by Steve Cunningham

Setlist: (I'm almost sure this is right)
Elevation
Beautiful Day
Until The End Of The World
Mysterious Ways
Discotheque/Staring At The Sun
In My Life/Stuck In A Moment
Kite
Gone
New York
I Will Follow
Sunday Bloody Sunday/Get Up Stand Up
Desire/Gloria
Stay
Bad/40
Where The Streets Have No Name
Pride

Encore 1:
Bullet The Blue Sky/Young Americans
With Or Without You
The Fly

Encore 2:
One
Walk On


Just got back from the heart, and, well, it rocked. Granted, I have little to compare it to, being the only show I was able to score GA tickets to, but from where I was (about 3 rows of people back from the stage, almost dead center) the show was amazing.

First of all I want to thank everyone who was in the GA lineup outside the Palace. Everyone I talked to during the day was incredibly nice and courteous to everyone else, and made the 8 hour wait outside much less painful. We arrived there around 10 AM and were supposedly about the 110th people there, so getting there early paid off. The GA/Heart process was reasonably well organized and from what I could tell there didn't seem to be any problems (although it seemed no one really knew what was going to happen until it actually occured). But we got in, signed waiviers (whatever that was all about) and bolted for the heart and secured a nice spot a few people back just to the right of Bono's microphone stand. Everyone around us in the heart was excellent, we talked about the band and the shows so far and talked to some people who had yet to be Elevated and basically told them how amazing the show was going to be and about the "Elevation" intro.

PJ's set was similar to Pittsburgh (the other show I was lucky enough to attend, albeit in seats), and while I enjoyed it, knowing most of the songs on her new album, I could see how she's having a hard time with this tour. Her music doesn't translate well into an arena setting, especially with a majority of the audience not knowing her songs, and many of them (the 30-something year old "Best Of" people, you know the kind I mean) probably aren't used to hearing anything like her before (they probably skipped over Patti Smith too, but I digress).

Anyways, the U2 set seemed brilliant where I was standing. One thing I did notice was that the band used the heart ramp far less than they had at Pittsburgh, which from where I was seemed great, but I'm sure others will beg to differ. I know a couple people next to us in line who decided their favorite spot on the floor was outside the heart at the tip, although Bono still spent a fair amount of time out there, it just seemed less than at the Pittsburgh show. Apparently he had voice troubles in Montreal, but he sounded great tonight, hitting those great "Wide Awake" notes in "Bad," which as travelling fans can tell you, doesn't happen every night.

The setlist wasn't overly special, but is notable for the inclusion of both "Pop" tunes being performed at the same show, which I thought was kind of odd, but us diehards in the heart loved it, especially "Gone." Edge broke his high E string at the beginning of the song but didn't seem to care, playing the song as expertly as always. Adam seemed in good spirits throughout the night, not venturing out into the heart but coming up to the front of the stage numerous times and interacting with those of us in his immediate sight range, and smiling at lot more than I ever remember seeing him in any of the live videos I've seen. "Mysterious Ways" is performed early in the set tonight and "The Fly" is moved to the encore again. No "Out Of Control" or "11 O'Clock" tonight, sadly. A bunch of us were really hoping for "OOC" but it was not to be.

Individual interaction with the crowd was minimal tonight. Bono didn't comment on anyone's signs, nor did he dance with a girl out of the audience. During "Pride" he gave the speech about slavery (which i could actually decipher this time without the echoes of the arena bothering me) which was well recieved. Band introductions, unlike Pittsburgh, were minimal, with Bono getting Adam and Larry to walk around the heart (to the delight of all on the floor) but said little about them tonight.

Song quotes were about tonight, ranging from the usual ("Get Up Stand Up," "Halleluja" at the end of Walk On, "40," "Gloria," "Young Americans") but a couple oddities showed up, the best being Bono solo singing the first verse of the Beatles' "In My Life" leading into Stuck In A Moment, and, in one of the lowest moments ever in U2 history, Bono quoted a few lines from Eminiem's "The Real Slim Shady" during "Bullet The Blue Sky." At least, I believe he did. Someone next to me told me that's what it was, but thankfully not being well knowledged in Eminiem lyrics, and the other 3 band members playing, I couldn't really understand what was being said. In any case, a man like Bono who has such firm beliefs and is so committed to humane causes and such, reached a new low referencing someone like Eminem, who continues to act like violence against women, minorities, and homosexuals isn't a problem.

One other observation, at the end of One, he started saying something about Ohio. I think the man needs to work on his geography a little. I know he's from Ireland, but at least find out the location of where you are, and if you're going to spend so much time living in New York, at least learn where all the major cities are and what states they're in, especially when your career causes you to visit many of them every few years.

Overall though, a fine show. A couple of minor musical errors that probably only I noticed because I'm always listening as an obsessive musician (I gotta get over that, I know), but tight performances and great songs. Setlist change or not, you can't deny the power of "Walk On" and "Streets" live, and that came through tonight. The band didn't seem as energetic as I've seen them in the past, not venturing out into the heart as much as some other shows, but, being consumate professionals, played incredibly well, and Bono, Edge and Adam all seemed to enjoy interacting with the crowd gathered at the front of the stage, and Larry, was, well, Larry, the rock steady drummer who keeps pounding all these years and unfortunately is so serious that he never looks like he's really enjoying himself, but he must be or else he probably would've quit some time ago.

Of course, any info about photos and/or recordings of this show, please email me! And if I talked to you in line or in the heart, I was wearing a black R.E.M. shirt from the '99 tour (it was on top of the clean clothes pile this morning, by pure coincidence, Bono is a big fan). I want to thank everyone i came in contact with today, U2 fans are amazing people and you made an incredible experience for my friend and I today.

Steve C.
stevenjc@umich.edu
http://members.aol.com/WalrusOct9/index.html

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