by David Allen

Rupp Arena SUCKED! It was like being in a tin can. I have been to many concerts in my lifetime and I have to say that the sound for this concert ranks right near the bottom. The sound was worse than a concert at the Cincinnati Gardens in the early 70's and those that have been there know what I'm talking about. Every now and then, I could hear Larry and I was pretty disappointed with Adam. It was a good thing that Edge has the biting sound he has. With that being said...

This was the first concert for my 11 year old son, Tommy. I had some apprehension about how he would handle the noise and the crowd but when U2 came on to Elevation, he had one of the biggest smiles I have ever seen on him and it stayed there most of the night. I Will Follow was his favorite I think, he really got into it.

All of the superlatives that have been used in the reviews the past 6 weeks have not been bunk, U2 is simply astounding. Bono is incredibe, I can't believe how hard he works his ass off and what he puts into a performance. The lighting was spectacular, especially for Kite, New York and Streets. I have read comments from a number of people stating that New York needs to be removed from the set list. I don't know where they were coming from, this song was great live! Streets was beyond words, I just can't describe it. Bad was a highlight for me, I just closed my eyes and listened in awe. At the end of the NRA video, the crowd roared with approval, obviously missing the point. But they were silenced by the little kid finding a gun. I wonder how many of them thought "Damn, do I ever feel like a moron now for cheering for Charlton Heston". WOWY was a complete letdown due to the tin can effect. All in all, this was one of the top 3 concerts I have attended, right up there with the Who in 1975 and last year. I am ecstatic over seeing my favorite band and I have a lot of satisfaction with the fact that Tommy's first concert was a U2 concert and that I was with him.

A couple of notes...we arrived as PJ Harvey was almost done. Tickets were being sold under face value, GA tickets for as little as 10 bucks. I was wondering if the four belly dancers at the entrance had any teeth. And I'm wondering if the guy standing next to us that didn't clap, sing or move throughout the entire night was returned to the morgue he came from. Now I get to do this all over again Monday night in Columbus and I'm truly looking forward to it, knowing that the sound will be so much better.

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