by Andrew

Two days after the show I'm back home in the Outer Hebridies of Scotland
sitting in a smelly U2 t-shirt I bought in Earls Court last Sunday that hasn't
been washed yet, gagging for another pint of "real" Guinness and as skint
as a skeleton. But my have been "Elevated" all right and the memories of
last Saturday will stay fresh in my mind for a very long time.
When I walked out of Earls Court last Sunday I though that was the best
gig I had ever scene. But I knew that Slane would change all that.

It wasn't quite a "Beautiful Day" weather wise at first but by around 11:30 the
rain cleared and sun was bursting through to try our clothes, some came
off as we basked in the Irish sun and prepared to be blown away by a
hurricane called U2.

Relish made an excellent start to the proceedings very lively, JJ72 were
interesting but Kelis should have played by the portable toilets where
most of the crowd were during their set. Coldplay were very good but
the Red Hot Chilli Peppers provided some much needed "kick ass" rock
that was needed before the masters came forward. Two see two of your
fav bands in one day is a treat, and the Chillies were every bit as good as I
expected.

I'm going to be biased here but I think Slane Castle on Saturday was U2's
finest moment simply because they are a 20 plus old traditional rock n roll
band into their early 40s, the biggest band in the world playing on their
home soil at their best.
Earls Court was great and possibly the best way to see U2 for the first
time but compared to Slane EC was just an appetizer.
As the Chillies were half way through their set I slugged the last dregs of
a £3 larger and gobbed the remains of a chicken supper, and made my
way through the crowd to get as far forward as I could. much to my
surprise and delight I managed to get to about second/third row behind
the second barrier at stage left. Perfect view only about 20-25 meters way
from the stage and a superb sound.

I loved the intro music with Thin Lizzy's "The Boys Are Back In Town" which
was very fitting, and so was the Beatles' Sgt Pepper which had everyone
raving as if they were on stage, then the teasing intro for Elevation and
"the" fab four came on.
The crowd went so mad I thought I was at another Iron Maiden gig, it didn't
take long for me to realize that if I didn't jump with everyone I would have
crushed feet. During Where The Streets Have No Name, I jumped so
much like a retarded kangaroo I almost puked up my chicken supper.
All the big hits "rattled and hummed" and getting the extras that I didn't
hear at Earls Court such as New Years Day, I Will Follow, Bad and 40.
From now on every time I hear those old and new classics in pubs or
clubs I'll sip my pint with "Pride".
One of the many images that I will remember is during Sunday Bloody
Sunday I looked round to see a sea of fag lighters and a beautiful dark
blue sky. With Or Without You is one of the best songs you can ever hope
to see live and in my opinion the greatest love song ever written.

Once again all four were on amazing form, Larry not breaking sweat and
totally focused, Adam so cool, and the Edge displaying his ingenious
talent. But once again I salute Bono, how can anyone imagine being the
front man in the biggest band, playing some of the most emotional songs
to 80, 000 the day after burring his father. He showed that such a
traumatic predicament is no barrier for doing what he does best. As his
voice started to crack as he introduced One and almost looked as if he
was couldn't finish the song, he was so close to breaking down. Myself
and everyone others around me were completely moved.

Walk On closed the set and this is now my favorite song of ATYCLB
because it's one of U2's most lifting and positive songs ever. I could
easily have watched another 2 hours but we were treated to a stunning
firework display with "The Unforgettable Fire" playing out of the loud
speakers. I woke up on Sunday morning with a ringing in my ears and a croaky voice.

One very last thing I must say is that I've never known a race of people as
amazing as the Irish. You really are the most kind, warm hearted, witty and
beautiful people on the planet. You fully deserve to be the most popular
nation and it's no wonder you have such a great culture and U2 are the
creamy foam on the top of a pint of Guinness!

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