by mick and ellie james

QQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQ. What's this?

Too many queues; which is how we felt after baking all day in the 30-degree heat on Saturday. So it was with much relief that we had seated tickets to the final Sydney show at the far end of the stadium. And as we spent the Saturday 'party show' jumping around like dickheads at the back of the ellipse, it was a blessing on the calf muscles to take in the full view of the massive Telstra Stadium, still as new since its inception for the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Seats, beers, and the company of a mad Irishman who first saw the boys in a Dublin ballroom in 1978 made our night a treat. But of course we couldn't keep our bums on our seats for more than ten minutes. When I Will Follow kicked in, we were up and dancing in the aisles... and everyone followed ;)

Being the third night, the boys really turned the setlist on its head. A fair whack of the crowd had attended the previous two Sydney shows, and the band clearly made an attempt to keep it interesting for all those die-hards intent on topping up the U2 retirement fund.

We were pleasantly surprised by the inclusion of a much-anticipated I Will Follow, the crowd-pleasing Mysterious Ways and an hilariously unrehearsed Party Girl (but would you want it any other way?!). You know when Bono pulls a hairy one on the band, because they all start looking a little alarmed and get in a huddle around the drum kit, hoping against hope that someone remembers how the damn thing goes. But when you've got a bottle of champers to spray, does it even matter? Bono admitted that they had no idea how to end the song, and we kinda hoped they wouldn't, but a snippet of Kylie's I Should Be So Lucky helped end the madness.

The classic red motif onscreen for Where The Streets Have No Name was updated to represent the hypothetical Australian Republican flag (minus the Union Jack), reminiscent of Bono's calls for a Republic of Australia on the Popmart tour.

It was interesting to hear other people's views on the setlists, however we found it spot on. The new material is a given, as it is a Vertigo tour after all, and many of the younger people in the crowd wouldn't know an Achtung Baby if they found it in a basket on their doorstep. In fact, many of the kids hadn't had the opportunity to even attend a U2 show until now, as their last visit to the wide brown land was 9 years ago.

There was the required amount of greatest hits for older fans and casual observers, and the awesome Zoo set for us kids of the 90s (and if you weren't a fan from this era, you may have found its inclusion under whelming, but, like, whatever).

From the back of the stadium, it looked like Bono was pulling his y-fronts out of his pants (the trick where you do that without first taking off your trousers) during his Bullet The Blue Sky blindfold trick. You had to chuckle when he then put them on his head.

As this seems to be a bit of a band family holiday tour, it was no surprise that Bono briefly allowed a clutch of U2 kidlets up on the b-stage to show off their species originality, and their t-shirts, bearing a message that was undeterminable from the back section, even through binoculars. (Bono: what's that on your shirt? Alright so, time for you to exit MY stage.)

The sound quality was good tonight, as it was on Saturday, (it was slightly craptacular on Friday) but after talking to loads of people who sat in different sections of the stadium, it seems that those who payed the biggest bux got the worst sound (A Reserve, we're laughing at you), but if you positioned yourself slap bang in the middle up the front, or behind the delay towers, you were sorted.

Monday was a helluva windy day, so the Kite finale went off without a hitch, even though they had upped the helium balloon quota to an unprecedented nine. We were kinda wondering if it would hoist the main leprechaun off into the night sky with it. But wouldn't it be great if someone woke up in the morning to find Yer Man stuck in a tree in their backyard?

The only bummer of this show was that it was the one concert not to sell out on the tour, as it was 90% full. But then again, if they hadn't postponed the shows, we wouldn't have got a third show anyway, so let's just call it even, eh?

After seeing them five times this week (four shows and a full dress rehearsal), we're starting to get the panics as we only have one show left on our U2nerary. In fact, we wouldn't have a problem seeing them every week for a year.

One for the trainspotters: we saw Pearl Jam next door at the Superdome on Wednesday night, and Eddie did a beautiful solo version of A Sort Of Homecoming, from the Unforgettable Fire album. A handful of people dotted around the dome screamed their approval to the bemusement of the Pearl Jam fans.

It was quite amazing to see all the lads grinning like idiots throughout all three Sydney shows. Even Pursed Lips Larry couldn't keep a straight face.

In Bono's words, "It's our third show. They say it's never going to be done again. Do they not think we're coming back?” We're taking him at his word that the boys will be back in town much sooner the next time.

An unforgettable weekend in our sexy city (again, Bono's words), so thanks boys!

Next, and final stop for us, Adelaide.

Woo-ooo, woo-ooo-oo!

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