TheDoppleganger
Babyface
Hello Folks I'm one of the actual managers of U2's Official Dopplegangers yes! the ones who actually appear alongside U2 in the "Even Better Than The Real Thing Video"!
*The Dopplegangers were actually formed by U2 & Kevin Godley thats why after many hundreds of people that applied the ones that were finally chosen( Rownan-Bono, Mystic-Edge, Pete-Larry and Clark- Adam) looked so much like the real U2 the video was shot from what I can remember was on the 11th to 14th of Febuary 1992 one days filming at the Rock Circus London for shots of Hendix's and Johnny Rottens & other waxwork figures.
Tuesday the 12th of Feb. was filming the Dopplegangers and the real U2 swapping places inside and outside the girls clothes shop ZOO in London's Carnaby Street (passers by around 6pm in the evening were told it was just a commercial being filmed so as to not make a massive crowd outside the shop) as the council only granted permission at the last moment as the Zoo shop in Watford's harleiquin shopping centre (my home town) was to be the back up if permission wasn't granted. the rest of the week was spent at Pinewood Studios, they had even hired about 20 or so dancers which you only see briefly in that remixed version of the song and video which in the main version they never used.
We were also the same band that appeared in the Zoo TV /Channel 4/ Pat Kenny global broadcast on November 28th 1992. *after Pat Kenny I spoke to Paul McGuiness to seek permission to take the Dopplegangers out on the road, which he and U2 gave their blessing to as long as we didn't call ourselves U2 that was their only request.
Now due to lack of interest to continue plus what with location and playing abilties being problematic issues, the original bass player and myself decieded the Dopplegangers shouldn't die just yet as we felt there were a ton of possiblities ahead of us if we carried the Dopplegangers on so I advertised for 3 new recruits and luckerly we struck gold after along X Factor styled search (Simon Cowell has my sympathy!) strangly enough our new drummer Jeff had been short listed for the original "Even better" video and he was a drummer! so that got things of to a good start, our new Edge Dave lived fairly locally to Watford in Hertfordshire where we were based and played fantastically too! and our new Bono Steve was scarily like the real thing
we later went on to appear on Channel 4's Naked City Tv show (at U2 request to promote a film from them in Italy) also BBC radio, we also had a three page article in U2's own "Propaganda" magazine and a large colour double page photo and article in Q magazine around the same time. The Dopplegangers got signed up but a major high street clothing chain to perform on a massively sucessful university country wide tour and to Ireland, Europe and the middle east at one point. Peter "Willie" Williams even turned up to a couple of shows to check we were doing things correctly!
I have to say its very frustrating ok extremly annoying that after all The Dopplegangers did for and with U2 that in the recent U2 by U2 book by them and Neil McCormick we were completely ignored! as in not one mention or small photo? how come? yet at the back on that very large book (no excuses for lack or room in it please!) everyone else with much lesser contributions than us do get mentioned from the Postal service??? to thier own hotel staff in Dublin??? which I find laughable, yet we took part in the "Even better" video that helped them win a MTV music video award and also in the ZOO Tv, many other Tv and radio shows at thier request! Progaganda magazine an others, plus which makes matters worse Bono even name the band The Dopplegangers! yet we still get no mention!? WHY!??? it all seems abit like a JFK stlyed conspiracy to me. at least most of the U2 fans remember us even if others have a selective memory and chosen to forget about us!
All the best!
Paul
*The Dopplegangers were actually formed by U2 & Kevin Godley thats why after many hundreds of people that applied the ones that were finally chosen( Rownan-Bono, Mystic-Edge, Pete-Larry and Clark- Adam) looked so much like the real U2 the video was shot from what I can remember was on the 11th to 14th of Febuary 1992 one days filming at the Rock Circus London for shots of Hendix's and Johnny Rottens & other waxwork figures.
Tuesday the 12th of Feb. was filming the Dopplegangers and the real U2 swapping places inside and outside the girls clothes shop ZOO in London's Carnaby Street (passers by around 6pm in the evening were told it was just a commercial being filmed so as to not make a massive crowd outside the shop) as the council only granted permission at the last moment as the Zoo shop in Watford's harleiquin shopping centre (my home town) was to be the back up if permission wasn't granted. the rest of the week was spent at Pinewood Studios, they had even hired about 20 or so dancers which you only see briefly in that remixed version of the song and video which in the main version they never used.
We were also the same band that appeared in the Zoo TV /Channel 4/ Pat Kenny global broadcast on November 28th 1992. *after Pat Kenny I spoke to Paul McGuiness to seek permission to take the Dopplegangers out on the road, which he and U2 gave their blessing to as long as we didn't call ourselves U2 that was their only request.
Now due to lack of interest to continue plus what with location and playing abilties being problematic issues, the original bass player and myself decieded the Dopplegangers shouldn't die just yet as we felt there were a ton of possiblities ahead of us if we carried the Dopplegangers on so I advertised for 3 new recruits and luckerly we struck gold after along X Factor styled search (Simon Cowell has my sympathy!) strangly enough our new drummer Jeff had been short listed for the original "Even better" video and he was a drummer! so that got things of to a good start, our new Edge Dave lived fairly locally to Watford in Hertfordshire where we were based and played fantastically too! and our new Bono Steve was scarily like the real thing
we later went on to appear on Channel 4's Naked City Tv show (at U2 request to promote a film from them in Italy) also BBC radio, we also had a three page article in U2's own "Propaganda" magazine and a large colour double page photo and article in Q magazine around the same time. The Dopplegangers got signed up but a major high street clothing chain to perform on a massively sucessful university country wide tour and to Ireland, Europe and the middle east at one point. Peter "Willie" Williams even turned up to a couple of shows to check we were doing things correctly!
I have to say its very frustrating ok extremly annoying that after all The Dopplegangers did for and with U2 that in the recent U2 by U2 book by them and Neil McCormick we were completely ignored! as in not one mention or small photo? how come? yet at the back on that very large book (no excuses for lack or room in it please!) everyone else with much lesser contributions than us do get mentioned from the Postal service??? to thier own hotel staff in Dublin??? which I find laughable, yet we took part in the "Even better" video that helped them win a MTV music video award and also in the ZOO Tv, many other Tv and radio shows at thier request! Progaganda magazine an others, plus which makes matters worse Bono even name the band The Dopplegangers! yet we still get no mention!? WHY!??? it all seems abit like a JFK stlyed conspiracy to me. at least most of the U2 fans remember us even if others have a selective memory and chosen to forget about us!
All the best!
Paul
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