salomeU2000
The Fly
[SIMG]http://bonovox.interference.com/interview/agmthumb.gif[/SIMG]
By Devlin Smith
?I was, and am, drawn to U2 for many reasons, all of which are examined, questioned, criticized, extolled and occasionally denied in this book,? Dianne Ebertt Beeaff wrote in the preface to A Grand Madness, her U2 memoir involving 10 years, three tours (Joshua Tree, ZooTV and PopMart) and 38 concerts. During the course of her adventure, one that not only including several encounters with the band but also helped forge many lasting friendships, Beeaff faithfully kept a journal. A Grand Madness is a collection of all those entries, ranging from album and concert reviews to band announcements and travelogues.
Beeaff is a freelance writer, founding member of Tucson-based Hawkmoon Publishing, a company that took its name from the U2 song, and author of Homecoming, a collection of poetry and graphite drawings.
Below Beeaff discusses her writing career, A Grand Madness and how well she?s maintained her U2 fandom in the five years since her book concluded.
When did you first start writing?
I?ve written all of my life, beginning with short stories about the age of eight, and have kept a journal since I was 17, though there are vast gaps and whole years missing, especially when my children were small. I was first published at 18 with a poem in a Canadian women?s magazine, but started writing professionally in my early 20s.
How did you know you wanted to be a professional writer?
I was inspired and encouraged by a biography of Marian Anderson called Deep River Girl I found in the school library in third grade. Marian?s imagination, her spirit, strength, verve, determination, all of these astounded me. She never gave up, she never gave in, even in the face of enormous obstacles, and she had an unbounded passion for the thing she?d chosen as her life?s work. The poet Muriel Rukeyser has said that ?the universe is made of stories not of atoms,? after I ?met? Marian, I sensed that every person, every thing, every incident, and probably every thought had a story just like hers, they only had to be uncovered. I knew right away that I wanted to tell some of those stories.
What is your earliest memory of U2?
I accidentally caught a small snip of their ?Unforgettable Fire? video on MTV. With the briefest glimpse into the brilliance of the music, I distinctly recall seeing Adam and Larry walk down those stairs. I meant to get back to them but never did until my daughter, who was a great fan at the time, asked me to record U2?s contribution to Amnesty International?s Conspiracy of Hope tour in 1986. Their performance, particularly ?Bad,? completely blew me away.
When did you first feel like a fan?
I felt like a fan the minute I first saw U2?s AI spot. This was music to live by and I immediately wanted to hear and see more and set about doing so.
What made you decide to see the band so many times and in so many different places during the Joshua Tree, ZooTV and PopMart tours?
After that AI glimpse and a thorough listen to the band?s back catalog, I knew I wanted to see this band live. I loved everything about them - the music, the lyrics, the voice, the vision, the power, the passion, the spirit. I grabbed as many Joshua Tree shows as I could and then, along with a couple of new U2 friends, I decided to try for the ZooTV tour opener. That accomplished, we came up with tickets for a number of following shows. From there, one concert just led to another and another and another.
Even now, after over 50 shows, a relatively small number compared to many other fans, a U2 concert rarely fails to amaze me in some way. When Bono sings he becomes the song, making U2 shows endlessly distinctive. They just can?t do any better than that, I often say after a concert. And then, of course, they do.
What was the reaction of your family and friends when you told them you were going to do this?
My husband and children were, and are, completely supportive. We?ve always been a close family and they?ve all accompanied me to shows at one time or another. They?re people with a zest for life and can fully appreciate such a heart and soul interest. Many of my friends, of course, heard the adventures after the fact. They?ve been equally appreciative and often downright envious. Anyone who has ?followed? a band in a similar fashion knows that it?s a once-every-four-or-five-years arrangement and the times between tours are lived quite normally. My friends and family have always understood this. Even tour years require only a week here and a week there and I?ve been fortunate enough in my work to be able to make my own schedule.
Since you had been journaling throughout your U2 travels, was writing a book about the experience always your intention?
It had never occurred to me to write up my U2 experiences in any formal way beyond the odd fanzine review. I have kept a journal since my late teens and have often used ideas, phrasing, descriptions, that sort of thing, in my work, there?s an emotional immediacy and attention to detail there that?s often very useful. But it just never occurred to me to have the U2 portions published.
Why did you decide to write a book about your U2 experiences?
At the end of my PopMart shows I was staying at a friend?s in the north of England before heading back home. I was in the process of catching up with my journal and we were discussing and comparing various aspects of various shows. Sue asked if I?d ever considered having the U2 portions of my journals published, as the accumulated experiences might resonate with or make interesting reading for other fans, a purely fan?s-eye view of U2 was not then available. The prevailing concept and opinion of ?fan? has been frequently a pejorative one and yet most of the U2 fans I?ve known are ordinary people with a deep, abiding and critical appreciation of this extraordinary band. That?s a story that hadn?t been told before and I thought then that I would try.
What kind of reaction did you get from other U2 fans to A Grand Madness?
An overwhelmingly positive one. From the beginning, I received letters, and still do, from fans who share, identify with or relate to my U2 encounters, or just to a passion for U2?s music, which was my hope and intention. Some fans were inspired to follow their own hearts and experience this remarkable band in much the same way for themselves. Those letters are particularly gratifying, as, in the end, I?m just a fan myself.
Did you get any response from the band or Principle Management?
I?ve never heard anything from Principle Management, though they were sent an advance copy. I did have the good fortune to be able to give the band members each a book in person, with the somewhat predictable exception of Larry. They were, as always, gracious and appreciative.
The book ended with the video shoot for The Sweetest Thing in 1998. Do you still consider yourself as big a U2 fan today?
If anything, I?m a bigger fan. This band has never let me down, except maybe for that Passengers thing.
Did you see a large number of Elevation shows?
I saw 13 Elevation shows, both in the US and in the British Isles. ATYCLB is one of my favorite U2 albums, bringing the band back to what I think they do best. I would have loved to have seen more, but was grateful for those I did manage. Foremost would be the first Slane show, the second London show and fall?s Las Vegas show.
How did the Elevation experience compare to that of earlier tours?
The Elevation shows were simply astounding; I wish I could have included them in the book. They had all the intimacy, closeness and passion of the Joshua Tree tour with the additional strength of incomparable time-honed musicianship. And I really loved the ?format,? U2 has a way with an audience that?s incomparable and the heart really enhanced that connection. At the same time, the intimate mood of Elevation shows encompassed the entire venue no matter what the size or the numbers. That?s the nature of the best U2 shows, but Elevation was outstanding in that respect. The inventiveness, frenetic energy and imagination of the Zoo tours and the full-of-fun spontaneity of PopMart, both with superb performances and delivery, were fabulous experiences. But Elevation, stripped down more like The Joshua Tree, seemed a band without props, though, of course, they were there in force, but never upstaged the music.
U2 is currently working on a new album and a tour is rumored for next year. Are you planning to see a few shows?
Considering the always threatening possibility that this could be the band?s last tour, I?d like to get in as many shows as I possibly can.
One of the best parts of your book was how it talked about the U2 fan community, how great the people are and how easy it is to make friends because of U2. What do you think it is about U2 that attracts this type of fan?
It has to be the music, of course. It always has something of open-hearted interest to say. It?s honest, unpretentious, unselfconsciously balanced, and beautifully arranged both musically and lyrically. Spiritual without being religious. Darkness without depression. Realism without despair, and with a non-Pollyanna hopefulness. The band?s live shows, too, are the stuff of legends. U2 fans are for the most part intelligent and compassionate people drawn to an intelligent and compassionate band and I?ve made some remarkable friends along the way. There?s something of a non-superficial like-mindedness among many of them that often sets up an instant rapport.
There are many U2 fans that do travel great lengths and spare no expense to see the band live as many times as possible. Why do you feel U2 evokes that kind of dedication?
Many fans have seen the band far more times than I have and have traveled greater distances. None of us are really wealthy, yet we somehow find the time and resources. It?s ultimately the music, together with the powerful experience of U2 live. There?s a communal celebratory quality to U2 concerts that just can?t be found anywhere else. But I feel it?s also the nature of the band members themselves. In a rock ?n roll world, or any other, that?s full of pretense, posturing, arrogance and self-absorption, Adam, Larry, Bono and Edge are not only men of immense talent and artistic imagination, but men of compassion, intellect, social conscience, integrity and open-hearted sincerity. They?re genuinely nice people, examining the life and living around them with technical but soulful skill, extraordinary musical vision and sheer poetry, all of which inspires many things, including dedication and loyalty.
What are your five favorite live U2 songs?
Oh, that?s a tough one, U2 is the consummate live band. I?d have to say, under pressure and in no particular order beyond Bad: Bad, Where the Streets Have No Name, Please, Walk On, Ultraviolet.
By Devlin Smith
?I was, and am, drawn to U2 for many reasons, all of which are examined, questioned, criticized, extolled and occasionally denied in this book,? Dianne Ebertt Beeaff wrote in the preface to A Grand Madness, her U2 memoir involving 10 years, three tours (Joshua Tree, ZooTV and PopMart) and 38 concerts. During the course of her adventure, one that not only including several encounters with the band but also helped forge many lasting friendships, Beeaff faithfully kept a journal. A Grand Madness is a collection of all those entries, ranging from album and concert reviews to band announcements and travelogues.
Beeaff is a freelance writer, founding member of Tucson-based Hawkmoon Publishing, a company that took its name from the U2 song, and author of Homecoming, a collection of poetry and graphite drawings.
Below Beeaff discusses her writing career, A Grand Madness and how well she?s maintained her U2 fandom in the five years since her book concluded.
When did you first start writing?
I?ve written all of my life, beginning with short stories about the age of eight, and have kept a journal since I was 17, though there are vast gaps and whole years missing, especially when my children were small. I was first published at 18 with a poem in a Canadian women?s magazine, but started writing professionally in my early 20s.
How did you know you wanted to be a professional writer?
I was inspired and encouraged by a biography of Marian Anderson called Deep River Girl I found in the school library in third grade. Marian?s imagination, her spirit, strength, verve, determination, all of these astounded me. She never gave up, she never gave in, even in the face of enormous obstacles, and she had an unbounded passion for the thing she?d chosen as her life?s work. The poet Muriel Rukeyser has said that ?the universe is made of stories not of atoms,? after I ?met? Marian, I sensed that every person, every thing, every incident, and probably every thought had a story just like hers, they only had to be uncovered. I knew right away that I wanted to tell some of those stories.
What is your earliest memory of U2?
I accidentally caught a small snip of their ?Unforgettable Fire? video on MTV. With the briefest glimpse into the brilliance of the music, I distinctly recall seeing Adam and Larry walk down those stairs. I meant to get back to them but never did until my daughter, who was a great fan at the time, asked me to record U2?s contribution to Amnesty International?s Conspiracy of Hope tour in 1986. Their performance, particularly ?Bad,? completely blew me away.
When did you first feel like a fan?
I felt like a fan the minute I first saw U2?s AI spot. This was music to live by and I immediately wanted to hear and see more and set about doing so.
What made you decide to see the band so many times and in so many different places during the Joshua Tree, ZooTV and PopMart tours?
After that AI glimpse and a thorough listen to the band?s back catalog, I knew I wanted to see this band live. I loved everything about them - the music, the lyrics, the voice, the vision, the power, the passion, the spirit. I grabbed as many Joshua Tree shows as I could and then, along with a couple of new U2 friends, I decided to try for the ZooTV tour opener. That accomplished, we came up with tickets for a number of following shows. From there, one concert just led to another and another and another.
Even now, after over 50 shows, a relatively small number compared to many other fans, a U2 concert rarely fails to amaze me in some way. When Bono sings he becomes the song, making U2 shows endlessly distinctive. They just can?t do any better than that, I often say after a concert. And then, of course, they do.
What was the reaction of your family and friends when you told them you were going to do this?
My husband and children were, and are, completely supportive. We?ve always been a close family and they?ve all accompanied me to shows at one time or another. They?re people with a zest for life and can fully appreciate such a heart and soul interest. Many of my friends, of course, heard the adventures after the fact. They?ve been equally appreciative and often downright envious. Anyone who has ?followed? a band in a similar fashion knows that it?s a once-every-four-or-five-years arrangement and the times between tours are lived quite normally. My friends and family have always understood this. Even tour years require only a week here and a week there and I?ve been fortunate enough in my work to be able to make my own schedule.
Since you had been journaling throughout your U2 travels, was writing a book about the experience always your intention?
It had never occurred to me to write up my U2 experiences in any formal way beyond the odd fanzine review. I have kept a journal since my late teens and have often used ideas, phrasing, descriptions, that sort of thing, in my work, there?s an emotional immediacy and attention to detail there that?s often very useful. But it just never occurred to me to have the U2 portions published.
Why did you decide to write a book about your U2 experiences?
At the end of my PopMart shows I was staying at a friend?s in the north of England before heading back home. I was in the process of catching up with my journal and we were discussing and comparing various aspects of various shows. Sue asked if I?d ever considered having the U2 portions of my journals published, as the accumulated experiences might resonate with or make interesting reading for other fans, a purely fan?s-eye view of U2 was not then available. The prevailing concept and opinion of ?fan? has been frequently a pejorative one and yet most of the U2 fans I?ve known are ordinary people with a deep, abiding and critical appreciation of this extraordinary band. That?s a story that hadn?t been told before and I thought then that I would try.
What kind of reaction did you get from other U2 fans to A Grand Madness?
An overwhelmingly positive one. From the beginning, I received letters, and still do, from fans who share, identify with or relate to my U2 encounters, or just to a passion for U2?s music, which was my hope and intention. Some fans were inspired to follow their own hearts and experience this remarkable band in much the same way for themselves. Those letters are particularly gratifying, as, in the end, I?m just a fan myself.
Did you get any response from the band or Principle Management?
I?ve never heard anything from Principle Management, though they were sent an advance copy. I did have the good fortune to be able to give the band members each a book in person, with the somewhat predictable exception of Larry. They were, as always, gracious and appreciative.
The book ended with the video shoot for The Sweetest Thing in 1998. Do you still consider yourself as big a U2 fan today?
If anything, I?m a bigger fan. This band has never let me down, except maybe for that Passengers thing.
Did you see a large number of Elevation shows?
I saw 13 Elevation shows, both in the US and in the British Isles. ATYCLB is one of my favorite U2 albums, bringing the band back to what I think they do best. I would have loved to have seen more, but was grateful for those I did manage. Foremost would be the first Slane show, the second London show and fall?s Las Vegas show.
How did the Elevation experience compare to that of earlier tours?
The Elevation shows were simply astounding; I wish I could have included them in the book. They had all the intimacy, closeness and passion of the Joshua Tree tour with the additional strength of incomparable time-honed musicianship. And I really loved the ?format,? U2 has a way with an audience that?s incomparable and the heart really enhanced that connection. At the same time, the intimate mood of Elevation shows encompassed the entire venue no matter what the size or the numbers. That?s the nature of the best U2 shows, but Elevation was outstanding in that respect. The inventiveness, frenetic energy and imagination of the Zoo tours and the full-of-fun spontaneity of PopMart, both with superb performances and delivery, were fabulous experiences. But Elevation, stripped down more like The Joshua Tree, seemed a band without props, though, of course, they were there in force, but never upstaged the music.
U2 is currently working on a new album and a tour is rumored for next year. Are you planning to see a few shows?
Considering the always threatening possibility that this could be the band?s last tour, I?d like to get in as many shows as I possibly can.
One of the best parts of your book was how it talked about the U2 fan community, how great the people are and how easy it is to make friends because of U2. What do you think it is about U2 that attracts this type of fan?
It has to be the music, of course. It always has something of open-hearted interest to say. It?s honest, unpretentious, unselfconsciously balanced, and beautifully arranged both musically and lyrically. Spiritual without being religious. Darkness without depression. Realism without despair, and with a non-Pollyanna hopefulness. The band?s live shows, too, are the stuff of legends. U2 fans are for the most part intelligent and compassionate people drawn to an intelligent and compassionate band and I?ve made some remarkable friends along the way. There?s something of a non-superficial like-mindedness among many of them that often sets up an instant rapport.
There are many U2 fans that do travel great lengths and spare no expense to see the band live as many times as possible. Why do you feel U2 evokes that kind of dedication?
Many fans have seen the band far more times than I have and have traveled greater distances. None of us are really wealthy, yet we somehow find the time and resources. It?s ultimately the music, together with the powerful experience of U2 live. There?s a communal celebratory quality to U2 concerts that just can?t be found anywhere else. But I feel it?s also the nature of the band members themselves. In a rock ?n roll world, or any other, that?s full of pretense, posturing, arrogance and self-absorption, Adam, Larry, Bono and Edge are not only men of immense talent and artistic imagination, but men of compassion, intellect, social conscience, integrity and open-hearted sincerity. They?re genuinely nice people, examining the life and living around them with technical but soulful skill, extraordinary musical vision and sheer poetry, all of which inspires many things, including dedication and loyalty.
What are your five favorite live U2 songs?
Oh, that?s a tough one, U2 is the consummate live band. I?d have to say, under pressure and in no particular order beyond Bad: Bad, Where the Streets Have No Name, Please, Walk On, Ultraviolet.
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