OK....my turn to tell my stories].
FIRST tho.......thanks for replying JCOS & everyone else
I enjoyed all your finding out about U2 stories!
WOW!
You {JCOS} DEF desvered that 'hi love'.........
:whimper:
SSSOO..........
I was 2x your age JCOS, when I first READ about u2....they have been with me through all my young[er] adult life onward.
ANd I count them UP THERE wiuth my PRIMO All-Time Ultra-Amazing MULTI-Talented in Songmanship, Playing, Singing AND Playing/ Singing Live!
more background on my R&R Fanship...so you can see how impressed i was with U2 with alot of R&R/live Concerts life already inme! .
Some of you younger fans may scoff at that......I'm "adding U2 in".....when they have been your first, near first ultra favs.
Trust me on this.......for them to BE included in my Ultra-fav category IS an accomplishment....I've seen a few hundread mostly R&R and some folk-rock/country-rock/R&B bands in my life- so far
here's who I consider my other favs
{ALL have PRECEDED U2 in being Performers and I HAVE seen These Bands Live in their earlier times before their OWN UltraFame or 2 cases fairly Famous but not ultra famous in R&R circles and some gneral public, as well.
I ALSO REALIZE that some of you are nuetral on/ may not know or may hate one or more of the following bands......that's ok....but they are acknowledged by most as among the greatest.
And all but one [ the sencond one is a special case...since you can very seriously have the point without them their might not even be a u2 or many rocks as we know them today/and thru several decades back] bands
are U2 influences !!!
quickly ...
*The WHo* {original} seen them pre-Tommy in a 200 outdoor summer concert place. seen them perform Tommy, WHo's Next & Quadrophania Live !!!
*Bruce Springsteen* seen him when he was STILL playing ? 2000 seat thearters!
*Patti Smith Band* she influenced MANY non-Janis Joplin styled-- new wave/punk gal/women singers from mid-70's ONWARD with her incredible Power/take no prisoners......! Chrissy Hines, Joan Jett, many others. She was SO DYNAMIC ROCK & ROLL GUYS wanted to perform like her. VERY rare then........
*Television* One of the most amazing set of from CBGB's Origianls-- duo gutairists in the world plus a cracking/proelling rhythym section!
ANd my special case is +The Beatles+
I saw them live 2x-s at Shea........i wasn't even offially a teenager the first time!
BUT while they [the Fab 4] ARE one of the greatest songwring & Studio bands......because they QUIT performing live.......after 66......they NEVER performed some of there greatist more complicated songs from....?? DEF from SGT Peppers onward.
I can't say there are one of the best live performing bands......in comparison to U2, Bruce etc
SO ALL THESE Were what young band of Irleand had to compete against
People I've seen live ALso includes Talking Heads, The Clash, the JAM , Midnite Oil etc.....top pefformers live!......
OK so there I was.........
....reading my FAve New Wave/Punk/Alt rock magazine......it did look kind of like a ZINE tho, too --
New York Rocker.
JCOS if you remeber it.......visually......you might agree with me...... I'd love to see your Spin Project :hyper;
NYR started all over the CBGB's & some of the Max's Kansas City Scene too....back in ? 76 if not 75.
As the scene grew into influence .......The Tri-state area of NY/NJ/COn....area.....;later & simulataneously the rest of the USA & Britain/Europe........
NYR Expanded it Coverage !
SO the new Editor/Publisher {the first one had left} also would go over to GB/E and prob did alsogo at some points maybe to othger places in the USA.
SO i was reading their short reviews...section.......
having as I mentioned above seen some extroidinarrily special bands already and gotten in fairly early on the CBGB's scene.......
I already had serious criteria to have new bands even really impress me ......in 1980!
MY R&R Band & Performence criteria........and still is about the same......
had to have some stunning songs/ be able to PLAY those stunning songs LIVE well/ really try and CONNECT with the AUDIENCE { heh! Teleivsiion is one of the few exceptions when it comes to typical audience/performer interaction...very little}/ had to have some songs that had beauty /or real uplift in them as well as harder, rougher more jagged-edged stuff.
SO I READ>.......U2......" they CONNECT with their Audience, THey have ANTHEMIC songs ..."
2 "bingos" right out of the gate
then he added......"they are very ambitious" paraphrase now.....
IF they can keep it together these guys ARE DESTINED to be A STADIUM Level Band .........
can you beleive it........right there in late 80......said after they FIRST GIG at The MArque Club in London on their "battle of Britian" Tour!
SO i kept an an eye/ear out for them.......
I'mnot sure which happened next.....
in MAY 81 the same NYR........published a 4 page interview with {then} U-2. WHen Bono was STILL Bono Vox!
THIS interview ws done the net day at the rented London Flat they had for their Britain tour.......esp the Marquee Club......BUT wasn't published till 6 months Later.....probably to be closeer to the relase of "BOY' in The States.
I was really impressed with them {tho B did more talking then than any of them.....they commitment to Liver PErformance & giving to an audeience....and being dissapointed wehn an audience didn't give back....
Pete Townshend AND Roger Daltry both use to talk often hoeimportant the cycyle of energy between Performers & audience was...
AND B mentioned The Cry...even back then.........saying it was about..... people starving........the great misery of the long-temed unemployed {AIDS was just the begining of a mysterious condition that some gay men had started to die from in NYC & San Fran esp}
and I said wow a Sicial COncious too! IMPRESSED ding ding doing..
then I heard I Will FOllow OUt of COntrol oooooon WLIB ! and i was WOW>>>>>>>they reallyt do have this incredible engery/songmanship etc
I really wasn' thatimpressed with the rest of boy..BUT witb IWF& OOC as paret of their offerings ...I KNEW they had SOMETHING in them!
I liked afew few more songs REALLY well on OCt..........
THEN WAR wass truely the one........that clinched for me for good!
I just knew if I waited they guys were going to be able to turn out more quantity of Real Quality Material
Now HAD I KNOWN they were playing IN NYC in ? 80 thenmaybe 81 again......
I WOULD HAVE probably gone to check them out after resading the first review but I didn't catch any ads if ythe had them in The Village voice or If the Soho News was also still in existance.........
They played Irving Plaza & The Mud club....places I'd been to already
SIGH,,,bu that was not My fate" then......
i forst saw then in 83 and from then on