Surrender memoire setlist....

The friendliest place on the web for anyone that follows U2.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
See posts with no answers
mic-drop-obama.gif
 
It's tough to tell, but I actually think to say it's a mic drop is an opinion. Before the mic leaves his hand, he does motion towards the floor slightly which means it could be a "toss" instead of a "drop".
 
I'm of the opinion that the quality of the bootleg recordings of a few of the American shows is pretty damd good given the shows weren't allowing phones in. Before the show started, an American lady was reading something on a Kindle and security descended on her like a f*cking hawk.

If only they'd shown the same speed when someone approached the stage, book in hand, mid-show etc.
 
I'm assuming they don't take smart watches? Could be how tapers are taping, if you can trigger the app with your phone?

The only show I ever went to with one of these pouch things it would have been very easy to sneak an extra phone or recording device in. Hewson had a different experience at the show he went to sooooo I dunno. Maybe it varies from venue to venue.
 
Well this took a strange turn, it's like the 2022 version of the Diamond Dave incident.

The Black Crowes took a guitar and a mic stand to a stage crasher recently.
 
U2387 said:
This is the most ridiculous post of a lot of them you've made here.

1) "It was ok because it was allowed to be ok."

I've worked security at venues smaller than what Bono is touring now. I've worked stadium shows. I've worked everything in between.

It is a 100% completely and totally different dynamic at a show this intimate. Any enforcement action you take, never mind one as strong as physically stopping someone, is going to be far more noticeable and disruptive with a smaller crowd.


I'd hazard a guess when someone makes a play for a stadium stage, the handful of people in the immediate area are the only ones that notice him get taken down quickly.

So straight enforcement is shied away from in general at shows like this. Unless it's something clearly dangerous and/or threatening.

Having first hand experience specific to U2, if you work anywhere near the band, you are briefed separately by Brian (Bono's personal guard) as well as Scott and Jerry, U2's security directors. Brian's most emphatic point is: For things that we clearly see happening (like your friend approaching with book in hand, not a sneak attack) "When in doubt, make eye contact with me and let Bono guide the interaction. If neither one of us are acting like we need to get this guy the hell away and fast, don't go hands on. We will find a way to handle it!"

I can guarantee you this is what happened here. Security was smart not to remove him because they followed the instructions from Brian which are in place mostly to ensure the show isn't disrupted.

Your point here is laughable. It would be a shock to me if security intervened on anything short of someone running up in a hostile or violent manner at a show like this. It far from makes it okay or is a point in your favor to say "well they didn't stop him!"

That's like saying the cops condone shoplifting because they didn't chase a shoplifter driving away at 100mph at rush hour in a densely populated area. They don't! Obviously. They just made the correct calculation that a $18 carton of razor blades wasn't worth a pursuit that could easily kill a bunch of innocent people.

Confronting your friend, in a loud verbal or physical way, was not worth the disruption to the show. Not when Bono had it under control and I'm sure Brian was just out of site nodding his head at local security as if to say "it's okay, we've got it"

Doesn't mean it was welcome.

As for opinion versus fact, you're right, this isn't something that can be proven like gravity.

Think of it like the legal system. It turns on what is REASONABLE!! Reasonable doubt. What a reasonable person would conclude from the circumstances.

And no REASONABLE PERSON would defend what your friend did. We call that reasonable standards of decency, not sheep.

2) "Ultimately if everyone went up at the same time, Bono would have to refuse and let security do their jobs. I wouldn't criticize anyone for it or call it a dick move."

That's fine if you want to be unreasonable. It clearly is a dick move to anyone reasonable.

But saying you'd be okay with it (no criticism from you), where does that leave us? Just make every show a free for all?!

Yes, let's everyone just rush the stage. Stop Bono everywhere he is. Wait outside his house with shit to sign. Interrupt him at a restaurant. A studio recording session.

All bets are off, right?

Because that's what you're suggesting here! If you're going to interrupt an intimate, spoken word show like this, and defend it, whether you realize it or not, there aren't many lines you are suggesting are off limits.

People sometimes forget that famous people are just that! PEOPLE like you and I and everyone else.

Seems the guy who is asking if we have a minimum age to register here is the one who needs to do some growing up.
Click to expand...

Nice post, better than most of the other responses. However, let’s have a look at some of your remarks. So my point was it was ok because it was allowed to be ok, and I explained that further by saying if my mate had been kicked out he would have had to accept that. Ultimately the venues and individuals on the night were in charge and had the judgment to decide what was and wasn’t allowed and they allowed it. You can say it was right or wrong, it wasn’t encouraged but ultimately it was allowed as Jamie got his autograph and wasn’t kicked out and Bono was pleasant about it even thought u2gigs falsely said he wasn’t happy about it. Your example about stealing isn’t the same imo. In the incident in Glasgow nobody was really effected by it, there’s a recording of the show on u2torrents and you can hear the applause and cheers and no booing or anything so nobody was really harmed by it. Maybe some people didn’t approve but we can’t really compare the impact of someone stealing an item to someone just walking up to the stage for an autograph, very different moral stances and impacts I would argue. I think calling my mate a dick is immature from a few members round here, I bet they’re the type that wouldn’t call people dicks to their faces, you can tell the keyboard warriors a mile off. I respect an opposing view put forward in a mature and sensible way where they can express they don’t approve of what happened, that is fine, but that’s not what’s happened on this thread so yes a lot of members on here need to grow up, seems a theme with a lot of online u2 fans, not generally the experience I have when meeting u2 fans in person I must say. Also this isn’t the legal system and what is considered as reasonable is open to opinion itself. Yes there are some serious matters in the world where we do generally accept what a reasonable view of the matter is but we’re not talking Micky mouse stuff like a guy going up to a stage for an autograph that most of the crowd weren’t bothered about, we’re talking violent, criminal sort of things. I would say the people’s reaction on this thread has been unreasonable, I think if you asked people on the night their view it would have been that he was a bit of a chancer but fair play to him no harm done, maybe it’s a different culture where I’m from but for something to be considered ‘wrong’ or to be called a dick it generally takes more than trying to get an autograph at a moment that maybe wasn’t the most appropriate. I’d say the real dicks are the people who commented about it on this thread who think their opinion on the matter is so important, or think their opinion isn’t an opinion at all but a fact, now that’s the real dicks.
 
Headache in a Suitcase said:
I'm assuming they don't take smart watches? Could be how tapers are taping, if you can trigger the app with your phone?

The only show I ever went to with one of these pouch things it would have been very easy to sneak an extra phone or recording device in. Hewson had a different experience at the show he went to sooooo I dunno. Maybe it varies from venue to venue.
Click to expand...

Yeah, not sure if you ever went to a show at the Orpheum here in your college days, but the lobby/entry area is so small and cramped I think they had no other option than to do it in the manner I described, with the pouches out in the alley first. Likely in a lot of other venues you do security check first then the pouch so better option for the double phone move.
 
It’s very easy to burst open the pouches to get your phone out. The stitching is the part that gives way, the button stays pressed in but there’s a gap between button and stitching to get the phone out, not encouraging it but possible to do.
 
lightmyway91 said:
Nice post, better than most of the other responses. However, let’s have a look at some of your remarks. So my point was it was ok because it was allowed to be ok, and I explained that further by saying if my mate had been kicked out he would have had to accept that. Ultimately the venues and individuals on the night were in charge and had the judgment to decide what was and wasn’t allowed and they allowed it. You can say it was right or wrong, it wasn’t encouraged but ultimately it was allowed as Jamie got his autograph and wasn’t kicked out and Bono was pleasant about it even thought u2gigs falsely said he wasn’t happy about it. Your example about stealing isn’t the same imo. In the incident in Glasgow nobody was really effected by it, there’s a recording of the show on u2torrents and you can hear the applause and cheers and no booing or anything so nobody was really harmed by it. Maybe some people didn’t approve but we can’t really compare the impact of someone stealing an item to someone just walking up to the stage for an autograph, very different moral stances and impacts I would argue. I think calling my mate a dick is immature from a few members round here, I bet they’re the type that wouldn’t call people dicks to their faces, you can tell the keyboard warriors a mile off. I respect an opposing view put forward in a mature and sensible way where they can express they don’t approve of what happened, that is fine, but that’s not what’s happened on this thread so yes a lot of members on here need to grow up, seems a theme with a lot of online u2 fans, not generally the experience I have when meeting u2 fans in person I must say. Also this isn’t the legal system and what is considered as reasonable is open to opinion itself. Yes there are some serious matters in the world where we do generally accept what a reasonable view of the matter is but we’re not talking Micky mouse stuff like a guy going up to a stage for an autograph that most of the crowd weren’t bothered about, we’re talking violent, criminal sort of things. I would say the people’s reaction on this thread has been unreasonable, I think if you asked people on the night their view it would have been that he was a bit of a chancer but fair play to him no harm done, maybe it’s a different culture where I’m from but for something to be considered ‘wrong’ or to be called a dick it generally takes more than trying to get an autograph at a moment that maybe wasn’t the most appropriate. I’d say the real dicks are the people who commented about it on this thread who think their opinion on the matter is so important, or think their opinion isn’t an opinion at all but a fact, now that’s the real dicks.
Click to expand...



I haven’t really weighed in because others have articulated my feelings and I think the full on pile-on is a bit insensitive. That said, you have really invited it by biting back to everything said as a joke and not helped yourself. Two things I think need to be said in response to this:

- it isn’t binary - allowed to be ok so therefore fine vs kicked out therefore not fine. It is not ok to go up to a performer and ask for an autograph during the show. It’s a selfish and stupid thing to do, and if security responded in any other way, they would have made it worse. OK is not defined by whether he was stopped. It’s defined by the impact it has on all around, that includes some cheers, some people silently pissed about the show being disrupted by a person having no regards for others, Bono having to deal with it, and a dangerous precedent it may set.

- Bono’s response is far more nuanced than fine/not fine. Think about what happens if he responds in literally any other way? He gets upset, then the show is ruined for everyone else. He loves it, and then more people flood the stage. You can’t determine the appropriateness of an action by the immediate outward response. If someone slaps my arse in public, it is absolutely not ok. But I don’t respond by punching them, because that makes everything worse. I also don’t invite that person to do it again. I probably awkwardly smile it off and leave the area.

You mate’s behaviour is entirely selfish and can only be justified when viewing through a lease that strips away nuance and impact. Bono’s behaviour is entirely community driven where he absorbs the personal impact to ensure the continued enjoyment of others. If you judge your Nate’s action by impact, you are entirely missing the point.
 
If it’s defined by the impact it has all around then I’d say more people took it in a positive way than a negative. Probably Bono’s actions contributed to that, the applause I’m guessing was as much if not more for his response but overall it was taken well so whilst that doesn’t prove definitively that it was ok it also is a hard point to use to suggest it wasn’t ok.

I think there’s an exaggeration about what would/wouldn’t have happened depending on Bono’s reaction. What happens also depends a lot on security and how my mate reacts and I’m more than confident it wouldn’t have caused a major disruption if Bono had simply ignored him or let security remove him, which I think would have been done without resistance. But that’s something we’ll never know admittedly.

Selfish, well maybe it is hard to deny that. He wasn’t doing it for anyone else’s benefit so you could call that selfish but we’re all selfish several times throughout our lives without being called out for it or without anyone even suggesting we are wrong to be. Did you ever take the last space in the parking lot? Last pastry at the bakers? Buy a ticket for a show that someone else you know wants to go to? All selfish things surely? Does that also make them wrong things to do?
 
lightmyway91 said:
If it’s defined by the impact it has all around then I’d say more people took it in a positive way than a negative.
Click to expand...

Nobody sitting in the area around us appeared to take it in a positive way from the audible reactions. Your mate got his book autographed and his moment in the spotlight but it totally interrupted the flow of the show for me.

Did Bono not say something along the lines of "it's probably not the right time for this sort of thing"? He very much appeared to be a reluctant participant, but others have explained the reasons why he dealt with it in the way he did.

I just found the whole thing baffling and still can't understand why anybody would do that sort of thing in that sort of show.

But anyway, Bono is in fantastic voice and spirits, so the future is most definitely bright.
 
My god, how long are we going to go back and forth on this shit? We have one person stubbornly thinking they're in the right, and not budging despite literally everyone else here disagreeing with them and laying out a myriad of reasons why.

Maybe we all just need to ignore these posts going forward.
 
lazarus said:
My god, how long are we going to go back and forth on this shit? We have one person stubbornly thinking they're in the right, and not budging despite literally everyone else here disagreeing with them and laying out a myriad of reasons why.

Maybe we all just need to ignore these posts going forward.
Click to expand...
Great question. I tried to change the subject a good few pages back. It’s there for all to see I mentioned the omission of One from Bono’s show and said I was surprised as it is such a big song for the band and he even mentions the one campaign briefly in the show. I’d much rather talk about the show and that other people focused on that as well but that’s obviously not solely up to me.
 
So that comment about all of the dates "for now" or something like that... He's done the US and Europe, so is it maybe something he'll come back to? I can't see how the show format would work with the rest of the band and I'm not sure it would scale to bigger venues either, so maybe we'll get a "chapter two"? There's a hell of a lot of material in the book which could be staged in a similar fashion.
 
ascender_RS said:
So that comment about all of the dates "for now" or something like that... He's done the US and Europe, so is it maybe something he'll come back to? I can't see how the show format would work with the rest of the band and I'm not sure it would scale to bigger venues either, so maybe we'll get a "chapter two"? There's a hell of a lot of material in the book which could be staged in a similar fashion.
Click to expand...
The chapter two idea is intriguing. A totally different night telling different stories and singing different songs. I’d be quite surprised at that though but wouldn’t rule it out. On the other hand even though he’s done dates in Europe and the US there’s still room for more I’d suggest. He’s supposed to be on Italian tv on Sunday and they haven’t got a gig their yet so it could just be he’s doing different countries/states and might even repeat the same show in some locations that have proved particularly popular.
 
lightmyway91 said:
Nice post, better than most of the other responses. However, let’s have a look at some of your remarks. So my point was it was ok because it was allowed to be ok, and I explained that further by saying if my mate had been kicked out he would have had to accept that. Ultimately the venues and individuals on the night were in charge and had the judgment to decide what was and wasn’t allowed and they allowed it. You can say it was right or wrong, it wasn’t encouraged but ultimately it was allowed as Jamie got his autograph and wasn’t kicked out and Bono was pleasant about it even thought u2gigs falsely said he wasn’t happy about it. Your example about stealing isn’t the same imo. In the incident in Glasgow nobody was really effected by it, there’s a recording of the show on u2torrents and you can hear the applause and cheers and no booing or anything so nobody was really harmed by it. Maybe some people didn’t approve but we can’t really compare the impact of someone stealing an item to someone just walking up to the stage for an autograph, very different moral stances and impacts I would argue. I think calling my mate a dick is immature from a few members round here, I bet they’re the type that wouldn’t call people dicks to their faces, you can tell the keyboard warriors a mile off. I respect an opposing view put forward in a mature and sensible way where they can express they don’t approve of what happened, that is fine, but that’s not what’s happened on this thread so yes a lot of members on here need to grow up, seems a theme with a lot of online u2 fans, not generally the experience I have when meeting u2 fans in person I must say. Also this isn’t the legal system and what is considered as reasonable is open to opinion itself. Yes there are some serious matters in the world where we do generally accept what a reasonable view of the matter is but we’re not talking Micky mouse stuff like a guy going up to a stage for an autograph that most of the crowd weren’t bothered about, we’re talking violent, criminal sort of things. I would say the people’s reaction on this thread has been unreasonable, I think if you asked people on the night their view it would have been that he was a bit of a chancer but fair play to him no harm done, maybe it’s a different culture where I’m from but for something to be considered ‘wrong’ or to be called a dick it generally takes more than trying to get an autograph at a moment that maybe wasn’t the most appropriate. I’d say the real dicks are the people who commented about it on this thread who think their opinion on the matter is so important, or think their opinion isn’t an opinion at all but a fact, now that’s the real dicks.
Click to expand...

1) I wasn't equating this to the legal system or stealing. On a practical or moral level. The stealing example was an analogy of the kind of cost/benefit analysis people do when they're tasked with enforcing something.

Just like a cop isn't wise to conduct a high speed chase over a stolen candy bar due to possible effects on others, security wouldn't have been wise to jump all over your mate due to the effects it would have on others in the audience.

2) Related, I never said this is the legal system. I'm well aware it isn't. The point I'm trying to make is that you're looking for FACT and asking people to prove things and won't let it go. I'm pointing out that SIMILAR TO the legal system, it's a matter of reasonableness versus quantifiable fact.

You think this is mickey mouse. Or just "chancing it." Everyone else, while fully acknowledging this isn't a crime or something to lose any sleep over, is saying that it was a selfish, rude move that no doubt hindered others' enjoyment of the show.

A chancer takes the train to the city day of the sold out show hoping to score some tickets on the resale apps. He also may drive a few miles with the gas light on. Surf in shark infested waters. Go out and approach the most attractive person in the room and ask for a date because we only live once!

Rude, disruptive behavior is another thing entirely.

3) Your contention that it would not have caused a major disruption to the show if security removed your mate is just false. I'm sorry.

A few obnoxious people decided to yell out things while Bono was talking or during quiet transitions in Boston. Just yelling something interrupted things, caused head shakes and audible groans from some in the audience.

You were there. I may not think you are reasonable but reading your posts on other topics here, I know you are intelligent. And passionate. So just think of the greater interruption that would've come from security confronting your friend, stepping in front of him and then getting more security to walk out behind him. Even without resistance, that would've happened due to the fact that the stage front line is trained not to leave that post under any circumstance short of an evacuation. This absolutely would've been a big spectacle in a venue this small. Smaller the venue, the bigger the spectacle of confronting ANYONE.

Alternately, and I've seen this happen, too, if security intervened more, Bono may have felt obligated to shut down that response for fear of how it looked to other fans. So Bono changing the enforcement of something from the stage would have been even more of an interruption. So now because of one man's actions, EVERYONE, Bono, Brian, local security, their supervisors, etc, etc, is in an awkward situation. Bono and Brian are just fine and will always be, but think of the poor guy making minimum wage just trying to get through the night at his second gig! I don't need to tell you working an event like this brings an extraordinary amount of scrutiny on these folks. It in no way resembles your average night keeping an eye on a concert venue.

Mind you, he wouldn't have held this against security unless they decided to start throwing punches or doing something excessive. The entire U2 organization has a very good view of and relationship with all local partners- security included.

All this is to say that security 100% made the right call for the circumstances. Take it from someone who lived and breathed the job for 5 years, it does not imply any endorsement of or point in your mate's favor that they didn't boot him. None whatsoever.
 
Last edited:
There was a former member who jumped on stage uninvited once.

Security tackled him Bono asked them to let him up.

He swung Bono around in his arms.

It turned into "a moment."

But it turned into a moment because Bono, being the professional that he is, saw what it was going to become if security pummeled this guy - who, though boorish and of the wrong political persuasion, was not an actual threat.

So it became a moment.

But it was a dickish thing to do.

There's been plenty of times where Bono has invited a fan up on stage.

Sometimes because the fan had a sign or did something else to draw attention to themselves, sometimes just because Bono felt like it.

There is one such fan who was pulled up on stage at MSG during Vertigo during WOWY because some girls were arguing over trying to get their sister on stage, too. So Bono said fuck them and pulled up the fellow in the turban instead. And he's been invited back on stage a dozen times since. Pure luck.

These are not dickish things.

They may annoy some, but that's a different argument altogether. Some people just don't like mom jeans. That's their problem.

This is the end of my Ted Talk.
 
Last edited:
Just watched the Che Tempo Che Fa performance on Instagram - he’s looking much better and younger as the tour rolls on. The microphone mix was quite dry which never helps him - makes his high notes a bit coarse and piercing, but overall he sounds good.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

P
Surrender Memoir Love the Audio Book But Same Old Stories
Replies
13
Views
2K
Headache in a Suitcase
Headache in a Suitcase
Headache in a Suitcase
  • Locked
The Final Countdown - U2 at Sphere - General Discussion Thread Part 3
18 19 20
Replies
574
Views
25K
Headache in a Suitcase
Headache in a Suitcase
M
Ticketmaster app
Replies
3
Views
502
rosephile
R
Headache in a Suitcase
  • Sticky
U2 in Vegas - Tips for booking hotels, flights and other Vegasy type things.
20 21 22
Replies
642
Views
33K
Headache in a Suitcase
Headache in a Suitcase
L
Play Do You Feel Loved, Babyface, Some Days Are Better Than Others, Playboy Petition
Replies
8
Views
741
rosephile
R

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom