(06-21-2007) Red Rocks fetes U2 concert film - Rocky Mountain News*

[hippy]

Red Rocks fetes U2 concert film

by Penny Parker

So you had a chance to see U2 at the legendary Under a Blood Red Sky concert at Red Rocks in '83 but blew it? Here's your chance for a do-over: the Aug. 21 Film on the Rocks will bring the concert alive once again.

"We're going to re-create the entire concert as it was done 24 years ago," said Erik Dyce, Red Rocks marketing man.

There'll be the flaming towers on either side of the stage (brought in special for the '83 filming), and the U2 tribute band Under a Blood Red Sky re-creating the concert note-for-note. And, Dyce hopes, there'll be a bit of the rain and fog that made the original concert film so eerie.

There's a reason it's happening now: 2008 is the 25th anniversary of the show that put U2 and Red Rocks on the map. City officials hope that a petition drive will bring Bono and the boys back.

"We'll start a petition to beg the band, 'Please, you must come back for your 25th,' " Dyce said.

The city, however, tried to get the band to do 15th and 20th returns to the Rocks with no luck.

Regardless, the tribute concert will go on, and one lucky fan is going to get the chance of a lifetime to sing a U2 song at the Rocks. An upcoming promotion with radio and YouTube.com will have fans submit audition videos, with the winner joining Under a Blood Red Sky for a song.

"What kind of experience would that be?" Dyce said.



http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/news_columnists/article/0,1299,DRMN_86_5593784,00.html

 

[LPU2]

Was hoping they'd just put a big screen up and show the entire video. If that's what it was, I'd probably go.

Not much into tribute bands.

 

[dazzledbylight]

tribute bands have to reallllyyyy good foer me to consider them.....

I was at Red Rocks 2 years too early!
I was on my 2nd trip across the USA.

but OMGit's SSssoooo beautiful..........I'm glad i saw it.
THEN I got to go up into the moutains with my cousin. WHO-AH!

 

[forbonou2]

this sounds good..except..it Would be better With the Band! But hey.....might be interesting!! And, if I won to sing With the Band..I'd definetly go for 'Gloria'!

 

[dsmith2904]

Anyone interested in attending, there's burgeoning discussions and plans being made in the Gatherings forum. It's fun to celebrate U2's music with other fans, even if the guys aren't there in the flesh.

 

[doctorwho]

U2 "cashes in" at the right times. If they can do something to help promote their newest album, like being on a TV show or even doing an iPod commercial for no money, they will. However, U2 almost never cashes in just for the sake of the money (the exception being the various best of/greatest hits albums). To me, U2 appearing here is cashing in. They'd be doing it solely for the money.

Also, that show was in '83. Nothing about U2, let alone their fans, are the same as that night in '83. Recreating it is impossible. The article discusses recreating the show note for note. That's great for a cover band, but has U2 ever recreated even a single song note for note? They always change something. To try to recapture that white flag moment, for example, while great then would be fake now.

So if the sponsors merely want U2 there to attend, O.K., fine - I retract the above. But if they want U2 to perform, then I actually have to agree with U2's choice to have declined thus far. If they finally do agree, it's only because of the fact that it's been 25 years.

 

[silvrlvr]

I think this is a big waste of time. It would like hiring an impersonator to give Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech in Washington. Why?

 

[diamond]

hmm..interesting, humbling..and a little lame..i don't know what to think.

mixed emotions.

dbs

 

[BWU2Buffs]

I'd see this if I still lived in the area -- several reasons --

Red Rocks is amazing; if you can handle the hike up from parking to the theater without losing your breath -- so peaceful and the sound is great -- and the night sky -- so many stars!

My first show was the night after RR in Boulder, 1983 -- most of my friends went to RR, my parents ixnayed my trip due to an awards night my senior year high school. This could be my "make up" night.

Sure, tribute bands are not the same -- but getting past that seems easy with a couple of drinks and closing your eyes -- it would still be fun; probably mostly because it would be cool to hang out with the crowd -- they'd be a lot like the folks out here on Interfience -- into the band, swapping stories -- the stories from other fans would be the best part. Heck, maybe they could just play the soundtrack to the RR VHS movie over the PA and have some guys on stage doig air guitar.

I hear Chisty Turlington or some such super duper model wants to be a part of the next U2 video, maybe she could audition by playing the role of the blonde woman Bono spins around at the end of the RR video (-: