This tour is U2's sing-along tour

[LyricalDrug]

I've seen them three times now (San Diego, San Jose x 2) and concluded that U2 picked sing-along anthems for its setlist. All the massive shout-til-you're-hoarse ones are here:

Elevation ("woo-oo-hoo" might be the granddaddy of them all);
40 ("how loooong");
The Fly (Edge now urges the crowd to sing "It's alright / It's alright");
Pride (whoah-oh-oh-oh);
Vertigo (hello, hello);
Love and Peace or Else (release! release!);
COBL ("Oh! You! Look! So! Beautiful....");
Sunday Bloody Sunday ("ohhhhh, oh-ohh");
RTSST ("Hallelujah");
Mysterious Ways ("It's alright...");

Bono's been getting the crowds into "All Because of You" and "Yahweh" too.

Bono's also been invoking the civil rights movement throughout his performances too:

-He's singing "Blackbird" at the end of "Beautiful Day" (how many of you knew that it's a Beatles song honoring the civil rights movement in America?
-His Africa speech before "Streets"
-they're playing "Pride" again
-He sang "We Shall Overcome" in San Jose
-the "Everyone!" intro

If you think of these two aspects together, you realize that Bono is invoking the sing-along, call-and-response feature of so many American, southern black churches.

This isn't new to U2's concerts, they've done it before, but this time around, it's the central theme of the tour. It's their most overtly political tour ever, with one cohesive, focused political message.

You reckon?

 

[Diemen]

I don't think the band or Bono are consciouslessly trying to make this a sing-along tour, but when you've got a 20+ year catalog of songs and an extremely devoted fanbase, it's bound to happen anyway.

Plus Bono has been very good at invoking the sing-along, call-and-response for the majority of U2's career.

 

[mikal]

U2 can't help it that the crowd wants to sing along. they could completely change the setlist and the crowd would still sing along.

 

[OffAxis]

-they're playing "Pride" again

When did they stop?

IMHO, they could stand to give that one a rest for a tour or two.

 

[timothius]

I think overall Elevation lent itself more towards sing-along.

Listen to the first Slane Castle boot for an example of that.

Its aweeeeeeeesome.

 

[U2IrishOne]

its hard to not sing along. With the catalog they have, they could virtually play anything and make it a sing along.... <br>
EPIC EMOTIONAL ROCK = SING-A-LONG!

 

[Aardvark747]

Elevation ("woo-oo-hoo" might be the granddaddy of them all);

 

[Arcadion]

Well I think the best sing-along is Pride. How can people want this dropped?

Also didn't Bono try to get people to sing during OOTS?