scatteroflight
Refugee
I have a couple of questions about this. First, how did Bono suggest that "Osama Bin Laden could kiss his royal Irish posterior"? Did he actually say that?
And also, is SATS really about fundamentalists? I think there might be a reference or two in the song but is that really what the song is about? Any thoughts on this?
Michael Prager
PROVIDENCE -- The typical U2 concert, if such events could ever be calletypical, is made up of equal parts of love and politics, showmanship and musicianship, Bono and the Edge.
At the Big Donut in Providence last night, the band added a heavy helping of good old American patriotism, egged on by the lead singer's numerous allusions to the
terrorist attacks on Sept. 11.
During a lull in "Sunday Bloody Sunday," for example, Bono reached into the crowd from the tip of the heart-shaped stage extension for an American flag. He cradled it, and then went back into one of the song's signature lyrics: "Wipe your tears away."
He dedicated "Kite," from the most recent album All That You Can't Leave Behind, to anyone who has to let go of someone.
"This is for you, America," he said. And when he returned to the stage for the
band's first encore, he came dressed in a New York City Fire Department T-shirt,
covered, of course, by his usual, heart-adorned leather jacket, albeit lined with
more fabric of the American flag.
He even suggested that Osama bin Laden could kiss his royal Irish posterior.
Beyond the current-events references, though, the show featured many of the
same sights and songs the band offered up during a four-spot at the FleetCenterin June. They opened with "Elevation," which was marred by a slight problem with
Bono's microphone, and "Beautiful Day" before hitting their first peak with "New
Year's Day," which featured the Edge not only on his unparalleled guitar, but also
on keyboards.
The band hit another high note with "Staring at the Sun," the only song it played
from its lightly regarded Pop album. Bono and the Edge played it acoustic, again
back out at the tip of the heart. Bono played up its politics in the introduction,
railing against religious nuts.
It's a song about fundamentalists, how they remake God in their own image: "Tiny, pathetic, self-obsessed. We've had a few of those at home in Ireland," he said.
Then came the anthem home stretch: "Bad," "Where the Streets Have No Name," "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," and "Pride (In the Name of Love)," accompanied by visages of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and snippets of King's "I Have a Dream" speech.
Then came the first encore, with its finale of New York, replete with images of
high-rises dancing across vast vertical screens and an improvised lyric: "Even Boston loves New York."
It was perhaps the only time all evening when Bono was slightly off-key.
------------------
The soul needs beauty for a soulmate
And also, is SATS really about fundamentalists? I think there might be a reference or two in the song but is that really what the song is about? Any thoughts on this?
Michael Prager
PROVIDENCE -- The typical U2 concert, if such events could ever be calletypical, is made up of equal parts of love and politics, showmanship and musicianship, Bono and the Edge.
At the Big Donut in Providence last night, the band added a heavy helping of good old American patriotism, egged on by the lead singer's numerous allusions to the
terrorist attacks on Sept. 11.
During a lull in "Sunday Bloody Sunday," for example, Bono reached into the crowd from the tip of the heart-shaped stage extension for an American flag. He cradled it, and then went back into one of the song's signature lyrics: "Wipe your tears away."
He dedicated "Kite," from the most recent album All That You Can't Leave Behind, to anyone who has to let go of someone.
"This is for you, America," he said. And when he returned to the stage for the
band's first encore, he came dressed in a New York City Fire Department T-shirt,
covered, of course, by his usual, heart-adorned leather jacket, albeit lined with
more fabric of the American flag.
He even suggested that Osama bin Laden could kiss his royal Irish posterior.
Beyond the current-events references, though, the show featured many of the
same sights and songs the band offered up during a four-spot at the FleetCenterin June. They opened with "Elevation," which was marred by a slight problem with
Bono's microphone, and "Beautiful Day" before hitting their first peak with "New
Year's Day," which featured the Edge not only on his unparalleled guitar, but also
on keyboards.
The band hit another high note with "Staring at the Sun," the only song it played
from its lightly regarded Pop album. Bono and the Edge played it acoustic, again
back out at the tip of the heart. Bono played up its politics in the introduction,
railing against religious nuts.
It's a song about fundamentalists, how they remake God in their own image: "Tiny, pathetic, self-obsessed. We've had a few of those at home in Ireland," he said.
Then came the anthem home stretch: "Bad," "Where the Streets Have No Name," "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," and "Pride (In the Name of Love)," accompanied by visages of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and snippets of King's "I Have a Dream" speech.
Then came the first encore, with its finale of New York, replete with images of
high-rises dancing across vast vertical screens and an improvised lyric: "Even Boston loves New York."
It was perhaps the only time all evening when Bono was slightly off-key.
------------------
The soul needs beauty for a soulmate
