Oct 31, 1997: Detroit PopMart Reunion

[melon]

Yes, it's now 4 years since this event, my first U2 concert, and still impressive in my mind.

Who here in Interference went to that concert?

Melon

------------------
"He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time

 

[no disk]

i was there. great show, even though my seats were crummy.

is there a bootleg?

 

[SkeeK]

I wasn't there, but my first ever U2 show was 5 days before that in Toronto. ahh memories, although they are rather blurred I must admit.

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

*cries*

I wasn't....DAMN IT. I'll never see U2 on Larry's birthday.

------------------
In an interview with BP Fallon:
BP: What do you do if you have the blues?
LARRY: Sing.
BP: What gives you the blues?
LARRY: Singing.

~*April*~

(AIM-POPLemonGirl)

 

[thehepcat]

I wasn't there, but my first U2 show was 2 nights before on the 29th in Minneapolis.

------------------
Looking for U2 bootlegs?
www.geocities.com/u2trades

 

[Blue Room]

I was there! It was my last of 9 Popmart shows.

Yes, there is a decent bootleg out there of the show.

 

[Johnny Swallow]

Originally posted by Blue Room:
I was there! It was my last of 9 Popmart shows.

*Adds Blueroom to my hitlist*

 

[Blue Room]

Man, and to think I helped you out on the first leg obtain a very special item!! How soon they forget!

 

[bullet the blue sky]

Nine Popmart shows??!!! You must be made of money!

 

[Blue Room]

No, basically once Zoo TV ended for me in 1992 I started saving for the next tour. So I had 5 years to save for the Popmart tour and I made the most of it.

I'am already saving for the next tour now that Elevation is done for me.

[This message has been edited by Blue Room (edited 10-31-2001).]

 

[Johnny Swallow]

Originally posted by Blue Room:
Man, and to think I helped you out on the first leg obtain a very special item!! How soon they forget!

You rock.

 

[Bonochick]

Originally posted by Blue Room:
I was there! It was my last of 9 Popmart shows.

Wow! I'm jealous!

Which ones did you go to? I only got to see one PopMart show (Madison).



------------------
"I don't know you,
But you don't know the half of it..."

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

Hey Blue Room? Would you be able (or willing, lol) to make me a copy of that show? I'd really love to see what I missed out on!!! (Yes, I'm a glutton for torture.)

U2Angel92@aol.com

------------------
HAPPY BIRTHDAY LARRY!!!!

~*April*~

(AIM-POPLemonGirl)

 

[Blue Room]

PopAngel, you have mail.

Regarding which shows I saw on Popmart:

Memphis
Clemson
Columbus
Chicago 1, 2, 3
Toronto 1, 2
Detroit

 

[popkidu2]

I was at Detroit as well.

Great show.

Hey BlueRoom, any chance I could get my hands on that Detroit boot as well? I can send you blank cd-r's.....

popkidu2@aol.com

------------------
I can't change the world, but I can change the world in me.

 

[Johnny Swallow]

Originally posted by popkidu2:
Hey BlueRoom, any chance I could get my hands on that Detroit boot as well? I can send you blank cd-r's.....

DON'T DO IT BLUEROOM, HE'S A GOVERNMENT AGENT LOOKING FOR BOOTLEGGERS TO BUST!!!!!!

 

[scatteroflight]

I didn't see Popmart and I don't mind at all. Does that make me a bad person??

I actually wouldn't have been able to see that show because I had an exam the next day, but I didn't really want to anyway. At the time I loved U2 but I was disillusioned with what they were doing in the moment. I've heard so many mixed reports about that tour. Basically, I'm very glad my first (and so far only) U2 show was Elevation. There was no way I could not love it.



------------------
The soul needs beauty for a soulmate

 

[Blue Room]

OK Johnny, the only problem is that I'am not a bootlegger. I would never sell anything, I only trade or do blank CD trades.

Scatteroflight, that is an interesting perspective (odd I should say). I have never heard a U2 fan say they are glad they missed a tour or show??? Personally, I thought Popmart was great. Most of the negativity about it comes from the media and people buying into the media hype about it. Did some people not like it? Yes. But alot of people hated Zoo TV also and many here regard that as their greatest tour. Are you glad you missed Zoo TV, The Joshua Tree and Unf. Fire tours also? There were mixed reviews about some of those as well by fans and some of the media.




[This message has been edited by Blue Room (edited 10-31-2001).]

 

[scatteroflight]

Originally posted by Blue Room:


Scatteroflight, that is an interesting perspective (odd I should say). I have never heard a U2 fan say they are glad they missed a tour or show??? Personally, I thought Popmart was great. Most of the negativity about it comes from the media and people buying into the media hype about it. Did some people not like it? Yes. But alot of people hated Zoo TV also and many here regard that as their greatest tour. Are you glad you missed Zoo TV, The Joshua Tree and Unf. Fire tours also? There were mixed reviews about some of those as well by fans and some of the media.

Well, I didn't exactly say I'm glad to have missed Popmart. I am glad that my first show was Elevation. If someone had given me tickets and I'd been able to go, I would have gone to Popmart. And who knows, maybe I would have loved it. I think that most likely I would have had very mixed feelings. I didn't like the album much. I still hate Mofo with a passion and they were opening with that song. Someone I used to know who went to his first U2 show at San Diego Popmart and who loved the Mofo type stuff even said it was terrible that night, it was a total mess. They were still very unrehearsed at that point. I just don't know. But I can't honestly say I'm sorry to have missed Popmart. Given a choice, I would much rather have seen ZooTV. I suspect I would have had mixed feelings about that too but it seemed like a better and more interesting concept than Popmart. By the time they got to Pop they'd been doing irony for some years and I think it was getting old in a way that their sincerity does not.

As for Joshua Tree and Un-Fire, get real. I would pay...a lot to go back in time and see shows from those tours. And honestly, I can't remember ever hearing someone say "I was at a JT or UF show but it really wasn't that good," whereas I've heard of people saying "I was at Popmart and it left me with an empty feeling" or whatever. Of course, this is in the age of the Internet and the Internet breeds criticism and negativity.

I should give Pop another chance some time soon, ditto for Zooropa. I'm just getting a bit tired of it because I have given those albums chances quite a number of times before. And I'm not jumping on any bandwagon. I'm always amazed at how many people here rank Pop in their top 5 U2 albums. If I like it, I like it. If not, I don't. I shouldn't have to feel bad about it.

------------------
The soul needs beauty for a soulmate

 

[Hawkfire]

I was there!! The 4th and final show of PopMart for me (NY 5/31, Foxboro 7/1, Toronto 10/26 the others). I remember Smash Mouth being awful, the PA music being great, and the 1st time I ever heard 'Desire' live. 'One/WUDM' was also brilliant at this show.

That said (and you're talking to a big PopMart fan here), tonight's Providence setlist coming in is ridiculous. Wish I had been there tonight!

It seems Blue Room and I go to all the same shows (Chicago, N. Dame, Detroit PopMart). I agree with him that Chicago #3 was the best of the Chicago Elevation stand.

 

[JasonD]

Put me down for enjoying the PopMart tour also. I saw it three times, twice in NJ and once in Boston. Yes, they were coming from a different place both musically and with the presentation of the tour, but it was fascinating to see them in this part of their career. Underneath all the so-called techno and glitz of the tour, was the same soul searching and solid sound of the band we know and love, albeit a little more layered in the mix. (Many of the boots are among my favorites

)

 

[Blue Room]

Scatteroflight, I hope you didnt think I was saying you were wrong about your opinion. It was just a different perspective that I have never really heard from a U2 fan. You may not have liked Popmart. POP is not one of my favorite U2 albums either (although I do like it) but Popmart was a great show. I wouldnt judge it by your friend who saw the San Diego Popmart show, it was the 2nd show of the tour and U2 clearly were not ready to play (something they admit openly). They really didnt start to hit their stride on Popmart until about 2 1/2 to 3 weeks into the tour. By the time of this show (Detroit) they were on fire IMO. I also saw 3 Popmart shows in Chicago, 2 of which were as good as any of the U2 shows I have seen and I have seen 24 since 1987.

Having been a fan since 1983 I can tell you that there were indeed negative reviews of The Unf. Fire and Joshua Tree tours. Obviously the internet did not exist then so I think that is why there is another misconception that EVERYBODY loved these shows. A friend of mine went to the Unf. Fire show in Atlanta (I was suppose to go but could not at the last minute). He told me afterwards that U2 were overrated and that he was disappointed in the show! I'am sure I would have disagreed if I had gone but I heard alot of people at my school that went saying similiar things (although not as harsh). The difference?, there was no media hyping or slamming U2 at the time or internet to spread this kind of info all over the place. I also remember a small rumbling during The Joshua Tree tour from some fans indicating that U2 were getting to big for their britches and the shows were suffering. JT was my first tour and I disagreed vehemently with this point of view but not everybody thought it was great. This sentiment was effectively squelched though because U2 were media darlings that year and nothing negative was said about them (or very little).

My point is basically dont judge a tour that you did not see by others opinions a video of it or especially by what the media says or has said about it. A U2 concert and/or tour is something that has to be experienced in person to effectively judge how good or bad you think it is.

 

[scatteroflight]

Originally posted by Blue Room:
I wouldnt judge it by your friend who saw the San Diego Popmart show, it was the 2nd show of the tour and U2 clearly were not ready to play (something they admit openly).

Actually, I was unclear there. He actually did love the show overall, it was Mofo he thought was terrible as an opener that night. He did like most of the show otherwise. He also saw them in Vancouver and thought it was better. I think another problem with that tour was they were playing huge venues where the sound was not good.

You're right that I can't actually say "Popmart sucked" because I didn't see a show. I can say that though I will never know for sure, I suspect that I would have loved some things about the show and hated others. I just have a feeling that it wouldn't have been my best first live U2 experience. Elevation was perfect because I loved every moment. They did a song off Pop at my show but it was one I really like, Gone. It couldn't have been better. But who knows? Maybe if I'd seen Popmart I would now be a huge fan of the U2 era I really don't like much. I'm just not convinced.

------------------
The soul needs beauty for a soulmate



[This message has been edited by scatteroflight (edited 11-01-2001).]