[SamAdams76]

I saw U2 at the US Festival (underwritten by Steve Wozniak of Apple) back in 1983. That was one of the best rock performances I ever saw. Back then, U2 was dynamic and powerful, with songs like "Rejoice", "Tomorrow", "Out Of Control" and "I Will Follow". They had just released their War album and were on the verge of superstardom. Bono actually didn't make a single political statement and just sang his lungs out. The guy was a maniac, he climbed the scaffolding to the roof of the staging while belting out "Sunday, Bloody Sunday" from the new album.

I then saw them on the Joshua Tree/Rattle & Hum tour five years later. What a disappointment. Bono yapped half the time about Nelson Mandela and famines in Africa. The band robotically went through the motions, playing through a set list of songs and then everybody went home.

I understand the band revamped their stage show during the 1990s and got less pretentious but I never went back to see them. In general, I do like their music however.

[CFC__VRWC]

I understand the band revamped their stage show during the 1990s and got less pretentious but I never went back to see them. In general, I do like their music however.

Someone posted a MSM review of a U2 show on the current tour a couple of weeks back, and the reviewer was pretty merciless. He described just what you did on the Rattle & Hum tour - lots of pretentious leftist bloviating and very little passion in the music. I think the review was from one of the Chicago papers - I was quite surprised by the panning the show got.