She wore seven.

June 22, 2011 |  by  |  U2360 Tour, Uncategorized  |  1 Comment

A replica of Edge's '7' shirt from Elevation

Tonight’s Baltimore concert will be my seventh U2 show, so the shirt of choice is a replica of the “7” shirt The Edge wore during the Elevation tour on the “U2 Go Home: Live at Slane Castle” DVD. Hoping it will be a lucky 7 type of night … maybe I’ll get to hear “Out of Control,” maybe Bono will acknowledge my sign. Maybe he’ll sing the “shine like stars” verse of With or Without You. Or maybe none of those things will happen, and it will still be one of the best nights of my life.

It’s already been a beautiful day in Baltimore. The forecasted rain has held off, though I’ve been sweltering in the GA line since our 6 a.m. roll call. But, I’m not the only one staring at the sun. I’ve reunited with some of my favorite fellow U2 fans, who I met at the 2009 360 show in Charlottesville, and already made some great new friends with people in this line. And it’s been a fun day of radio, TV and newspaper interviews, as all the media outlets want to talk with the crazy people at the front of the line. A local radio station, 98 Rock, has been blaring U2 music all day for the GA line, and the excitement’s building as showtime nears. Desire was playing at one point and I got those “I’m going to be hearing and seeing this band live tonight!” butterflies.

So, bethandbono.com followers (Mom): I look forward to reporting on the other side of the show. What time is it in the world? It’s showtime! (In seven hours …)

Let me in the sound:
Patrick Hoover’s mix tape

June 15, 2011 |  by  |  Uncategorized  |  2 Comments

Patrick Hoover and I “went out” for about three weeks in seventh grade. This means that a friend of his probably came up to me between fifth and sixth periods and said, “Patrick wants to know if you’ll go out with him” and I sent word back through the envoy that I would, indeed, go out with him, and by the end of the school day we were an item.

I wasn’t allowed to go to movies with boys or to have them over (I still don’t think I am), so we mostly just hung out at the pool in my apartment complex. At the time, I was still harboring an obscene infatuation for the New Kids on the Block and listening to Casey Kasem’s American Top 40 every weekend on my clock radio. That’s what comprised my musical world.

But then Patrick Hoover made me a mix tape. Read More

I’m packing a suitcase
for a place

May 20, 2011 |  by  |  Uncategorized  |  No Comments

U2 is kicking off their second U.S. leg of the 360° tour in Denver and my plane for the mile-high city leaves in about five hours. Here’s a peek inside my suitcase before I catch a few hours of sleep to last me through the next few days of excitement, exhilaration, exhaustion. Read More

Sometimes you can’t make it on your own

May 20, 2011 |  by  |  Uncategorized  |  1 Comment

I’ve seen U2 five times in concert on four tours: PopMart in 1997 (Tampa, FL), Elevation in 2001 (Charlotte, NC), Vertigo in 2005 (Charlotte, NC) and 360° in 2009 (Charlottesville, VA, and Raleigh, NC). When I decided to more than double that with about eight more shows on the second 2011 U.S. leg of the 360° tour, I decided it was time to blog. I’m still figuring it all out, but I’ve had some outstanding help getting me set up. Read More

It won’t be long until the summer comes.

May 20, 2011 |  by  |  Uncategorized  |  No Comments

I’m quitting my job to follow U2 around on tour all summer.

That’s what I declared a few months ago, anyway. I still like to say it for the dramatic effect, even if the circumstances have changed slightly. I’d decided I was ready to leave my job of four and a half years — didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do next, but knew I was ready to try a different company or a different profession or a different city or a different country. U2 had extended their 360° tour back to the United States, and I also knew I wanted to see more than my usual single show. So, setting forth with more vision than visibility, I started shaping my summer plans around about eight of their concerts, which would require way more than my vacation allotment. Read More