U2

One of my favourite U2 pictures, and eras for that matter; Rattle and Hum

Ok, I can’t let this day pass without talking a bit about one of the most influential and best bands in history; namely U2. My esteemed friend Irene brought to my attention that it was their 3oth Anniversary today. Congrats Bono, Larry, Adam and Edge! Don’t quit your day job!

On the 25th of September 1976 “U2” was formed. It all started in Mount Joy Comprehensive School in Clontarf, Dublin, when Larry Mullen Junior hung a note to seek members for a band. He was 14 at the time, and he didn’t know then what he had started… The group was first called Feedback, then The Hype, and they eventually changed it to the all too familiar U2. The rest is basically history… I once heard someone say: “While everybody else was busy fighting to become the world’s greatest rock band, U2 quietly went ahead and became it”.

U2 has meant so much to me, that it is hard to describe it. I will never forget the day I heard my first U2 song, and by that I mean really heard it. I was 14, and the song was “Party girl”, from “Under a blood red sky” – Live at red rocks in 1983. I was hooked. But I remember that I felt a bit of an outsider, as no one else liked this utterly noisy, and apparently unorganized, music. Everybody else was into Kylie, Rick Astley, A-ha, Bros, Tiffany, and of course tons more of 80’s pop bands. And there I was, digging this punk-like band, with three cords and the truth, eh!? Lucky for me I was able to convince one of my best friend’s at the time, and now, Rønnaug, to like them as well. This was two years later. We were the only ones at our Junior High school to like the music of U2, Deep purple, Waterboys, Supertramp and so on. (The Who came one year later) We detested music from Stock Aitken Waterman, and called it “tube music”. Don’t ask me why. I suppose we thought we held the only truth within the taste of music. *lol*

It is with U2, as it is with other great bands; you never ever tire from hearing the same songs over and over again. I wonder how many times I have heard “I will follow” for instance. And it is incredible how one can memorize 20 different versions of one song, and even notice the tiniest of variations in them. One single note, one single riff can fully change a whole song for me. That’s how profoundly I listen to music, and I am sure many of you can agree to that.

I dare to say that this is one of the most powerful images ever featured on a cover of a record.

Well hello there, mmmm...


One more thing, my Bono autograph, which is on a ATM withdrawal receipt. I got it outside Grand Hotel in Oslo on July 28th 1993.


Monsoon :-)