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U2 - more than just superhero rockers
by Riazat Butt9/ 6/2005
WHEN is a rock star not a rock star? When he's an omnipotent
Irishman who boasts Bill Clinton's and Nelson Mandela's number on
speed-dial.
Bono, for it is he, is not just a singer-songwriter and the front
man for one of rock's most enduring outfits. He is a rock star with
a conscience. He has crossed over from merely talking about world
peace to getting off his pampered bottom and doing something about
it.
Look there he is at the White House and, there again, in Africa
surrounded by orphans! He wears black and favours daft sunglasses.
It's a uniform. He's not just a singer, he's a superhero.
He's mates with Sir Bob, Sting and Midge Ure, who all seem to be on
a mission to save the starving, which is a good thing seeing as how
heads of state don't seem too bothered by the colossal debts
crippling the earth's poorest nations.
Of course you can't help but think it's a bit, well, rich of these
millionaires to talk about debt relief and world poverty but
they're only human and at least they're trying to do something
about it.
But when Bono is not out to save the planet he makes damn fine
music with Larry Mullin Junior, Edge and Adam Clayton.
These boys have been around for ages. Their first album was
released 25 years ago this October, when John Lennon was still
alive and Margaret Thatcher was still in in her honeymoon period at
Number 10.
During U2's career the focus has mostly been on the bespectacled
and earnest lead singer, although Adam was briefly thrust into the
spotlight when he dated supermodel Naomi Campbell in the 90s.
They've weathered all sorts of musical and social trends. Acid,
jungle and grunge have come and gone and while U2 may have borrowed
from such genres they have stuck to what they know best: epic
choruses, massive guitars and portentous themes.
This winning formula - emphasis on the formula - has kept the band
at the top of their game while others have fallen by the
wayside.
Indeed there hasn't been a time when U2 haven't been the
biggest-rock-band-in-the-world. Bono and co have the sort of
international, mass market appeal that fly-by-nights such as Oasis
and Coldplay would kill for.
U2's albums fly off the shelves and their concerts always sell-out
and generate huge amounts of excitement among fans.
However being the biggest-rock-band-in-the-world is not without its
drawbacks.
Every release is pulled apart and pored over, generating much
chin-stroking among die-hard fans who, no doubt, love to discuss
the endless merits of the U2 back catalogue. Generally the Joshua
Tree is considered to be the best album, followed by Achtung Baby,
War, Zooropa. How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, The Unforgettable
Fire, Boy, Pop, Rattle and Hum, October and, lastly, All That You
Can't Leave Behind.
Next week sees this larger-than-life quartet arrive in Manchester,
where they will perform in front of a capacity crowd. Reviews of
the live shows have been written in near-reverential tones although
Bono's iconic status has come in for some fire. Not everyone, it
seems, is enamoured of altruistic rock stars. Must be something in
the water.
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