2009-07-24

Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland

Set List of Show:

Main Set:

"Breathe"
"No Line on the Horizon"
"Get On Your Boots"
"Magnificent"
"Beautiful Day"
"Elevation"
"Desire"
"Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of"
"The Auld Triangle"
"One"
"Until the End of the World"
"The Unforgettable Fire"
"City Of Blinding Lights"
"Vertigo"
"I'll Go Crazy if I Don't Go Crazy Tonight"
"Sunday Bloody Sunday"
"Pride (In the Name of Love)"
"MLK"
"Walk On"
"Where the Streets Have No Name"
"Bad"

Encore:

"Ultra Violet (Light My Way)"
"With or Without You"
"Moment of Surrender"

Additional Music

Pre-Recorded Intro Song: "Space Oddity" - David Bowie
Pre-Recorded Intro Song: "Soon" - U2
Pre-Recorded Exit Song: "Rocket Man" - Elton John

Snippets of Other Songs Performed by U2:

Carousel

Show Details:

Dublin has swelled in population as fans from around the world have shown up to attend the three shows being held at Croke Park on the Northside of the city. Tonight is the first of the three shows, featuring two local acts opening, Glasvegas and Damien Dempsey.

Early in the day the band can be heard soundchecking in the stadium. “Until the End of the World”, “Mysterious Ways”, “New Year’s Day”, “Desire”, “Beautiful Day”, “Elevation” and “Rain” all get a bit of polish added. “New Year’s Day” has not yet made an appearance on the tour, nor will it get played this evening, the band do not include it.

There is a new addition in the show tonight, the band plays “The Auld Triangle” which was made popular by The Dubliners. U2 performed the song with The Dubliners on The Late Late Show in March 1987 as part of a tribute to the Dubliners. The song is dedicated to the recently deceased Ronnie Drew tonight. It’s a fitting song to play at home and Bono calls it “the greatest sound because it is the sound of home”. While the song plays, a blimp can be seen in the distance behind the stage. Unlike many of the venues this tour has been taken to, Croke Park does not have seating behind the stage, so tonight the band is playing in 270-degrees.

“One” is played in the main set tonight, following “The Auld Triangle” – the band had been playing it in the encore up until the show just before Dublin where it was moved to the main set.

During “Until the End of The World” Bono fishes an Irish flag out of the audience below his catwalk, hanging over the rail to do so. At first he and The Edge duel with the flag and then Bono drapes the song over his shoulder for the rest of the song.

During the encore, a W.H. Auden poem is read in a computerized voice. The poem, “Funeral Blues” appears to be a new addition for Dublin. New footage of pro-democracy protesters in Iran accompanies “Sunday Bloody Sunday” tonight as well.

“Here Comes the Sun” and “Blackbird” get included in “Beautiful Day”. “Break on Through” appears during “Until the End of the World”. “Do You Remember Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio” appears during “Vertigo”, “Reverend Black Grape” opens “I’ll Go Crazy” and “Rock the Casbah” appears in “Sunday Bloody Sunday”. “You’ll Never Walk Alone” appears in “Walk On” and “All You Need is Love” appears in “Where the Streets Have No Name”. In “Bad” there are snippets of both “40” and “Fool to Cry”. Although “Rain” was rehearsed there was no need of it tonight. The rain holds off and it’s a beautiful night for a concert.

The Edge shared with the BBC, “It’s not just another show, for us or for the fans. They travel from all over the world to see us perform in Dublin. Most of them believe it’s the best gig for them to attend.” The Irish papers have interviewed fans from all over who have flown in for the evening. The BBC share, “Over the coming days more than 240,000 revellers from as far as Japan, Canada and America will descend on the north Dublin stadium – the equivalent to three All Ireland’s finals back to back. It is estimated the series of gigs – tonight, tomorrow and Monday – will boost the city’s economy by 50 million euro.”

The Belfast Telegraph was positive, “Believe the hype. Choose joy. The questions were asked of U2, and they were answered in pretty spectacular fashion at Croke Park last night. Magnificent, if you will. ‘I surrender’ Bono told the masses as he walked along the outer circle of the famous stage, arms outstretched, wallowing in the adulation. But, in fact, he had already won us over.”

Brian Boyd in The Irish Times shares, “For Bono the shows so far on U2’s 360° tour in Barcelona, Milan, Nice, Berlin and Amsterdam have been merely “warm ups for the main event”: a run of three shows in Croke Park starting last night.” Boyd shares about the show, “It was a sort of homecoming – and a type of triumph.”

The families in the area surrounding Croke Park are making a lot of noise in the local media. They are unhappy with their lives being turned upside down for a week with restrictions on accessing their homes, and significant foot traffic through their neighborhood from fans, staff and media. Attempting to help, Bono stops on his way into the venue tonight to meet with one of the local families and listen to their concerns. He leaves them with an autographed set list for the show.

Officially Released Tracks