U2's Bono launches book tour with songs, stories and stars; thanks Nancy and Paul Pelosi
NEW YORK – U2 lead singer Bono recalled a lifetime’s worth of stories in perhaps the performance of a lifetime Wednesday night.
The artist and activist, born Paul Hewson, kicked off his "Stories of Surrender" book tour in front of a sold-out crowd of just under 3,000 inside New York City’s Beacon Theatre. The 14-city trek is in support of his memoir, "Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story." Bono stripped away the "spaceships" of U2’s stadium production for minimal furniture and three musicians – cellist Kate Ellis, harpist Gemma Doherty and producer Jacknife Lee.
"I guess you could call (the move to a smaller venue) transgressive," Bono, 62, teased before an audience that included former President Bill Clinton, Tom Hanks, Katie Holmes, Ed Burns and Christy Turlington. "I’m never without my band. But I have their permission for one night."
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After thanking the Edge, who was also in attendance, Bono launched into "Vertigo," sending the crowd into a sing-along frenzy. The singer spent nearly two hours on stage, encore included, seamlessly weaving stories from his memoir into the anthems that made him a household name. It was a tightly scripted show, yet the performance offered a level of intimacy fans of U2 may never experience at a typical concert.
The most intimate moments involved Bono’s reflections on his parents. His mother, Iris, died when he was 14, suffering an aneurysm at her father’s funeral; the singer joked that the incident is almost "too Irish." His father, Brendan Robert Hewson, is a central figure in the show. Throughout the performance, Bono transports the audience to their local pub in Dublin, where "Da" always begins their sparse conversation with the same question: "Anything strange or startling?"
Hewson, a tenor who revered classical music, found it strange that Luciano Pavarotti sought out Bono to collaborate on music. And when Bono and the Edge brought Hewson to Italy for a performance with Pavarotti, the father was startled (and skeptical of) the idea of meeting Princess Diana. Bono gleefully recalls the moment in their trailer, as his father was snacking on a charcuterie board when he unexpectedly met the then Princess of Wales.
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"800 years of oppression, forgotten about in eight seconds," he recalled as the crowd roared with laughter. Bono added that whenever he wonders about the usefulness of the royal family, he remembers that moment.
In between renditions of "Pride (In the Name of Love)," "Desire" and "Beautiful Day," Bono called the band’s fame "currency." Bono wanted to use that currency for good, launching the ONE campaign and then meeting elected officials in Washington.
"(The politicians) all said, 'We work for the people who elected us,'" he recalled. "We learned that we had to meet people where they were. So, we went to shopping malls."
That led to the creation of (RED) in 2006, partnering with brands to fight the AIDS pandemic. And Bono believes it wouldn’t have been as successful without the help of those officials.
"Tonight, of all nights, I want to thank Nancy and Paul Pelosi,” the artist said, naming the house speaker and her husband for their allyship in his charitable causes. He also thanked Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Bono wrapped with "City of Blinding Lights" and a message of hope: "America is still in the process of being created," he said.
An audience member shouted, "Thank you!" as he finished the sentiment. And for practically the first time all night, Bono veered off script and responded: "Thank you, America."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: U2's Bono book tour kicks off in front of star-studded audience
