A Moment In My Life...Long, But Worth It....?

Do I start with the details or the emotions? It’s tough to say. The details are simple, the emotions are not. My wife and I were going to U2 in Vancouver as part of our anniversary trip out there this past year. I traded away general admission tickets with a fellow fan, for two seats so that we wouldn’t have to stand outside for hours, and then inside for several more hours. I did this for my wife as a surprise. The trade was set up, and arranged, and held by word between two U2 fans. Then a wrech was thrown into the plans. My wife changed to a better job which unfortunately cancelled our trip...at least for the both of us. I went with a friend instead, and was presented with the dilemna...do I keep the general admission tickets and get on the floor, possibly front row? Or do I honour the trade, and watch the show from the second-to-last row? If I were to back out, I’d risk the chance of “blacklisting” amongst U2 fans....possible trading in the future would be in jeopardy. The thing which convinced me was that my fellow fan was bringing her twelve year old daughter to the concert, and that it would be their first U2 concert each. They deserved to be front row. The needed it. I was fortunate enough to be in Vancouver when U2 shot the video for “City Of Blinding Lights” and spent the day with them. We stood in line for nearly five hours, talking about life, U2, work, school, and more U2. After the shoot, we traded tickets, and wished each other luck. The next day (of the concert) came, and I arrived shortly after the opening act (Kings of Leon). I was able to find them amongst the throng of fans on the floor using binoculars. They were front row, on Adams side, and I couldn’t have been more thrilled for them. At least until U2 played ‘One’. My friend had mentioned to me that they were going to be wearing shirts that said “One” on the front and “makepovertyhistory.org” on the back. Apparently this got Bono’s attention because he pulled her daughter and three other girls on stage for “One” and they stayed the for the duration of the song. As any die-hard will tell you, this is their dream. Myself included. Those were my tickets right? I could have been there right? That could have been me! Right?! No. It was her moment. She had earned it. She paid for her own flight and concert ticket. And none of these thoughts entered my mind. Few words could describe my joy for her in that moment. It was...spiritual. In a way, I felt I was up there with her.
Well, they say that what goes around, comes around. Call it what you want; karma, good-vibes, one good turn deserves another, or any sort of “do unto others” moniker that you can think of, I call it a blessing from above. I’ve been a U2 fan for ten years, and I’ve been fortunate enough to see them eight times now. Before U2, I didn’t even listen to music, and they became a doorway through which I was exposed and listened to more and more music. As a musician they have influenced my style, rhythm, and desire for solid lyrical content. Was one concert per tour enough? Certainly not! I was blessed with the chance to see them play live in their hometown of Dublin, Ireland. The ultimate concert. What’s better than U2 coming to your town? Going to U2’s town of course. That’s what I did. A friend had a ticket to the show, and having resolved that he couldn’t possibly go, offered me the ticket. All I needed to do was find my concert lighter, make my sign for Bono, and wait for the day to arrive. The concert was at Croke Park, holding nearly 90,000 people. It was on June 25th, gates opening at 4:00pm, and I arrived into the country at 12:10pm. Customs barely slowed me down, a taxi-cab, check in to a b&b, changed my clothes, grabbed my sign and camera, and a bus-ride later, I’m waiting outside Croke Park, in Dublin, the hometown of my band, chatting with some fellow Canadian’s and getting my t-shirts. What more could you ask for? Front row would be nice. But what are the chances? The gates opened early, at 3:30. As the crowd shuffled in, a thought occurred to me. There are about twenty lines side-by-side, and they’re all going in at once. There aren’t 6,000 people in front of me, just around me. In my line there are only about 300 people. That means, I’ve just got to contend with them really. Another thought hit me. I’m only one person. A group can only go as fast as the slowest person. And I’m a pretty good crowd dodger. The next thing I knew, I was inside, looking at a huge football / soccer stadium, making my way as fast as I can (or rather, as fast as security would let me) toward the front. I arrived, and it was like a light appeared above the rail. It was empty. There was a spot, where I wanted it, on the rail. Is it possible? How did I get there? Pausing only a second the ponder the chances, I quickly claimed it for my own, and began the near six-hour stand waiting for U2 to show up. It’s amazing how you can get to know some people really quickly. To my right was a fellow from Sweden, with whom I joked about Ikea, and to my left the Muldoons - David, Paul, Natasha, and Ursula. Four great people who took care of me, and educated me on Ireland and Croke Park as we waited. Expecting U2 to show up around nine o’clock, I went ecstatic when The Arcade Fire’s “Wake Up” came on the P.A. around 8:40....this I knew was the final song before U2, and all my travelling was worth it. My four heroes walked to the stage, simply waved to the crowd, enjoyed the applause, and hit it right off with Vertigo. During the song, Bono looked up at a passing airplane, commenting on it’s flag advertising ice cream....says Bono “It pays to advertise, sometimes.” As Bono made his way out on the ramp, out came my sign. “I flew from Canada to play “Party Girl”” with a picture of a guitar on it. Childish isn’t it? But as a fan, I knew Bono pulled people up to make this dream come true. It’s an easy song too...three chords, and the truth as U2 fans know. And an easy song to remember should you choke under the pressure. That and having played it recently, I think Bono would have remembered the lyrics. I remember making the sign, choosing bright orange for its visibility, thinking that it’s a fools hope, that I should laugh at myself and put the marker down. But no, I was making a pilgrimage, and wanted to bring all my hopes with me. For my location, the best part was that, being on the rail, I didn’t have to lift the sign up so much as hold it out. And every time Bono came around, I made sure it was visible for him. It was like that for the whole concert, cheering and singing as they’re on the stage, holding my sign and hoping, praying, as they were on the ramp. The concert was more than I could hope for. Several songs that I never thought I would hear live made appearances...’Out Of Control’ ‘ The Electric Co.’ ‘Running To Stand Still’ ‘The Fly’ and ‘Zoo Station’. It was a fans dream. Their hometown, and their best songs. How could it possibly get any better? How about having Bono look at you, read your sign, give the thumbs up and say “You’re my man”? I should think that would top it. Because that’s what happened at the end of “Where The Streets Have No Name”. It was worth it! The fool’s hope had paid off! Bono acknowledged me, and gave his approval. I recall shouting out “I can play it Bono! I can play it!”. How could he have heard me though? Around me, people who’d read the sign were patting me on the back, expressing their disbelief, and the wonderment spread....will I get to play? For the moment, I put that aside to listen to U2’s beautiful ballad “One”, a very special song for this tour, tying in U2’s genius performance of perhaps their greatest song, with the cause for which it now stands, making poverty history. It’s eerie how the song seems to have been written for just that purpose. How could they have known? I got lost in this poetic moment. Thus ended the main set, and the crowd’s cry for more. As the band came out, and blasted through three great tracks from ‘Achtung Baby’, Bono, The Edge and Adam were at the end of the ramp, twenty feet from me for the end of ‘Mysterious Ways’. What a version too! It still gives me goose bumps. Then all at once, the magic began. Bono began to search the crowd. At this point, nearly everyone behind me knew who he was looking for. A surge of hands, including, believe it or not, the security guards, pulled me out as far as they could without going over the rail so I could hold out my sign. Bono’s head turned, the orange sign paid off, and he came over. “Here’s the dude...are you the player?” ‘YES!!!’......”come up.” The same hands that encouraged me, now helped me fly. I still don’t remember anyone touching me. All at once, the spotlight was on me as I was standing face to face with the man who’s music has meant so much to me. What to do?! I hugged him! And he hugged me back. Asking for my sign, he held it up for the crowd to read...”I was saying earlier how it pays to advertise.” The guitar technician, who now knows what is going on, hands me a guitar. We walk up to the main stage. During this walk, the most personal moment happened. I thanked Bono for the music they had written, for what it meant to me, and for making a fool’s hope dream come true. He made deliberate eye contact, and said “you’re welcome” and asked me my name. As we were sorting out the technical difficulties, during which they gave me an acoustic guitar instead, Bono introduced me to the crowd. “This is Matt, he’s from Canada.” Adam and Larry waited in their positions, Adam smiling to himself, giving me a cheerful nod when I waved to him, and Larry giving me the straight-forward look that I eagerly expected. I thanked The Edge for the opportunity, and he smiled and said “What song are we playing?” I told him “Party Girl, but you’ll have to do the solo, because I don’t know it.” Imagine telling The Edge how to do the song!? Once the guitar was working, there was nothing more to do but to play. So I did. Once the crowd recognized the song, they went nuts. It was me and Bono for the entire first verse. The Edge, Adam and Larry came in for the second verse, and after Bono’s scat singing, we were right in to a rocking version of U2’s silliest song! And it was great! Bono beckoned me to the front of the stage, and sang the song with his arm around my shoulder. Pure heaven. As the end of the song came near, Bono told me “You can stop playing...be a rock star pose like, and hold the guitar over your head.” So I did, the crowd cheered, Bono clapped, the song ended, and my dream was complete. I gave the guitar to the technician, had an awkward moment as I shook The Edge’s hand. He tried to give me his guitar pick, while I was simply trying to shake the man’s hand! He finally placed the pick in my hand, and gave me the thumbs up. Adam gave me a smile and a wave, and Larry gave me another trademark nod. Wonderful! Bono then came over, shook my hand, and lead me off stage. The last thing he said to me was “watch the ramp, it’s pretty steep.” I came off the stage, down the ramp, and took in all the cheers. On the way down, I gave the Canadian flag on my shirt a tap, a gesture which other Canadians have since told me meant a lot to them. Climbing back in to the crowd, the same people who helped me up on the stage welcomed me back with open arms, hugs, and cheers. A magical night of meeting people and telling my story again and again, with much more of the same the next day. What more can I say about it? How can I put into words what it meant to me, or how lucky I felt? For a moment, the biggest band in the world put their ego aside when the stage was theirs. Perhaps their greatest tour yet, their hometown show. Where they began. It was theirs for the taking. Their moment, their crowd, their show. And what do they do? They put the spotlight on someone else, for a few minutes. And they make a dream come true for a fan. Was it because I gave a ticket away to a twelve year old girl? Perhaps they’re connected, and perhaps not. I don’t think I’ll ever know, and that’s okay. Much of the moment was a blur. Thanks to many fans, whom I never met, I’ve many pictures and video clips to remember. As much as I need to thank U2 for the experience, I need to thanks the fans for making the experience last much longer. And that’s all I can say to it....Thank-you Bono, thank-you The Edge, thank-you Adam, thank-you ALarry, and to all the U2 fans who make U2 who they are, thank-you.