I mentioned that I am a music fan. Music has been a part of my life as far as I remember from family gatherings to singing in church and school choirs to listening to AM radio as a child.
It all comes back to music moving a person in different ways: the sound of the guitar, drums, bass all coming together to make a great song or the lyrics moving you in ways you do not even understand. Music reminds me of good times and bad times and will always be with me.
The Music of My Youth
I was always a fan of pretty diverse music growing up. My dad listened to classic 50’s rock and roll and my mom to the 50’s crooners. I loved Paul McCartney and Wings, the Carpenters and then the Bee Gees as a child. Once MTV hit the US airwaves, I became a huge fan of pop/alternative music starting with Duran Duran, Adam Ant, U2, Depeche Mode, INXS and The Cure. I was a disc jockey for my college radio station for four years, which expanded my love of alternative music even more. This led me to work for a record store for years after college. What a perfect place for someone who loves music! I learned more about everything from classical to country, but still loved my alternative music. I still do today. The music world has changed and it is much harder to find newer bands, but thankfully, there are still plenty out there that I love.
U2
My love of music (and understanding parents) has allowed me to see so many great concerts. My first concert was The Bee Gees when I was 12 and I’ve seen 100’s of shows since that time. For those that know me, they know that my favorite all time band is U2. I have seen them 17 times since 1985, when I saw them for the first time at the Richfield Coliseum in Cleveland during the Unforgettable Fire Tour. The last U2 concert that I saw was just a few months ago in Chicago.
There is something about seeing U2 live that is hard to explain. You have to see them to really understand. I’ve seen them in arenas, in stadiums, up-close and far away. Each experience has been different and all great. No matter where you are sitting/standing you feel like you are in a small show, no matter how huge their production. I had two completely different experiences for the 2 U2 shows that I saw in Chicago in June. The first one was General Admission with standing on the floor. I have done this for many U2 concerts and it is always a fun time. You stand in line all day to get the good spots near the stage, bond with other U2 fans and get psyched for the show. We ended up on the walkway on Adam’s side. As you can see from the photos, we had great spots. The band was in front of us all the time. It was amazing to hearing the instruments, not in the mix, but right in front of you. We decided to go to the next night’s U2 show. We opted to have nosebleed seats to actually take in the amazing visual show from the huge screens above the walkway (that we couldn’t really see well standing at the angle we were on the floor). Totally different concert experience, but just as good as you can take in the entire show with the videos. There have been very few bands that match the type of concert going experience for me and really, I don’t think that many bands can pull that off.
contemplatingcontent 