from Launch Former President Bill Clinton, United Nations (news - web sites) Secretary-General Kofi Annan (news - web sites), R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe and Mike Mills, and the Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch were on hand to witness the closing night of U2's North American tour Friday (June 22) at the Continental Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Both Annan and Clinton were thanked from the stage by U2 lead singer Bono, according to the band's official website (u2.com)--Annan for his support for a global fund to battle the African AIDS (news - web sites) epidemic and Clinton for his efforts toward debt relief for the world's poorest countries. Meanwhile, fans at the last of U2's 50-show tour in support of All That You Can't Leave Behind were treated with the live debut of that album's "Wild Honey." The acoustic performance included an appearance by U2's famed co-producer, Daniel Lanois. U2 now takes a two-week break before kicking off its European tour on July 6 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The band is planning to return to North America this fall, playing mostly cities it didn't hit in the past three months. -- Neal Weiss, Los Angeles