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U2 Elevation Tour

Elevation Tour 3rd leg: North America

: Delta Center - Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

View all performances at Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.


U2 Rocks: Utah, Too

Dan Nailen (published on 2001-11-10)

Source: The Salt Lake Tribune

BY DAN NAILEN
THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE

After a decade of filling stadiums with fans and an array of high-tech gadgets unmatched by their peers, U2's return to indoor arenas -- finally reaching Salt Lake City's Delta Center on Friday night -- was a back-to-basics scenario in many ways.
With the house lights still on, the band arrived on a stage that was empty except for their instruments. Vocalist Bono, guitarist the Edge, bassist Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen Jr. launched the sold-out show with "Elevation" and "Beautiful Day," both from last year's "All That You Can't Leave Behind" album.
After setting the stage for an experience of concert-as-celebration with the first two songs, U2 promptly delivered the goods. Over the course of two hours, U2 covered the breadth of its career through anthems and ballads that have undoubtedly supplied the primary soundtrack for the lives of its fans. Taken together, the songs also provided a running theme of hope in these strange, post-Sept. 11 days. There couldn't be a better band to deliver such a message.
"Until the End of the World," with a midarena duel between Bono and the Edge, came early, as did "New Year's Day," during which Bono paused for a quick game of rock-paper-scissors with a fan midsong.
The joyous nature of the show established, Bono first directly addressed the changed world on "Sunday Bloody Sunday." After cradling an American flag borrowed from a fan, Bono sang "Wipe Yours Tears Away" before speaking midsong:
"This song could be a prayer," Bono said. "A prayer for peace. Join me." He then led the crowd into a sing-along of the song's title.
U2's stage set-up played a major part in the band's ability to make a venue as big as the Delta Center seem intimate.
Ramps extended from each side of the stage to midarena, where they met in a diamond-shaped point. Bono and the Edge took full advantage of the freedom to move through the audience. They met at the point for two excellent acoustic-based duets, "Wild Honey" and "Please." In between, they covered Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready," pulling an audience volunteer onstage to play along on piano. The lack of clutter on the stage also made for good sight lines to any band member anyone in the audience would want to watch, if the four large black and white videos showing above the band were not enough.
The latter part of the show transcended the beginning, as U2 charged through undeniable classics such as "Bad," "Where the Streets Have No Name," "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" and "Pride [In the Name of Love]" to end the set.
Encores included a riveting "Bullet the Blue Sky," a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and a poignant version of "New York."
The band closed with "One" and "Walk On" in the second encore.
Opener No Doubt, a headliner in its own right, gave a rousing 40-minute set that could have stolen anyone else's show.
Among the treats: two songs from the band's upcoming "Rock Steady" album, including "Hey Baby," complete with Space Invaders sound effects.

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