Walk in My Shoes ‏@WIMS2013

Here are Adam Clayton's signed shoes for #WIMS2013. To be showcased for 6 weeks & auctioned at the end of April.pic.twitter.com/HRXIaFJG41

Today it  begins in Dublin a presentation of the project 'Walk In My Shoes'. The campaign is supported by Adam Clayton, bassist of U2, which aims to raise awareness and raise funds for St. Patrick's University Hospital, which cares for young people with mental illnesses.

One of the events WIMS 2013, promoted this year, will be an exhibition in  of  shoes in Fitzpatrick Shoes in Grafton Street. Over 40 pairs of shoes form part of the exposure. All of them  were donated and autographed.

Among the participants is Adam Clayton, golfers Rory Mc Ilroy, Darren Clarke, Padraig Harrington and Paul Mc Ginley, chef Nevin Maguire, the presenter of the Late Late Show Ryan Tubridy, TV personalities Lorraine Keane and Sybil Mulcahy, models Rosanna Davison and Alison Canavan, players Paul O'Connell, Rob Kearney and Brian O'Driscoll, etc..

The exhibition will open  to the public next weekend in Fitzpatrick Shoes and then it will move to the campus of St. Patrick's University Hospital, where it  will remain for six weeks.

The walk's official WIMS 2013 will take place on April 12 and Adam's shoes will be auctioned at the end of the same month.


https://twitter.com/WIMS2013
http://www.walkinmyshoes.ie/

16 YEARS AGO: U2′S ‘POP’ ALBUM RELEASED

U2’s early-‘90s transformation from stadium-shaking messiahs to experimental-rock giants doesn’t sound all that revolutionary in hindsight. Don’t get us wrong: 1991’s ‘Achtung Baby’ — and to a lesser degree its hastily assembled 1993 follow-up, ‘Zooropa’ — is a great album, one of the band’s best. It just doesn’t sound out of place on U2’s timeline now. But 1997’s ‘Pop’ still does.

The group’s members – together, solo and in side projects – spent the downtime between ‘Zooropa’ and ‘Pop’ playing around with electronic beats, most notably on the album they recorded in 1995 with producer Brian Eno as Passengers. So they went into their ninth album operating under the premise that it would be a techno record. They enlisted electronic producers Flood, Howie B and Steve Osborne and wrote a bunch of songs that shifted rhythm to the beats. It was a grand experiment and a bit of a mess. And it’s way more exciting than you think.

But beneath all the electronic glitter and machine grime lies a pretty solid set of songs. ‘Discothèque,’ ‘If God Will Send His Angels,’ ‘Last Night on Earth,’ ‘Gone’ and, especially, ‘Staring at the Sun’ are prime ‘90s-era U2, all ringing guitars, roof-raising vocals and, yes, digital dusting. Strip away the electronic elements that alienated many fans and you’d have a hard time pinning the songs to anyone’s techno album.

Even though it doesn’t receive much love these days, ‘Pop’ debuted at No. 1 and eventually went platinum. Six singles were pulled from the album, but only ‘Discothèque,’ which hit the Top 10 and No. 1 on the modern-rock chart, and ‘Staring at the Sun’ (also No. 1 at modern rock) made much noise. It would be another three years before U2 made another record, and they learned their lesson: ‘All That You Can’t Leave Behind’ was their most U2-like album in years. It stalled at No. 3 (the first U2 album since 1984’s ‘The Unforgettable Fire’ to not reach the top spot), but it sparked the band’s rebirth. It took their electro-techno experiment to get them back on path.

http://diffuser.fm

Bono addresses François Hollande in French in the name of the fight against poverty

Bono sent a message  on Friday, March 1 to François Hollande in French on the subject of the fight against extreme poverty.

U2 frontman and co-founder of   ONE  involved in the fight against extreme poverty and preventable diseases, speaks  in French during the first thirty seconds of the video, posted on the YouTube account of the Ministry Foreign Affairs.  It was originally broadcast on March 1 at the occasion of the closing of  "Assises du développement et de la solidarité international".

"More than 200 years  France  brought to the world the message" liberty, equality, fraternity "still firmly you cling to the idea that denial of human rights anywhere is a threat to the rights  ", stated the Irish singer.

On the particular subject of Mali, Bono spoke directly to the President of the Republic, "Mr. Holland, you are 100% right when you say, 'now it is the time for the development in Mali." It is very important to me. Mali is a country which I love like many musicians. "

translation: mysteriousways©

http://www.huffingtonpost.fr//http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr

http://www.one.org/international/

Bono & Ali: Front Row at Stella McCartney

Bono and Ali with Paul Mc Cartney and wife at Stella Mc Cartney`s show in Paris last Monday

https://twitter.com/VogueParis

DO THE RIGHT THING: Among the seat cards in the front row of Stella McCartney’s show in Paris on Monday morning was one “Paul Hewson” — though the world at large knows him better as Bono. Next to the Irish pop star was a place reserved for “Paul” (that would be Sir Paul McCartney, the father of the designer).

Suzy Menkes zipped over to snap a picture of the two on her disposable camera, scrambling back to her seat just as the first model hit the catwalk. Bono was in town for a party celebrating the collaboration between Edun, the socially conscious clothing line he launched with his wife Ali Hewson, and denim giant Diesel.

Though Edun is 49-percent owned by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the couple still follows Stella McCartney, whose brand belongs to rival conglomerate PPR. McCartney refuses to use leather and fur in her collections, and Bono said he hoped socially conscious design would eventually become commonplace.

“I think right now it’s luxurious, but I would love it to become more mainstream. But right now, it seems like meaning is the new luxury, in a funny way,” he mused.

The show at the 19th-century Palais Garnier opera house also drew Jessica Alba, Nicole Richie, Marianne Faithfull, Elettra Wiedemann, Natalia Vodianova and Dhani Harrison, the son of the late George Harrison.

http://www.wwd.com//http://www.newscom.com

Diesel Celebrates Collection With Edun

Renzo Rosso, Bono and Ali Hewson

Photo By Dominique Maître

AFRICAN BEATS: Diesel took over Paris' Gaîté Lyrique theater on Sunday to launch its 25-piece capsule collection with Edun, the clothing label founded by Ali Hewson and her husband Bono. It is manufactured in Africa with cotton from Uganda. 

Bono, wearing Edun pants, said he did not advise his wife on the collection. "Our marriage would end if I advised Ali on design," the U2 singer said, with a smile. "Unfortunately, this is not an equal equation; she knows a lot more about music than I know about fashion."

As for cotton, Bono described it as "a beautiful thing. I love to be in the cotton fields."

Solange Knowles performed her song "Losing You," while wearing a Diesel dress, Kenzo shoes and assorted jewelry. "I have a little bit of a ring obsession," she confessed backstage.  

Knowles first met with Bono when she was 17. "I was going to Johannesburg," she explained. "He was part of charity initiative with Nelson Mandela [and] there was a big concert. I sat next to him on the plane between South Africa and Houston. I went there with my sister, who was performing."

Jessica Alba, sporting Maje knitwear and Céline, said she is going home after the shows to launch her new lifestyle book that includes recipes and organizational tips. It was published by Rodale. 

Among other guests were Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, Yves Carcelle and Ellen von Unwerth. 

The party continued with African singers and dancers’ performances. "I love African music; it carries you away," said von Unwerth, while snapping photos of the party with her small digital camera. "I was taking African dance lessons when I was young, but I saw myself in the mirror and I stop right away, as it looks totally ridiculous on me."

http://www.edun.com/

http://www.wwd.com

20 Things you may not know about U2`s War

Yesterday it was the WAR's 30th Anniversary the album that turned U2 into a committed band with a message, thanks to singles like"Sunday, Bloody Sunday" or  "New Year`s Day".

After an album on relatively naive feelings of adolescence (Boy, 1980) and another one more spiritual themed (October, 1981),  U2 reflected their adult rage   in War (1983), the first album with songs  openly themed about  politics. The album  was characterised by the aggressive militant pacifist, the military boots, white flags, martial rhythms.

1-War is an album that tried to  reflect in its title concisely the tense atmosphere of the early eighties, with wars in various parts of the world (Middle East, the Falklands ...) But the war is not only an act of violence, but also  an internal fight being waged within each. Always looking for peace as the only possible ending

2- Bono wrote good part of the lyrics  during his  honeymoon in the mansion of the owner of Island Records, Chris Blackwell, in Jamaica, _called unpretentiously 'Goldeneye' (it formerly had belonged to Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond). It is significant that someone writes songs for a record called War during their honeymoon, but the singer and his wife Ali  are on their way to their 31st anniversary...

3 -While Bono, Larry and Adam were on holiday, The Edge was in charge of the first musical sketches in Dublin, frustrated by not feeling a good enough composer. In this struggle against himself emerged  the preliminary ideas  that will later become "New years' day" and models of "Sunday Bloody Sunday", "Seconds" and "Drowning man".

4 The sound of the album is deliberately more abrupt, harsh, angry, with less effect on Edge`s  guitars . There will be be time later to create atmospheres, this is rock battle line in their beloved The Clash`s style, but always with the epic heroism inherent to U2 from their first steps.

5 -The force of  Sunday bloody Sunday resides mainly in the martial drums  that Larry Mullen plays, who has acknowledged that  what he learned during his years in the Post Office Workers Band playing military marches is reflected in the song. By the way, it was in the recording sessions of this album when the drummer began using the click track to schedule his rhythms in the studio, something that before he felt reluctant limiting and uncreative.

6 -With the theme of Sunday bloody Sunday U2 played  a wild card, because in the British Isles it is not exactly  comfortable  talking about the issue of violence in Northern Ireland. The song refers to the Irish independence demonstration in Derry on 30 January 1972 that killed 14 people. The first time  they played it in Belfast, Bono previously warned of its subject and said that if they did not like they would not play it  anymore. The reaction could not be more positive.

7- The bass line of New Year's Day is one of the most famous one in rock music and, as usual, it  came almost by accident. In fact, Adam Clayton has admitted that it all started when he was trying to play Visage's techno pop success   "Fade to Grey". The more trained ears certainly would find similarities, never denied by the band.

8- New Year's Day began as a love song for Bono's wife, but eventually it won the political background  shaping the history of the Solidarity Movement in Poland led by Lech Walesa against the communist regime. Bono has stated on several occasions that he  thought  on Walesa  who had been imprisoned without the possibility of being visited by his wife because of  the Martial Law. Once  the song was recorded, on December 30, 1982 the military government outlawed martial law in Poland, almost in New Year, making real that of "I will be with you again" even before the album was released.

9- The first promotional video for the album was  for New Year's Day, hot topic in advance. It was recorded in northern Sweden in the snowy, icy  countryside.  Bono was unable to lip synch as his lips were frozen . Somehow this brings even a more epic detail the outcome.

10- In the album credits   Steve Wickham appears  as violinist in Sunday bloody Sunday and Drowning man. The involvement of this young man (who was just twenty years oled) could not be more casual:  he just went to The Edge while he  was waiting at a bus stop to go to Windmill Lane recording studios and asked if he was the guitarist for U2. Three days after Wickham spent half a day in the studio playing with the band and leaving his mark on those songs forever.

11- Another more or less random collaboration was the Coconuts, choir girls of Kid Creole & The Coconuts. The New Yorkers  met with Irish lads in  a party in Dublin and ended up participating in Like a Song, Surrender and Red Light.

12 Bono's stay in Jamaica  was prolific , but back in the Irish capital  he could not go back to that  creativity. While remembering those months he  always stresses that his new-wife Ali had to get  him out of bed  and practically forced him to write. Under pressure somehow Bono finally began to feel comfortable as a lyricist.

13- Next to the policts implied in New Year's Day and Sunday Bloody Sunday , there was also space in  War for other topics. For example, love in another powerful composition of the album, which was the second official single in the U.S., UK and Australia, Two Hearts Beat As One (Sunday Bloody Sunday  was in the Netherlands and Germany). Other themes include prostitution (Red light), the reaffirmation as punk rock band Like a Song, warning about a hypothetical nuclear war in Seconds, the religiosity of Drowning man ...

14 Bono, The Edge and Larry finished the last song on the album, 40, just when they were running out of time engaged in the study while the next band, Minor Detail, was waiting to enter . Desperate after a sleepless night, they took up an idea that stripped of all complexity and Bono opened the Bible to meet face to face with Psalm 40. In 40 minutes everything was perfect, thanks to the effectiveness of producer Steve Lilywhite, who mixed it in a hurry.

15- War was U2's first number one in the UK, a position which debuted in its first week, ousting no less than the almighty Michael Jackson's Thriller. In the United States it had to settle for 12th place, and was generally quite well received in all markets, albeit with disparate positions. In its original version cassette tapes bearing the entire disc with 43 minutes in each of its two sides.

16- The boy on the cover is Peter Rowen, the youngest brother of one of Bono's  best friends since adolescence , Guggi. Peter had starred in the cover of Boy (1980), and War presents a more disgruntled face, as if he had grown too fast in a short time, leaving the innocence along the way. Earlier, in 1979 Rowen appeared on the cover of U2 single-Three. Also in 1983 his image appeared again in the maxi single for New Year's Day and on the compilation The Best of 1980-1990 years later, becoming a symbolic face for fans of U2.

17- Before hats, giant screens and sunglasses, Bono waving a white flag in the War Tour concerts of 1983 is the first major iconic image of the history of U2. So much so that even a famous namesake fanzine published in Spain in the eighties, at that time without internet and social networking was called  White Flag.

18 War is a key work in U2's career. It opened the doors of massive success and carried  a handful of timeless classics. Sunday Bloody Sunday and New Year's Day in fourth and fifth place in the history list of the songs that U2 has performed live more full times (apart from 'snippets') with 751 and 698 respectively. Just behind  I will follow, Pride and Where the streets have no name.

19 An extension of what U2 did in the study was the direct War Under a Blood Red Sky (recorded at different locations) and the legendary concert in the auditorium at Red Rocks (Colorado) on June 5, 1983, a concert for which the band had invested previously  everything they had earned, about $ 30,000, with the intention to register it on video. A terrible storm was about to send it all to hell, but the group took the stage ignoring those who wanted to persuade them to quit. The mix of combat rock and inclement weather resulted in a context concert infernal battler. U2 still cemented their legend as tireless  fighters.

 20-For years, 40 was a perfect closure for the gigs , very chanted by the audience. A stadium anthem repeating like a mantra that "How long to sing this song?" Seeking explanations in a world inexplicable. The foundations of the Bernabeu still tremble to remember that moment in that first U2 concert in Spain on July 15, 1987 along with UB40 and The Pretenders. There is no other possible way to finish this memory of the album which marked the end of innocence for Irish education: 40 at Red Rocks.

David Gallardo

translation: mysteriousways©

http://rollingstone.es

10 Great U2 Guitar Songs

According to Gibson website, the following are the 10 best U2 guitar songs:

New U2 albums are always a celebrated affair. While nobody knows whether U2’s long-awaited The Songs of Ascentwill arrive this year, it’s possible, if you believe frontman Bono.

“We’re working on three albums at the moment and we haven’t decided what order we’re going to put them out but The Songs of Ascent have the kind of beautiful intimacy that we’re speaking of now,” Bono said in a post on U2.com last year. “They fit into this moment, the mode of some of these artists that I was hanging out with on Christmas Eve.”

Whether or not we get new U2 this year, here are 10 great U2 songs that show off the band’s spunky Irish post-punk roots and show the chaps at their best.

“Beautiful Day,” from All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000)

Writing a happy rock song can be a daunting task, but U2 pulls it off with “Beautiful Day.” The song is a tribute to all the simple pleasures in life, told through Bono’s descriptive lyrics and the band’s anthemic, powerful sonics. From the opening reverberating electric piano to the closing, fading guitar lines, “Beautiful Day” makes one feel grateful for life’s blessings.

“I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For,” from The Joshua Tree (1987)

Who can’t relate to the experience of finally reaching a major goal, but feeling like something is still missing? U2 captures that sentiment in their anthem “I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For,” thanks to Bono’s longing lyrics and the Edge’s soulful, spiritual guitar playing.

“Mysterious Ways,” from Achtung Baby (1991)

“Mysterious Ways” is one of U2’s greatest love songs. The rock track features a dance-happy beat, the Edge’s funk-driven guitar hooks and Bono’s chivalrous lyrics.

“New Year’s Day,” from War (1983)

“New Year’s Day” marked a breakthrough for U2, since it was the band’s first single to chart in the U.S. Coming off that initial success, the song helped shaped U2’s direction as a socially-minded rock band, as the song was actually about the first non–communist party-controlled trade union in Poland. Musically, it follows U2’s traditions of warm, sweeping guitar lines and near-spiritual lyrics.

“One,” from Achtung Baby (1991)

“One” is one of U2’s most celebrated songs, presenting heartfelt vocals, relatable lyrics and big, grandiose instrumentation. The song was first released to support AIDS charities, although it was originally written about the band’s splintering relationships at the time. Regardless, it’s a U2 classic.

“Pride (In the Name of Love),” from The Unforgettable Fire (1984)

U2’s “Pride in the Name of Love” pays homage to the late, great Martin Luther King Jr., and in addition to the emotive lyrics, the Edge’s guitar work really makes the song soar. The track boasts one of the Edge’s most famous guitar solos, painting a sonic of hope and optimism, while Bono’s lyrics (“Free at last/They took your life/They could not take your pride”) are simply inspiring.

“Sunday Bloody Sunday,” from War (1983)

The Edge’s guitar soloing really stands out on “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” as it breaks through the song’s steady, march-like vibe with moving, sweeping lines. War, in general, highlights the Edge’s guitar work, and “Sunday Bloody Sunday” is a stand-out.

“Walk On,” from All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000)

Like many of U2’s songs, “Walk On” takes on a socially-conscious aura, as the track was inspired by Aung San Suu Kyi, who was under house arrest in Burma from 1989 to 2010. The song won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 2002, thanks in no small part of Bono’s poignant lyrics and the Edge’s guitar lines that sing and soar.

 “Where the Streets Have No Name,” from The Joshua Tree (1987)

The Joshua Tree was a breakthrough album for U2. The album was U2’s first No. 1 release and thrust the guys into the rock ‘n’ roll spotlight. “Where the Streets Have No Name” gets the set off to a strong start, with sparkling textures and an epic presentation.

“With or Without You,” from The Joshua Tree (1987)

“With or Without You” brings it all together for U2: Bono’s divine vocals, the Edge’s elevated guitar lines and the band’s overall angelic aura. It’s one of U2’s biggest hits and represents the moment when U2 went from being a great rock ‘n’ roll band to one of the most influential groups on the planet.

Learn more about The Edge’s guitar sound here.

 

Anne Erickson

http://www2.gibson.com