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When U2 comes to town: 360° tour grosses over $703 million

 

 

 

NEW FIGURES show that U2’s 360° Tour has grossed more than $703 million (€534 million) after seven million rock fans paid to see the band over the past three years.

 

According to figures published by music industry journal Pollstar, the tour grossed $231.9 million last year after 2.38 million music fans paid to see the band at 34 gigs across 26 cities.

 

The US-based publisher shows that the tour grossed the highest amount of any rock band last year and on average grossed $8.9 million per gig with an average attendance of 91,828.

 

The figures show that U2’s three-gig stint at the Morumbi Stadium in São Paolo, Brazil, alone earned $32 million.

 

The $703 million is a gross figure and does not take into account the significant costs of staging the tour, which involved 110 gigs in 79 cities around the world over three years.

 

Hundreds of people were employed in transporting and constructing the 360° “Claw” stage, while the concerts provided a major economic boost in the cities where they took place.

 

The profits from the tour are shared between the four members of the band – Bono, The Edge, Larry Mullen and Adam Clayton – their manager Paul McGuinness, their promoter Live Nation, and the local venue operator.

 

The 360° production increased the capacity of venues by up to 25 per cent, resulting in record attendances.

 

The Pollstar figures show that one of the top-earning stints over the three years was the band’s sold-out three-night run at Dublin’s Croke Park, where the tour grossed $28.5 million.

 

A breakdown of the annual figures shows that the tour grossed $231.9 million in 2011; $160.9 million in 2010; and $311 million in 2009, when three million people paid on average $101 to see the band play.

 

The year 2009 was the largest grossing year of the tour, when the average gross per concert was $10 million.

 

The drop-off in revenue in 2010 came as a result of the band postponing a North American leg of the tour after Bono sustained a back injury in Munich.

 

The latest figures for U2’s main Irish company, U2 Ltd, for the 12 months to the end of 2010 show that its cash pile increased almost fivefold to €4 million.

 

The principal activity of the company is the creation, protection and licensing of intellectual property.

 

It returned to profit in 2010 to record a pretax profit of €46,571.

 

The company has yet to file returns for 2011

 

 

Source. Irishtimes.ie

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They truly are richer than the Irish economy <_<

Former U2 bodyguard: Bono 'never apologized for hitting me with his guitar'

 

 

 

A former U2 bodyguard is still awaiting an apology from Bono after the rocker attacked him with a guitar onstage at a gig in Boston in 2001.

 

David Guyer has detailed his exploits on the road with the Irish rockers in a new book, "Road Rash With U2," and it appears he's still sore over one incident when he tackled a burly fan onstage as he tried to get close to Bono.

 

 

The Guyer tells Hustler magazine, "He was six-foot-four and weighed well over 240 pounds. I weighed 210, so it was going to be a lesson in physics. I hit him headfirst, perfectly square and precise. The jumper's body exploded with my energy as the shock wave took his skyward and backward. We flew about four feet."

 

The crowd cheered and Guyer felt he'd more than done his job only to find an unhappy Bono standing over him wielding a guitar.

 

He recalls, "Suddenly, I felt a dull thud on the back of my head and shoulders, a lady like strike that didn't hurt. ... I looked to my right ... and Bono was smacking me in the back with his f**king guitar. I let the jerk up. It sickened me as this big a**hole ran to bear-hug Bono, spinning him in a circle. That's when I began hating Bono, who by the way, never apologized for hitting me with his guitar."

 

But, aside from that incident, Guyer had a great time as U2's bodyguard and drummer Larry Mullen, Jr.'s personal minder on the "Elevation" tour, admitting the Irish rockers were very well behaved. He adds, "The band never f**ked any groupies ... and I hardly ever saw any of U2's members plastered."

 

 

Source... msn.com

Obama Campaign Playlist Includes Wilco, U2, Al Green

Ricky Martin, Bruce Springsteen, Dierks Bentley and Sugarland also in the mix.

 

We already know President Obama likes to listen to (and occasionally sing) Al Green songs. And he's told us that his iPod has a bit of Jay-Z and Lil Wayne on it. But with the toughest re-election campaign of his career on the horizon, what music will Obama 2012 be using to pump up crowds at rallies?

 

Judging by a playlist uploaded to Spotify this week, it looks like a cheerful, noncontroversial mix of classic rock, country, soul and R&B, but, alas, no hip-hop.

 

Instead, in a clear bid to appeal to the broad middle, Obama chose songs by beloved soul acts like Booker T. & the MG's ("Green Onions"), Earth Wind & Fire ("Got to Get You Into My Life"), The Impressions ("Keep on Pushing") and, yes, Green (the pleading "Let's Stay Together").

 

From the rock pile, he went with Wilco ("I Got You"), Arcade Fire ("We Used to Wait"), U2 ("Even Better Than the Real Thing") and the new blue-collar recession anthem from Bruce Springsteen ("We Take Care of Our Own"). For those visits to the heartland, he loaded up on country goodness from Sugarland ("Stand Up" and "Everyday America"), Darius Rucker ("This"), Zac Brown Band ("Keep Me in Mind") and Dierks Bentley ("Home").

 

There are a few oddball picks in there as well, including a deep cut from No Doubt ("Different People"), a very literal AM radio staple from REO Speedwagon ("Roll with the Changes"), a cover of the Band's "The Weight" by Aretha Franklin, some indie rock from Noah and the Whale ("Tonight's the Kind of Night") and a Ricky Martin/ Joss Stone duet ("The Best Thing About Me Is You").

 

While likely GOP opponent Mitt Romney takes the stage to the rousing strains of Kid Rock's Americana anthem "Born Free," Obama plans to get crowds pumped with the likes of modern R&B master Raphael Saadiq ("Keep Marchin' "), Florence and the Machine ("You've Got the Love") and afro-era prog popsters Electric Light Orchestra ("Mr. Blue Sky").

 

 

 

Rounding out the list is obscure jam act AgesAndAges, whose "No Nostalgia" is a handclapping ditty that just begs for a group hug, Jennifer Hudson's "Love You I Do," Ledisi's self-explanatory "Raise Up," James Taylor's feel-good "Your Smiling Face," country duo Montgomery Gentry's small-town homage "My Town" and Ray LaMontagne's tear-in-your-beer lovefest "You Are the Best Thing."

 

It might sound tame, but don't forget that back in 2008 when he was still just Candidate Obama, the president's taste in music was pretty similar. At the time, the future boomer-in-chief said he listened to everything from Bob Dylan, Elton John, Earth Wind & Fire and the Rolling Stones to Sheryl Crow, Springsteen and a number of jazz and classic giants, including Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Yo-Yo Ma.

 

What songs would you add to the president's playlist? Let us know in comments below!

 

Check back for up-to-the-minute coverage

 

 

mtv.com

Edited by Martinez

U2's Bono: 'We have to make hits if we are to survive'

 

 

 

U2 frontman Bono has questioned the band's future again, declaring that if the four-piece are to "survive" they need to come back with an album of hits.

 

The singer admitted they have struggled to produce hit singles over the last few years especially on their last LP 'No Line On The Horizon' with the first single off the record 'Get On Your Boots' failing to chart in the Top 10 while the remaining singles didn't even get into the Top 20.

 

Bono made the admission as the band prepare to re-issue their 1991 seminal album 'Achtung Baby', which spawned 1991 UK singles chart-topper 'The Fly', on Monday (October 31).

 

He told The Sun: "We've been on the verge of irrelevance for the last 20 years, dodged, ducked, dived, made some great work, I hope, along the way – and the occasional faux pas.

 

"But this moment now, for me feels like really close to the edge of relevance. We can be successful and we can play the big music and the big places. Whether we can play music for small speakers of the radio or clubs or where people are living right now, remains to be seen, we have to go to that place again if we are to survive."

 

The singer recently said he would be happy if U2 wrapped up their career now. He added that if the four-piece do return it will be some time before they resurface.

 

Uncut.co.uk

Bono doubles his money as Yelp eyes €650m flotation

 

U2 FRONTMAN Bono is set for a major windfall as another massive technology investment pays off. Bono is a partner in Silicon Valley private equity firm Elevation Partners which owns a 22 per cent chunk of social media and review site Yelp, which announced plans for a €650m IPO last week.

 

All eyes will be on the Yelp flotation as it will be the first major internet company IPO on Wall Street this year.

 

The Yelp float — which will raise about €80m for the company — is seen as a huge barometer of tech investor sentiment ahead of the €100bn Facebook listing in coming months.

 

Bono, of course, has a keen interest in Facebook, thanks to Elevation’s 1.5 per cent stake. The move will also be watched closely by Facebook’s 300 Irish staff, many of whom own restricted stock units in the company.

 

Elevation initially invested around €19m to buy shares in Yelp in January 2010. Another €55m was committed to boosting that stake through the secondary markets as Yelp shareholders offloaded stock in the private company.

 

The near €75m investment in the company has almost doubled in value in just over two years, representing a spectacular return.

 

The Yelp and Facebook floats mark quite a turnaround in the fortunes of the sunglasses-wearing rocker.

 

In March 2010, a well-known US investment website, 24/7WallSt, labelled Bono the “worst investor in America” following a series of share-buying expeditions in handset maker Palm, property website Move.com and business magazine Forbes.

 

 

Source U2ol.net

Bono doubles his money as Yelp eyes €650m flotation

 

 

http://i43.tinypic.com/259foyx.jpg

 

 

U2 FRONTMAN Bono is set for a major windfall as another massive technology investment pays off. Bono is a partner in Silicon Valley private equity firm Elevation Partners which owns a 22 per cent chunk of social media and review site Yelp, which announced plans for a €650m IPO last week.

 

All eyes will be on the Yelp flotation as it will be the first major internet company IPO on Wall Street this year.

 

The Yelp float — which will raise about €80m for the company — is seen as a huge barometer of tech investor sentiment ahead of the €100bn Facebook listing in coming months.

 

Bono, of course, has a keen interest in Facebook, thanks to Elevation’s 1.5 per cent stake. The move will also be watched closely by Facebook’s 300 Irish staff, many of whom own restricted stock units in the company.

 

Elevation initially invested around €19m to buy shares in Yelp in January 2010. Another €55m was committed to boosting that stake through the secondary markets as Yelp shareholders offloaded stock in the private company.

 

The near €75m investment in the company has almost doubled in value in just over two years, representing a spectacular return.

 

The Yelp and Facebook floats mark quite a turnaround in the fortunes of the sunglasses-wearing rocker.

 

In March 2010, a well-known US investment website, 24/7WallSt, labelled Bono the “worst investor in America” following a series of share-buying expeditions in handset maker Palm, property website Move.com and business magazine Forbes.

 

 

Source U2ol.net

  • Author
Is it bad that I've never heard of Yelp? :unsure:
Nope, never heard of Yelp either.

 

Bono looks really old in that picture :cry:

 

 

But he is old -_-

 

 

at least he is not botoxed out of this worls like that bloomin Simon Cowell who has the most rounded face I have ever seen...I wonder if you stuck a pin in it would it burst :mellow:

The Edge makes MTV documentary about homelessness

 

http://i42.tinypic.com/x4oh7t.jpg

 

The Break offers a once-in-a-lifetime chance to completely transform the lives they have into the lives they wantU2 rocker The Edge has made a documentary for MTV about homeless children in America.

 

MTV describes The Break as “the personal vision of U2’s world-renowned guitarist, The Edge, who believes that everyone deserves a chance at a decent life”.

 

The Edge (50) also wrote music for the show which will premiere on March 2 on MTV in the US. The programme introduces viewers to three homeless young people, Ava, Nancy and Rob and shows homeless advocate, Anne Mahlum, offering them a helping hand to turn their lives around.

 

The Edge's documentary reveals there are over 1.5 million homeless youth living on the streets and in shelters in America. "Despite the stereotypes, many of them are not addicts, hardened criminals or mentally ill," said programme bosses. "Every day, strangers turn a blind eye, telling themselves that the problems are just too big to fix. But what if they aren't? The Break offers a once-in-a-lifetime chance to completely transform the lives they have into the lives they want."

 

 

Source.. Starplus.ie

Edited by Tageddynail

U2's Bono To Join Andrew Lloyd Webber Talent Show

 

 

frontman Bono could be set to join Andrew Lloyd Webber's new talent show as a judge.

 

The musical composer is reportedly looking to hire Bono to join the search for the star of Jesus Christ Superstar.

 

A source told The Sun: It's definitely a long shot, there's no doubt about that,” said a source who was definitely not someone working the nightshift on the paper’s newsdesk,

 

“But Andrew is keen to get Bono on board and if anyone could pull off something like this, then it is him.”

 

Meanwhile, The U2-scored musical, Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark, has broken Broadway to become the highest single-week gross of any show in Broadway history.

 

The musical as grossed almost $3m over nine performances last week, which has broken the previous record held by Wicked, which grossed $2.2 million (1.4 million) over eight shows in 2011.

 

Gigwise UK

Julie Taymor Blames Bono and The Edge for 'Spider-Man' Problems in Latest Court Filing

 

http://i39.tinypic.com/10ydydd.jpg

 

Director goes into detail about what happened during the development of the musical, why the U2 bandmates deserve significant blame, the so-called "Plan X" and why she was fired.

 

Julie Taymor, former director of the Broadway musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, has filed her response to the producers' countersuit over her departure from the show. The Academy Award-nominated director describes what 8 Legged Productions had to say in January as "over thirty pages of highly sensationalistic, false and misleading allegations aimed at blaming Taymor, as a co-author of the musical, for problems encountered in development of the musical and assassinating her character and professional reputation."

 

'Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark' Producer Settles With Julie Taymor's Union'Spider-Man' Producers File Nasty Countersuit Against Julie TaymorJulie Taymor Blasts Bono, The Edge Over 'Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark' LawsuitCan Julie Taymor Shut Down 'Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark'? (Analysis)In today's filing, Taymor looks to set the record straight and reveals new details about what happened behind the scenes of the most expensive production in Broadway history.

 

 

In the producers' counterclaims, 8 Legged Productions portrayed Taymor as full of hubris, someone who wouldn't work with others and allegedly refused to develop a musical that followed the original, family-friendly Spider-Man story. Instead, Taymor is said to have wanted something much darker, even inserting herself into the show.

 

Taymor responds that she was not fired for refusing to "cooperate." Instead, she offers a bullet-point list of the real reasons she was terminated, including to:

 

• appease existing investors who were anxious about the show;

• encourage additional investments to fund a suspension of preview performances while structural changes were made;

• sway critics’ opinions of the musical by fostering an image that the show would be “re-imagined” and that its technical and substantive problems were behind it;

• mask the producers’ own failures to ensure the technical viability of the staging of the book as originally conceived; and

• avoid the financial obligation of complying with Taymor’s royalty rights, which had long ago been agreed upon."

 

Taymor goes on to tell her own narrative about what happened before the show officially opened. She says that everyone involved in the show, from producers Michael Cohl and Jeremiah Harris to U2's Bono and The Edge, approved her co-authored book years before the first public performance. She cites public interviews they made back then that testified to the high quality of the work.

 

But the director swings the blame back on the producers for the musical's initial failings.

 

 

For instance, Taymor says she had plans for a coup de theatre ending in which a giant web descends from the ceiling of the theatre. This was successfully demonstrated at a technical workshop, she says, but the design team couldn't make the $1 million special effect work. Afterward, Taymor went to Cohl to tell him about the pressing problems and needed changes, but she alleges that he "failed to ensure that the problems plaguing the show’s final scene were remedied."

 

As the show entered its preview period, Taymor says she made clear her willingness to make changes. But the tight schedule and "sheer technical complexity" of the show limited the scope of what was possible, she insisted. Taymor sent e-mails to the producers urging them to cancel some preview performances, but Taymor says that producers wouldn't permit further cancellations so that larger-scale changes could be worked on.

 

In her new court filing, Taymor also singles out Bono and Edge for particular criticism. She says they failed to attend rehearsals and she cites e-mails beseeching them to deliver improved lyrics and music. "I have been at it on [spider-Man] nonstop," reads one of those e-mails. "We need you. It is not easy to change anything, but now I think it is a matter of lyrical and musical changes "

 

Taymor says that Bono and the Edge were out on tour with U2 at the time, and that caused damage. According to Taymor's court brief, "The producers’ effort to hold Taymor responsible for damages for failing to make improvements to the show as an author ignores the reality that the conduct of Bono and Edge — the musical’s other primary creative team members — severely hampered timely improvements to the musical."

 

Taymor discusses the technical mishaps that injured actors, which she blames on a company that didn't install proper equipment, and the ways producers "conspired" to make changes to the musical's book without her knowledge.

 

Eventually, she gets to "Plan X," a secret plan to rewrite the book and reorder the show to avoid the technical challenges with staging the finale. Taymor says she had approval rights over changes but that the defendants went behind her back and finally cut her out. This all happened, she says, through a series of discussions and meetings without her knowledge. Taymor says that that the producers, Bono, Edge and others worked on a "twin track" approach, letting her pursue her own efforts as they secretly began to implement Plan X.

 

But regardless of the reasons she was fired, she says that the Spider-Man musical as it exists today is still hers in authorship. According to the filing:

 

"In the end, the producers have not created a 're-imagined' production. The revised musical currently performing on Broadway is substantially the same production that Taymor directed before she was dismissed in March 2011. This technically complicated musical took years to write, design and develop. The producers’ current suggestion that they have created a 'new' show after a mere three-week shutdown is false and incredible."

 

8 Legged recently settled a separate lawsuit with Taymor's union, the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, and there's been some speculation that this suit would be resolved soon as well. But Taymor was under deadline to submit an answer and apparently chose the opportunity to respond to nasty allegations that were hurled her way in January.

 

 

Source..Hollywoodreporter.com

Edited by Raggedynail

 

Unreleased U2, Coldplay and Beck tracks to feature on new charity compilation 'Every Mother Counts' collection also features rare cuts from Pearl Jam and Paul Simon

 

 

A new charity compilation featuring unreleased tracks by U2, Coldplay and Beck has been announced.

 

Model Christy Turlington Burns is teaming up with coffee giants Starbucks to release 'Every Mother Counts Volume 2', the second album to benefit the organisation she founded of the same name. Every Mother Counts is an awareness and mobilisation campaign which seeks to reduce the maternal mortality rate.

 

The compilation, which will be available to buy from May 1-29 in the US, features an acoustic version of Coldplay's early hit 'Yellow', U2's Bono and the Edge's acoustic cut of 'Original Of The Species,' and Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder's 'Skipping'. No release date has yet been set for the UK.

 

Beck's 'Corrina, Corrina' and tracks by David Bowie, Sting and Lauryn Hill also feature on the record.

 

Turlington Burns told Rolling Stone:

Bono and Chris Martin were great supporters of the project the first time around, and when I knew I wanted to include men on this album they were obvious choices.

She added: "They are also both fathers to daughters. I generally wanted a diverse group of artists who were parents."

 

The full track listing for 'Every Mother Counts Volume 2' is as follows:

 

U2's Bono And The Edge - 'Original Of The Species'

Eddie Vedder - 'Skipping'

Paul Simon And Edie Brickell - 'Pretty Day'

Faith Hill - 'Wish For You'

Sade - 'The Sweetest Gift"

Lauryn Hill - 'I Remember'

Rita Wilson - 'Baby I'm Yours'

Diana Krall - 'Don't Fence Me In'

Seal - 'Secret'

Dave Matthews Band - 'Sister'

Sting - 'Fragilidad'

Alanis Morissette - 'Magical Child'

Edward Sharpe And The Magnetic Zeros - 'Mother'

David Bowie - 'Everyone Says 'Hi'

Cedella Marley - 'Get Up Stand Up'

Beck - 'Corrina, Corrina'

Rufus Wainwright - 'Instead Of The Dead'

Patti Smith - 'Somalia'

Coldplay - 'Yellow'

 

 

 

Source NME.com

 

 

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