Irish Independent, June 25, 2005

"This is the funky side of town. This is the Northside."

He's done the RDS. Done Lansdowne. But for the first time in 18 years, Bono was back performing on Dublin's Northside. The Glasnevin guru, back in his own place.

But can God come from Glasnevin?

U2 manager Paul McGuinness probably thinks so - his band has made this tour the most lucrative yet. Bono may be working wonders in terms of dropping Third World debt, but he's also fashioning a minor miracle in terms of box office income.

Never mind. The lads were back last night, to the place where they had hardly a ha'penny when they started. No wonder, an all growed up Paul Hewson seemed a little subdued by the experience.

In fact, the Mouth of the Liffey had hardly a word to say at the opener of U2's three night residency in Croke Park yesterday evening. It seemed like he craved the approval of his own people. In truth, he didn't have to worry.

A grey, dull dusky Dublin offered the perfect palate for the smoke and lights of U2's all-conquering roadshow. A husky Bono offered a tentative start.

But the crowd was patient. They had to wait for the sun to vanish and night to take over. Then it all kicked off.

This was a performance specially tailored for the local audience. A new playlist, rejigged from what has been heard around the world earlier in their Vertigo tour. This was one for the Dubs, with the classics they wanted to hear. The ones that wouldn't disappoint.

One song 'Miracle Drug' was dedicated to the staff of Crumlin's Children's Hospital. The crowd approved. Bono wasn't bullshitting.

"The last time we were in this beautiful stadium was at the Special Olympics, and that was an extraordinary evening," declared Bono. "Ireland was not about the past, it was about the future and it was excited about the future."

A green pulse line darted up and down the electronic curtain behind him.

And the noise, the bass notes, reverberated up through the soles of our feet. Welcome back Bono, Edge, Adam, Larry. And that noise.

That noise. That special, can't be replicated Croker noise. Not just rock concert cacophony. Special noise. The wanderers had returned.

As it swelled up and around Croke Park, an All-Ireland final feeling finecombed the hair on the back of the neck. Days like this are rare and treasured. Nights are unique.

U2. Back in Croker after 20 years. The stage, higher than the Hill. Higher than the tricolour flying to the side.

The bones of the new big GAA screen, above the Nally Stand, look puny. Dwarfed by U2's hulking great electronic backdrop. A concave curtain of colour, cradling the stage. Two ramps reach out into the crowd. They too, are curved, and end in a circular platform of red and black concentric rings. Like a torc.

And so, they are back. Not so much the prodigals returning - they never did no wrong, but the prodigies coming back fully fledged and having fulfilled their promise.

It was a drizzly night, and we fretted Bono might slip on the runway. But what if he did. The crowd would forgive him, because these things happen at home.

And truly, they were returning home in triumph on a stage with no roof, greeted by a cheering rush of adoring crowds, U2 enjoyed the Rock 'n Roll equivalent of the open-top bus treatment in Dublin.

Of course, it wasn't really a homecoming. Bono and the band have never left this town. Yet, among the eighty thousand fans in Croke Park, there was a real sense of matters coming full circle.

A lap in life completed.

Not just for four young men from Dublin's Northside who dared think they could conquer the world, but for their contemporaries who dreamed all sorts of dreams with them in Croke Park twenty years ago.

An old dilapidated stadium back then. Slightly plump Bono, back then. Jobs crisis, emigration, lack of confidence. Back then.

It was 1985, and a young U2 were playing their first stadium gig of what would turn out to be a stellar career. Bono wore a dodgy hat. The Edge still had all his hair. It was to be a marvellous night.

Two decades on, and suddenly, it's last night. June 24, 2005. The first of three dates for the band in their native city. And for them, Friday is family night. A huge proportion of the guest list (for they are so big now, they dictate the guest list) is made up of family, extended family and friends.

In 1985, they brought their girlfriends and proud parents and starstruck mates. Last night, U2, who can now justifiably claim to be the best in the world, brought their wives and children and babbies and grandparents and nannies. Not to mention friends who could see their waistbands when they looked down 20 years ago.

The same went for the crowd. Lots of couples strolled hand in hand around the hallowed and heavily protected turf. Apparently, baby-sitters' rates soared around the country last night, as youngish parents decided to pay the premium for going off to Croker and reliving their courting days.

And then, what about the venue? Croke Park is a symbol of the new Ireland. The GAA has given Ireland a magnificent new stadium. There is a new Hill 16. U2 stood on it last night. "Boom Boom Boom! Can you hear us say Bono, Bono!"

Steady on, football fans. Maybe not.

This band only have temporary residence. Jason Sherlock, and all the other GAA players who grace this arena, know how to coax a chorus from the crowd too.

True, it's larding it on a bit too much to compare the metamorphosis of a nation with the evolving lifespan of a rock band. But last night was a case of compare and contrast for the many oldies in the crowd.

Since that first big gig, Bono and the lads have done very well for themselves.

There were a lot of people in Croker last night who could say the same for their journey.

The full circle stuff is a little scary. Guess what? The two big movies in 1985 were 'Back to the Future' and 'Out of Africa'.

Oh, and Bob Geldof was just about to spring Live Aid on the world.

back