Miyah On the Monkey Bars

Miyah wanted to show me how good she is on the monkey bars on the playground at her school today when I picked her up...

U2 in Raleigh!

I've been a huge U2 fan since the mid-80s when my friend, DJ, got me into them in our freshman year of high school. His older brother was in college at the time and was into the college music scene. DJ would learn about all kinds of music from him and we'd check out the bands.

Some other great music that we got into in those days: The Smiths, R.E.M., The Cure, Billy Bragg, and Violent Femmes.

Even though U2 have become one of the most well-known bands in the world today, I still think of them as the alternative, anti-establishment band that I was introduced to back before The Joshua Tree put them on the map.

The first time I saw them live was in 1987 during The Joshua Tree tour... and I haven't seen them again until last night when they played at Carter Finley Stadium (home of NC State Wolfpack football).

It was great to drive 15 minutes down the street and to get to see my favorite band and one of the greatest bands of all-time! It was even better to get to see them together with my wife, Cherie.

The show was excellent.... with the highlight for me being "Walk On" with a snippet of "You'll Never Walk Alone" that was dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi - the democratically elected Prime Minister of Burma, who has been under house arrest since her 1990 election by the military-controlled government of the country.

Also, "One" has always been a huge favorite of mine (especially the version with Mary J Blige)... so it was great to hear that song live. And the song, "Magnificent" from their new album, No Line On The Horizon, has quickly become a new favorite of mine. It serves as a worship song of sorts for me, with my favorite line being,

"Only love, only love can leave such a mark

But only love, only love can heal such a scar"

It was definitely a memorable night!