The Joshua Tree Tour 2017

Jul 15 2017
Rome, IT / Olympic Stadium
with Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
78

'Flash Mob'
A wedding and a flash mob. Opening night in Rome.

When & Where
Saturday, June 15th 2017, Olympic Stadium, Rome. Night 25 of #U2TheJoshuaTree2017
"Sometimes it's luminous figures that change the world. But in truth, more often than not it's mass movements that change history."
 
Set List
No major surprises tonight, although Mysterious Ways drops out and back in at the close comes new song 'The Little Things That Give You Away'.
Aaron Govern (@Ivanobe) was at the Joshua Tree Tour first time round, and sent us through some reactions straight after the show: 'What an incredible night - following what must have been the hottest day of the tour so far, having hit the highs of 36°C. It has been so hot even the historic statues of Rome have been begging for a respite from the overhead heat on this beautiful cloudless sky.
Italian fans may be the most passionate in Europe, and at times it really was hard to hear the band play over their incredible singing. Larry kicks off the night with the familiar military beat of Sunday Bloody Sunday, before the urgent playing of New Years Day, and then a most beautiful rendition of Bad, a song so steeped in history in the U2 canon it cannot fail to tug at our heartstrings. To finish off Act 1, the resplendent Pride, and everyone is singing at full volume, urging and pushing this band to the next level.
The Joshua Tree is played to a transfixed audience, each song being performed by the band as if it's the first time they have ever been played. Side 2 starts and Bono is clearly enjoying the reaction from the crowd who are singing each song with such passion. The darkness surrounds the stadium, and Mothers Of The Dissapeared closes the album playback. A beautiful ending to a beautiful album….'

Here's the complete set list.
 
Social post
@atu2 - 'The best way to get U2 to play for your wedding is to get married at the show' - which one happy couple did, wedding and reception with (however many thousand) guests. And quite a decent wedding band to boot!'
 
If You Had To Pick One Song
With Or Without You. Fans come together and hold each other up when the band is in town. We saw it in Berlin earlier in the week when German fan site @U2Tour came together to party and celebrate fans visiting that city - 500 showed up at their party at legendary Meistersaal, (Hansa Studios, where Bowie recorded Heroes, etc) and raised over 5000 Euros for the charity Doctors Without Borders.
Tonight it was Italian fan site @U2Place that had organised a flash mob at the Olympic Stadium -  40,000 signs held up in unison to hold up The Joshua Tree, and the number 30. Spectacular, spectacle, fans coming together and holding the band up, holding each other up. As we are all doing every single night of this tour.
Long time Zootopian Monica Martino, now living in Dublin was at the show and kept us updated: 'U2 in my hometown is always special. My band in my town. Starting with SBS is a shot to your heart. The screen getting red for Streets because as we love to say Streets può essere solo rossa. The legendary choreography from U2place.com on WOWY. ITALIA Ireland, one family, the family. Larry sexy man!. Dancing time, jump jump jump like there's no tomorrow...'

Review on U2.com
maurizioinga1: EXIT 'Maybe, the most emotional U2 concert that I've ever seen. During the permonce of EXIT I reached one of the most intense moment of my life. Thank you guys. Love U2 forever!!!

If you were at the show, tell us all about it. Add your own review and photos on our tour pages

Sao Paulo - last show of The Joshua Tree Tour 2017. Video by instagram.com/mvsphotography
Comments
78
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ienzen
The Joshua Tree - tribute band from Mess
Great concert!!
corrado1977
Thrills me up
When those guys come to Italy,they know It Will be a gig ti Remember. I was 10 when Joshua arrived home on vinyl, and it still turning on the table, and i was listening only to streets....i liked It too many to letto It go.....then One time I decided ti go over that and broke that rule.....man....when "exit" came to my ears through amplifier and speakers, nothing has been the same. Waited for "exit" for 30y. .....it's worth It! TX guys, it's Life!
VenASPhisTO
Família
What a night.... Bono gave everything and the crowd went mad :) London check, Rome check, next stop, DUBLIN.
Silvio73
ThankU2 for THE JOY!
Everytime U2 show is a pure Joy detonator! Saturday it's allright to see you in Dublin! huoooooooouoooooouuuo!!! #U2TheJoshuaTree2017 #purejoy #nextstepdublin
fgiacomelli
2 Generations of U2 Fans
30 years ago, I was 18, Modena was the first concert in my life (I still wear the 1987 Tee). 2017, she is 15 and this is the first concert in her life. A stunning performance.
patrizia1979
Little fan!
What a city! What a night! What a gig! What a wonderful fan! Best little fan EVER! Emma <3 #u2 #rome #joshuatreetour2017
gabriele_distria
U2 live a Roma // The Joshua Tree Tour 2
Through the storm we reach the shore You give it all but I want more And I’m waiting for you ~ With or without you ~
Zazzi
#ItalylovesU2
One Word... thank you
Zazzi
A Great Heart
#U2TheJoshuaTree2017 #wheninrome
ginocancedda
Bellissima serata ..Giornata indimentica
Gino e Carmen ❤️ U2 Forever ❤️
Fabio66
#10!!
E' un piacere rivederci qui dopo 30 anni. con questo sono 10!! 1987 --> 2017 Mai stanco e non ancora sazio! Sempre i migliori. Grazie, alla prossima.
ginocancedda
Stadio olimpico Roma 15/07/2017
Bellissima serata ..Giornata indimenticabile con il mio gruppo preferito ! U2 Forever!
Doctormusic78
Back to the roots with wisdom
Amazing night, 20 years after Pop Mart tour, going back to my memories of high school U2 concert mania! Now everybody's wiser, although high emotions stand still. Grazie!
patrizia1979
Little wonder
What a city! What a night! What a fantastic gig! What a wonderful fan! Emma the little U2 super fan!
rosangelaconti
craxy fot U2
Bono we love you
mgaly84
only one thing...AMAZING!
i tink one of the best performance that i ever seen.... and the coreography on with or without you...is so amazing! i hope you have some photos to show of the great coreography!
fdccc
La notte più bella di sempre.
Ragazzi grazie per quello che siete. Grazie a Dio per voi e per il vostro impegno per l'umanità.
7Business
That is beautiful ♡
unforgettable night Manuela7
maurizioinga1
EXIT
Maybe, the most emotional U2 concert that I've ever seen. During the permonce of EXIT I reached one of the most intense moment of my life. Thank you guys. Love U2 forever!!!❤️
lemuria
Thaks
Just......Thanks
Piotta
Still here !
After 30yrs we still here , Still looking , still loving it !
3x0
From the Heaven....
I think and think since 30 Years what can transform 3/4 chords and some other musical things in magical moments that can change your life... My only personal answer to this interesting question Is that the our 4 best Friends came down straight from the Heaven and still live with us as Angels to help everyone to find his/her Peace on earth. I love U2. I love your music. I love the Edge's Guitar, the Bono's tears of emotion at the first part of the show ending, the ever young face of Larry and the strange and funny Adam grimaces while playing. Thanks for being with us. Thanks for your Music. for helping suffering people. God bless you (....mmmmmm ..... You are Just blessed.......;) ). Angelo Marrocco
AJB9
U2 - 30 years on in Berlin
'..and when it's raining, raining hard..' It was all very last minute, as I had only acquired a ticket the evening before their Berlin gig. I knew I would be going alone, knowing few were prepared to make the sacrifice of standing in the GA line, in torrential rain, to see a band that for them maybe held less importance. Yet U2 were in my new adopted home town of Berlin, a city still raw to me, playing an album that pulled me through a tragic time 30 years earlier. Really, I had to go and see how they were doing after all these years. The day ran on adrenaline, after little sleep. I had checked to see what the situation was the night before, and people were already queuing. By 7am that morning there were already 300 in line. I was reminded of the challenge of a GA ticket. My heart sank; I didn't fancy any of my chances, but made my way out west anyway. Somehow, somehow, I arrived in time to join the tail end of an early entry queue, despite arriving at 12.45pm (after a failed search for a place selling any kind of weather waterproof). The queue was closed 10 people behind me at 13.00pm. I was lucky. I got talking to a young woman, also there alone, who had also found few friends prepared to endure the ritual of the GA queuing etiquette. I realised being on my own didn't mean being alone: this was the line for those who had a NEED. A long amount of standing lay ahead, it rained, but I was under a tree, and dry and with a sandwich. Soggy, tired spirits were lifted when 'New Years Day' and 'Mysterious Ways' rang out from the stadium during sound-check. As the queue moved, someone gave me a spare plastic bin liner, Irish green, that I would fashion against the rain. Then we were then told our queue would be let in first, ahead of the other one round the fancier front part of the stadium. The day was filling with kismet. Alright, there was every chance I could get as close as I had done 30 years before. Luck got me where I wanted to be, (plus thanks to the well organised logistics once inside). I couldn't believe how close to the stage I had ended up. I was within insulting distance. The crowd around me were jovial, international, and of all ages. There was no pushing about (the only challenge being defending your spot near the stage when cutting back through the crowd, disbelieving of a return from a toilet run..). All was good. When 'the Whole of the Moon' started, I realised what a memory trip this would be. I still knew every word to that song, sang it loud, and remembered singing along to it the last time. U2 obviously scheduled this intro for a reason; it was going to be more than about the album, it was about those gigs, 30 years before. Others can offer better reviews of the concert than me. All I can add is being this close to the front, I saw a band that was human, not digital. They were working hard, delivering on a promise. I could see skill and workmanlike attention from The Edge, with perhaps the biggest responsibility of recreating this album's sound. I was struck by the smallness of the band against this enormous stage. They're still a garage band. But what I found most was also how vulnerable they looked, almost shy, being chased by our memories of that first time round, alongside their own. I saw the professionalism and I witnessed the mistakes. We were all up against our younger selves. The anger has mellowed with age, there was little posturing of old, there were more jokes - Bono asking what the German for 'neighbourliness' was, asking a punter to repeat the answer, giving up and saying 'and it's a beautiful word'. But when they went into 'Exit', I saw the Bono of before - fierce and challenging us. For me, seeing that song played out live was worth the entry ticket alone. When he came out wearing the Stetson, which he hadn't worn in 30 years, we realised this Berlin gig was a bit special. It was a stadium drawing out ghosts. Sometimes it's good to be in a crowd. But it's 'One Tree Hill' that brought me here. The first concert I ever went to was to see U2 play Wembley Stadium, London, June 12th, 1987. It was the day after the general election in the UK with Thatcher winning a third term in office. Bono said 'that woman's in again!' to the crowd, and this seriousness remained in him for the rest of the concert. We were living in times that required such earnestness; these were the years before the end of Apartheid, before the release of Mandela, before the fall of the Berlin Wall. The world felt a place where the wrong choices were making the grade, and I was too young to vote. We were just kids and could only watch the world make crazy decisions. But that day it was sunny. We queued early, and I remember my friends initiating me with the instructions that 'once past the gates you have to RUN to the stage'. I had no idea what to expect. I remember two guys took care of me and my friends, stopping us from getting crushed, putting us on their shoulders. I was first raised up during 'Sunday Bloody Sunday', yelling and cheering which caused Bono to throw me a look. I remember the stage turning red, Bono with the spotlight on Edge, everyone singing their hearts out, knowing all the words I had yet to properly learn. Shins and feet got battered and trampled by the crowd. Yet what lingered most beyond the bruises was the sense of community I felt that day; everyone singing '40' on the way out, all the way to the station. It was an important day, it changed me. It was the first time in over a year I'd felt something other than grief. I had lost my dad to cancer the year before. I was 15 when he died, and very much in a daze, too young to process it. At that age you have to look outside yourself to find answers. I couldn't find it in my family, so I found it in music, and in that this album 'The Joshua Tree', and within the album 'One Tree Hill'. My family had fractured, and retreated into separate corners to grieve. My dad was the emotional heart of the family, a great man: funny, generous, truly compassionate, who hated to see people suffer, and cut down in his prime. The youngest of 10, born in the East End of London, he was a dreamer. When he was 7 he would sneak out his father's fruit n veg cart-horse from its stables and ride it bareback across Lea Valley, where the London Olympic Stadium now stands. He dreamed of America, and of the Wild West. He drank Sarsaparilla as a boy, watched Cowboy films as an adult, listened to Country & Western music, and sang along with an excellent crooners voice. He was a brick-layer who missed his calling. When we visited Monument Valley on a rare overseas holiday to the US, my father was beside himself. He understood that landscape and its potential. All the films he had seen were there in front of him. If he had lived, I know he would have loved The Joshua Tree. Truly, I owe U2 a lot for pulling me through something, and I owe them for this album. I'm glad that I got to say thanks. Twice.
Irishflower
Really LOVE is here!
What a beautiful! What a moment! What a LOVE!!! The real LOVE is here in Rome. Thank you very much for the great 30th anniversary! I wait for the moment also here in Japan!!!
u2nadias
The Little Things That Give You Away!
Listening to concert in Canada via Mixlr. Rome crowd fantastic. So glad got to hear The Little Things That Give You Away!!! They did not play it in Toronto. What a fantastic new song. Bono really sings his heart out. Please release it as a single with a video. Dying for new album to be released. U2 just get better and better!!!
Still WIDE AWAKE
1987 MODENA Than many others. 2015 MSG NEW YORK with my girls too - what a night! 30 years of magic. Love you!
naps77
Here with you
Lost my father the day before yesterday...but today I'm with you andI know he's watching us from above...
sugarbett
Roma.... ci siamo
Ancora... ancora. Ancora
evve
30 years ago...
My girlfriend at me saw them in sweden 30 years ago. Still got My t-shirt
JessLee
2 Yrs. ago Boston
Was at Innocence Tour at TD Bank two years ago tonight! (Plus another 2 nights) Need U2 fix!!!! Like the new album ;) Or a Fall Joshua Tree show added to Boston ;) Or Experience to come to Boston, or to dance on stage.... since were going there.
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