U2 playing at Mount Temple Comprehensive in Clontarf. Credit: U2.com.
It took a Trojan effort not to hear some form of muttering about U2 over the weekend. Last Friday marked 50 years since the iconic band’s formation—and the lads certainly didn’t forget to mark the occasion.
That cloudy afternoon, crowds flocked outside of Mount Temple Comprehensive in Clontarf. Shortly after, the pupils were released into the yard, one carrying a sign that read “Bono, my mom says hi”. Crane cameras circled the makeshift stage, with over a hundred prideful hearts beating in unison. Then, only a few feet from where they began, the school’s four most famous alumni stepped out.
Exactly five decades earlier, Larry Mullen Jr. was a lonely 14-year-old drummer, looking for like-minded rockers to accompany his rhythm. On the school notice board, Mullen pinned a handwritten note which simply stated “Drummer seeks musicians to form band”.
Just days later, Mullen opened his door to see bassist Adam Clayton and guitarist Dave ‘The Edge’ Evans. Now bearing a solid rhythm and melody, Mullen’s group was missing just one, crucial thing—a proper frontman. Enter Paul Hewson, probably best known by his moniker
‘Bono’ (named after a hearing-aid shop on O’Connell Street).
Then and there, nestled in the quaint suburbia of Larry Mullen’s kitchen, U2 was born.
Larry Mullen’s childhood home in Artane, where it all began. Credit: The Irish Sun.
“From day one we were all pretty set up in those roles,” Mullen later remarked. “[Bono] was always the leader, he wanted to be upfront while Dave was always the scientist.”
Back at their 50th celebration, Bono was belting out an emotional rendition of ‘One’, accompanied by a batch of talented young musicians from the Music Generation programme. Harps, cellos, and violins flowed between Bono’s ageless vocals, arranged and conducted by legendary composer Michael Rooney.
What should have been their final song quickly became subject to an encore, leading to a stripped back version of ‘With Or Without You’ to reverberate off the school walls and into the stratosphere.
But the Big Smoke’s buzz wasn’t over just yet. Over on Grafton Street, Bewley’s Café overlooked a sea of fans praying that rumours of a possible evening performance held water. Throngs of Dubliners shrouded every inch of the street, overflowing onto nearby rooftops just to catch a glimpse of the gig.
Thousands of prayers were answered as the quartet finally emerged onto the balcony, tossing late eighties hit ‘I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For’ into the mix for their second set of the day.
As the night sky drew closer and streetlights switched on, The Edge took centre stage for an emotional tribute to the late great Glen Hansard, with a moving cover of his Oscar-winning ballad ‘Falling Slowly’.
In a touching nod, Bono claimed: “One man who will never be silenced was Glen Hansard, the king busker, the king of Grafton Street.”
‘Beautiful Day’ and ‘Vertigo’ followed, before ‘40’ closed out what will no doubt be remembered as one of the most important events in Irish rock history. As is tradition for their final song, the band left the stage one by one, until Larry Mullens himself remained the last man standing, glancing out onto a howling crowd. Poetic, really.
If just one thing is certain for the group’s legacy, it’s this simple fact: they’ve come a long way from a scribbled note on Mount Temple’s notice board.
J.J. O’Regan is arts editor for SIN this year. He is a second-year journalism student at the University of Galway. In his free time, he enjoys piña coladas and long walks on the beach.