The 40 greatest concerts in Boston history: 8

U2 | the Paradise Rock Club | March 6, 1981
By PHOENIX STAFF  |  October 25, 2006

8-1

Timothy Leary’s dead: The psychedelic revival. By Mark Moses

U2
A young Bono and The Edge on the cover of U2 By U2
Ted Williams hit his final home run in his last at-bat in Fenway Park in 1960. Only 10,454 witnessed it. Millions said they did in coming years. When U2 opened for Barooga Bandit in 1981 at the Paradise, fewer than 500 people were there — nearly all for U2 — but 50,000 more will tell you that they were. “The buzz at that point was out on U2,” says David Bieber, who really was at the show. Their Boy album had risen out of England’s post-punk scene, chockablock with yearning anthems. And Boston was one of the first places that they’d begun to make inroads. “They had come to America,” Bieber says, “and they were getting some acceptance on FM radio. There was the raw enthusiasm, the sheer excitement of the band, and the fact that they clearly outshone the headliners. I spotted Bono’s charisma, the energy was so apparent. You knew there was a destiny in play here.” It was the last time U2 would be opening for anyone in this town.
40 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 30 29 28 27 26
25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
<< The ClashThe Beatles >>

Were you there? Wish you were? Seen better? Tell us about it below.

Related: Real-world follies, Fleecing, stealing, shilling, and sucking with impunity, U2, More more >
  Topics: Live Reviews , Entertainment, Music, Music Reviews,  More more >
| More


Most Popular
ARTICLES BY PHOENIX STAFF
Share this entry with Delicious
  •   MICHAUD FOR GOVERNOR  |  November 03, 2014
    However you’ve been following the race for Governor this election season, you’ve been hearing it from all sides, so we’ll make this one brief. We urge you to vote for Michael Michaud.
  •   ADVANCED BEAUTY LESSONS  |  November 03, 2014
    Described as a “body-positive visibility project,” Portland’s Jack Tar 207 is all about representation. Models are encouraged to bring their own clothing and personal belongings to the shoot, which owner-designer LK Weiss says brings out “a level of confidence that many people don’t feel in front of a camera.”
  •   LITERALLY LGBT  |  October 31, 2014
    A community-compiled list of important GBLTQ works through the years.  
  •   DEAR PROVIDENCE PHOENIX...  |  October 15, 2014
    Some made us chuckle, others made us choke up.
  •   BACK TO REALITY  |  September 18, 2014
    If you’re a student in southern Maine and are at all interested in arts and humanities, and have a budget of exactly $10 to spend on any one event, there’s a lot in your favor.

 See all articles by: PHOENIX STAFF