The decision made, Mark called the Polytechnic in Manchester and we were added to the guest list. Having your lodger on the radio back then was a major plus and saved us a fortune in gigs! I think the social secretary at the Poly was a guy called Elliot Rashman who later went on to manage Simply Red, he definitely was the next time I turned up there to see U2 (with my record breaking guest list of 104! ) By then they had signed to Island and I was rallying round bringing everyone I could from radio and TV to see them. If they had prior arrangements I told them to bring whoever with them. And they did. It made for a very special night and hilarious too when after the show the band asked me to bring everyone backstage so they could say hi. I got out of that one, ‘Oh, just come out front when you’re ready guys, we’ll be at the bar.
U2 came on around 8-30pm and as Wah Heat had been creating a bit of a buzz there was a decent turn out. We’d already arrived by then and were downing a couple of pints at the bar. We turned round to see and there before us were a bunch of awkard looking kids doing what bands do, re tuning, a bit of a bass drum thumping away and the singer adjusting his mike stand. ‘We’re U2 and we’re from Dublin.’ Little did I know that this was the beginning of an amazing journey for all of us.
We moved down nearer to the front so we could get a good look, if we made the effort to come and see them then I don’t see the point in propping up the bar. There’s seeing a band and there’s being at the bar, hardly the same thing. They sounded like they should have done, raw but with a lot of energy and most of it coming from their singer. The guy, who even then went by the name of Bono had such a determined, almost demonic look about him you could see his sole ambition was to make sure everyone know who they were by the time they left the stage. And bad boots and haircut were helping, but not maybe in the way he had planned.
Boots aside, he did this by repeating who they were another couple more times, lauding up Wylie and his mob, telling us they had a record contract and also that their producer was Martin Hannett. This prompted a curious glance at each other from me and Mark and a certain’ tell us more?’ Hannett had produced Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasures and Radcliffe had recently recorded a session with them for his show on Piccadilly Radio but neither of us knew he’d made a record with this lot. Mark was a big Joy Division fan, he’d even called his show ‘Transmission’ after their epic. After announcing their association with Hannett they went on to play the track he’d done with them, what was to be their forthcoming single ‘11 o’clock tick tock’
Wow this was a bit special, an extraordinary sound and particularly from this slightly gauntish, again fairly awkward guitar player, The Edge. He played an unusual Gibson Explorer guitar and moved it around his torso like he was feeling every note. His sound even back then was quite unique and we both loved what he was doing. By now we were both starting to look a lot more at what was going on up there onstage. Fairly charismatic singer, original and very impressive guitar sound, and then the rhythm section. Larry was the James Dean of the band, a real beauty that had all the girls in the audience nudging each other and a very competent drummer who was just learning with every show. And then came Adam. I don’t think I’m alone in saying that Adam was the least talented back then and to see how he has blossomed in to his look and the feel he has for his bass now is quite amazing. I don’t think anyone saw that one coming!
It reminded me of my bass playing youth, the ability, not the haircut which I will have to come back to. I was hell bent on being a rock star, not just me but all my friends and especially my bandmates. Myself our drummer Kenny, and legendary singer Sudi always came up with the band names and mighty fine they were too! I vividly remember ‘ Dwarf Cornell’ which I’m sure was mine! Oh I have to stop and keep this blog deserving of it’s own place, too fond a memory to absorb within Adam Clayton’s haircut methinks.
