San Jose, California - U2 Show

Dear Friends:

Last week, my wife and I made a really, really quick trip to San Jose, California.  The main reason?  To see a concert.  This wasn't just any concert, it was a U2 show:

While it was a main reason, it wasn't the only one.  While there, we had a chance to visit my oldest daughter, and spend time with our precious grandson:

This boy has reached a point where his stomach trouble has receded, and he's so fun to be around.  That smile is infectious!  Getting to play with him was a real treat.  I have loved watching him grow over the last few months and he's making terrific progress:

Since we were in town for under 24 hours, we had to cut the visit short and headed to the show.  A little background is probably needed.  You see, I'm a huge U2 fan.  It started for me all the way back in high school.  My best friend and I "discovered" them and instantly fell in love with their music.  You have to remember that there wasn't an internet back then, so finding information about a new band required a lot of work.  We had to go to several libraries to find magazines and newspapers that featured articles on the band.  The fan club was based on photocopying the lyrics of songs and sending them in the mail.  It was different, but so fun.  You truly felt like you were discovering something that nobody knew about.  Over the years, that's certainly changed with U2 - but I loved them ever since those initial moments.  I've also been lucky enough to see many of their tours over the last couple of decades.  The trip to California was exactly that.

We arrived at the SAP Arena, located in downtown San Jose:

As I've been a member of the fan club for awhile, I gained access to a VIP Party that was happening inside the arena:

The party was held backstage, where all of there equipment was stored, after setting up for the show:

We arrived in our seats and discovered that we were pretty close to the stage.  Really close.  This was taken with no zoom at all..

The show began, and it was stunning.  The energy and quality of the musical performance was exactly what I expected from U2 - close to perfection:

As they moved through the initial songs, members of the band moved out onto a walkway/runway that extended the length of the arena floor.  There was a giant - and I mean giant - video screen that also ran the length of the floor:

The screen was both opaque and transparent.  The images that were displayed really helped to tell a story - it was more theatrical than what I've seen from them in a while:

The use of images and visuals got even better.  At one point, the lead singer walked through this video screen, as images were displayed around him.  It appeared that he was "walking" down a street that he had grown-up on:

Cedarwood Road

The creativity was amazing - they used the video projection and camera systems in so many different ways, so it was a unique experience for each song in the set:

Even Better Than the Real Thing

At one point, the four band members played from within the structure, with video images clearing the way for you to see them at specific points in the song:

Trying hard to take a selfie during the show...whoops...

Rather than trying to describe how many different ways the stage and screens were used, the videos do a much better job:

For the encore, they erected some lighting elements and it was beautiful to watch, as it contributed to a song called City of Blinding Lights:

They ended the show on a high - playing their guts out and the crowd responded with everything they had.  I loved the vibe - and another U2 show is safely in my memory:

My dear wife is so kind to indulge my inner fan...the good thing is that these shows are impressive, even for someone that didn't grow up as a fan, like me.  We had a wonderful time together...it was quite an expensive date night...but so worth it!