Vertigo Leg 3: 2005, North America

Denver.  Rehearsal day.

Today and tomorrow are our last rehearsal days before we present this final version of the 360 show to the world. Imagine our dismay to find that on this vital day The Edge is immobilised with food poisoning, whilst outside it is pissing with rain.

The crew have had a miserable time of it, actually abandoning the load-in for a while yesterday. Had we had a show to do tonight, of course they would have carried on, but there’s little point in exposing the gear to those kinds of conditions unless it’s absolutely vital.
 
All the same, the band, minus Edge, did come in to the stadium in the evening in the hope that things might clear up.  This was not to be but to some extent we still made use of the time, with discussion and viewing of show-DVDs substituting for physical rehearsal.  Run Wrake’s Aung San Suu Kyi piece is more or less finished now and is quite humbling to watch. She is less physically dynamic that Desmond Tutu but the context is overwhelming, especially as the piece starts with her saying “After many years I am finally able to speak to you…”  Even as recently as the beginning of the 360 tour this would have seemed like wishful thinking in the extreme.

There were some simple musical things we were able to record including a splendid “lumberjack’s chorus” recording of “Oh Canada” in a gents toilet.  This will be revealed another day but it was enormous fun and all done, I assure you, with the greatest respect.