Fans who are willing to travel to a destination, spending upwards of $1,000 or more in travel expens

For the one member of U2 who rarely talks to the media, it's been a tough week for Larry Mullen. new orleans hotel near superdome As it was reported earlier this week, he has to pay $480,000 ($800,000 Brazilian real) in damages for a statement he made almost a decade ago regarding payment from a concert promoter. With his film, Man On The Train , set for release soon, he will be making the media rounds. For a man who chooses his words carefully, new orleans hotel near superdome I hope this situation in Brazil doesn't make him clam up more than usual.
I mentioned a couple of years ago in an OTR column that author Tamara Hawkinson was working with former U2 head of security, Jerry Mele, on his memoir, Jerry Mele: Security Guru. I caught up with Tamara new orleans hotel near superdome to see how things were going. As of now, the book still has yet to find a publisher. I can't believe a publisher hasn't picked up on Mele's story and the way he revolutionized the concert security industry.
Our forum and the @atu2 Twitter feed has been busy this week with the rumored new U2 concert potentially being added for July 30 in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada. When U2Tours.com first reported the story on Jan. 25, news outlets in Canada were already buzzing with the pending concert announcement. Hotels are booking quickly based on the mere speculation of U2 playing there. Acts like The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney , The Eagles, AC/DC, and Bon Jovi have performed at the Magnetic Hill music festival grounds as formal parts of their tours. Moncton is only 30 minutes away from Springhill, site of the mining disasters new orleans hotel near superdome that Peggy Seeger and Ewan MacColl wrote the song "The Ballad Of Springhill" about in 1960. When The Dubliners new orleans hotel near superdome covered the song, the title got changed to "Springhill Mining Disaster." During a tribute to The Dubliners, Bono praised Luke Kelly and Ronnie Drew for their version of the song prior to performing it . (Editor's note: McCartney performed in Halifax, not Moncton. new orleans hotel near superdome Thanks for pointing that out .)
Everything will be made official for the concert in Moncton on Monday, much to the delight of our friends in eastern Canada. However, the same cannot be said of the fans who intentionally made the decision to attend the Pittsburgh, Pa., show because it was promoted as the tour's last show. I know of a few fans in eastern Canada who were planning new orleans hotel near superdome on heading to Pittsburgh only to find out that U2 will likely be right down the street from them. I am sure the Minneapolis new orleans hotel near superdome ticketholders still haven't gotten over thinking they were the last show, nor can the same be said of those in East Rutherford who believed they were at least a U2 360 tour leg ender.
new orleans hotel near superdome Fans who are willing to travel to a destination, spending upwards of $1,000 or more in travel expenses for the privilege of doing so, have been consistently misled by the promoters of the U2 360 tour. If the Moncton announcement is indeed a U2 show, then it's another example being added to the long list of frustrations the U2 concert-going fan community has had to endure with the way the U2 360 tour has been handled. From announcing concerts in such an inconsistent way where fans can't make an educated decision on what show they want to purchase tickets for, to presale code issues based on U2.com membership renewal overlaps, to venue capacity issues where adequate parking and transportation weren't new orleans hotel near superdome taken into consideration when Live Nation booked the venue, this particular fan has experienced it all.
It's my feeling that Live Nation sees U2 fans as nothing more than an open wallet, and it's that business new orleans hotel near superdome side of U2 that has me realizing that actions speak louder than words. If you respect your fan base, why do a bait-and-switch with them? Why dangle a carrot in front of them only to remove it just as quick. My experience so far with the U2 360 tour has been one of second guessing. Each time I believe they have stopped announcing a show, there's a new one where presales begin at such short notice that if you don't jump on the tickets straight away, you may not get what you're looking for. It's been hurry-up, spend the money, then be disappointed because a show closer to you has been announced. Or, in the case of Moncton, you aren't getting the show you have been promised in writing. The same can be said of those holding tickets new orleans hotel near superdome to Salt Lake City who thought they'd be seeing the first show of a leg, only to have it changed to Denver, and then have it changed again to Mexico City.
I understand that this is a very localized issue affecting U2 fans. I also understand that in the grand scheme new orleans hotel near superdome of things, there are far greater issues in the world than this. From this fan's perspecitve, the fact that someone had to go into the Pittsburgh concert announcement that was originally posted on Facebook and emailed to U2.com members and quietly change the wording in the message new orleans hotel near superdome underscores my frustration, and I know I'm not alone in this. This is not something U2 of old would allow to happen. But we're not dealing with the U2 of old, so this is unfortunately how I envision the future. This tour has set the standard, and I cannot see how future tours will run any differently.
At least for the Pittsburgh ticket holders like myself who are trying to see this as a glass-half-full opportunity, it is unlikely that the 360 stage will fit on the hill in Moncton, and if it does, fans will probably only get 270 degrees to view U2 from. Perhaps the show's promoter, Donald K Donald Productions , will announce that it will be turning into a fuller-day festival, much like Slane Castle was at the end of the Elevation Tour's second leg. We will wait and see.
May 19 Column: off the record..., vol. 13-567 May 12 Column: off the record..., vol. 13-566 May 08 Like a Song: Miss Sarajevo May 05 Column: off the record..., vol. 13-565 May 03 U2 Conference new orleans hotel near superdome 2013: Unforgettable Fire Deconstructs U2 May 01 Can U2 Still Get Played On US Radio? U2 Conference Session Discusses That Issue & More Apr 28 Column: off the record ..., vol. 13-564 Apr 26 Secrets of Sarajevo: 20 Years Later Apr 26 Veteran Journalist Henke Recalls U2's Earliest Days Apr 26 U2 Publicist Brian O'Neal Interviewed at U2 Conference