Who loves the Edge from U2?? I DO!!

[MichaelThomas]

I have a mancrush on The Edge. Great tone and style like everyone has said. Funny how someone pointed out that U2 will influence our generation. I believe so as well. Too bad that douchebag Tom Delonge (ex-blink 182 guitarist) totally rips off his style in that new band Angels and Airwaves.

[Jon Silberman]

Wankers don't like the Edge because they sense him for the anti-wanker threat that he is.

[jtm622]

He is an "original" - not many can claim a "trademark" sound like the layered guitar sound he originated. I admire his guitar work...

[pir8matt]

Originally Posted by Joisey

East coast? I might have caught your act. If you had big blonde hair and a trench coat then I saw you. I got picked in 87 to play harp on Trip through your wires. I sucked.

Heh, naw - I had on a pink oxford with the sleeves cut off, and a pair of 'jams'. I had a bono-mullet at the time, too, appropriately enough. Actually here's the only picture I have from that event. I had another one that I had found at a flea-market vendor who took amateur shots at concerts and sold them - it was Bono telling me the chord changes (even though I already knew 'em). I stupidly lost that picture a long long time ago. Of course, its just me and larry mullen in this shot - they pulled a disappearing act on me - Edge and Adam Clayton left the stage and then Bono followed, so it was just me strumming the chords with the drummer. We went about 8 measures that way and then they all came back one by one. Fun stuff.



I also only have one shoe on in this pic. One of them came off when the roadies manhandled me onto the stage from the crowd.

I actually knew the song already. It was on the 'unforgettable fire' tour that they started with pulling people out of the audience to play with them onstage, Bono would do this little spiel about how anyone can make music just by learning a few chords, etc and then they would ask who "knew how to play" and pull someone out of the audience. Fortunately for me I had a few friends around me that pointed at me instead of themselves, so I stood out and got pulled up there.

Apparently that little gimmick didn't always work out for U2, though. Peoples skill level varied pretty wildly. This was according to some nice folks I talked to much later on that had followed them on a bunch of dates during that tour. They said a lot of times people would come up and have no idea how to play at all.

As I understand it, later on they would use 'ringers' that were planted in the audience, so it became more theatre than spontaneous reality, but hey, they were playing stadiums at that point, so you gotta have some consistency, I guess. A girl I knew that did snake-dancing for them on tour during 'mysterious ways' later confirmed this.

[shallbe]

Love the Edge. He really has married old technology (Vox AC30's, stompboxes) with new (digital effects and rack systems). He gets a wide varitey of sounds, but they always WORK for the song, and always sound like him. Wit everything he has going on in his signal chain, he still sounds organic, IMO.

[mr.mattphisto]

+100000000000000000000000000001

[cugel]

i am amazed how even dave grohl has clearly gone for edge's clean tone sans delay on the into to "pretender"
ihmo that has to be a tip of the hat

[Bantha]

I have to say I have the mancrush on The Edge as well. I probably copy his style every week at church with at least one song. Plus he has the coolest nickname ever. I read once that even his mom calls him The Edge.

Lifeson, Gilmour, and Schon are second, third and fourth to The Edge in my influences.

(How cool is that ^ I just realized I have an Irishman, a Canadian, a Brit and an American as my main influences...)

[Jet Age Eric]

WHHAAAAT?! U2 are a band with some good songs and the Beatles changed pop music. How has U2 changed ANY generation? I was a kid when U2 first showed up (and I loved New Year's Day and Gloria), but I don't think they changed me one iota.

The issue so many people (myself included) have with Bono is that he's so friggin' sacntimonious. That said, it beats the heck out of being apathetic (or avaricious).

Finally, I remember when U2 first showed up, I heard the Edge got a lot of his technique from the guy in Big Country. Dunno how true that is, but, if it is true, Edge certainly grew into the sound. -E

Originally Posted by jamiefbolton

I believe history will show that U2 is our generation's The Beatles. The band that has the most influence on our generation is U2 just as The Beatles changed our parent's generation.

[burningyen]

The Edge

[Neill]

he's a great player.

[jerseydrew]

Originally Posted by pir8matt

I played onstage with U2 in 1985. We played 'knockin on heavens door' by Dylan. It's still one of my best memories, looking over and seeing the Edge there, giving me the cues for the changes, and then the big rock-n-roll finish. Good times.

OMG!!! Awesome

[Tbone135]

We're doing "Streets" this Sunday in church, I can't wait. I'm still trying to nail the stereo delays for the song to really do it justice.

[sharbono]

I think U2 is killer!

[Joe Robinson]

Originally Posted by Jet Age Eric

WHHAAAAT?! U2 are a band with some good songs and the Beatles changed pop music. How has U2 changed ANY generation? I was a kid when U2 first showed up (and I loved New Year's Day and Gloria), but I don't think they changed me one iota.

The issue so many people (myself included) have with Bono is that he's so friggin' sacntimonious. That said, it beats the heck out of being apathetic (or avaricious).

Finally, I remember when U2 first showed up, I heard the Edge got a lot of his technique from the guy in Big Country. Dunno how true that is, but, if it is true, Edge certainly grew into the sound. -E

Much as I love Stuart Adamson (RIP) I think Edge copped more of his sound from Steve Levine (Public Image Ltd) and Tom Verlaine and Richard Lloyd of Television. But if he did nick some things off of Stuart Adamson, it would have been when Stuart was with the Skids.