U2 & The Olson's

U2. Rose Bowl. The Olsons. The anticipation grew stronger each of the six months since the tickets were purchased. On October 25, 2009, it happened. And it was amazing.

I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, so I can’t say the experience was beyond my expectations, but it was definitely a spiritual event and one that Erin and I won’t soon forget. That is a lot to say considering the local hype and historical precedence of U2 concerts in general.

It was the biggest event and crowd in the history of Pasadena’s Rose Bowl. 95,000 people shared this experience with us on a perfect night in Southern California. The news and concert sites had been warning for weeks about the crowd, traffic, parking, and safety concerns. As much as we would have liked to just get down there, tailgate, make it an all day party and not worry about the hassle, we were fortunate to get a sitter and able to leave around 3:30pm for a 7pm concert. Surprisingly for L.A. we ran into very little traffic, caught the end of a blowout Cowboys win on the radio and arrived in Pasadena at a little after 4:30pm. Traffic lines for parking were way backed up. We saw signs for as much as $100. After waiting for 15 minutes or so in one of these lines I realized we were within a mile of the stadium and there were still street parking spots available. After Erin scanned a few cars for expected permits or temporary parking restriction signs, we realized there was no reason to wait in that interminable line. So we just parked on the street and walked the half mile to the stadium. Lesson for Angelinos: if you are willing to walk a little, you never have to pay for parking.

So we got there at 5 and they were just starting to let people in. Our friend Katie Taylor was already in with field seats. Let me pause a moment to tell you about our tickets. We had field passes, but they had seat assignments printed on the tickets. When I got the tickets, Erin was not pregnant, so I figured that even if it was general admission field passes, we would be the first in and be close to the action. Well, when we were finally let in we confirmed that our “field passes” were exactly that. We were one of probably 10,000 to 20,000 just let on the field left to fend for ourselves. We were in so early that our friend Katie Taylor had actually helped us get in the inner circle of this field. The only problem was there were absolutely no seats. We were going to be 5 feet from Bono, but packed in like sardines with nowhere to sit. 10 years ago this would have been a dream, but after having already gone through a high-risk pregnancy with Erin and having another one on the way, there was no chance I was going to let her claustrophobic pregnant self stand in that sea of people for the next 7 hours.

So, I did what my dad and gramps always taught me to do at huge sporting events. Act like you know what you are doing, ask the right questions, and you will get anywhere you want. So I went to the band and crew entrance and talked to some guy titled “complimentary services director” he radioed me to guest services, I told the guy my story with a smile, and in return we received two great tickets in the stage end of the field about 50 rows up.


All this, and we still got to take our seats in time to see the Black-eyed Peas open. Now everyone knows I like to move it a little, so it was a perfect beginning as Erin and I got to shake what our momz gave us. Disclaimer: I wasn’t a big Fergie fan before this, but I do have to admit the girl could sing. Her little cameo with guest star/surprise Slash was pretty impressive. She could flat out blow.

Alright, alright, I know this has been tedious and I should get to U2 already, but the truth is I have a hard time explaining how great it was. I have put some clips in here to try and capture it a little and I don’t want to idolize them or anything, but I just think as musicians and artists they get it. They understand their giftings and use them to create something beautiful and uniquely them that uses those giftings to the best of their abilities. Yes, I think Bono’s voice is going a little. Yes, this album was not their best. But they are also U2. Probably the best band of my generation. And as I scanned the Rose Bowl as we all sang “with or without you” I saw almost every age, ethnicity, and socioeconomic background I could imagine belting their guts out. It was really quite beautiful. And because they are a rock band they get a pass to sing and talk about spirituality, relationships with God, forgiveness, goodwill, etc… And they do unashamedly, but they still know how they were provided that opportunity, by playing great music.

For me, U2’s art…that great music…reflects what is beautiful and true. The music and concert points to God and to Christ and at times was like a worship experience. At one point during the concert Bono broke into a verse of Amazing Grace. It wasn’t self indulgent. It wasn’t trite or overdone. It was just him acapella and thousands screaming it out of tune along with him. I started to tear. And just when that started the band kicked in with the familiar beginning to my all time favorite U2 song “Where the Streets Have No Name.” As if this were not enough, Erin then leans over and whispers to me, “He’s kicking like crazy!” My unborn son sharing this worship experience with me. Of course, the waterworks opened at this point and God as he so often does, just put everything in perspective for me.


Like I said, a few years ago nothing could have torn us from that spot close to the stage, close to the lights, to the stars, with a chance to be on the world-wide broadcast or their documentary or something. There was still a part of us that, from a couple of hundred feet up, were still wishing we were down there losing our voices shouting and then telling everyone about it. But that singular brief whisper of my wife, amidst the blaring beautiful sounds of my favorite band, and surrounded by the whispy smoke and smell of weed and flashing lights were infinitely more exhilarating than anything I could have imagined or dreamed of in that moment. Thanks U2.