It's been three decades since some of us slipped U2's hot new cassette tape "The Joshua Tree" into the old Walkman while waiting for the school bus. The anthemic and politically-charged 1987 album fueled some of our greatest bus rides and many of U2's best live performances, which were filmed for the subsequent documentary Rattle & Hum. If this video doesn't give you goosebumps, then I guess you won't be blowing your hard-earned money on U2 tickets this summer...
U2 announced today that they'll be doing a limited Joshua Tree stadium tour starting on May 12th in Vancouver, British Columbia. Each show will feature the album in its entirety, with "support from one of a number of special guests including Mumford & Sons, OneRepublic and The Lumineers in North America and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds in Europe."
The U.S. leg of the tour (see full list below) will take U2 down the west coast and through the southwest, with dates in Houston, Chicago, D.C., MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, and a headlining slot at Bonnaroo, which will mark the first time U2 will headline an American music festival.
In today's press release, The Edge said, "It seems like we have come full circle from when The Joshua Tree songs were originally written, with global upheaval, extreme right wing politics and some fundamental human rights at risk. To celebrate the album - as the songs seem so relevant and prescient of these times too - we decided to do these shows, it feels right for now. We’re looking forward to it." (For more, here's a new interview with The Edge about the tour in Rolling Stone.)
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES:
May 12 - Vancouver, BC - BC Place*
May 14 - Seattle, WA - CenturyLink Field*
May 17 - Santa Clara, CA - Levi's Stadium*
May 20 - Los Angeles, CA - Rose Bowl+
May 24 - Houston, TX - NRG Stadium+
May 26 - Dallas, TX - AT&T Stadium+
June 3 - Chicago, IL - Soldier Field+
June 7 - Pittsburgh, PA - Heinz Field+
June 8-11 - Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo Festival
June 11 - Miami, FL - Hard Rock Stadium^
June 14 - Tampa, FL - Raymond James Stadium^
June 18 - Philadelphia, PA - Lincoln Financial Field+
June 20 - Washington DC - FedExField+
June 23 - Toronto, ON - Rogers Centre+
June 25 - Boston, MA - Gillette Stadium+
June 28 - East Rutherford, NJ - MetLife Stadium+
July 1 - Cleveland, OH - FirstEnergy Stadium^
* with Mumford & Sons
+ with The Lumineers
^ with OneRepublic
Tickets go on sale to the general public on Tuesday, January 17th in the US and Canada. There is also an exclusive priority presale for U2 Subscribers at U2.com from Wednesday, January 11th (9am) through Friday, January 13th (5pm) local times.
