Last night (December 6), U2 performed their first of two rescheduled tour dates at the AccordHotel Arena in Paris following the dreadful terrorist attacks that took place at Le Bataclan last month, bringing out Patti Smith to assist them on tracks "Gloria" and "People Have the Power."
Smith has performed alongside U2 in the past; in fact, she only recently joined them in London for the same set of songs. The collaboration first performed Smith's "Gloria," which appears on her 1975 album Horses, followed by U2's motivational "People Have the Power," which seemed to resonate with the resilient crowd who were celebrating their strength as a nation.
According to Consequence of Sound, the band's frontman Bono proclaimed his gratitude for the crowd's attendance. "Grief is like a wound that never fully closes," he said. "I am still feeling it and I was 14 when my mother left me but she left me as an artist and this wound became an opening into another world and I found these three (pointing to his band). Rock n' roll saved me, these men saved me, you saved me."
He added, "We can't save you but our role tonight is to serve you. We have the privilege to be your servants this evening" just before dedicating "Iris (Hold Me Close)" to his mother.
France is currently under a state of emergency following the attacks, which took place at the local concert hall where U.S. band Eagles Of Death Metal were performing at the time. Although the band was rumored to serve as U2's surprise guest, they were not in attendance at the show, however, there's still one more night of the rescheduled event remaining (December 7), when HBO is scheduled to also film the show as a concert special.
