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U2‘s inaugural show at the Sphere in Las Vegas was attended by Paul McCartney. Lead singer Bono reflected on meeting the former Beatle after the show on September 29, 2023.
In an interview aired on U2 X-Radio on SiriusXM (via the Daily Mail), Bono revealed the precautions he took for his voice. Given the band spent months in the dry desert, he had to be careful. He would have to stay indoors with humidifiers, something he compared to being in a “reptile house.”
“It was like the reptile house in the zoo when we were kids in Dublin, and so the missus didn't want to be in the room,” he said. “It was like she said, the smell of boiled carpet off you and I'm like, ‘Okay, that's not good.'
“When we did the first show as Edge was saying, something went off and we had a visitation. We had a visitation and if you're gonna drop a name, drop a big name. We had a visitation from a Beatle. That's right, we had a Beatle. We had the Macca, we had Paul McCartney, and I hadn't been able to see any of the guests because of my voice. I've been locked up in the reptile house, but he came round, the band came round, we all had one moment with the Beatle and he gave us the benediction,” Bono continued.
Paul McCartney's Sphere review
Upon seeing U2 at the Sphere, McCartney was impressed with the sound. Bono said that McCartney claimed he could “hear you better than ever. I could see you.”
It sounds like McCartney also really enjoyed the acoustic set in the middle of the show. Rather than the larger-than-life imagery seen early in the show, the band plays to minimal lighting (mostly from its turntable stage). This helped U2 realize the possibilities for this portion of the show. They would subsequently break out deep cuts like “Peace on Earth” and “Seconds” during this set during future shows.
U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere was the band's first concert residency in Las Vegas. They were the first band to play at the high-tech venue.
At the inaugural show that McCartney attended, Bono paid tribute to the former Beatle. He sang snippets of “Love Me Do”; “All You Need Is Love”; “Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band”; and “Blackbird.”
