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History FAQ
B: The Unforgettable Fire to Conspiracy of Hope
- Where is the castle on the cover of The Unforgettable Fire?
- Where did the idea for The Unforgettable Fire come from?
- Who is the Mrs. Christine Kerr listed in the liner notes?
- Is it true U2 were unhappy with their performance at Live Aid?
- How did U2 get involved with Amnesty International's "Conspiracy of Hope" tour in 1986?
- What other charities has the band supported over the years?
1.
Where is the castle on the cover
of The Unforgettable Fire?
See the Geography FAQ for the answer.
2. Where did the idea
for The Unforgettable Fire come from?
"The Unforgettable Fire" is the name of a collection of drawings
and pictures made by the survivors of the Hiroshima nuclear bomb
blast at the end of World War II. Although simplistic in depiction,
they are considered national treasures by the Japanese. U2 saw
the
exhibit on a tour stop in Chicago. Touched by the exhibit, it
inspired the song and album title, as well as some of the paintings
used
as
stage
backdrops on the Fire tour. [JC]
The album title also refers to the "unforgettable fire" for equality
and peace which burned inside people like Martin Luther King,
Jr. The songs themselves speak to this, juxtaposing images of
nuclear devastation and human triumph in and between the various
tracks on the album. [JV]
3. Who is the Mrs. Christine
Kerr listed in the liner notes?
It's Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders. She sang backing vocals
on "Pride." At the time The Unforgettable Fire
was recorded, she was married to Jim Kerr of Simple Minds. [MJS,
NC]
4. Is it true U2 were unhappy
with their performance at Live Aid?
See the Live / Concert FAQ for an answer.
5. How did U2
get involved with Amnesty International's "Conspiracy of
Hope" tour in 1986?
See the Live / Concert FAQ for an answer.
6. What other charities has
the band supported over the years?
A glance at some of the booklets accompanying U2's albums indicates
that they support and hold a high regard for Amnesty
International as well as Greenpeace.
The Best Of 1980-1990 also supports War
Child, which aims to assist children in their recovery from
trauma resulting from war. In 2001, however, Bono and several
others dropped their support of War Child when it was discovered
that the co-founder had been stealing money from the organization.
A couple of others that U2 has shown support for in recent years
include the Children of Chernobyl,
championed by Bono's wife; Milarepa, an organization supporting
a Free Tibet (U2 played the
Tibetan Freedom Festival); and most recently, NetAid
and Jubilee 2000 / Drop
the Debt (at least Bono has). Bono has also joined with Bill
Gates and others to create the DATA
initiative. [AC, JP, M2]
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