U2 Live 05/15/81 California

I love early U2. Such raw energy, that sound was so new and fresh for 1981!

This is footage arranged by Bill Graham (USA) for the purpose of creating a live video of “I Will Follow”. You can hear at the end of the first play of “I Will Follow” that Bono says “good, good”, indicating to management and the video crew that the band performed a version he deemed good enough for a video. Eventually that performance made its way to MTV and was played over and over in 1981-83, albeit with a slightly different camera edit. There is also “rehearsal” footage from the afternoon in existence that shows the band running through “I Will Follow” more than several times, so the camera crew could get used to the song for positioning etc., and perhaps for “fill in shots” if needed. It’s all available on a fairly popular bootleg. Thanks Bill Graham.

Edge's distinctive, chiming style and nearly flawless playing already established and get this: he's only 19 in this footage. He would turn 20 later that summer. Larry would turn 20 in the fall.

They are so tight as a band here with songs that are melodic, pulsating and rhythmic and not just unrestrained power chord energy and poorly mixed vocals as-is the fault of so many young bands, especially around this time. Five years prior U2 was simply an idea (if that even) while forming and unable to play their instruments. Except Larry. Their creative ascension these years was something to behold.

0:00 The Ocean
1:40 11 O’clock Tick Tock
6:20 I Will Follow
10:00 I Fall Down
13:20 An Cat Dubh/Into the Heart
21:00 Touch
24:10 Another Time Another Place
28:30 Cry/Electric Co
33:21 Things to Make and Do
35:35 Stories for Boys
39:02 Boy/Girl
43:02 Out of Control
48:20 Twilight (lighting goes out)
54:40 I Will Follow #2
59:55 A Day Without Me
1:02:55 11 O’clock Tick Tock #2
1:07:40 The Ocean #2

Thank you so much for this. I worked at Wherehouse Records when "Boy" came out and I used to blast it through the store. Bono is just a first class person. I love Edge's musicianship too! Rock on!

U2 in the 80's🔝great performance, so much energy! Bono being funny "i'm gonna drink that stuff anyway...love it!sounds good! thanks for the upload!
💞🎶🎸🥁

THANKS for this! I've been looking for this ever since I saw it on MTV in the 80's

This is Gold

Wow, what a find! Thank you for posting this. Adorable U2, when they were so young 😍

Such an awesome find and amazing quality!!! The BEST!!! Love these lads!! This was some of my very favorites from them. ☘️ 🇮🇪

Awesome, thanx for sharing, I'd have Happily bought DVD in HMV

Lo máximo esos años de U2

bono was only 21!!!!! Still already a great band.....

I was at this concert. This was a small place called "The Hall". This was the first time I had seen U2. Many of the people at this show where only somewhat familiar with U2"s music. When I saw U2 at this show I was not sure if U2 where going to blow up big, or just blow up. I had seen many bands by then that where great, but just fell apart shortly after for some reason. I had also seen U2's nemeses "Killing Joke" a short while before this show. They where also really good like U2 was when I saw them.

Never seen this before, quality is superb, thanks!

A epically unique masterpiece 🍀

The Edge in those days only had 2 guitars one Stratocaster and one Gibson Explorer and one amp called a vox which he still uses today. Today he uses 19 different guitars for a concert a wall of electronics massive pedal board and a sound check guy Dallas.

thank you for the upload

Nice to know that they aren't traveling in a bus anymore as Bono mentioned that they were at this show.

Sounds like the song called,The ocean to start the show until 1:37,then 11 o'clock tick tock from the under a blood red sky album,then Fall down from the October album,then the beginning of Into the heart from Boy,then the non album track Touch,then The electric company from boy,then, a instrumental track,then stories for boys,then the non album track called Boy/Girl,then Out of control,then Twilight,then at the one hour mark its a great version of,A day without you from the Boy album,