Even Better Than the Real Thing: My Unforgettable Experience of U2’s Zoo TV Tour

Zoo TV remains the greatest concert show I have ever seen.
It was 30 years ago, in the days before mobile phones and social media, yet the memories remain vivid. Let me explain why this was such a memorable show.

After the gruelling ‘Rattle & Hum’ tour in support of the Joshua Tree the band had successfully forged a new direction with Achtung Baby and so the tour was set to be different, not just four guys on a stage at the end of a football stadium. This was not a concert, this was a multimedia ‘experience’ and I got to see it twice.

I’d been aware of U2 but only truly became a fan after the release of Rattle & Hum. By the time Achtung Baby was released, I was a committed fan, eager to see this landmark album live. The tour had begun in North American indoor arenas before evolving to become the ‘Zoo TV Outside Broadcast’ in the summer of 1993. They performed a string of dates landing at Wembley Stadium in the August of that year.

ZOO TV Support Acts

The support acts before U2 made it feel more like a festival than a concert. DJ Oakenfold played a set, including his mix of ‘Even Better than the Real Thing’ . The ‘Massive Heeds’ U2 came out to dance and wave at the crowd. These ‘heads’ were created by Galway based ‘Arcana’ , a performance arts company invited by U2 to support the European gigs that summer – one for each band member. You may have also seen them on the later ‘Sweetest Thing’ video.

I think there may have been another support act, but I can’t remember who – maybe the Stereo MCs or PJ Harvey who shared a manager (Paul McGuinness) with the band at the time. I know Bjork/Sugacubes, and the Pixies supported other nights but I think I’d remember seeing them.

There was also the confessional booth – located in the middle of the pitch (on reflection, I guess next to the mixing desk) where anyone could pop in and share a confession which could be broadcast to the audience later in the show. Below is an example of the confessional booth from the Zoo TV Sydney shows.

Zoo TV – The Main Show

From the outset, this show was going to be different. Instead of just having large screens at the side of the stage, they were part of the stage. From the large video wall that Bono/The Fly sticks to at the start of Zoo Station, the opening number, to the bank of TVs on stage that stream messages during The Fly. “Death is a Career Move”

The band were tight, delivering a blistering set that still left time for improvisation. The concept of Zoo TV was presented every night with Bono switching channels on a giant satellite TV, sharing whatever he found – from informercials to cricket matches!

There was also time to call a famous person from the stage every night. In the USA Bono tried the White House switch board almost every night, trying to get hold of George Bush (Senior) who was also parodied in the video segment from the Emergency Broadcast Network.

I read a story recently that said U2 offered free concert tickets and travel for some of the White House staffers that regularly fielded Bono’s calls every night.

I know that Salmon Rushdie was called from the London shows, but I can’t remember if they were on my nights. (YouTube says it was.)

Back to the music and we had lots of Achtung Baby tracks with a few new Zooropa tracks including the title track, Babyface and Numb. Classics including New Year’s Day, Bad, Pride & Where the Streets Have No Name were included to make, in hindsight quite a ‘new set list’ skipping much from the earlier albums, Boy, War and October. Only two tracks from the Unforgettable Fire made the list.

In between the tracks were often video segments recorded by the Emergency Broadcast Network, or spliced by the band’s creative partners.

The B stage gave the band a chance to get closer to the audience to me!! Certainly at London there was a barrier near the main stage effectively controlling the number of fans up front which gave us space to enjoy the show. From this smaller stage the band performed Stay, and Satellite of Love, a Lou Reed cover complete with Lou singing along on a prerecorded video. Bono called this a ‘kitsch moment’ and I personally never felt the song/duet quite worked but I am confidently in a minority here!

Another short break and out came ‘Mr MacPhisto, a Devilish Character (Bono I make up) with Gold Lame suit to perform a few tracks including ‘Daddy’s Gonna Pay for Your Crashed Car’ (a brilliantly gritty song from Zooropa) before we head to the end.

“Off with the horns, on with the show”, said MacPhisto as we end with ‘Love is Blindness’. As the Bono signs, the screens show the constellations spinning. We end with a riff on Elvis ‘I Can’t Help Falling In Love” and we are done. U2 has left the building.

It shows, I feel, the strength of the band, of the show and the performance that we didn’t end on Pride or any major rocker. We ended on the final track from Achtung Baby and, in my opinion, one of U2’s greatest tracks.

Zoo TV on YouTube

I recently found on YouTube a video that someone had recorded for the 11th August 1993 show. Whilst the camera is shaky and the quality poor, it serves as a great testament to ‘how’ the show delivered on the night. Full props to the person that smuggled a video camera in there and recorded so much!

If you haven’t seen the full show then do try to catch it on YouTube. You can find [versions of] the official show and handicam footage from other shows. I have a growing Zoo TV Playlist if you want to explore more.

Zoo TV Concert Programme

The tour programme was also more than just a tour programme, yes it had the usual band blurb, tour personnel and photos but it also had so much more.

Inside the concert programme was a pack U2 condoms (I think, can’t find mine) and a printed set of stickers in the centrefold including:

• Zoo TV Ecus – fake currency with Bonos face on one side.
• Zooropa 93 – a round blue sticker
• Zoo Cola – A new label four your soft drink can
• Eua De Parfum Zoo – a new label for your perfume bottle

Zoo TV CD Recording

Until this year, U2 had never released an official recording of the concerts. But I did find my own copy. I remember paying £32 for a bootleg copy in some record store in the Calls area of Leeds. I remember thinking that was a lot of money, but the audio quality and the CD insert was good quality. I think the audio came from the Sydney Australia gig recorded on the 27th November 1993, which I think was featured on the official DVD/Video.

Zoo TV Set List – Wembley Stadium 11th August 1993

1. Zoo Station
2. The Fly
3. Even Better Than the Real Thing
4. Mysterious Ways (with “Funky Town” and “Love to Love You Baby” snippet)
5. One (with “Unchained Melody” snippet)
6. Until the End of the World
7. New Year’s Day
8. Numb
9. Zooropa
10. Babyface (live debut)
11. B-Stage: Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
12. Satellite of Love (Lou Reed cover)
13. Bad (with “Fool to Cry” and “The First Time” snippets)
14. Bullet the Blue Sky
15. Running to Stand Still (with “The End” snippet)
16. Where the Streets Have No Name
17. Pride (In the Name of Love)
18. Encore: Desire (with “You Make Me Feel So Young” and “Those Were the Days, My Friend” snippets)
19. Ultraviolet (Light My Way)
20. Love Is Blindness
21. Can’t Help Falling in Love (Elvis Presley cover)

Were you there? Have you seen Achtung Baby/ Zoo TV Live? What did you think?

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