Night 3 setlist for U2:UV at the Sphere, Las Vegas, 05/10/23
After a few nights off, U2 are back at the Sphere in Las Vegas for the third night of their 25-show residency.
The setlist was identical to the first two nights (not counting snippets). This is the first time U2 have played the same set at three shows in a row since 4, 5, and 8 September 2018, two nights in Cologne followed by a third in Paris. In the last 15 years, there have only been six instances (including tonight) where U2 have played the exact same songs in the exact same order at 3+ consecutive shows. Only one of those sequences is more than 3 shows long—and we are teases who will tell you when it was if/when U2 match it on this residency!
Bono was in a chatty mood tonight (when isn't he? but especially tonight!). At all three shows so far, he has riffed on the Sphere as a cathedral and the stereotype of getting married in Las Vegas. During Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World, he remarked that "this evening we're renewing our vows with the band and the U2 crowd ... your vow is you gave us a life that we could never imagine, and in return our vow is that we wouldn't be boring bastards. So, we brought you here. Is it OK?" Judging by the crowd reactin, they were suitably impressed by the spectacle that is the Sphere.
Bram van den Berg is filling in for Larry on drums at these shows. At the start of Even Better Than the Real Thing each night, Bono has proclaimed "I know who you are!" to both Edge and Adam, then quipped to the drummer "who the fuck are you?" Later, he introduces Bram to the crowd, tonight remarking that "the very gifted but injured Larry Mullen Jr" is replaced by "the man who was a student, but now a professor". Bono asked Bram "are you Larry Mullen's representative on earth?" Bram deadpanned back "no; he doesn't need one, does he!"
After the opening sequence of eight songs from Achtung Baby, U2 again did four from Rattle & Hum. Bono hinted on-stage at the first two shows that this segment might be rotational, and pre-tour rumours suggested the band had worked on some options, but it seems the band are enjoying the Rattle & Hum segment. It gives Bono an opportunity to talk about the band's influences, especially their experiences in the late 1980s exploring American musical traditions, from blues and R&B to country. He spoke of how "we tried to educate ourselves into these extraordinary artists... and we made an album about our explorations, which is a ballsy move!". He then termed Rattle & Hum a "fanboy" record.
All I Want Is You had an extended sing-along snippet of Walk on the Wild Side, as it did on night two, and Bono also attempted Suspicious Minds at the end of Angel of Harlem—it was a fairly extended but somewhat garbled snippet, with Bono quipping "sorry Elvis!" at the end.
When Bono introduced So Cruel, he noted that it is lyrically "unfair" and "written from a man's point of view". He remarked that it should have actually been titled I'm So Cruel.
The full setlist was:
- I Could Have Lost You (snippet) / Zoo Station
- The Fly
- Black Dog (snippet) / Even Better Than The Real Thing
- Mysterious Ways
- One
- Love Me Tender (snippet) / Until the End of the World / Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien (snippet)
- Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
- Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World
- All I Want Is You Songs of Surrender Mix / Walk On The Wild Side (snippet)
- Desire
- Angel of Harlem / Suspicious Minds (snippet)
- Love Rescue Me
- So Cruel
- Acrobat
- Ultraviolet (Light My Way)
- Love Is Blindness / Viva Las Vegas (snippet)
- Elevation / My Way (snippet)
- Atomic City
- Vertigo
- Moment of Surrender (snippet) / Where the Streets Have No Name / All You Need Is Love (snippet)
- With or Without You
- Beautiful Day / What a Wonderful World (snippet)
encore(s):
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