Brown Thomas Band

Joe & U2

28/07/1979 Dandelion Market, Dublin This is the only known concert U2 play without The Edge on guitar. Joe Savino (from the Brown Thomas Band) & Denis Rusk of the (Strougers) join U2 on stage, included in the set is a cover version of the “Pistols” “Pretty vacant”.

Emmett O’Reilly  Well, there was the fairly-well documented incident where Denis’s foot went through a hole in the patched-up stage, right up to his thigh and he just kept playing. Sound was pretty good, the band were getting very solid, as I recall. U2’s set at the time was well-paced, power-pop with a touch of a more expansive style developing. Edge was beginning to sound like a serious, serious talent & I often spent entire gigs mostly listening to his playing.

Denis Rusk the stage was scaffolding poles with lino to stand on. Very rock and roll.

Pete McCluskey “the edge was taken ill with suspect meningitis and bono played and sang for the first couple of numbers. he soon found the guitar a bit restricting and asked was there anyone in the audience who could play guitar. without hesitation, joe savino put his hand up and called to bono. he made his way to the stage and strapped on the guitar and played a few n umbers with the rest of u2 – i’m nearly sure i remember one song was a rolling stones song… I remember he was wearing a black overcoat at the time and he looked like one of echo and the bunnymen aginst the u2 lads in their t-shirts.”

Colm O’Kelly I remember that dando gig(when the edge got sick)Paul came running out into the courtyard in a total panic running around like a looney and spotting band members (me included) I`m sorry to say that I didn’t help him but enjoyed seeing him sweat a bit, guess I was jealous of them.

Peter McCluskey “THE ONE WITH PETE AT THE DANDELION WHERE HIS GLASSES FELL OFF…..1979 was sure a craaaazy year. note the jumper i’m wearing…an old girlfriend gave it to me and i had to keep wearing it and wearing it and wearing it in case she’d turn up to see was i wearing it and if i wasn’t I just KNEW there’d be trouble…….”

for those of you who rememeber the dandelion gigs on a Saturday and Sunday afternoons…the Strougers ( a band I was in ) played there a number of times – 2/3 times supporting an up-and-coming U2 …came across this old newspaper ad…

Bitzy “i can remember the concrete floor with rain puddles, steel girders for the roof, the stage made up of pallets etc, sticky fingers sprayed on the wall of stage, dodging glass flagons of cider bottles, bottles of lady esquire, lots and i mean lots of spit, speed and more speed (allegedly) hippies rippin ya off with oxo cubes posing as dope (their revenge), watchin the pretty sing ”vive la rock n roll”, gettin crushed as the black catholics dragged u2’s amps off the stage (titter titter), then retiring to the suffolk house to re-live it all!! halcyon days.”

Peter McCluskey i remember you falling off stage, i remember playing support to u2, i remember jumping off stage after our set and then standing with a taperecorder recording the u2 gig – still have it on tape. i remember playing with another band of mine called DRIVER, whatshisname o’rourke on bass, bill graham was there and reviewed us in hotpress the next week. i remember playing with u2 and the edge couldn’t make it cos he had suspected meningitis and bono had to play guitar. he got fed up, asked if anyone could play guitar and joe savino jumped on stage and played. i remember trying to hold my balance on the shifting planks of the stage. i remember the music, the fun, the thrill of it all……..

Bitzy that’s right, we played a version of anarchy in the UK

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