I will sing a new song (will you join me?)

As I recently mentioned, I’m a sucker for a community sing-along. For example, I go to Strawberry Fields on John Lennon’s birthday and the anniversary of his death every year — to sing his songs amongst hundreds of others (including musicians of all stripes).

Massive singalong at Strawberry Fields in Central Park — in the shadow of The Dakota — on the anniversary of John Lennon’s death: Dec. 8, 2014

When U2 was the biggest rock band in the world, I saw them live many times. They always closed their shows with a song called “40” (named for Psalm 40). 

The song would end with the band leaving the stage one by one, and the crowd staying in their seats to continue singing the chorus for a while. 

One particular time, I saw U2 at the Meadowlands Arena (formerly Brendan Byrne Arena) in NJ. The band played “40” and the crowd sang “How long to sing this song?” in unison even as we left the arena. To get to the parking lot, we had to walk through a long covered bridge. 

The singing continued into that elevated tunnel, thousands of voices echoing and bouncing off the metal walls. I can still recall the chills I felt for those few minutes of collective joy.

In a culture like ours, you don’t take such moments for granted.

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Here’s a video of U2 closing a show with “40” in Paris — all the more fun since the French audience is singing along in English:

P.S. I don’t need anyone to tell me that Bono is an asshole and that U2 devolved into self-parody and globalism a long time ago. That doesn’t deter my gratitude a single iota. You can appreciate art while feeling disdain for the artist. It just requires you to keep yer guard up…