Today is Memorial Day in the United States of America (a holiday originally called Decoration Day, and set aside to remember those who died in service to the country and those that served in the military). There was a passage in Bill Flanagan’s book U2 At The End of the World that came to mind yesterday when I was thinking about today, and it had to do with the performances of ‘Bullet the Blue Sky’ and ‘Running to Stand Still’ during the Zoo TV tour. Bono played them as a soldier in a war zone. Specifically, he played them as Jerry Mele, their head of security from 89-97. I remember watching it and feeling the power of the performance, but then reading that and finding the story behind it, it gave it a whole new aspect to it.
If you don’t know anything about Jerry, look him up, he was an interesting man. Even if you just read about him in Flanagan’s book, that will give you a glimpse. Sadly, while doing his job for the band during the PopMart tour in Mexico City, Jerry was badly beaten and had to retire. He passed away last month.
Rest in Peace Jerry Mele.
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