Transcript: Live MSN Chat with The Edge

On August 10th, 1997, Edge joined a host of U2 fans for a live chat on the Internet -- hosted from the band's official MSN website. The following is a a transcript of that live chat.

[tom_mcmail] Are you going to put out a live album or video from the tour?
[Tonster] We have no plans for an album as yet...we are putting together some live
   tracks that will probably be released with the next single...
[Tonster] as one or two CD's we're putting out.
[Tonster] There's no video planned, but we might try to do something on TV at the
   end of te tour
[Tonster] It will probably be a broadcast on TV.
*** Tonster is now known as Edge
[tom_mcmail] tiempo says:
[tom_mcmail] Edge: Are you going to make a different setlist to places where you
   hadn't been. (South America, South Africa, etc ) ? We'd like you to play some
   oldies too.
[Edge] The intention would be to try to change things around..
[Edge] do a few songs that we haven't been to before.
[Edge] GA
[tom_mcmail] Aingeal says:
[tom_mcmail] Question: Does your love/need to play live ever influence or even
   interfere with what happens in the studio? do you ever look at a song and
   wonder. 'how are we going to do this live?' would you ever alter a song solely
   for the reason of making it easier to recreate on stage?
[Edge] We change songs alot when we're playing them live - almost every song is
   rearranged for live because
[Edge] it demands a differnet approach
[Edge] some songs, that becomes more changes,
[Edge] other songs, like Staring at the Sun, we stripped back to 2 acoustic guitars
   and 2 voices.
[Edge] I think that pure acoustic arrangements have a place on a record,
[tom_mcmail] Are you going to do more acoustic stuff on the album or further on the
   tour?
[Edge] but I have a feeling that for us, if we were to go into an acousic
   arrangement it would be for an enitre record.
[Edge] We're interested in it, but it's something that we want to explore fully.
[tom_mcmail] pix says:
[tom_mcmail] Question: what's the next step after Surrealism and Pop Art ?
[Edge] I think that it's too soon to say where we're going next - it seems that
   music, like art, is starting to look back on itself.
[Edge] The 90's have turned into a post modern period for music, and we're going to
   try to go where it leads us.
[tom_mcmail] U2AB says:
[tom_mcmail] Edge.. :) Do you find it difficult composing songs on the road?  Are
   you working out any new songs now, like you did on Zooropa?
[Edge] We're working on new songs all the time....
[Edge] any days off, I take up the guitar and use whatever time off I have to work
   on some songs in hotel rooms.
[Edge] GA
[tom_mcmail] Reno`` says:
[tom_mcmail] Hi Mr.Edge, this PopMart Tour seems to have an exuberant,  well
   thought out theme, and yet I think its essence goes above people's head, so what
   exactly is PopMart?
[Edge] Popmart is just our way of making sense of playing in big open air stadiums
   -it's a big show and it's really a setting as much as it a theme for the concert.
[Edge] IT's trying to be humorous about the position we find ourselves in as a big
   band playing big stadiums...
[Edge] we don't want to make the mistake of taking our position too seriously.
[Edge] We take the music seriously, but we're able to laugh at the sheer commerical
   size of what we're undertaking.
[tom_mcmail] MaryG says:
[tom_mcmail] how do you feel about fans putting your copyrighted material on their
   web pages??
[Edge] I don't have a problem with music being on the internet, as long as it's not
   resold because I don't believe that music on the internet is bad for music...
[Edge] I think it's okay for music.
[Edge] To me, it's a bit like when cassette tapes were first made available, the
   music industry thought that blank tapes would
[Edge] destroy the business because people would be at home churning out copies for
   their friends.
[Edge] It never happened.
[Edge] I think music on the internet is going to work out as just another place for
   people to discover new things.
[tom_mcmail] Host Kirsten says:
[tom_mcmail] what's the U2-Willie Nelson relationship?
[Edge] We recorded a track with Willie Nelson that  Bono and I recorded a few years
   ago, called Slow Dancing.
[Edge] He was in Dublin making a film and he walked into the studio.
[Edge] We just cut the song, it took 2 hours to record, but at the right time for
   the right project, it'll come up.
[tom_mcmail] sun says:
[tom_mcmail] cAN we expect you will do again more small stadiums? Edge?
[Edge] We're happy playing big venues right now because we've taken on that
   challenge.
[Edge] I do like playing smaller arenas and maybe for the next tour we'll play
   smaller venues.
[tom_mcmail] Are we going to hear "Van Diemen's Land" in Dublin?
[Edge] I doubt it - I think that Van Dieman's Land is a tune that I wrote for Bono
   to sing - I ended up singing it on the album because I was just working it out,
   really.
[Edge] Although I like the tune, I don't think I'll be singing that one.
[Edge] I always thought Bono could sing it better, but he never got around to it.
[tom_mcmail] Mirrorball says:
[tom_mcmail] Edge: were you and the guys shocked by William Burrough's death?
[Edge] I was very surprised and saddened by his death - he seemed so full of light
   when we met him for the Last Night on Earth video.
[Edge] We'd met him before and he was always incredibly funny and smart and sharp
   and if I was half as bright as he was at his age, I'd be very happy.
[tom_mcmail] Aingeal says:
[tom_mcmail] Edge you have said in past interviews that you won't play a song like
   "Bad" live because you feel it has been played too much over the last fifteen
   years. The same could be said for Pride, yet you ARE playing it...why?
[Edge] All the songs we're playing in the show are songs that we feel we can make
   sense of in this tour, in Popmart.
[Edge] I wouldn't rule any old song out, I feel we can play any of our old songs,
   bur we've chosen the ones we have because they work - they make sense.
[tom_mcmail] brii whispers to Kirsten:
[tom_mcmail] Edge - does anyone on the crew/in the band ever read wire? Have you
   figured out what it IS yet?  ANd if so, what do you think of it?
[Edge] I haven't read it recently.
[tom_mcmail] MsTheEdge says:
[tom_mcmail] QUESTION: Do you use the internet on your own time for personal
   purposes?
[Edge] Occassionally, but mostly just for email and what have you.
[tom_mcmail] Eric says:
[tom_mcmail] Why haven't ya'll played any Zooropa tunes on your tour yet and do you
    plan on putting any Zooropa tunes on the tour in the future?
[Edge] We might well, we haven't made a decision not to, it's just we found
   ourselves leaning towards other tunes.
[Edge] We don't think about what album something's come from, we just figure out if
   it's going to make sense in the context of what we're doing.
[tom_mcmail] bonowannabe says:
[tom_mcmail] Please tell us about the oh so Spinal Tap moment when the Lemon
   wouldn't open!
[Edge] It's just funny for us - we knew that there was a chance that it would
   happen at some point on the tour.
[Edge] When it finally did, we couldn't stop laughing.
[tom_mcmail] Delaware_usa says:
[tom_mcmail] QUESTION- Edge if you could have personally witnessed one event in
   history, what would you want to have seen?
[Edge] I'm happy living right now and seeing what I'm seeing - I wouldn't have
   liked to have lived at any other time.
[tom_mcmail] RENZO says:
[tom_mcmail] EDGE-Will there ever be another U2 movie ala Rattle and Hum
[Edge] I don't think we're going to do another movie in a hurry [laughs]
[tom_mcmail] Mr_Jetlag says:
[tom_mcmail] Do you find after a tour when you hear the opening song on the radio
   you get a tinggle like you're about to go on stage
[Edge] Yeah - it's a strange sensation. You've heard of Pavlov's dog? I can tell
   you it's all true.
[tom_mcmail] Bonedog says:
[tom_mcmail] EDGE Question:  Are worried about safety in Belfast?
[Edge] No. Not at all. We're just looking forward to a great show and a great day.
[tom_mcmail] Gibigiane says:
[tom_mcmail] What do you think of Sojourner - the Mars Probe
[Edge] I'm all in favor of Mars, I think Mars is a fantastic idea.
[tom_mcmail] ParadiseCowgirl says:
[tom_mcmail] edge, what's one of your favorite songs to perform live right now?
   (asking for someone who can't be here now)
[Edge] Right now, Please, because we're having a lot of fun playing different
   arrangement ideas.
[tom_mcmail] Severian says:
[tom_mcmail] QUESTION : What do you think of bootlegged concerts?
[Edge] I have no problems with bootlegs, I think, again, if people make recordings
   and give them to fhier friends - as long as people don't get ripped off.
[tom_mcmail] Boogaloo says:
[tom_mcmail] what happend to your Gibson Explorer?
[Edge] It's actually just on a long vacation, but it's still around.
[tom_mcmail] NYCGavin says:
[tom_mcmail] EDGE:  What can you tell us about your next single?
[Edge] It's gonna be finished in another few days and we're going to be giving it
   to the radio probably in another 3-4 weeks and it's a new version of Please.
[tom_mcmail] Candy says:
[tom_mcmail] Edge:where do you think you'd be if you weren't in u2 now?
[Edge] Sitting at home. [laughs]
[tom_mcmail] KatrinaD says:
[tom_mcmail] EDGE]] will there be anymore songs off future albums that you will be
   singing lead vocals?
[Edge] We actually have a very good singer, so I don't know if I'll do any more
   lead vocals, but maybe.
[tom_mcmail] USTAY2 says:
[tom_mcmail] What is your most memorable moment of the whole tour so far?
[Edge] I think the opening night, and realizing that everything worked and no one
   had been killed trying to get out of the lemon and that we'd remembered all the
   songs and that we hadn't had a big argument...
[Edge] just that it went so well in the end.
[tom_mcmail] godpart3 says:
[tom_mcmail] Is the chemistry in the band on a personal and professional level
   still as strong as it was in 1977 or whatever?
[Edge] We're still getting on just as well as we always have and everyone does what
   I say, that's the important thing.
[tom_mcmail] RENZO says:
[tom_mcmail] Edge- where is the coolest place you've ever been in your travels with
   u2?
[Edge] The coolest place - I've been to a lot of cool places along the way, it's
   hard to say which is the coolest.
[Edge] Currently, Tokyo is somewhere I'm fascinated with because it's so different
   to where I grew up, but it changes, you know, I love America.
[Edge] The southwest in particular.
[tom_mcmail] NYCGavin says:
[tom_mcmail] Edge:  Will Brian Eno and/or Daniel Lanois be involved in producing
   future U2 albums???
[Edge] I hope we do end up working with Brian and Danny again because they're
   fantastic to work with.
[Edge] It would depend on what record we were trying to make was and what they were
   doing at the time.
[tom_mcmail] Host Kirsten says:
[tom_mcmail] have your parents ever been to a show?
[Edge] They tend to come out a couple of times every tour to have a laugh.
[tom_mcmail] Chia_Pet says:
[tom_mcmail] Edge: how's it feel to be getting older in a business that's rough
   even when you're young?
[Edge] I still feel like I'm 16 - that's not a problem.
[tom_mcmail] Patrick_M says:
[tom_mcmail] Mr. THE EDGE: Rumor has it U2 recorded over 30 songs for Pop. However,
   only one brand new song has emerged - "Holy Joe" so far on the B-sides. What
   about the other songs? Will they ever hit the surface?
[Edge] Yeah, they definitely will along the way - we have to finish them first.
[tom_mcmail] Wintermute says:
[tom_mcmail] Question: Any chance of collaborations with people like Bjork and
   David Bowie?
[Edge] We're always interested in a new collaborator, but there's no plans to work
   with either Bjork or Bowie.
[tom_mcmail] Guggi says:
[tom_mcmail] Question: any idea who will open up for U2 on the third leg of the
   tour?
[Edge] We're still listening to CD's and seeing who's available. We can't really
   say just yet.
[tom_mcmail] Host Kirsten says:
[tom_mcmail] what advice do you have for bands just starting out?
[Edge] Write brilliant songs.
[tom_mcmail] salome269 says:
[tom_mcmail] edge...what keeps you motivated for performing??
[Edge] Just playing every night with Adam and Larry and Bono and the fact that
   every show is different and every time we play, there are new discoveries.
[tom_mcmail] alison2 says:
[tom_mcmail] QUESTION: Edge, why did all of you choose the Microsoft network for
   your website?
[Edge] We wanted to do something that was more ambitious than most other websites.
[Edge] To do that, we felt that we needed a partner and Microsoft Network seemed
   like the perfect partner for us to put this together with.
[tom_mcmail] USTAY2 says:
[tom_mcmail] Question:how do you manage to keep an exceptional relation ship within
   U2 for over 20 years?
[Edge] We met before we were a band, so that helps everything.
[tom_mcmail] ParadiseCowgirl says:
[tom_mcmail] edge, what's your least favorite thing about touring?
[Edge] Coming home and having to figure out how to live a regular life again.
[tom_mcmail] metal says:
[tom_mcmail] hi edge, im pastry chef at the intercontinental in helsinki ..did you
   get the birthday cake me and steve made for you
[Edge] yes, it was fantastic! Sorry I couldn't bring it with me.
[tom_mcmail] VON says:
[tom_mcmail] Are U2's  tours actually going to get any bigger?  Or are you going to
   go back to smaller venues
[Edge] I can't see them getting any bigger...but we haven't decided what we're
   going to do next time.
[tom_mcmail] m_doughty says:
[tom_mcmail] edge: what bands  have you been listening to lately?
[Edge] All kinds of stuff...I love the Verve's new single...Fun Loving Criminals,
   Nina Simone's early recordings.
[tom_mcmail] And one last question....
[tom_mcmail] Host Maggie2 says:
[tom_mcmail] Host Maggie2 says:
[tom_mcmail] one more time - Edge - when you look back on your life with U2 did you
   ever imagine you'd come this far and stay in the business for so long?
[tom_mcmail] Any last thoughts for us, Edge?
[Edge] Always hoped that we'd be making great music for a few years, but I never
   thought that we'd be still so into it all after being together for over a dozen
   years. We're still aiming to make the perfect record.
[Edge] Stay in touch - hopefully we'll see you along the way -and thanks for tuning
   in.
[tom_mcmail] Thanks so much - this has been great!
[tom_mcmail] Thanks again for coming!
[tom_mcmail] See you all soon -we'll be doing a chat with Adam Clayton after the
   Dublin show!

-- end --