New Zealand: Bono makes emotional plea
Offered by:
U2 frontman Bono has made an emotional plea for One Tree Hill to be replanted.
His Irish supergroup became passionate about the Auckland landmark after their Kiwi roadie Greg Carroll took them there in the early '80s.
When the Wanganui sound engineer died in a motorbike accident, Bono wrote the song One Tree Hill in his honour and dedicated the album on which it appeared, The Joshua Tree, to Greg.
Bono was gutted to return more than a decade later to find the tree gone.
The 125-year-old Monterey pine was felled in October 2000, six years after Maori activist Mike Smith attacked it with a chainsaw.
Standing where the tree once dominated the Auckland skyline, Bono said: "Somebody plant a tree on that beautiful hill.
"Someone take some seeds up there."
U2's return to New Zealand - for packed concerts last night and Friday at Auckland's Mt Smart Stadium - coincided with the 20th anniversary of Greg's death.
Reminiscing about the Kiwi roadie he loved like a brother, Bono told fans: "We spent some time here when our friend was lost in a car accident.
"We went to the tangi - the funeral for Greg.
"It was a really important and very moving occasion to be with him and his family.
"I've often thought that if in Ireland we had that, I'd have been there for a few weeks when my father Bob died."
U2 played One Tree Hill at both their Mt Smart Stadium gigs.
The band's manager Paul McGuinness, whose sister Katie dated Greg, said it would not be possible to play Auckland without the song.
"We asked Greg's family to come as our guests. We've kept in touch with them."
Greg hooked up with U2 when they were in the country in 1984 on their Unforgettable Fire tour.
He joined as a soundman, and became Bono's personal assistant, touring Europe and North America.
Greg, nicknamed G-Dub, was knocked off his motorbike by a drunk driver and killed in Dublin in 1986. He was 26.
A devastated Bono, drummer Larry Mullen and several members of the U2 entourage brought his body back to New Zealand for his tangi at Kai iwi Marae, near Wanganui.
The three-day tangi was led by Greg's uncle, Maori music legend Dalvanius Prime. Bono read a poem and sang.
Dalvanius' sister, Barletta Prime, said: "It was just so fabulous of the band to bring him home."
Greg's aunt Barletta said he loved the time he spent with U2.
Greg was a devoted member of the Ratana Church, and after the tangi Bono and Larry visited the religion's temple, Te Temepara, before heading back to Auckland to visit One Tree Hill which Greg loved.
At the time, Bono said: "In the short time we had together Greg became flesh and blood, he felt like my brother.
"He was one of those guys of whom you say, `He's too good for this world.'
"We haven't and I don't think we will ever get over his loss."
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home