U2 frontman Bono intends to celebrate his 60th birthday today (Sunday May 10) during the Covid-19 restrictions with a long walk.
Speaking to RTÉ, he said: “I was going to have a quiet birthday anyway… just go for a long walk, that was the plan, a bit of a pilgrimage with the family. There are people giving up a lot more than their birthdays, think of people cancelling their weddings, funerals, think about that. I am grateful to just have got here, I am really grateful to the people who got me to where I am, to the band, my mates and the country who gave U2 a great life who allowed us to be useful in this time.”
Bono recently released “Let Your Love Be Known”, a tribute to Italians fighting the pandemic, and collaborated with Jennifer Hudson and other stars to release “Sing4Life”, an ode to social distancing.
Born Paul David Hewson in Dublin on May 10, 1960, Bono was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003 for his successful efforts to relieve third world debt and promote AIDS awareness in Africa. Time Magazine named him Person of the Year in 2005 and Queen Elizabeth II knighted him in 2007, recognition of his philanthropy in both cases.
Bono has been the lead singer of U2 since his high school days. The band’s sixth album, The Joshua Tree, made them international stars. U2 has since released 14 studio albums and 436 songs, according to Wikipedia.
The singer himself revealed to RTÉ that he has been compiling a quarantine playlist during the Covid-19 restrictions.
“I have a top 40 of favourite Irish songs at the moment. There’s everything from Fontaine D.C., going back to the great Shane MacGowan, Van Morrison, Thin Lizzy, Damien Rice, Glen Hansard.”
The playlist also features songs from his son’s band, Inhaler, Dermot Kennedy, The Blades, Picture This, Inhaler and cult Irish hip-hop crew Scary Éire.
Bono’s Full Irish playlist:
- Horslips – Dearg Doom
- Van Morrison – Gloria
- Gilbert O’Sullivan – Get Down
- Thin Lizzy – Dancing in the Moonlight
- The Undertones – Teenage Kicks
- Stiff Little Fingers – Alternative Ulster
- The Boomtown Rats – Neon Heart
- The Radiators – Songs of the Faithful Departed
- The Blades – Downmarket
- Sinead O’Connor – Nothing Compares 2U
- Virgin Prunes- Caucasian Walk
- The Golden Horde – Friends In Time
- Ash – Shining Light
- Aslan – This Is (Live at Vicar Street 1999)
- Something Happens – Hello Hello Hello Hello Hello
- The Pogues – A Rainy Night in Soho
- Clannad – Theme from Harry’s Game
- Christy Moore – North and South of the River
- The Dubliners – Springhill Mining Disaster
- The Cranberries – Linger
- Republic of Loose – Comeback Girl
- Glen Hansard & Market Irglova – Falling Slowly
- Hothouse Flowers – Love Don’t Work This Way
- Andrea Corr – Time Enough for Tears
- Damien Rice – I Don’t Want to Change You
- Hozier – Take Me to Church
- Dermot Kennedy – Outnumbered
- Snow Patrol – Run
- SOAK – Everybody Loves You
- Sorcha Richardson – Ruin Your Night
- Fontaines D.C. – Boys In The Better Land
- The Murder Capital – More Is Less
- Inhaler – It Won’t Always Be Like This
- Imelda May – Black Tears
- Picture This – Take My Hand
- Scary Éire – The Dole Q
- Elma Orkestra & Ryan Vail – Am I Sad?
- Jacknife Lee – I’m Getting Tired with Beth Ditto and Earl St. Clear
- St Francis Hotel feat Waterstrider – We Fall Together (We Fall Apart)
- Paul Brady – The Island
Meanwhile The African Well Fund (AWF) is inviting U2 fans from around the world to donate funds in honor of the musician’s 60th birthday. The funds raised will be used to build a new well serving 2500 in Nsiama, a village located in western DRC where there is currently no potable water. AWF hopes to raise $20,000 to build a solar powered well to serve the community.
Until May 31, fans may donate through the AWF website by clicking here and all donors are invited to add their name and a message to a birthday card that will be sent to Bono upon completion of the fundraiser.
Since 2003, more than $280,000 has been raised in Bono’s honor to fund the construction of clean water and sanitation projects that are benefiting more than 86,000 people in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Mali, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
