I WILL FOLLOW
U2 STUDIES
The U2 Conference supports studying the music, work, and influence of U2, and U2 fandom. We want to make that easier for you with the resources below.
If you would like to create and curate a resources list, focused on a special topic related to U2 that supports the goal of The U2 Conference, please contact Scott Calhoun.
If you have a question or comment about studying U2 and its fans, the best way to get help with your research is to post in our U2 Studies channel on Discord.
U2 STUDIES: BRENDAN KENNELLY RESOURCES
Curated by Angela Pancella
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- The Book of Judas
- The Little Book of Judas
- The Essential Brendan Kennelly: Selected Poems (with CD)
- Bono reads “All Over Again” for the video launch of the Brendan Kennelly Literary Archive at Trinity College Dublin
- Bono reads “God’s Laughter” for the recoding Voices and Poetry of Ireland
- Angela Pancella’s “U2 Connections: Brendan Kennelly” article for @U2
- Åke Persson’s academic article “Betraying the Age: Brendan Kennelly’s Mission,” Irish University Review, Vol. 26, No. 1 (Spring-Summer, 1996), pp. 118-126, published by Edinburgh University.
- U2ConCast interviews with poets and scholars about Brendan Kennelly:
Poet Katie Donovan
Dr. Åke Persson
Dr. Mary McAuliffe
Coming Soon!
U2 STUDIES: EUGENE PETERSON, THE MESSAGE AND THE PSALMS
Curated by Angela Pancella
- During U2’s Elevation tour, Bono regularly recited Psalm 116: 12-14 from The Message at the beginning of “Where The Streets Have No Name,” 2001
- Angela Pancella wrote “U2 Connections: Eugene Peterson” for @U2, 2002
- Eugene Peterson wrote the Foreword to Get Up Off Your Knees, Preaching the U2 Catalog, Eds.
- Scott Calhoun wrote “Bono’s Prophetic Vox: The Message Author Says U2’s Message is Refreshing, Faithful, and Honest,” for @U2, 2006
- Bono wrote the Introduction to The Message 100 Devotional Bible: The Story of God in Sequence, 2015
- Eugene Peterson and Bono met with W. David O. Taylor to discuss the Psalms for a Fuller Studios short film, 2016.
- Scott Calhoun wrote “Behind The Scenes: More From Bono & Friends On The Psalms,” for @U2, 2016
- Following the making of The Psalms film, Bono met with W. David O. Taylor again to discuss the Psalms and art, resulting in five short films of three to four minutes each, 2017
- Scott Calhoun wrote “Bono Writes About Being Exposed For New Book On The Psalms,” for @U2, 2020. (Eugene Peterson wrote the Foreword for W. David O. Taylor’s book Open and Unafraid: The Psalms as a Guide to Life, and Bono wrote the Afterword.)
- Peb Jackson talks in this video about introducing Bono to Eugene Peterson from 0:52 – 3:55, 2020
- Winn Collier wrote a short section about Peterson’s relationship with Bono in A Burning in My Bones: The Authorized Biography of Eugene H. Peterson, Translator of The Message, and spoke with Angela Pancella for a U2Con Cast
U2 STUDIES RESOURCES: THE U2 LOVE LYRICS PROJECT
Curated by Scott Calhoun
Prepared for debut at the U2 Conference 2019 Australia Edition, the Love Lyrics project is a study of the word forms of “love” in U2’s lyrics. Phase 1 of the project studied the frequency of the word “love” in the published lyrics for U2’s 14 commercially released albums (deluxe editions), representing 13 studio albums and the live album Rattle And Hum, totaling 169 songs. Lyrics were verified on U2.com. Repeated words in songs are counted as emphatic devices. The “Highest Frequency of Love” report studied 10 additional songs that also had a high frequency of “love.” Future studies will examine the meanings of “love” and lyrics from live performances.
The findings of Phase 1 are represented in this infographic.
