Bono and Lennon ‘would have been great mates’
The Wall Street Journal (of all places) has published the first chapter of Robert Hilburn’s new book, Corn Flakes with John Lennon, and it has a fair bit of material about Bono. You can read it here, but since that link may not work forever, I’ll post one paragraph where Hilburn says he thinks the two would’ve been great friends:
Over time, I began to see in Bono many of the qualities of his heroes, especially John. He and Bono would have been great mates. John would have been delighted by Bono’s love of Elvis, but, more importantly, by his ability to campaign for his social beliefs. Like John, Bono absolutely believes that social change is possible, not just a utopian dream. While John chiefly believed in singing about it, Bono feels a responsibility to use his fame to take his case directly to world leaders in commerce and politics. In turn, Bono is inspired as a songwriter by observing firsthand the impact that rock ‘n’ roll has in motivating those world figures. “I see it in everyone I meet, whether it’s Bill Clinton or Bill Gates,” he told me. “Music . . . the music of rock ‘n’ roll has shaped their social values. This music is a guidepost for the modern world.”
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Yes, I agree that John Lennon and Bono would have found common ground in many areas, but I feel (perhaps mistakenly) that the agnostic Lennon might have had problems with Bono’s faith. But it would have been interesting to be in the same room when those two quick minds (and big egos, God bless ‘em both) got together. It’s sad that we will never know.
I know this is an old post, but…
Lisa, I don’t think Lennon would have had a problem with Bono simply because Bono believes in God. It’s not like all of Lennon’s friends were agnostic or atheists and frankly, it’s not clear that Lennon was either when he died. All 4 Beatles did a lot of soul searching from 1966-1968.
Regardless, while I don’t know that they would have become friends, I have no doubt that Bono’s belief in God would not have been an issue.
I’m agnostic, and it’s very rare that someone’s religion bugs me.