See Bono Serenade Sarajevo Film Festival With Bob Marley Classic

Bono delivered an impromptu, a cappella rendition of Bob Marley’s classic “Redemption Song” Friday at the Sarajevo Film Festival, where a documentary about U2’s long history with the Bosnian city premiered.

Both Bono and the Edge were on hand for the screening of Kiss the Future, which documents aid worker Bill Carter’s efforts to bring U2’s Zoo TV tour to then-war-torn Sarajevo. Following the debut of the Matt Damon and Ben Affleck-produced film, the U2 duo took the stage with the documentary’s crew, and when the mic landed in Bono’s hand, he launched into “Redemption Song” (via Variety):

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Bono — who inducted the late Marley into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 — previously confessed his love of “Redemption Song” when he included it among his 60 Songs That Saved My Life.

“The Irish do share a few things with Jamaica above our love of rum and our shared lilting accent (especially if you are from Cork and Kerry… one, two, tree…),” Bono wrote for Rolling Stone.

“It is surely the mixing of religion and politics and the righteous indignation that seeds a spirit of revolt. The Wailers made rebel music that feels very familiar to Irish ears… and even to English ears like Chris Blackwell who signed Bob to Island Records. He could always feel the influence of original wailers like the militant Peter Tosh and the mountain mystic bunny wailer… and in the back ground the dub reverb of Lee Scratch Perry.”

Bono continued, “The Marleys did not grow up in Irish town but they hail from Trench Town….7 miles away, named after an Irish immigrant Daniel Power Trench. That lilt is a dead give away but this rebel music… these songs of freedom belong to anyone who wanted to lose chains of any kind.”

After nearly four years off the stage due largely to the pandemic, U2 will make their live return in late September when they open Las Vegas’ MSG Sphere with their Achtung Baby residency.

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