Lots of bad stuff going on in the world, so I'm about to unleash an epic music thread about something good that happened two years ago today in Atlanta (and goes back to 1981). Please follow along, especially if you like @U2.

. @U2 played in Atlanta on May 28, 2018 (photo below). That same month @Atlantamagazine published my long-read about the band’s relationship to our city.

It all began 4 decades ago on Peachtree Street. #U2inATL

: Me

https://www.atlantamagazine.com/great-reads/u2-atlanta-oral-history-band-citys-shared-journey/

On a muggy May evening in 1981, four young Dubliners (none older than 21) pulled up to the curb across from Atlanta's Fox Theatre and lugged their instruments into the Agora Ballroom (now a parking deck).

It probably looked like this:

: 50Dates50Posts #U2inATL

Before the show, Atlanta journalist Tony Paris interviewed Bono for Muzik magazine.

Over a burger and fries, the 20-year-old Irishman talked about the “big-screened textured feel” of U2’s sound and lyrics about defiance, God, and his mom's death.

: Tony Paris / #U2inATL

In 1981, Atlanta was a complicated city with global aspirations.

Former UN Amb Andrew Young was mayor;

Ted Turner revolutionized news;

the CDC developed definitions for AIDS;

and jets blasted from Hartsfield.

: Atlanta Time Machine / #U2inATL

U2 came back 7 months later.

Adrian Boot shot pix along W. Peachtree St.

The band played “I Will Follow” twice in its Agora set.

This Dec 1, 1981 bootleg proves the spiritual sound of U2's debut album, Boy hasn't changed much since. #U2inATL

Here's an ad from the AJC for "The U-2" from Nov 1981: #U2inATL

By 1983, U2 had performed four times in Georgia.

Fans remember pouring out of the Atlanta Civic Center, waving flags & singing songs from October and War. “40” had become an exit anthem for the band. #U2inATL

: @atu2 @u2gigs @U2blog

A writer @RollingStone gave Bono a Martin Luther King Jr. biography, Let the Trumpet Sound.

U2's 4th album, The Unforgettable Fire included songs “MLK” & “Pride” for the slain Atlanta Civil rights leader/Nobel Peace Laureate who became a fixture in the band's ethos. #U2inATL