English Chess Forum

Stephen Ormerod wrote:There are many references in various books

Bono: Chess, do you play chess?

Dylan: Yeah, I play chess. Are you a chess player?

Bono: I am a chess player.

Dylan: I'm not that good actually.

Bono: I'll challenge you to a game of chess.

Dylan: I don't have it right now actually, I just don't have one on me, but the next time you see me!

Bono: Oh, you can get these little ones you know, that you can carry around.

Dylan: Yeah, I take them on tour all the time, but nobody in the band will play me.

Bono: Really?

Dylan: Yeah, they say it's an ego trip. They say I want to win, I don't want to win, I just like to play.

...

Bono: What's your opening game?

Dylan: My opening game, you mean king's pawn up two - and all that? I don't know.

Bono: You just takes it as it comes.

Dylan: Yeah. I don't really play that seriously.

Bono: Well, I thought I did until I played Adam's brother Sebastian - he was only about 13 years old and he beat me!

Dylan: Somebody may have a chess game here.

Bono: I'd love to play.

searching for a chess board ... enter Van Morrison

Lately the newspapers have been carrying stories of McGuinness purchasing for Bono at a charity auction a match with Russian chess champion Gary Kasparov. The reports all explain that Bono was a child chess prodigy. One even quoted Bono as saying, "I reckon I have a good shot at beating him." Now, aside from its value as another example of the inability of some newspapers to spot a tongue in a cheek, there is some historic basis for claims of Bono's chess-playing skill. He's told me that as a kid he was crazy about the game, and at a young age he beat the local chess teacher to the wonder of all. He always downplayed this enthusiasm because chess is so un—rock & roll. Later this was a source of common ground with Bob Dylan, who had hidden his bishops under a basket for the same reason. I asked Mr. Hewson to tell me about young Bono's gift for chess.

"I think that's been blown up," he says with a tolerant smile. "The press got it and blew it up. I taught him how to play chess, though I haven't played in donkeys' years now. He did join a chess club and he won a couple of medals. He beat the chairman of the club and I think in order to maintain the chairman's reputation he more or less exaggerated Paul's prowess." We both start laughing and Mr. Hewson adds, "I think that's the real story!" (Bono once pointed out that the fact that he was a child in a club full of adults would not impress his father one bit: if Paul won the chess contest it must mean the fella he played against was no good.)

Marcus: Can he beat you in chess, Axl Rose?

Bono: I've not played Axl in chess, no.

Marcus: Have you played the one that begins with K and ends with V yet? I always get Kasparov and Karpov mixed up.

Bono: Kasparov. Yeah yeah, y'know I played him just a couple of weeks ago, it was a close thing. (laughs)

Marcus: Was it pretty tense? Did you think this is the big one? No did you really play him?

Bono: It was a close thing. No I haven't played him yet, no.

Marcus: But you have a voucher that entitles you to play him.

Bono: That's it, it was given to me as a birthday present, you're quite right.

JustinHorton wrote:Dylan.

I would want convincing of Bono's medals, and what they actually meant. Rock 'n' roll anecdotes are not always worth a great deal.

James Pratt wrote:. 'A Life: Michael Foot'

JustinHorton wrote:I would want convincing of Bono's medals, and what they actually meant. Rock 'n' roll anecdotes are not always worth a great deal.

No more rushing around, no more travelling chess;
I guess I'd better sit down, you know I do need the rest....
Yes, it's time to resign with equanimity and placidity
from the game.

Ian Kingston wrote:I would guess that for Bono (and many other touring musicians) casual games of chess are a good way of whiling away long hours on the tour bus. If anyone here owns a copy of an album by Peter Hammill called The Margin they'll see a photo of Hammill doing just that (bottom of the page). Modern bands probably play computer games instead. In the absence of any real evidence I would put most tales of rockers playing chess in that category.

JustinHorton wrote:Er....