Bono appeared at Glen Hansard’s funeral in Dublin on Tuesday, where he performed a special spoken-word version of U2’s “Beautiful Day” and played a voicemail from Patti Smith.
The U2 frontman began by marveling at Hansard’s ability to make everyone feel like his “best friend.”
“How do you do that?” Bono said. “People on the green outside, best friends. People tuning in, best friends. Even people who haven’t met him, best friends. Everyone who met him, they just remember the day they met him.”
Bono then played a voice message he received from Smith, whom he described as “another one of his best friends,” on the day of Hansard’s passing.
“Her first reaction to hearing of Glen’s passing, it’s a lullaby for Glen’s family and friends,” Bono explained. “She was happy to share it.”
Bono then recited his own tribute to Hansard that reworked and incorporated lyrics from U2’s “Beautiful Day.” Towards the end of the spoken-word rendition, he was joined by bandmate The Edge.
The heart is a plant shoots up through the stony ground
There’s no room no space to rent in this town
You’re out of luck and the reason that you had to care
The traffic’s stuck and you’re not moving anywhere
You thought you’d find a friend to take you out of this place
Someone you could lend a hand in return for grace
It’s a beautiful day sky is false, you feel like
Beautiful day don’t let it get away
You’re out on the road but you got no destination
You’re in the mud in the maze of her imagination
Your luck is down even if that doesn’t ring true
You’ve been a lover and it’s been all over you
It’s a beautiful day don’t let it get away
it’s a beautiful day touch me
Take me to another place teach me
I know I’m not a hopeless case
See the world in green and blue see China right in front of you
See the canyons broken by cloud see the tulip fields clearing the sea out
See the bad boy fires at night see the oil fields at first light
And see the bird with the lead in your mouth
after the flood all the colors came out
It’s a beautiful day don’t let it get away it’s a beautiful day touch me
Take me to another place reach me I know I’m not a hopeless case
What you don’t have you don’t need it now
what you don’t know you can feel it somehow
what you don’t have you don’t need it now
Don’t need it now It’s a beautiful day. It’s a beautiful day.
Also during Hansard’s funeral, Eddie Vedder, Markéta Irglová and members of The Frames joined together for a performance of “The Song of Good Hope.”
Hansard died early on July 29th following a motorcycle crash outside Dublin. He was 56 years old.
Bono y The Edge acudieron al Funeral por la Vida de Glen Handsard en la Catedral de San Patricio en Dublín, Beautiful Day fue recitado por Bono cambiando algunas frases de la canción dedicada a Glen pic.twitter.com/oGABXD9rqI
— U2Valencia (@U2Valencia) August 4, 2026
