Concert in Reggio Emilia draws 150,000

The group’s 20 September 1997 show in Reggio Emilia was attended by over 150,000 people, which was reported to have set a world record for the largest paying audience for a one-act show. U2 also performed in Sarajevo on 23 September , making them the first major group to stage a concert there following the Bosnian War . Mullen described the show as “an experience I will never forget for the rest of my life, and if I had to spend 20 years in the band just to play that show, and have done that, I think it would have been worthwhile.” Bono called the show “one of the toughest and one of the sweetest nights of my life.” The tour concluded in March 1998 with gross revenues of US$173.6 million and 3.98 million tickets sold. The following month, U2 appeared on the 200th episode of the animated sitcom The Simpsons , in which Homer Simpson disrupts the band on stage during a PopMart concert. In November 1998, U2 released their first compilation album, The Best of 1980–1990 , which featured a re-recording of a 1987 B-side, ” Sweetest Thing “, as its single. The album broke a first-week sales record in the US for a greatest hits collection by a group, and “Sweetest Thing” topped the singles charts in Ireland and Canada.