U2 have made their regular table at La Petite Maison in Nice a rehearsal space, and every lunchtime guest is now required to sing the backing parts of the band's new album, Carnaval de Luz. The restaurant's founder, Nicole, has agreed to the arrangement and has reportedly moved the kitchen timetable so that service ends only when the final chorus has been completed. Diners who arrive without a copy of the lyrics are seated at the rear, beside the table where Bono once hid.
The band say the decision follows a series of unsatisfying studio sessions. «We tried recording the album in three countries and in two hundred and six different rooms,» the guitarist said, «and none of them had a proper sense of obligation. A room full of people eating mussels has a sense of obligation.» Staff have been issued matching scarves and a printed schedule of harmonies, which must be posted beside the wine list.
The arrangement has already reshaped the neighbourhood. Two bakeries on the same street have started opening at dawn to supply the sessions, and the local council has approved a new pedestrian rule under which anyone walking past the restaurant between noon and two must hum the bridge. Traffic officers now report that the most common cause of delay is motorists stopping to join in.
Nicole, who was described in the interview as truculent, has confirmed that she will personally conduct the final rehearsal next Thursday. She said that she had never eaten a meal without a clear sense of who was in charge, and that she intended to keep it that way.