Songs that don't got better live

[TheEdge25]

LOL, hadn't seen that one yet.

Edge: *fumbling about with the riff like it's the first time he's ever tried to play the song*
Bono: Edge looks real confident.
Edge: oh for fuck's sake!

I think it's hilarious. And it's awesome how Larry remembers the song almost perfectly, hitting all the drum fills and throwing a few extras in. It was a great spontaneous performance.

And I can't believe Edge forgot the riff, but was able to do the solo...it's not that difficult of a guitar riff

 

[tsweeney]

All Because Of You
No Line On The Horizon
Magnificent
Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of

*******

Unknown Caller is one song that I thought really worked well live, even better than the album version.

 

[AndrewCowley]

Babyface is the winner surely.

 

[Hollow Island]

New Year's Day
Pride
(both great live in the 80s, but not as good as the album version)

Zooropa (studio recording can't be improved upon)

Babyface
Numb
Your Blue Room
No Line On The Horizon
Magnificent
Unknown Caller
Moment Of Surrender

 

[U2Explorer]

All I want is you (the haunting strings off course, but even Edge's solo sounds better in the studio version. Though there are some cool Lovetown versions.)
One (I miss the beautiful tone of Lanois' guitar part. The synth in the live version is often way too loud)
ISHFWILF (the interwoven guitars!)
Velvet dress (the version on Pop has some of Edge's best non-chiming guitar parts)
Twilight (sounds better with two guitars)

 

[RioRhodes]

Babyface is the winner surely.

I don't like any version of Babyface.

 

[TheEdge25]

Babyface is an absolutely incredible song and everyone on this forum is ridiculously idiotic for saying that it's one of U2's worst songs.

 

[RioRhodes]

Babyface is an absolutely incredible song and everyone on this forum is ridiculously idiotic for saying that it's one of U2's worst songs.

Well that's how I feel about Stand Up Comedy.

Can't win 'em all.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

I'm only going to list songs that are noticeably inferior to the studio version, rather than live ones that are at least in the ballpark of their studio counterpart's quality. I'm also doing this list on peak performance as we all know a song like "New Year's Day" sounded a lot better in 1983 than it does in 2011.

And this is by no means comprehensive. Just what comes to mind:

- Pride
- The Unforgettable Fire
- Bad
- I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
- Angel of Harlem
- So Cruel
- Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
- Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World
- Your Blue Room
- If God Will Send His Angels
- Please (bleh)
- Discotheque
- Electrical Storm
- Unknown Caller (sucks anyway)
- No Line On The Horizon
- Magnificent

Only kidding about Bad of course. Best live song ever!

Wait, Babyface was played live? Hmmm.....love that song. Need to hear a live take.

 

[digitize]

Well that's how I feel about Stand Up Comedy.

Can't win 'em all.

I like both Babyface and Stand Up Comedy

 

[alanah]

I like both Babyface and Stand Up Comedy

 

[Yahweh_OMG]

Very few songs for me. I think U2 is 99% better live!

Velvet dress (orgasm studio version....)
Your blue room (one of my favourite studio u2 song, very mehhh live)
Pride (since 85)
With or without you (since 92)
Do you feel loved
IGWSHA

that's about it

 

[santiago]

I'm only going to list songs that are noticeably inferior to the studio version, rather than live ones that are at least in the ballpark of their studio counterpart's quality. I'm also doing this list on peak performance as we all know a song like "New Year's Day" sounded a lot better in 1983 than it does in 2011.

And this is by no means comprehensive. Just what comes to mind:

- Pride
- The Unforgettable Fire
- Bad
- I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
- Angel of Harlem
- So Cruel
- Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
- Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World
- Your Blue Room
- If God Will Send His Angels
- Please (bleh)
- Discotheque
- Electrical Storm
- Unknown Caller (sucks anyway)
- No Line On The Horizon
- Magnificent

Only kidding about Bad of course. Best live song ever!

Wait, Babyface was played live? Hmmm.....love that song. Need to hear a live take.

Overall a good list, but I really like Tryin'g to throw (the arpegio guitar is great) and Please live (do you really like the studio version? I find it to be an interesting demo, whereas the live and single versions really take the song somewhere else).

Babyface (which I like) was fairly horrendous live, they only played it a couple of times, in the London zooropa concerts, I believe. It's the perfect example of a good song that just doesn't click live.

 

[last unicorn]

All Because Of You
No Line On The Horizon
Magnificent
Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of

*******

Unknown Caller is one song that I thought really worked well live, even better than the album version.

Agree about Magnificent. The live versions just never managed to live up to the album version which is very rare for U2.

Don't agree about No Line. I think IF a song of their last album really improved live it has to be No Line. I loved it from the first show I saw, and was extremely pissed when they dropped it.

As for the rest of the NLOTH songs, I was actually surprised how well they were worked out for the live setting. Unknown Caller seemed ackward to me and I'm not sad they dropped it. Boots, Breathe and MOS were great and Crazy ... well they kind of cheated with that songs because they chose to play a remix and not the - poor - original version, so that seemed to be a good decision to make an interesting live song that gets the audience going out of a underwhelming album track.

With U2's live songs, it's interesting: I have a hard time listening to album versions of many songs after hearing them performed live because most live versions are just superior to the album versions and listening to the album versions again most of the songs just seem poor to me.

 

[santiago]

About magnificent live, the live version that is in one of the b-sides of NLOTH is great. But you're all right in that he stadium versions never really lived up to the studio version, I'm afraid.

 

[U2Explorer]

About New Year's Day: sounds a lot better on a Les Paul than on a Strat.
Best live versions are from Zoo TV & Pop, when it segued out of the feedback from UTEOTW

 

[hand0lotion]

Very few songs for me. I think U2 is 99% better live!

Your blue room (one of my favourite studio u2 song, very mehhh live)
that's about it

But YBR Chicago 2009 had the surreal part that Bono seemingly ad-libbed. I still marvel at their choice to play YBR. They probably thought, "let's deliberately pull out the most unexpected song. That'll show the online complaining folks!"

But I half-agree with YBR. It's an intimate song meant to be heard in a, well, room.

 

[elevated_u2_fan]

But YBR Chicago 2009 had the surreal part that Bono seemingly ad-libbed. I still marvel at their choice to play YBR. They probably thought, "let's deliberately pull out the most unexpected song. That'll show the online complaining folks!"

But I half-agree with YBR. It's an intimate song meant to be heard in a, well, room.

I agree, its a shame that it didn't work. Half of the reason I think is the majority of the crowd had no idea what the hell it was...

Im just glad I got a chance to experience it.

 

[I Move in Mysterious Ways]

I was never a huge fan of YBR, but I remember really enjoying it's debut in Chicago two years ago.

 

[Yahweh_OMG]

I agree, its a shame that it didn't work. Half of the reason I think is the majority of the crowd had no idea what the hell it was...

Im just glad I got a chance to experience it.

to me it has nothing to do with the crowd not knowing it.... it's anyway not a song you jump on or sing out loud to.
It's just the fact that the studio version is a masterpiece and the live not...

 

[An Cat Gav]

Pride is the obvious one.
The Unforgettable Fire is nigh on impossble to get right too, though they've had a few good attempts, ditto The Fly, although it is very good live, nothing can match it's studio perfection.

 

[An Cat Gav]

don't hate

electrical storm i thought was a good deal weaker.

Sorry, this one too! They really messed up the live version I witnessed.