Promo Tour Indication of More Variety of Setlists

[U2Fan101]

Looking back at the ATYCLB Promo Tour, the setlists were very similar :

9.27.2000 Beautiful Day/Elevation

10.19.2000 Elevation/New York/Stuck/Beautiful Day/Mysterious Ways/All i Want Is You/Even Better Than The Real Thing/Ground Beneath Her Feet/Bad

10.23.2000 Elevation/New York/Stuck/Beautiful Day/She's a Mystery To Me

10.26.2000 Elevation/New York/Stuck/Beautiful Day

10.27.2000 Elevation/New York/Stuck/Beautiful Day/Bad

10.30.2000 Elevation/Beautiful Day/New York/Elevation

11.2.2000 Elevation/Beautiful Day/New York

11.3.2000 Beautiful Day/Elevation/Stuck/

11.13.2000 Beautiful Day

11.16.2000 Beautiful Day

11.23.2000 Beautiful Day/Stuck/Elevation/Ground Beneath Her Feet/Beautiful Day/Stuck

11.23.2000 Beautiful Day

12.05.2000 Beautiful Day/Elevation/Stuck/I Remember You/New York/I Will Follow/Desire/Ground/Mysterious Ways/One/All I Want Is You/Bad/11 O'Clock/Won't Get Fooled Again

12.9.2000 Beautiful Day/Elevation

2.7.2001 Until The End/Beautiful Day/Elevation/Stuck/Gone Discotheque/Staring/New York/11 O'Clock/I Will Follow/Desire/Ground/Mysterious/One/All i Want/Bad/40

2.21.2001 Beautiful Day

2.26.2001 One/Beautiful Day/Until The End/Mysterious Ways

Looking at the entire promo tour, the only songs from the new album performed were :
Beautiful Day
Elevation
Stuck in a Moment
New York

Ground Beneath Her Feet (Not technically a new album cut, but new in the live setting)

I am still only counting this as four songs. And for the most part, the order was either :

Elevation/New York/Stuck/Beautiful Day
-or-
Beautiful Day/Elevation/Stuck/New York

17 performances and only four songs from the new album, and for the most part the same order.


Now we look at the HTDAAB Promo Tour and what we have so far :

10.15.2004 Vertigo/All Because Of You/Desire/She's a Mystery To Me/City of Blinding Lights

10.16.2004 Vertigo/Sometimes You Can't/City of Blinding Lights/Miracle Drug

10.26.2004 Original of the Species/All Because Of You

3 Shows, completey different setlists, and already 6 songs from the new album performed.

To me, this is either they're trying to find the perfect setlist and using this oppurtunity to perform as many new songs as possible, or how I see it as, they are trying to really vary up their setlists. One can only hope, and I see this a good possibility of the fact that we may indeed see varying setlist on this upcoming tour.

 

[Axver]

Yep, I think you're onto something here. They seem to be completely ready to play the new material and, it would appear, throw us some variety. The second I saw that CD:UK setlist, I realised something was going on here - five individual new songs played live in only two days - and then OOTS ten days later!

Let's hope it's a sign of things to come on the tour.

 

[bono_man2002]

 

[U2C]

 

[Vervefloyd]

Yep, I think you're onto something here. They seem to be completely ready to play the new material and, it would appear, throw us some variety. The second I saw that CD:UK setlist, I realised something was going on here - five individual new songs played live in only two days - and then OOTS ten days later!

Let's hope it's a sign of things to come on the tour.

I think more importantly, what we'll see is that U2 will be very comfortable with the new material prior to opening night. The zoo tv and popmart opening shows were disasters and U2 does not want to repeat those moments. By being more comfortable with the new material and playing these promos shows means they can rehearse these songs less at the beginning of the tour and hopefully devote time to working on some older lesser player material. I think we'll find U2 in stride on night one, not week two this time. I also think U2 hasnt quyite figured out how certain songs will be played live. this album is not as straight-forward as ATYCLB and it will require a little more planning.

 

[UltraVioletMofo]

I think more importantly, what we'll see is that U2 will be very comfortable with the new material prior to opening night. The zoo tv and popmart opening shows were disasters and U2 does not want to repeat those moments.

I was at the lakeland opening night of Zoo TV and honestly for what they were trying to do with Zoo, that show kicked ass.
Sure, any show will be a lot better after the 30th time but it by no means was a disaster.

I left that show more than happy and sooo glad I spent 10 hours outside on hard concrete waiting in line for those tickets.

But thats the last time I wait in line with just krystal burgers as a food source.

 

[Vervefloyd]

I was at the lakeland opening night of Zoo TV and honestly for what they were trying to do with Zoo, that show kicked ass.
Sure, any show will be a lot better after the 30th time but it by no means was a disaster.

I left that show more than happy and sooo glad I spent 10 hours outside on hard concrete waiting in line for those tickets.

But thats the last time I wait in line with just krystal burgers as a food source.

I'm sure it was a lot better to be there, but they definitely had the right idea on the last tour with all the promo gigs. They definitely hit the ground running with the new material. I for one prefer the shows where they aren't as rehearsed and its more raw versions. but we all know U2 and they are almost too muich of perfectionists at times.

 

[Axver]

And now the set from 2004-11-16 ...

1. Vertigo
2. All Because Of You
3. Miracle Drug
4. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
5. Beautiful Day

So, we got an OLD song, but no performances of anything from the album that hadn't been played before. However, we hadn't seen this particular combination of these four played songs. Interesting ...

 

[bono_man2002]

BD was the LAST song i execpt them to play!

 

[Axver]

BD was the LAST song i execpt them to play!

You're telling me you expected Cartoon World more than Beautiful Day?

 

[bono_man2002]

T'was at the top of my list

 

[Axver]

T'was at the top of my list

I'm sure it was right there with other such songs as Red Hill Mining Town, Treasure (Whatever Happened To Pete The Chop?), and the U2 live classic, Things To Make And Do.

Now back to the main topic of this thread ... U2 really are bringing out variety! Check out the latest set.

18 November 2004, the Clinton ceremony thingamajig in Little Rock, Arkansas

1. Rain
2. Sunday Bloody Sunday
3. The Hands That Built America

Cannot wait to see if this variation continues!

 

[Axver]

20 November 2004, SNL

1. Vertigo
2. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
3. I WILL FOLLOW!
4. All Because Of You
5. Vertigo
(6. As yet unknown song? Anyone got confirmation on whether there was a sixth song, and if so, what song it was?)

 

[Axver]

OK, here we go, two promo sets ...

20 November 2004, SNL

1. Vertigo
2. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
3. I Will Follow
4. All Because Of You
5. Vertigo

22 November 2004, New York

Vertigo
All Because Of You
Miracle Drug
Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
City Of Blinding Lights
Original Of The Species
She's A Mystery To Me
Beautiful Day
I Will Follow
Out Of Control
Vertigo

Interesting repetition of Vertigo ...

 

[U2Fan101]

Well, Bono says this is their 'first record, and Vertigo is their first single'. If we look back at the Boy tour, I will Follow was first and last on almost every show, if I recall. maybe they are repeating this, and they will play nothing but Boy cuts on the tour and HTDAAB.

Woah. That would be odd. Nevermind. LOL

 

[Axver]

Well, Bono says this is their 'first record, and Vertigo is their first single'. If we look back at the Boy tour, I will Follow was first and last on almost every show, if I recall. maybe they are repeating this, and they will play nothing but Boy cuts on the tour and HTDAAB.

Actually, that's not true. No setlist exists for a concert that opened and closed with I Will Follow. The Ocean and 11 O'clock Tick Tock, however, have opened and closed the same concert on multiple occasions.

I imagine you may find this link to be very informative. Down the bottom, I included three interesting facts, and the second one is that four U2 songs have opened and closed the same concert - The Ocean (10), 11 O'clock Tick Tock (7), Vertigo (2), and Elevation (1).

I find their selection of non-Hut Dab songs for the promo tour to be very interesting. We have Boy songs, which correlates with the 'first album' talk and could prove very positive in seeing older songs return; we have the major recent hit single in Beautiful Day; and we have Desire and She's A Mystery To Me, two easy songs to play.

Do we have any more promo gigs coming up? I don't feel too many judgements can be made just yet.