How brilliant is mercy?!!!!!!!!!!!

[Zoots]

Where did Mercy come from anyway? It's never been released. It's not on the "Complete U2" tracklisting for the iPod. So, where did it come from and how did we ever even get a chance to hear it? Anyone know?

That's exactly what I wanted to know but didn't wanna start a new thread about it!

u2wanderer.org lists it as unknown source. Does anybody know?

 

[Zoots]

We should conduct a poll... "If you love the Boom Cha's of Discotheque: What is your opinion on Mercy?"

BOOOOOM CHA BOOM CHA...... DISCOTHEQUE!!!
BOOOOOM CHA BOOM CHA...... DISCOTHEQUE!!!
BOOOOOM CHA BOOM CHA...... DISCOTHEQUE!!!
BOOOOOM CHA BOOM CHA...... DISCOTHEQUE!!!

 

[david]

Where did Mercy come from anyway? It's never been released. It's not on the "Complete U2" tracklisting for the iPod. So, where did it come from and how did we ever even get a chance to hear it? Anyone know?

The story goes that a girl who posts here recieved a copy of the album from Bono and it contained Mercy, this was before the album was released, or even leaked for that matter.

I think the story goes that way.

 

[Knuckle]

The story goes that a girl who posts here recieved a copy of the album from Bono and it contained Mercy, this was before the album was released, or even leaked for that matter.

I think the story goes that way.

Now that you say this (above), I do have a vague recollection of hearing something like that story. I also recall that there is some sort of taboo about referring to "the girl whose name will not be spoken" in this forum. I don't know what that silliness is all about, but I cannot imagine that if there is any truth to the story that Bono accidentally leaked it. It must have been an "official" leak, don't you think? Anyway, thanks for the info on the source of the song.

 

[cobl04]

BOOOOOM CHA BOOM CHA...... DISCOTHEQUE!!!
BOOOOOM CHA BOOM CHA...... DISCOTHEQUE!!!
BOOOOOM CHA BOOM CHA...... DISCOTHEQUE!!!
BOOOOOM CHA BOOM CHA...... DISCOTHEQUE!!!

Ooh, I really can't wait till I get Pop!

 

[Zoots]

What.. are... you waiting for, COBL_04??? Get it now!!!!

 

[typhoon]

And she released it in WMA, so all our MP3s are crappy second-generation sources at best, bwahahahah.

 

[LemonMelon]

The music doesn't really do anything for me, but the lyrics...

FEEEEEEEL NOTHING

I FEEEEEEEL NOTHING

Again.

 

[For Honor]

How the hell was this not included on bomb while other crap like ABOY, One Step Closer and A man and a woman were?!

rags behind the woodshed:

 

[For Honor]

ABOY sucked, though, don't get me wrong. Just those other ones are what I really liked.



never heard mercy, but I suppose I should now.

and

Discotheque is great!

also on best of 90
Salome is on the Bsides....... I like that song, too

shake, it shake it shake it Salome~!


(though I laughed at the song at first because I thought he was saying something else............ )

 

[LJT]

Ok the girl made it clear she did not get it from Bono...it was a friend of a friend of a friend of Bono, that passed it on to her...but under no circumstance was it Bono that gave it to her....

She was given the album HTDAAB(a promo of some sort) and when she got to the end another track started, this track was Mercy...it was not listed on the back of the album either, it was just there....

 

[For Honor]

Misterioso!


(Thelonlius Monk )

anyhow, procede with the thread + thanks for the info. I never knew about that...

 

[U2Jadey]

Never heard it Not fair. How can i hear it?

 

[LastEdgeOnEarth]

I've been sinkinh my ears into this song for about a month now, and while I do thinkg the LYRICS are incredible, musically the song could gain alot. Even a tweak of the main chorus could do too. I'd like to see Edge do more with this one though. He sounds like he's playing it safe on this song(a recurring trend with the band these days). He could add some cool licks thorghout this song and spice up the solo too.

 

[kcrays]

Mercy is great, but it's not a single

im betting it'll be the 1st single on a new album.....hopefully

I hope not. If it becomes a single, then they've done some serious screwing with the song.

Mercy is possibly U2's greatest song. It is no more likely to be a single than Bad.

Kevin

 

[kcrays]

needs to be edited and shortened, but it's very good.

It's length is it's strength. What do you cut: the great guitar bits, or the lyrics? The song is almost entirely words, so I don't see why you'd want to cut it.

 

[kcrays]

Mercy's good, but obviously it still sounds a little raw because it's a b-side. I think it definately has potential though, and the boys could definately shine it up a bit and put it on the next record.

It sounds raw, because it's never been mastered. If it had, it'd sound (and I'm talking sonics) like the rest of the album.

Kevin

 

[kcrays]

I love the Boom Chas and Mercy, though I doubt there's much of a connection. IMO, mercy is closer to Bad than any other U2 song.

 

[impy13]

quadruple power post!!! gooooo kcrays!

I'm listening to Mercy right now. Probably a reason it's my most played track on iTunes. It really is just that good

holy shit you're from richardson?

 

[tuwie]

yeah, hopefully Mercy will come out on a new album and it will totally fit in there as well. even though it would have totally fit in on htdaab, maybe it will do better on the next album? let's keep our fingers crossed because i LOOOOOOVE that song. <3
"best b-side you'll ever hear," to quote Bono. couldn't agree more.

 

[ShellBeThere]

I don't even want to read thru all the opinions before saying what I think "untainted"....I just love this song! I was teary after hearing it the first couple times; I find it moving, but I can't explain exactly why.
Yeah, it's a little long, it feels like you go thru the ringer with it. It's not wholly coherent somehow, but it feels like so essentially U2 at the same time. I love it in this state, and feel very lucky to hear it... I can understand how they might feel the need to edit it, trim it, tighten it up for an ultimate release, but it would be criminal to not release it at some point it feels like.
there's sooo much there!
there's a serious energy there, a resonance I don't feel like they could just scrap or change into something unrecognizable.
I think I disagree with the people who've said they think it should have been put out with HTDAAB...I actually don't think it fits with that.
It makes me look forward to the next one to think it might fit in with whatever that turns out to be!

cheers!

 

[gareth brown]

Mercy kicks!

 

[AussieU2fanman]

IMHO, the GREATEST guitar riff Edge has written since 'Bad'. I get the most chills I've ever had listening to any U2 song when I listen to the Edge kick it in at 5:15. Magical stuff.
"I hear so much....feel nothing....?" Hardly

 

[AussieU2fanman]

The thing is, I just don't believe they can trim it down to make it a feasable single, there is NOTHING that is expendable in this track. The eerie intro? The lyrical poetic genius at the start (and for the rest of the song for that matter)? It all works so well. Mercy cannot be shortened. It should just be cleaned up and placed in a glass case. Anyone else agree?

 

[gareth brown]

I've always been really pissed off at the fact that people think that just because it's unreleased it's an unfinished track that needs 'Polishing' when it was poised to be on the last album up to the very last minute before it was taken off...anyone saying it should be trimmed as a single is silly too.

 

[doctorwho]

Given that the song was ready to be on HTDAAB (and cut at the last moment, as Gareth Brown wrote) and that the song was indeed leaked, I was very surprised that U2 just didn't officially release the song as a b-side to a second or third single. God knows I would have preferred "Mercy" over Trent's remix.

To my ears, the song is classic U2. It could have easily fit on UF or JT. The lyrics and vocals are reminiscent of that era as is the guitar playing. And it may be for that very reason that the song was cut. Or U2 felt that a 6 minute song to end the album was just too long - "Yahweh" is an excellent closer.

If the song is "touched up" for a future official release, I hope Bono's vocals and lyrics remain - I do like them. There's nothing wrong with a more classic sounding U2 song - if it's done once or twice. What I like about this song is that while it's a throwback, it's also rather unique. If there is ever an example of U2 taking their own sound and pushing it forward, this is it.

While I'm glad it was leaked, ultimately I do think U2 was right - it doesn't really fit on the album. And songs like ABOY do (in fact, I like ABOY better).

 

[kcrays]

In general, I'm not lyric person, but I think that if you look at this song as a relationship song (probably one about Bono's with ali after his dad died), it's pretty damn coherent. I initially thought it was a nother God song, and it probably is that too, but I'm not well versed in that area, so I don't know.

As others have said, the song was set for release. The only thing unfinished about it is that it probably never made it to mastering, thus the mix that's overly bright in the mids/highs and lacking any meaning ful bass.

As for it fitting on the album, of course it fits. What does AMaaW have to do with the rest of the album? CoBL doesn't carry some overarching theme that the rest of the album has. And if we're talking about how they sound, Vertigo is unique and One Step Closer (yawn) certainly doesn't fit in.

If the theme is Dad's death, Mercy probably fits. If we're talking about all the God Themes, the allusions are certainly there, though whether the character with the vision ("telescope") is ali or God, I don't know.

And finally (I'm sure I've said this before), if it'd been on HTDAAB, it would have been far and away the best song on the album. Then again, that would have been true on virtually any U2 album.

The bottom line is that when you've written and recorded one of the 5 best songs of your 25 year career, you don't cut it from the album.

 

[catlhere]

Good song, I enjoy it. The little beginning part is annoying though. Like the Wanderer siren.

Overrated? I think so.
Still a great song? of course. but I really don't see it being one of U2's top 10 songs. maybe 20 at best.

And how do so many people say OST and AMAAW are great and call ABOY crap. It's just a fun rock song, grr!

 

[AtomicBono]

What I like about this song is that while it's a throwback, it's also rather unique. If there is ever an example of U2 taking their own sound and pushing it forward, this is it.

exactly.

I do think Mercy could be polished up somewhat, I'm even open to it being changed, but the majority of the song should stay the same.

I can only imagine who great this would be live

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

if i've said it once, i've said it a million times... i wipe my ass with mercy

it's an average song that's too long and underproduced and the only reason people think it's so friggin great is because it's "unreleased"