ALL discussion about Acrobat here!!!

[mobvok]

Also, once again, I'm sorry because I didn't think this would be an issue. I'm not trying to deny anyone's happiness, I didn't think that'd be an issue with a post on a message board. My basic point is just that I think Acrobat is such a great song that I wouldn't want to see the live version not blow me away. I'm sorry if I've offended anyone.

I didn't mean to sound extremely piqued if I did, it just sounded a bit off to me. and so forth!

 

[ZooMacPhisto800]

Brian Wilson's Smile is totally legendary, the best record of the decade so far!

Arcade Fire - Funeral (IMO)

 

[dal975]

I love Acrobat but have ambivalent feelings on U2 playing it live. I guess my fear is that it would be done half-assed. I would expect it to be part of the middle of the show rotational songs, but only for a few shows before it got dropped.

I feel it would either be:

a) acoustic w/ edge and bono, which might be beautiful in its own right but would not be the Acrobat I want to hear live. Not including the drums and edge's electric solo would be a dealbreaker. But i guess in that event I would accept it b/c beggars can't be choosers.

b) some form of snippet or bridge, say between bad and streets, kind of like the "how long to sing this song" 40 bit bono currently likes to throw in there.

or c) a mid-show clunker, with the full band valiantly trying to play it after a brief spoken intro by Bono (think "this is an experiment...if something goes wrong, blame Edge"), but it ends up not really resembling the studio version, with the timing all off and Bono of course messes up the lyrics. Except for the hardcores in attendance who would lose their shit, this would suck the life out of most of the crowd who would head for a bathroom/beer break. This would not last longer than 3-4 shows. This is how I kind of felt about WGRYWH during past tours.

So, while I certainly understand the Holy Grail mentality of Acrobat, I am a bit "eh" on its actual execution.

 

[AtomicBono]

I wouldn't spend too much time worrying about U2 playing Acrobat...it ain't gonna happen

unless, of course, they were thinking about it, but then Bono reads this thread and changes his mind

 

[torn vinyl]

Acrobat is not an obscure song. How many copies has Achtung sold worldwide? 20 million? Just a guess.

It would fit really well into the encore, but I also hope they don't play it because I don't think it would be that good live, and I'd put it in their top third of songs, but near the bottom. So it's an above average U2 song that was recorded really, really well.

I don't get why so many think this song is the shit - maybe because it's never been played live. If it had become a staple I don't think it would get this much worship. Also, it makes people feel badass to listen to music with swearing.

 

[Rob33]

Acrobat is not an obscure song. How many copies has Achtung sold worldwide? 20 million? Just a guess.

It would fit really well into the encore, but I also hope they don't play it because I don't think it would be that good live, and I'd put it in their top third of songs, but near the bottom. So it's an above average U2 song that was recorded really, really well.

I don't get why so many think this song is the shit - maybe because it's never been played live. If it had become a staple I don't think it would get this much worship. Also, it makes people feel badass to listen to music with swearing.

Yep. Whenever I'm feeling down, I enter badass mode and blast "Wake Up Dead Man." Fuck yeah.

 

[bgmckinney]

Hear me out here. This isn't a shock thread, and I honestly feel this way. I know I'm going to get a bunch of people coming into this thread calling me an idiot, but try to understand where I'm coming from:

I hope U2 never play Acrobat live. Not even in snippets, not even with the stellar performances they're giving every night on the 360 tour.

I'm not a "JT-Era and Before" guy. Quite the contrary: Acrobat is my favorite U2 song, located on my favorite album of all time.

It's considered the holy grail of live U2 material: the gem that will not be performed. It's like the U2 diehard test: "what's your favorite U2 song? Streets? Oh, so you're a casual fan. Acrobat? Wow, this guy knows his stuff."

And I don't want them to ever play it live, for a couple of reasons:

1. So much of Acrobat's magic is based on the fact that it is a flawless performance on record: Bono's vocals are perfectly boozy during the verses and perfectly passionate and almost desperate during the chorus. Shit, the final verse just as the song closes sounds like one side of a lover's quarrel. The Edge's solo is so perfect and full of rage. It would be so hard to accurately recreate that pure sonic assault on stage.

2. Specifically, don't play it on this tour. How strange would it be to hear this angry little number, this failure of a marriage, played out after I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For? Or before With Or Without You? "There's no new ideas in the house, every book has been read....but I can't live with or without you?" Doesn't really work. Acrobat is, along with Love is Blindness and Exit, among U2's darkest work. And Love is Blindness closed the show because it HAD to. And, if you ask me, a lot of the JT shows never recovered from Exit, so Acrobat would have a hard time meshing with the setlist or even the general vibe of the show.

3. Does the subject matter work well for a stadium? Or even an arena? I feel like Acrobat, if performed live, would have to be at a club show: something intimate. But even a club, surrounded by people, would be too much. I prefer Acrobat to be played where I think it's suited best: on track 11 of the best album ever, driving through town, late, late at night.

4. Remember what you thought Chinese Democracy would sound like before you'd heard any songs off of it? Now, remember what it actually sounded like?

Remember when Brian Wilson finally released Smile a few years ago? I mean, it was good, but it wasn't that legendary album you thought was abandoned.

I think some songs are better left to the imagination. Acrobat live is too good to be risked.


Just trying to change the topic of conversation around here. And I noticed that normally, people are begging for Acrobat to get played. i figured I'd offer my side of the debate. What do you think?

Post of the year. Brilliantly put. You've convinced me.

 

[gareth brown]

these are the only issues I'd have with Acrobat being played live

1) Bono ad-libbing and changing lyrics like he does whenever he forgets them. All sorts of shit flows at times like these and sod's law says they'd play Acrobat and he'd do it then too.
2) Would it sound any good? Probably, yes provided they PLAYED it right rather than it being a question of whether it sounds 'full' or not live as there aren't any overdubs on the original anyway...
3) Would they play it just once to see how it does and leave it as one "legendary" performance? Or would they think "oh that went well let's play it every night?" thus saturating the song and making us all HATE IT and make "NOT IMPRESSED WITH ACROBAT BEING A STAPLE" threads calling for it to be retired because we're sick of Bono changing the second verse or something?

Acrobat is an amazing song, definitely one of my very favourite U2 tracks, to hear it live would be amazing but not on this tour, like JohnTree said it'd be great to hear it in some small venue. Even then, I'd just be too scared it wouldn't live up to any of the hype we've all made for it over the years and in the end we'd only have ourselves to blame really...

 

[The_acrobat]

It would suffer a similar fate to electrical storm. Big ideas of playing it live, and then once they do, it falls flat with a big THUD! I agree... we have a perfect version of this song. Playing it now would only cheapen it's existence. This is one song I can listen to without hearing in my head some of the live fuck ups Bono has done.

 

[Gonna Run 2 U]

Like a lot of rare U2 songs I would have rather heard them live when Bono was in his prime.

 

[LemonMelon]

U2 will be glad to comply.

 

[Salome]

I think WOWY would segue well thematically and aurally into Acrobat (The screams are the manifestation of all the pent up agression, desire and frustrations, as Edge plays the outtro, Larry changes the beat, speeds it up, brings in the toms, then Edge plays those three harmonics, and the crowd explodes....

I'm not sure it would segue that neatly, but I am sure the crowd wouldn't explode
perhaps half of the GA pit (the half that isn't too busy running after Edge to take his picture), but that's about it

 

[The_Pac_Mule]

4. Remember what you thought Chinese Democracy would sound like before you'd heard any songs off of it? Now, remember what it actually sounded like?

 

[Blue Room]

It's considered the holy grail of live U2 material: the gem that will not be performed. It's like the U2 diehard test: "what's your favorite U2 song? Streets? Oh, so you're a casual fan. Acrobat? Wow, this guy knows his stuff."


I think some songs are better left to the imagination. Acrobat live is too good to be risked.


Just trying to change the topic of conversation around here. And I noticed that normally, people are begging for Acrobat to get played. i figured I'd offer my side of the debate. What do you think?

Streets is my favorite U2 song. Has been since Joshua Tree was released. Not to toot my own horn but I think I know my U2 stuff pretty well and I would not consider myself a casual fan at all! Acrobat is one of my least favorite U2 songs on Achtung Baby actually. I like the guitar solo and thats it.

So, I agree, I hope they never play it live. Because I actually don't care for the song all that much and I don't think it would translate live very well either, as you mentioned as well. I think thats why it hasn't been done and never will be. Then again, I would have said the something similiar about Drowning Man and the Ocean. One was seriously considered obviously and the other was done. So I guess you never know.

 

[subnet]

irrelevant thread. long Edge solos are a thing of the past...so Acrobat will be forever "out"

 

[Vincent Vega]

H "what's your favorite U2 song? Streets? Oh, so you're a casual fan. Acrobat? Wow, this guy knows his stuff."

WTF?

And there is a live version of Acrobat. From one of the sessions where they were working on the tour. It segues into Zoo Station there.

 

[Salome]

irrelevant thread. long Edge solos are a thing of the past...so Acrobat will be forever "out"

Unknown Caller probably has his longest solo ever

 

[Mrs. Garrison]

And this is pure bullshit.

agreed, ive been a fan for almost 20 years, probably a diehard for at least 15 years. Streets is probably my favorite song....though i do love Acrobat.

 

[digitize]

I'm a diehard fan, my favorite U2 song is Lemon, and TJT is one of my least favorite U2 albums. But I hardly consider people whose favorite U2 song is Streets "casual fans" automatically; nor do I think we should be wearing obscure favorite U2 songs like crowns.

 

[Vincent Vega]

I'm a diehard fan, my favorite U2 song is Lemon, and TJT is one of my least favorite U2 albums. But I hardly consider people whose favorite U2 song is Streets "casual fans" automatically; nor do I think we should be wearing obscure favorite U2 songs like crowns.

Exactly. I'm sorry to say that, but that sentence bears absolutely no logic.

 

[intedomine]

This thread is chopping down The John Tree maybe...

I don't care if they play it ot not. Heartland is the holy grail of unplayed classics for mine. Play Heartland in the USofA.

 

[Salome]

I do prefer Heartland to Acrobat by a country mile
might make an even worse live song though

 

[hasin73]

I'm sure if you could get U2 to chime in on why they don't play this, they'd just chuckle and explain that it's not one of their best songs. I've never understood all the underground hype about this song not being played live. Duh, they don't play it because it ain't that great. That happens with every U2 album: the weaker tracks aren't picked for the live shows. Would it be fun to see live? Sure, I guess, for variety's sake. It'd be worth playing once or twice, in a small venue (example, Somerville show in Boston, French radio broadcast, BBC studio, etc), just so the hardcore fans could get their kicks, but this doesn't deserve being in any sort of regular setlist. Don't be silly

Acrobat is the weaker track on AB???

That's the funniest thing i have read this year.

 

[cobl04]

what is the point of this, when you already know it's not going to happen...

 

[superblue]

Unknown Caller probably has his longest solo ever

And Bullet from the Vertigo tour had an incredible solo by Edge......whenever I pull out the Twickenham show it's a goosebump moment for sure.

 

[The_Pac_Mule]

And there is a live version of Acrobat. From one of the sessions where they were working on the tour. It segues into Zoo Station there.

YouTube - u2 Acrobat ( acustic ) live

 

[LemonMelon]

irrelevant thread. long Edge solos are a thing of the past...so Acrobat will be forever "out"

And let's not forget that Larry ceased using one of his arms about four tours ago.

 

[U2opra]

Some people in this thread are so negative. Bless.

 

[U2FloridaFan]

Thanks for posting that acoustic version but for those of us who love the song, it can in no way ever satisfy our need for a full-on live version. I don't think we'll hear it on this tour though.

I WOULD like to hear an acoustic snippet of White as Snow on this tour. The harmonizing between Edge and Bono on that song in parts is beautiful.

 

[Galeongirl]

I'm a diehard fan, my favorite U2 song is Lemon, and TJT is one of my least favorite U2 albums. But I hardly consider people whose favorite U2 song is Streets "casual fans" automatically; nor do I think we should be wearing obscure favorite U2 songs like crowns.

Thanks. If it wasn't for Acrobat Streets would be my favourite song.

What song you prefer has nothing to do with the level of fandom IMO.

And I still stand by my opinion. I hope U2 will NEVER play this song live. Keep the mystique!