** SPOILERS** The soundcheck thread

[Hollow Island]

It might have sold 18 millions copies, but how many people do you reckon have heard the song in the last 10 years?
It would be closer to 18 thousand than 18 millions, that's for sure.




Playing Acrobat could also be considered pandering.
If the band really had an intense desire to play the song they would have done so at some point in the last 20 years.
Clearly they don't.

So you think that a minority U2 fans listen to Achtung Baby in its entirety? That's completely insane. It's much more likely that the vast majority of the audience listened to it in the days before the show! What you're saying is that U2, unlike every other band, don't have any fans. There are just people who hear a song on the radio and then decide to spend $300 on a concert ticket. That makes a lot of sense....

But you're right in saying that U2 don't want to play Acrobat. But if may also be that they can't find a space for it in the set. Bono's rap in Bullet fills nearly the same function as Acrobat does.

Playing Acrobat could be considered pandering, but it would be pandering to fans as opposed to pandering to the lowest common denominator.

 

[Mack_Again]

Why is everything becoming about Acrobat? I want them to perform more from Pop and Zooropa i don't miss Acrobat particularly.

 

[Tommy WM]

This is ok...



Played it once. Nailed it once!

 

[BarefootDancer]

^ A true beauty!

 

[trevgreg]

Why is everything becoming about Acrobat? I want them to perform more from Pop and Zooropa i don't miss Acrobat particularly.

Good points, actually.

 

[gareth brown]

yeah, I'm still waiting to hear a proper Zooropa. I know the current version will sound great in person and in the context of the current show, I enjoyed the youtube clips.

but if they give Europe the 360 version eventually, maybe next leg, then I can wait another tour for Acrobat.

 

[Salome]

So you think that a minority U2 fans listen to Achtung Baby in its entirety?

No, I think a minority of the 18 mio copies that were sold of Achtung Baby were listened to it in its entirety in the last decade.

 

[LemonMelon]

Nah. Achtung had a re-release to remind everyone that it exists. I'm sure a lot of fans have listened to it in full at some point in the last 5 years.

HTDAAB and ATYCLB, maybe not.

 

[Salome]

The 360 Tour was seen by roughly 7 mio. people.
If indeed we have close to 6 mio. (about a third of the copies sold) who would list Acrobat in their top 50 most listened to U2 songs over the last 5 years (along with the rest of Achtung, No Line, SOI and over a dozen of 'greatest hits') I concede it makes no sense to suggest that this song would possibly be met with a general sense of "what's this one again?"

It would make me have to question just about every notion I have about what could be considered the common denominator at a U2 show.

 

[blueskies]

Well, kinda skipped through some of this thread (a bit long to read up on all of it). What I've heard on other forums is that both Bono and Edge said they'd play it at the last show. So Dublin 4 I suppose. Some were hoping they meant last show in Berlin, which would have made some sense for this song, but that was just a wish. Now apparently Dallas kind of confirmed this theory.
I'd love to hear Acrobat. It's a great song. Not their best, but great and deserves to be played. It doesn't seem that complicated to me. There are harder songs for Bono's voice, which I guess is the main limit.
I'm a bit worried by some fans getting overly excited with this whole thing... Why are people so worried Bono might hate them forever if fans ask for Acrobat. Really guys?? He doesn't give a f*ck... If he wants to play it, he will. If not, then not. They might actually try to fulfill this wish...

 

[trainmaniac]

The band needs to listen to Adam... after 40 years on the road, are they really willing to please everyone that listens to the band? Listening to their fans and developing a closer relation with them isn't it the best, smarter and fairest decision to be made at this point of their careers?
I listen all the time people saying "hey, but will a casual fan recognize a song or be satisfied leaving a show without hearing With or Without You?". That's a good argument for 1993, that's not a good argument any more in 2015 for a band started in 1976-1980.

 

[trevgreg]

The band needs to listen to Adam... after 40 years on the road, are they really willing to please everyone that listens to the band? Listening to their fans and developing a closer relation with them isn't it the best, smarter and fairest decision to be made at this point of their careers?

The only problem with that is that if you ask a thousand fans what they want to hear at a show or on an album, you'll probably get a thousand different answers back on what it specifically should be.

 

[trainmaniac]

The only problem with that is that if you ask a thousand fans what they want to hear at a show or on an album, you'll probably get a thousand different answers back on what it specifically should be.

That's not a problem!
I'm asking mainly 90s songs (Mofo, Please, Acrobat, etc), but if get Hawkmoon or other tunes from their 80s, I won't bother anyone! More than asking particular songs, I think we all ask for rarities or songs not played for a long time now.

 

[BVS]

The only problem with that is that if you ask a thousand fans what they want to hear at a show or on an album, you'll probably get a thousand different answers back on what it specifically should be.

I don't think this poster realizes this; his opinion = all fans' opinion.


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference

 

[The_acrobat]

I honestly doubt some of the members of U2 even remember that they wrote Hawkmoon.

God Part II would be a good e stage number.


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interferencek

 

[U2FanPeter]

I honestly doubt some of the members of U2 even remember that they wrote Hawkmoon.

Didn't they mix the song nearly 300 times in the studio. Plus a bunch of liver performances and it's in the film. They'd all remember just fine.

 

[Mack_Again]

Didn't they mix the song nearly 300 times in the studio. Plus a bunch of liver performances and it's in the film. They'd all remember just fine.

I remmeber 269 in title was probably the number of mixes they had to go thru (so final cut was 269th mix that they've done in studio). But it's true that it's been a while since they played for the last time

 

[U2FanPeter]

I remmeber 269 in title was probably the number of mixes they had to go thru (so final cut was 269th mix that they've done in studio). But it's true that it's been a while since they played for the last time

u2ByU2 and the liner notes of the reissue show the band have a decent memory of their past work.

Exact lyrics and remembering dates/places is another story. Dates/places were apparently a problem when putting the U2ByU2 book together.

 

[thavidesco]

I honestly doubt some of the members of U2 even remember that they wrote Hawkmoon.

God Part II would be a good e stage number.


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interferencek

Do you want Bono to worn his voice completly out?

 

[Salome]

U2byU2 gives an excellent insight in how critical this band is of their own work.
When reading it you feel like it's a miracle they can even agree on 25 songs that they consider good enough to play live.

 

[trevgreg]

U2byU2 gives an excellent insight in how critical this band is of their own work.
When reading it you feel like it's a miracle they can even agree on 25 songs that they consider good enough to play live.

Almost every band or musician is like that though. They're not going to hear their own work the same way that we do. They tend to remember the mistakes, the things that could have sounded better, the moments they recorded them and whatever was going on, etc.


Here's a question for Michael Stipe of REM and his reply when it came to re-recording things after playing them live.

https://popsongs.wordpress.com/category/ask-michael-stipe/

Michael,

Are there any songs you wish you could go back and re-record in the studio after performing them live?

most of them, yes. Like 95% of them. So it goes.


John Lennon was critical of his work as well. Take this quote from his interview with Playboy, shortly before he died.

John Lennon Interview: Playboy 1980 (Page 1) - Beatles Interviews Database

PLAYBOY: "Alright, but get back to the music itself. You don't agree that the Beatles created the best rock 'n roll that's been produced?"

LENNON: "I don't. The Beatles, you see... I'm too involved in them artistically. I cannot see them objectively. I cannot listen to them objectively. I'm dissatisfied with every record the Beatles ever fucking made. There ain't one of them I wouldn't remake... including all the Beatles records and all my individual ones. So I cannot possibly give you an assessment of what the Beatles are. When I was a Beatle, I thought we were the best f***ing group in the god-damned world. And believing that is what made us what we were... whether we call it the best rock 'n roll group or the best pop group or whatever. But you play me those tracks today and I want to remake every damn one of them. There's not a single one... I heard 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' on the radio last night. It's abysmal, you know. The track is just terrible. I mean, it's great, but it wasn't made right, know what I mean? But that's the artistic trip, isn't it? That's why you keep going. But to get back to your original question about the Beatles and their music, the answer is that we did some good stuff and we did some bad stuff."


He wasn't afraid to let George Martin know his thoughts there either...

http://www.independent.ie/entertain...he-man-who-invented-the-beatles-26726969.html

His pride comes out when he tells me about John Lennon's comment that he would like to have rerecorded everything that The Beatles ever did.

"I said to him: 'I can't believe that. Think of all we've done and you want to rerecord everything?' 'Yeah, everything.' And I said: 'What about 'Strawberry Fields'?' And he looked at me and said: 'Especially 'Strawberry Fields'.' Which I was very disappointed with. If he felt that way about it, he should have recorded the bloody thing himself."

 

[thavidesco]

It´s no secret that ambition bites the nails of success

 

[Hewson]

Plus a bunch of liver performances .

After heavy drinking?

 

[superchuk5]

U2byU2 is an awesome book. Would love a 10 year update that includes recording NLOTH, 360, recording SOI, and now I+E

To get this thread back on topic, according to U2Start's Twitter the band sound checked some SOI songs, including Volcano. What are the odds it'll be on the setlist, but switched out for Spanish Eyes?

 

[domo-kun]

Soundchecks in Barcelona today:

So far only footage of them playing Cedarwood Road...

 

[superchuk5]

@U2ATerreros: @u2gigs The songs soundchecked today are: Magnificent, Spanish Eyes, Cedarwood road, Volcano, Iris and Raised by wolves #U2ieTour #U2

That's certainly promising. Glad to know Magnificent is still on their minds

 

[prbiker15]

I hope they play Spanish Eyes at one of the shows. Not expecting it the first night, but look what happened with Zoo Station.

 

[superchuk5]

I think it'll be the night 1 one-off like In God's Country and Zoo Station. I actually am expecting it to show up in slot 2, with Volcano and Magnificent on the e stage (that is, assuming they follow through with the soundcheck)

 

[The_acrobat]

I wonder if Bono will do a decent job on Soanosh Eyes? The Elevation and 360 versions he did pretty good, but on the JT Tour he didn't seem to know the words, and kept reverting back to "wey hey hey... Sugar hang on..."


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[Axver]

U2Valencia made a tweet saying that Spanish Eyes was not rehearsed. So can we get any confirmation one way or another?