2022 subscriber gift: Achtung Baby 30 Live

[TheWanderer]

Celebrating Achtung Baby: show-stopping performances from three decades of touring.

Thirty years live... and maybe the odd surprise.

Announcing our 2022 special gift for U2.com subscribers.

A one-off collection of live performances, curated by the band, and drawn from multiple tours since the band first took Achtung Baby on the road with ZOOTV in 1992.

The latest in our line of limited edition music releases, this one-off set will be presented in a special commemorative CD and download package.

We’ll bring you more news on first downloads and delivery times once we have it.

'U2 Achtung Baby 30 – Live'

This could be interesting and great. In all likelihood though, the tracks selected will probably be previously released live b-sides . What I'm most curious about is what they will use for So Cruel, since it's only been done full band live twice in 1992. I imagine they'll use the Bono solo acoustic version at Hansa that was a special feature on From The Sky Down. What would be truly awesome, is if they use the Hershey tapes soundcheck, sourced from their own DAT, but I imagine that's pretty delusional dreaming. Dream out loud!



I would love if the entire disc was unreleased live versions we've never been given. But leaning into my cynicism, here is what I imagine will be released based on previously released material. Documenting here to see how I close I get.

1- Zoo Station
Buenos Aires 2006, b-side to Window in the Skies

2- Even Better Than The Real Thing
Mexico City 1997 from VHS/DVD and Hasta La Vista!
or Paris 2000 from the Stuck maxi single
I love the 2011 Fish Out of Water version they did on the 360 tour that was on U22, maybe something from that tour.

3- One
Anything, who knows. My favorite version is NYC 1992 from Outside Broadcast, but that's certainly reaching.

4- Until the End of the World
Slane 2001 from DVD and fan club CD
or Boston 2001 from DVD and ATYCLB box

5- Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
Probably Apollo 2018
A Vertigo tour version would be nice

6- So Cruel
Bono solo acoustic Hansa 2011

7- The Fly
Chicago 2005 from U2.communication release and Chicago DVD
Maybe Manchester 1992 from City of Blinding Lights maxi single

8- Mysterious Ways
Please only a Zoo TV version, all other version are cringe in comparison.

9- TTTYAATW
NYC 1992 that was bonus feature on Sydney DVD and bonus track on fan club Sydney CD

10- Ultraviolet
Should be Dublin 1992, but will undoubtedly be 360 tour, probably from Rose Bowl or Coimbra performance on U22

11- Acrobat
Other than Hershey soundcheck, only time done live was 2018 tour. Berlin 2018 is a good bet.

12- Love Is Blindness
NYC 1992 from Stay maxi single
Maybe Edge solo acoustic bonus feature on From The Sky Down DVD

Prove me wrong U2! Make them all unreleased versions!

 

[ascender_RS]

I agree, it could be really interesting depending on the track selection. As we know, they do tend to revert to type and select stuff we've all heard many times before, but its another good opportunity to do something different and from left-field.

I had the same thoughts about So Cruel.

 

[tommycharles]

For every cynical thing I’m tempted to think, we did get U22, Edge’s Picks, and the IE/EI live discs, which were all excellent (sound on U22 wasn’t brilliant but beggars choosers etc.).

They _can_ do this right if they want to. I hope they do.

 

[danm]

What were the performances for this that they used?

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

I just don't understand why it takes them so long to send out something that's already recorded.

 

[Hewson]

They're lazy.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

apparently they also hire lazy people

 

[mikal]

They realized that it's really hard to find companies that mass produce CD's.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

They realized that it's really hard to find companies that mass produce CD's.

 

[wolbersu2]

It's almost october, the announcement of the 2023 will be not far away..

 

[ascender_RS]

It's almost october, the announcement of the 2023 will be not far away..

I mean, something like this should literally be the easiest thing possible for a band of the size of U2 to pull off. It’s not like the 30th anniversary just sneaked up on them now is it?

And its not even vinyl. The downloads haven’t been released yet have they, let alone the track list!

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

They realized after they announced it that they don't have a version of So Cruel so they're hoping the year just passed by without anyone noticing that they never released this shit

 

[kingofsorrow]

They realized after they announced it that they don't have a version of So Cruel so they're hoping the year just passed by without anyone noticing that they never released this shit

 

[lightmyway91]

The bare minimum for this ‘gift’ (not really a gift it’s the only thing of real value in the subscription) is to include only previously unreleased versions. Anything short of that makes the cd itself a disappointment adding to the disappointment (under statement of a word) already caused by the way they’ve dealt with it this year with no updates, tracklist or any sign of the physical cd 9 months into the year. I do think they will give us previously unreleased versions as has been the norm now for the last decade or so with 99.9% of their live song releases from the fan club.

 

[lightmyway91]

Well 10 out of 12 previously unreleased is good going. Amazing they’ve included so cruel, thought it would be omitted or they’d use the Bono version from ‘from the sky down’, zoo tv live will be so much better.

https://www.u2.com/news/title/first-downloads--tracklisting/

 

[mikal]

Interesting selections. Looks fine to me I guess. Only complaint is that Mysterious Ways was so watered down by the 360 Tour. Wish they had selected one with Edge's guitar solo at the end instead.

 

[DeVaul]

Interesting selections. Looks fine to me I guess. Only complaint is that Mysterious Ways was so watered down by the 360 Tour. Wish they had selected one with Edge's guitar solo at the end instead.

Yeah, weird and dumb

 

[Spun2U]

I want vinyl. They can keep their CD.

 

[ascender_RS]

Interesting selections. Looks fine to me I guess. Only complaint is that Mysterious Ways was so watered down by the 360 Tour. Wish they had selected one with Edge's guitar solo at the end instead.

I guess that's the thing, the arrangements and energy of so many of those songs have changed over the years and are very different to the performances of them on the indoor Zoo TV shows for example. Which I guess is part of the whole 30 years thing.

It still baffles me as to why a band of their size, who record everything, haven't made live shows available to buy as Digital downloads. Even just one from each leg of each tour with proceeds to charity... give them a quick mix and charge a nominal fee for each one.

 

[dan_smee]

Great version of wild horses btw. Outro was quite intense. Seemingly a lot of thought went into selecting versions

 

[ascender_RS]

If only I could listen to them...

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[wolbersu2]

I want vinyl. They can keep their CD.

Glad it is cd!

 

[DeVaul]

Glad it is cd!

(kidding)

 

[dan_smee]

Serious question - where do people play cds these days? Mine will stay in plastic never to be used because the only place I can play it is on my PS3 that I kept in case I ever need to watch something on dvd or blu ray (and that hasn’t happened for at least 2 years). I’d be interested to know, because I’ve complained about these things not being on vinyl for a few years, but surely cds are even more useless to most people in 2022? If you can’t play vinyl, you can sell it for a profit in a few years?

 

[mikal]

Serious question - where do people play cds these days? Mine will stay in plastic never to be used because the only place I can play it is on my PS3 that I kept in case I ever need to watch something on dvd or blu ray (and that hasn’t happened for at least 2 years). I’d be interested to know, because I’ve complained about these things not being on vinyl for a few years, but surely cds are even more useless to most people in 2022? If you can’t play vinyl, you can sell it for a profit in a few years?

I bought a $20 cd drive for my MacBook about a year ago only for cases like this where I need to rip a CD and upload it to my Apple Music library. Otherwise no use for CD's.

 

[bono_212]

Here I am late to the party because I only just had to re-subscribe. What an awful, awful subscription "gift".

As others have said...thanks for the paperweight, I guess. Maybe I'll use it as a coaster.

 

[lazarus]

Serious question - where do people play cds these days? Mine will stay in plastic never to be used because the only place I can play it is on my PS3 that I kept in case I ever need to watch something on dvd or blu ray (and that hasn’t happened for at least 2 years). I’d be interested to know, because I’ve complained about these things not being on vinyl for a few years, but surely cds are even more useless to most people in 2022? If you can’t play vinyl, you can sell it for a profit in a few years?

I play them in my car, which is primarily where I’ve listened to music for the last 30+ years.

 

[dan_smee]

Fair enough - might be a grossly blind statement of privilege but I assume most people somehow connect phones to car systems rather than cd drives (if their car even has one) these days.

 

[Hewson]

I also have a CD player in my car. Was kind of surprised it had one (2016), I expect next car won't.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

When I take my time machine back to the year 2000, these CDs are a life saver