Unknown Caller
The Fly
- Joined
- Nov 23, 2008
- Messages
- 114
For years and years I have neglected Rattle And Hum, thinking it to be a frustrating listen despite the quality of many tracks. It is well documented that this album is largely considered jumbled mess that could have been so much more without the whole Major Motion Picture tie in that lead to the first great U2 backlash.
So I have a playlist folder in iTunes that I call "Albums Re-imagined" where I take albums that could have been great and make them so by re-ordering the tracklist or deleting tracks or sometimes adding b-sides from the era of the band.
So I finally got around to "fixing" Rattle And Hum. I used only the studio album tracks and deleted the live cuts. I did not include any of the b-sides because I don't feel they hold up well enough to be on an album and I wanted this compilation to be concise...a brief but powerful statement of where the band was at at this (experimental) period of their career.
I know this has been done before, but here is what I came up with.
1. Hawkmoon 269
2. Desire
3. Van Diemen's Land (I cut off the applause at the start and the interview nonsense at the end)
4. Angel of Harlem (truly one of U2's greatest pop moments)
5. God Part II
6. Love Rescue Me
7. When Love Comes to Town (not my favorite but it really has to be in this collection)
8. Heartland
9. All I Want Is You
I think it flows really well and is actually a great album that would have done much better in the eyes of the critics had it not been attached to an overblown motion picture. What might have the critical reaction have been to something like this? I think this would have been viewed as a concise and successful experiment/foray into american roots music as it was originally intended before the whole movie idea got out of hand. What do you think? How would this have changed U2's career trajectory? Would we have ever seen an Achtung Baby?
Discuss.
So I have a playlist folder in iTunes that I call "Albums Re-imagined" where I take albums that could have been great and make them so by re-ordering the tracklist or deleting tracks or sometimes adding b-sides from the era of the band.
So I finally got around to "fixing" Rattle And Hum. I used only the studio album tracks and deleted the live cuts. I did not include any of the b-sides because I don't feel they hold up well enough to be on an album and I wanted this compilation to be concise...a brief but powerful statement of where the band was at at this (experimental) period of their career.
I know this has been done before, but here is what I came up with.
1. Hawkmoon 269
2. Desire
3. Van Diemen's Land (I cut off the applause at the start and the interview nonsense at the end)
4. Angel of Harlem (truly one of U2's greatest pop moments)
5. God Part II
6. Love Rescue Me
7. When Love Comes to Town (not my favorite but it really has to be in this collection)
8. Heartland
9. All I Want Is You
I think it flows really well and is actually a great album that would have done much better in the eyes of the critics had it not been attached to an overblown motion picture. What might have the critical reaction have been to something like this? I think this would have been viewed as a concise and successful experiment/foray into american roots music as it was originally intended before the whole movie idea got out of hand. What do you think? How would this have changed U2's career trajectory? Would we have ever seen an Achtung Baby?
Discuss.
but it works nicely on making a live-free Rattle and Hum album. It seems to be a homemade edit.
I actually wish they did it like that but I can also make a playlist out of iTunes.
