Revisiting ATYCLB and a little Tracklist Revisions

[AcrobatU2Pop]

With the new album coming in a couple of months, I decided to revisit some of U2's previous albums with an open mind, trying to eliminate years and years of opinions. The first album I went back to was ATYCLB.

My first run thru was the original tracklist, and the first thing that stood out to me is how strong the first 5 songs are. I completely wiped out my opinions on certain songs being overplayed on the 360 Tour and just listened to the songs. I think the first 5 songs really make this album special. Unfortunately, the 2nd half of the album really felt like a big mess. I'm not sure how "Wild Honey" and "Grace" made the final cut, and the track order just doesn't make sense.

Over the last couple days I've been tinkering with a tracklist that keeps the 4 singles together at the beginning, and then creates a cohesive order on the 2nd half. I also felt that it was absolutely necessary to throw in "Stateless" and "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" in place of "Wild Honey" and "Grace", and in hindsight, I wish the band had waited until ATYCLB to release those tracks.

I have now found what I believe is the perfect tracklist for this album. You still have the strong punch of singles in the beginning and a cohesive back end of the album:

1. Beautiful Day
2. Elevation
3. Walk On
4. Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of
5. In A Little While
6. Peace Of Earth
7. Kite
8. New York
9. Stateless
10. When I Look At The World
11. The Ground Beneath Her Feet

I recommend giving it a try. This album is really great when revisiting with an open mind, forgetting all the times they played "In A Little While" on 360, or forced masks on people during "Walk On", etc...

 

[Van Cleef]

With the new album coming in a couple of months, I decided to revisit some of U2's previous albums with an open mind, trying to eliminate years and years of opinions. The first album I went back to was ATYCLB.

My first run thru was the original tracklist, and the first thing that stood out to me is how strong the first 5 songs are. I completely wiped out my opinions on certain songs being overplayed on the 360 Tour and just listened to the songs. I think the first 5 songs really make this album special. Unfortunately, the 2nd half of the album really felt like a big mess. I'm not sure how "Wild Honey" and "Grace" made the final cut, and the track order just doesn't make sense.

Over the last couple days I've been tinkering with a tracklist that keeps the 4 singles together at the beginning, and then creates a cohesive order on the 2nd half. I also felt that it was absolutely necessary to throw in "Stateless" and "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" in place of "Wild Honey" and "Grace", and in hindsight, I wish the band had waited until ATYCLB to release those tracks.

I have now found what I believe is the perfect tracklist for this album. You still have the strong punch of singles in the beginning and a cohesive back end of the album:

1. Beautiful Day
2. Elevation
3. Walk On
4. Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of
5. In A Little While
6. Peace Of Earth
7. Kite
8. New York
9. Stateless
10. When I Look At The World
11. The Ground Beneath Her Feet

I recommend giving it a try. This album is really great when revisiting with an open mind, forgetting all the times they played "In A Little While" on 360, or forced masks on people during "Walk On", etc...

It will never be a perfect tracklist with Peace on Earth there.

 

[AcrobatU2Pop]

It will never be a perfect tracklist with Peace on Earth there.

Funny thing is, I used to think the same thing, but after revisiting, I actually found the song enjoyable.

 

[The Panther]

Acrobat's tracklist is preferable to the actual one. (I like 'Peace On Earth'.)

For me, the 2000-era songs are a bit interchangeable, with the exceptions of 'In A Little While' and 'Beautiful Day'. The others all seem to have nice melodies, similar-sounding vocals, similar-sounding guitars, radio-friendly production, etc. I'm not sure that shaking up the tracklisting greatly improves or detracts from the album, but almost anything is better than what the band themselves came up with!

I'm partial to 'Flower Child'. I think that's the best melody of the whole session, with the exception of 'Stuck in a Moment'.

 

[Von Schloopen]

That's not bad. Gave it a spin this evening.

It'll never be a perfect tracklist with "Wild Honey" excluded. I missed it.

 

[Nick66]

This album is really great when revisiting with an open mind

That album is really great, period. My heart and mind were open to it from the moment I heard the first chords of Beautiful Day, and haven't closed since.

One of U2's best, and most important, records.

 

[popacrobat]

I'll give that tracklist a listen sometime, but I don't have much a problem with it as it is. I do wish the ground beneath her feet was on all the albums, though. And I'd probably want to try to find a place for Levitate in there somewhere.

 

[Mount Temple]

Thanks AcrobatU2Pop:

I followed your track suggestions for ATYCLB and burned a "play copy" for my car. It is a nice pairing of the album and the two song highlights of "The Million Dollar Hotel" soundtrack.

Check out my burned copy of "Pop" I made up a few years ago:

1.Discotheque
2.Do You Feel Loved
3. Mofo
4. If God Will Send His Angels (Single Mix)
5. Staring At The Sun
6. Please (Single Mix)
7. Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me
8. Gone (Best of 1990-2000 Mix)
9. The Playboy Mansion
10. If You Wear That Velvet Dress
11. Last Night On Earth (Single Mix)
12. Wake Up Dead Man

I also made one up combining "Pop" and "Zooropa" as these two albums are culled from much of the same writing periods.

Cheers.

 

[Von Schloopen]

That album is really great, period. My heart and mind were open to it from the moment I heard the first chords of Beautiful Day, and haven't closed since.

One of U2's best, and most important, records.

 

[LemonMelon]

Just eyeballing it, I'd swap Peace on Earth and Kite, and move WILATW after Elevation. There's no reason to separate the MDH tracks, and the transition into Walk On would be smoother.

 

[U2DMfan]

I'd probably want to try to find a place for Levitate in there somewhere.

This^.

If it were me, it would go in place of In A Little While.

Also, acoustic Stuck and Elevation-influx over the respective studio versions.

Personally, I'd like to hear the early version of OOTS that was recorded for that album. We only got to hear a very short clip from 60 Minutes. Even the version that ended up on HTDAAB, to me, almost sounds more at home on ATYCLB.

 

[U2DMfan]

Funny thing is, I used to think the same thing, but after revisiting, I actually found the song enjoyable.

Peace on Earth has a quality to it that 3 or 4 songs on that album severely lack.

Maybe it's the sincerity or subtlety, I don't quite know. I actually haven't heard it in years. I'm going to listen to it now.

ETA-
Just listened to it. Clearly not a great song but solid. That is some sincere emotion. And the song is allowed to breathe a bit. A rarity for 21st century U2. Although Adam could have added more. It has to make my personal cut for ATYCLB-revised because...well, consider the choices. Seems quite out of place on this record anyway. I always thought Side Two of ATYCLB was incongruous.

And as I type this WILATW plays...what an almost U2-classic. Bono's vox sounds tired. For shame. It was one vocal delivery from being really great. Imagine him belting out that chorus. SINGING it. As is, sounds deflated.

 

[lemonfly]

Bono's vocal on WILATW really does sound like he just stumbled into the studio after a heavy night of partying. He totally nailed Kite (imagine Kite with a WILATW-esque vocal delivery -ugh), so I'm patently baffled why he bombed so hard on WILATW. I place the blame squarely at the feet of Lanois/Eno for that. Bono may have been having a bad day, week, month whatever, but the producers should have realized the potential of the song, and told Bono to lay off it until his voice had reached a Kite standard.

 

[popacrobat]

This^.

If it were me, it would go in place of In A Little While.

Also, acoustic Stuck and Elevation-influx over the respective studio versions.

Personally, I'd like to hear the early version of OOTS that was recorded for that album. We only got to hear a very short clip from 60 Minutes. Even the version that ended up on HTDAAB, to me, almost sounds more at home on ATYCLB.

Good call with Elevation influx. That would definitely make it for me over the album version. Prefer the Tomb Raider mix to the album version as well.

Acoustic Stuck is better, but the poppiness of the album version never really bugged me the way it grates a lot of people here.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

The poppyness of the song only bothers me because of what the song was about. If I didn't know what the song was about, I wouldn't think anything of it

 

[popacrobat]

fair point