lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
The two Best Of albums, 1980-1990 and that 1990-2000 abomination both came out in single and double-disc versions so this isn't exactly a shocker.
Songs of Surrender - New album discussion - 6
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womanfish
Rock n' Roll Doggie ALL ACCESS
God. Seriously. WTF with the 90-2000 "Best of" Quite the mess IMO.
dan_smee
ONE love, blood, life
Really? That was just aggregating already recorded things together as an extra disc. This is the difference between them reimagining and re recording 15 or 40 songs. I feel like in 99 out of 100 circumstances we would expect them to have promised the 40, announced the 15, and then released 12. If they do actually drop 40 I will be both very surprised that they followed through, and very impressed.
dan_smee
ONE love, blood, life
Also, if it’s 40 songs I am moderately hopeful that there is something pre-boy to accompany a chapter about the very early days of the band. Given it is supporting his memoir and his penchant for self-deprecation, be fun to see something like The Fool or False Prophet, but it’s possible it’s more a commentary on growing up in 70s Dublin and so Street Mission or Life on a Distant Planet might be interesting. It’s U2, so there is 0.000001% chance of this, but a guy can dream
pacemaker
Refugee
People are going to be pissed if/when they play these new arrangements live, but I’m looking forward to it. I think probably one aspect of rearranging songs is to make it easier for Bono to sing night after night. If they can rejuvenate warhorses like Pride beyond just dropping it another half step, I say it’s about time.
dan_smee
ONE love, blood, life
Yeah - we also have four billion performances of most of those songs - a rearranged and interesting take is far preferable to another pale version of the same arrangement.
Hollow Island
New Yorker
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- 2,947
There's no way in hell U2 rerecorded 40 songs.
With 15 albums (incl. OST1), that's. 2.7 songs per album. If they ignore Passengers, it's 2.9 songs per album. I doubt they'd give equal weigh to the albums, so some would have 4 or 5 recordings. Maybe they'd rerecord some b sides...but that would still mean that they rerecorded a substantial portion of their catalog - there were 42 songs on their first 4 albums.
The main reason they wouldn't rerecord 40 songs is because they're lazy.
Tedder is almost certainly involved, too: he said he was recording with them at the end of 2019/early 2020.
With 15 albums (incl. OST1), that's. 2.7 songs per album. If they ignore Passengers, it's 2.9 songs per album. I doubt they'd give equal weigh to the albums, so some would have 4 or 5 recordings. Maybe they'd rerecord some b sides...but that would still mean that they rerecorded a substantial portion of their catalog - there were 42 songs on their first 4 albums.
The main reason they wouldn't rerecord 40 songs is because they're lazy.
Tedder is almost certainly involved, too: he said he was recording with them at the end of 2019/early 2020.
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dan_smee
ONE love, blood, life
I wouldn’t believe a word of it unless it was from u2songs or a very small number of posters on this forum. U2songs wouldn’t publish it unless they have solid info from multiple sources:
“Bono’s autobiography, Surrender is being released on November 1, 2022. Each of the forty chapters in the autobiography will be named after a past U2 song. We have been told that U2 have delivered newly recorded versions of these songs to Universal for a Fall 2022 release.”
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
Well there's also a difference between "reimagining" 40 songs and writing 40 from scratch. Don't act like this is the equivalent of making a proper triple album.
I agree with others that they're lazy and that 40 still seems too ambitious for them, but I'll bet a good 25% are versions we've already heard before in similar fashion (Stuck, Desire, Stay, etc.).
It's arguable that people might not want to pay for 15 old U2 songs in 2022. If they get more bang for their buck, it becomes a more reasonable proposition. And because many will stream it anyway, it's less relevant how it's physically packaged and released.
Doesn't matter to me. At this point, after 30 years of seeing them live, I'm not there because I want to hear the old stuff again, I'm primarily interested in seeing the new material. If I occasionally get to hear an occasional deep cut like Acrobat, Your Blue Room, etc., then great.
dan_smee
ONE love, blood, life
Genuinely a bit confused by your posture here - I’m not acting like this is a full triple album - just saying that compiling an extra disc of 14 existing tracks is easier than re-recording and reimagining an extra 25. I don’t think that’s exactly contentious?
Also, you agreeing with others is actually agreeing with me - I made that point as well - they are very lazy and it seems very unlikely. It’s of interest because it’s apparently done and U2songs are reporting it.
Gonna Run 2 U
New Yorker
They in essence received an extra year and a half of time to relax and work on stuff because of Covid. Also, the timing for a break for Bono couldn’t have been better. Because of this, maybe they actually will pull off 40 songs to go with the book?
I agree. 40 songs is way too much for them. I think they will rearrange the casual soungs like Stuck, Stay, Staring at the sun. Deep cuts would be a surprise. And they are not great at surprises. Heartland Surrender Drowning man Lemon Mercy Your blue Room A sort of Homecoming Unforgettable Fire should be on the album and not just acoustic
Otherwise I'm not interested in this album.
OP
OP
Registered Dude
Rock n' Roll Doggie Band-aid
I think we're in for some surprises. There are rumblings that these are not straight up traditional acoustic arrangements.
womanfish
Rock n' Roll Doggie ALL ACCESS
It’s difficult for me to get too excited. I am hoping RD is right and it’s more than just acoustic redos. It would be pretty incredible to get a 40 song collection and to be honest it would be best for them. For one it makes a statement. It would be a very impressive undertaking and it would be something that fans would be excited about, the variety would be so great that if there were some duds it wouldn’t matter much. And commercially, it would be a win for streaming, plus they could do a cool 4 vinyl release for the big fans and collectors.
Coming out with 15… eeesh. I just don’t know. The songs would have to be redone really damn special for me to care very much. And if half of them are Walk On, I Still Haven’t, Desire, BD…. Then it would be a one time listen for me. And don’t really see the general casual U2 fan being that taken with it.
Coming out with 15… eeesh. I just don’t know. The songs would have to be redone really damn special for me to care very much. And if half of them are Walk On, I Still Haven’t, Desire, BD…. Then it would be a one time listen for me. And don’t really see the general casual U2 fan being that taken with it.
i pretty much predicted this when the book details came out.
it's an exact copy of what springsteen did with Tracks - a long version, and a shorter version for those without the patience for the longer set and/or the want to invest extra dollarydoos.
it's also not nearly as necessary to do in the age of streaming as it was when springsteen did it - alas, U2. for a band that was once so ahead of the curve when it came to technology, they've come up with some baffling decisions of late.
i also don't get the "ehrmagad u2 iz lazee they cunt do ferty songs" thing. they songs themselves are already written and for fucks sake what else have they had to do for the past two years?
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RD typically has more insight than the average poster here so I’m cautiously optimistic. 40 tracks makes for a deeper listening experience than 15 and a way to make a statement of “this is where we were *and* where we are” before going back out into the land of active promotion and live shows
Listening to SOA today for the first time in ages. I had forgotten about “refu-Jesus”.
And, good Lord, little more better.
But there are some real gems on here: Lights Of Home, Little Things, Landlady, Love Is Bigger are all fabulous.
And, good Lord, little more better.
But there are some real gems on here: Lights Of Home, Little Things, Landlady, Love Is Bigger are all fabulous.
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OP
OP
Registered Dude
Rock n' Roll Doggie Band-aid
Yeah there are some gems on there. I'm genuinely thankful this band continues to record music. We're a long way from their heyday, but when inspiration hits they still have something to say, musically
re-fu-je-SUS!
i have a soft spot in my heart for The Showman and while I get why some may be bothered by the "little more better" part it doesn't bother me at all. it's a moment where bono is taking the piss out of himself - as opposed to, ya know, the savior complex.
i actually think it could have done well as a single, released with a self deprecating video making light of, well, everything that people like to bash bono/the band over.
refujesus, tho
i actually think it could have done well as a single, released with a self deprecating video making light of, well, everything that people like to bash bono/the band over.
refujesus, tho
super fly guy
New Yorker
I hope RefuJesus was nailed to his cross good.
lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
It’s the catchiest song on the album and it baffling that they didn’t think it was more single-worthy than that pseudo-inspo Get Out nonsense.
Also, it got played live, like what, once? For a band that tried to force a crowd singalong with the unwieldy Unknown Caller, you’d think they’d jump at the chance to play one that could actually work.
it is also something that seems like the perfect b-stage type song - alas.
It is what it is but it's not what it seems
This screwed up stuff is the stuff of dreams
I got just enough low self esteem
To get me where I want to go
The showman gives you front row to his heart
The showman prays his heartache will chart
Making a spectacle of falling apart
Is just the start of the show
this is great writing by bono and i know there's another thread on this but really captures the depression angle well. that this song precedes Little Things on the album was not just a coincidental happenstance.
This screwed up stuff is the stuff of dreams
I got just enough low self esteem
To get me where I want to go
The showman gives you front row to his heart
The showman prays his heartache will chart
Making a spectacle of falling apart
Is just the start of the show
this is great writing by bono and i know there's another thread on this but really captures the depression angle well. that this song precedes Little Things on the album was not just a coincidental happenstance.
Gonna Run 2 U
New Yorker
Even Liam Gallagher loves that song and we know how U2 love to pander to their rock star and political friends
Hollow Island
New Yorker
- Joined
- Jan 16, 2011
- Messages
- 2,947
I’m still haunted by the U2 spyware on my iPhone
https://www.washingtonpost.com/maga...ung-im-still-haunted-by-u2-spyware-my-iphone/
People are still writing about the itunes thing almost 8 years later.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/maga...ung-im-still-haunted-by-u2-spyware-my-iphone/
People are still writing about the itunes thing almost 8 years later.
It wasn't a big deal tho
DaveC
Blue Crack Addict
"haunted by the U2 spyware" lmao grow up
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