adrobw said:
I am one of those relatively ‘new’ fans of U2 hated by this board which became a fan by picking up the Slane DVD which had a lot of hit songs that I always kind of liked. Upon seeing this concert on film, my interest in the band skyrocketed and I explored U2 at my own pace. If you had shown me Popmart as my first U2 concert ever, I probably would have been turned off by the band since “new wave” rock isn’t really my style (although it does work with U2 after it grew on me). It has to do with instant gratification vs. slowly learning to love a song. Instant gratification works best with attracting new fans and then hopefully getting them interested in exploring the back catalog. I’ll be buying U218 (deluxe) to be sure because of this casual fan aspect of myself.
Great post. I think that you've hit the nail on the head in terms of this release. I don't think it really matters to the hardcore fan whether they release this or not. And we shouldn't complain about 'new' fans - we were all new fans once! I got into U2 during the Pop era and worked my way back through their catalogue at a slow pace too. Everyone needs something to get them hooked on a band. I definitely didn't feel out of place seeing Radiohead this year in spite of only getting into them in the past eighteen months.
This is a solid tracklisting, save the absence of Stay and I Will Follow. I think we expected Pop to be ignored, so we can't complain about that. To those who complain about the DVD I say, what if they had simply released this collection without any incentive at all? At least we are getting some value for money from it, rather than a rehashed b-sides collection or something. It is, after all, something unreleased that the fans had been clambering for, so they do listen to us in the end.
Regarding the inclusion of the Sweetest Thing and Stuck, I happen to like both of those tracks, although I dislike ATYCLB. They also suit a collection like this very well since they're serious single material, particularly the former. I think that 4 tracks from ATYCLB is a bit excessive, but I think that what we'll see in this compilation are releases of single versions that people who only own albums - even if them all - haven't got already. This applies particularly to Elevation and Walk On, both of whose single versions are far superior to those on the album.
All in all we can't complain really. It's not the death of U2, we get a new song, they get something to go on tour with, and we'll probably get a new album next Christmas. It's all good.
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My only surprise is zero songs from 4 albums, when U2.com says this is the only single disc Best of that spans everything from Boy to Bomb.
