After new album,will U2 have enough for Best of 2000-10

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Fans have their own preferences when it comes to their favourite band, as can official music critics. Is the test of time the ultimate measure, then ?

Yeah, I'd say so. Ultimately, the closer you are to something the less objective you're going to be about it. Someone who spends all that time writing and recording a song may be able to judge if it belongs on an album with other relevant tracks, but as for its quality?

The die-hard U2 fan isn't the most objective listener either, though they may be familiar with all the other work in order to form comparisons. And perhaps someone who knows nothing wouldn't be the best judge either, as they have no context, the necessity of which varies from album to album.

A good critic is one who knows what he's listening to but attempts to shut out preconception or bias in order to combine a gut reaction with something a bit more measured. It's a tricky balancing act, I'm sure.
 
But wasn't Pop released in March? :scratch:

I would like something quicker than an album every 4 years, definitely. But I guess if that's how long they need since All that... that's how long it will take.

I think the release date is an issue now that, thanks to the internet, we know almost the exact date when the sessions are over. But I really don't care if it's September or October or November, as long as it's this year.
 
I absolutely love U2's 2000s work, and I like almost everything about their music these days. However, the two bonehead moves made were the Best of 1990-2000 track selection, and the U2:18 CD.

(I could carp about The Best of 1980-1990 not having 'Gloria', but that's been done to death.)

I think the two Best of... compilations were a good idea whose time had come. They're good ways to introduce newer fans to the band by era.

For The Best of 1990-2000, they absolutely should not have included the All That You Can't Leave Behind songs. With the three fine original albums of that decade, plus non-LP tracks like 'Hold Me Thrill Me', 'Sweetest Thing', and 'Slow Dancing', not to mention the variant (generally improved) single versions of Pop tunes, there was a perfectly awesome compilation available that need not have included 2000 songs.

For example:
1. The Fly
2. Mysterious Ways
3. One
4. Until The End of the World
5. Numb
6. Lemon
7. Stay (Faraway So Close)
8. Slow Dancing
9. Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me
10. Discotheque
11. Staring At The Sun
12. Gone
13. Please
14. Sweetest Thing

(That's just one random tracklist -- toy with it at your leisure.)

In any case, that would free up all the ATYCLB songs, HTDAAB songs, 'Electrical Storm' and 'Hands That Built America' and 'Window In The Skies', plus whatever comes on the new album, for a third compilation at some future stage.

But they totally blew it!
 
Um, "Sweetest Thing" fits with the 80s because it was originally recorded then. Not sure why you'd want it on 1990-2000 when it had been released on the prior compilation.

And "Slow Dancing" is meant to be a Willie Nelson tune, not a track that's wholly representative of U2. Certainly anything but a "best" track.

Your compilation doesn't have anything from Passengers and skips "Even Better Than The Real Thing" which is a tune the band love and was a massive hit, probably the third biggest overall from AB since The Fly was a relative flop stateside.
 
IMO they screwed themselves by putting the ATYCLB songs on a 90's compilation.

Exactly.

They really stuffed up the 90's Greatest Hits. Shonky track selection with some of the songs (from the glorious Pop album) not even the original or single versions.

Really flawed. The lack of Lemon, The Fly and Please is farcical
 
Hmmph!

Excuse me, U2God --- I henceforth bow down to your superiority...

Um, "Sweetest Thing" fits with the 80s because it was originally recorded then. Not sure why you'd want it on 1990-2000 when it had been released on the prior compilation.

Yes, I'm aware that 'Sweetest Thing' dates from the 80s and that it appeared on the optional 2nd disc of the 1st compilation. I'm also aware that approximately 0.0001% of music fans heard it in the 80s, and 99% heard it in the 90s when it was on the radio and TV. Hence it clearly fits on a 90s' compilation.

And "Slow Dancing" is meant to be a Willie Nelson tune, not a track that's wholly representative of U2. Certainly anything but a "best" track.

'Slow Dancing' first appeared in 1989 in Japan, on the LoveTown tour. On record, it first appears as a B-side to 'Stay' in 1993 (performed by U2 alone). Years later, they cut a (very rough -- amateurish sounding) recording of it with Willie Nelson. I don't understand how this is "not...wholly representive of U2". Let's see -- written by U2, first performed by U2, first recorded by U2, first released on record by U2.

Your compilation doesn't have anything from Passengers and skips "Even Better Than The Real Thing" which is a tune the band love and was a massive hit, probably the third biggest overall from AB since The Fly was a relative flop stateside.

Since you're splitting hairs, I'll do the same: 'Even Better Than The Real Thing' missed the top 10 in the UK and missed the top 30 in the USA, so I'm not sure how you define a "massive hit" by U2-standards, but I wouldn't use that as an example. I do agree with you that it's a good song and deserves its place on a 90s compilation, however. (Edge might disagree with us. His comment on the song: "It is about as close as we could or would ever want to get to the Rolling Stones.") As I said in my post, toy with the tracklist at your leisure.

As a final point, you might try responding to the main point of my post rather than flaming me by picking on trivial details. I suppose your intellectual limitations prevented you from comprehending some of the multi-syllabic words I used, but with careful study I have confidence you'll come around.
 
The only compulsory songs for a 90's GH are:

One, The Fly, Mysterious Ways, Even Better Than The Real Thing, Stay, Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me, Lemon, Discotheque, Please
 
For example:
1. The Fly
2. Mysterious Ways
3. One
4. Until The End of the World
5. Numb
6. Lemon
7. Stay (Faraway So Close)
8. Slow Dancing
9. Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me
10. Discotheque
11. Staring At The Sun
12. Gone
13. Please
14. Sweetest Thing

So where's the huge difference to the real tracklist - except for leaving the ATYCLB songs off? I understand to some extent why they included those, I guess they wanted the compilation to appeal to new/younger fans who just got into U2 with ATYCLB and then got interested in their older stuff by purchasing this Best Of.

The tracklist you posted IS incomplete to me.
No Miss Sarajevo, no Electrical Storm, no Hands (the tune that won them a Golden Globe)?

I agree about the Fly, though.

Sweetest Thing is a 80s song.
 
So where's the huge difference to the real tracklist - except for leaving the ATYCLB songs off? I understand to some extent why they included those, I guess they wanted the compilation to appeal to new/younger fans who just got into U2 with ATYCLB and then got interested in their older stuff by purchasing this Best Of.

The tracklist you posted IS incomplete to me.
No Miss Sarajevo, no Electrical Storm, no Hands (the tune that won them a Golden Globe)?

I agree about the Fly, though.

Sweetest Thing is a 80s song.

As I've now had to write twice, toy with the tracklist at your leisure! By all means, add the Passengers tracks if it floats your boat! I'm not arsed about the track selection and I wasn't sending it out for approval -- I just wrote what occurred to me in 6 seconds of thinking.

NOTE: THE MAIN POST OF MY POST ABOVE WAS THAT ATYCLB-SONGS NEED NOT HAVE BEEN ON THE 90s BEST OF.

(Also, 'Electrical Storm' and 'Hands That Built' are clearly NOT from the 90s.)
 
I'd swap October for Gloria on the 80's Best of (and maybe a 3rd War and UF song and just use 2 songs from that album instead of all Rattle and Hum singles).

U218, take out Sweetest Thing - that's the single most ridiculous choice they made on those compilations. Also reduce the 4 All that... songs. BD, sure. But instead of piling up all the singles (see Rattle and Hum above), just add a live favourite that wasn't a single, Kite (as they did with including Bad, Gone or UTEOTW). That leaves 3 spots that can be filled with I will follow, Hold me thrill me kiss me kill me and Discotheque (since this Best of tries to be covering all hits).
 
I'd swap October for Gloria on the 80's Best of (and maybe a 3rd War and UF song and just use 2 songs from that album instead of all Rattle and Hum singles).

U218, take out Sweetest Thing - that's the single most ridiculous choice they made on those compilations. Also reduce the 4 All that... songs. BD, sure. But instead of piling up all the singles (see Rattle and Hum above), just add a live favourite that wasn't a single, Kite (as they did with including Bad, Gone or UTEOTW). That leaves 3 spots that can be filled with I will follow, Hold me thrill me kiss me kill me and Discotheque (since this Best of tries to be covering all hits).


Well I think the criteria for selection on U218 was not the same as the previous Best of's. Adam stated that what they went for on U218 was a compilation that reflected Global Airplay. Which since there is not direct way to determine that, I take to mean that they looked at what songs were still being played on the radio in various countries and picked the songs that appeared most widely. Hence the heavy concetration from the last two albums.

Dana
 
I understand the point of Sweetest Thing fitting with the 90s stuff. But it was already on The Best Of 1980-1990 so it would be a really bad move for them to include it on 1990-2000. Everyone here would be complaining what a ripoff they're pulling.

I'm okay with the real tracklist and the two ATYCLB songs being on there. It doesn't really make sense for Electrical Storm and Hands That Built America to be on there though since they're from 2002.

My only problem with Best Of 1990-2000 was the b-sides disc. They had so many great b-sides to choose from but picked a bunch of dance mixes instead. A much better b-sides disc would have been something like..

01. Lady With The Spinning Head
02. Summer Rain
03. North And South Of The River
04. Happiness Is A Warm Gun
05. Satellite Of Love
06. Salome
07. Where Did It All Go Wrong
08. Slow Dancing
09. Holy Joe
10. Two Shots Of Happy, One Shot Of Sad
11. Always
12. Big Girls Are Best
13. Don't Take Your Guns To Town
14. Night And Day
 
65980, no need to start a tiff. I was just making some suggestions and displaying my opinion. Isn't adding your voice to the discussion and reading that of others the primary purpose of message boards?
 
Yes, I'm aware that 'Sweetest Thing' dates from the 80s and that it appeared on the optional 2nd disc of the 1st compilation. I'm also aware that approximately 0.0001% of music fans heard it in the 80s, and 99% heard it in the 90s when it was on the radio and TV. Hence it clearly fits on a 90s' compilation.

KROQ in Los Angeles played Sweetest Thing a lot in 87. It ended up being on of their top 106.7 songs of 87 and it recieved a lot of play in the early 90's as well. I remember hearing it a lot and wondering where it came from.

U2 B-sides recieved quite a bit of radio play back in the day.
 
KROQ in Los Angeles played Sweetest Thing a lot in 87. It ended up being on of their top 106.7 songs of 87 and it recieved a lot of play in the early 90's as well. I remember hearing it a lot and wondering where it came from.

U2 B-sides recieved quite a bit of radio play back in the day.

That's interesting. I didn't know that.

Based on stuff I read, I get the impression that KROQ was perhaps the only decent radio station in America in the 80s... They seemed to have been the only one that actually listened to the music.
 
1. Elevation(video mix, never released on U2 album)
2. Vertigo
3. SYCMIOYO
4. 2008
5. A new song(perhaps one they finished from the Rick Rubin sessions)
6. 2008
7. COBL
8. Kite
9. 2008
10. 2008
11. OOTS
12. ABOY
13. 2008
14. Walk On(video mix, never released on album)

Add: WITS(single mix, never been on album), Wave of Sorrow(talk about opening up yet another can of worms)
 
I LOVE Wave of Sorrow, but technically it belongs to the 80s (JT b-sides)

I am curious what they'll do with this song live (IF anything).
 
KROQ in Los Angeles played Sweetest Thing a lot in 87. It ended up being on of their top 106.7 songs of 87 and it recieved a lot of play in the early 90's as well. I remember hearing it a lot and wondering where it came from.

U2 B-sides recieved quite a bit of radio play back in the day.

This is true and I remember it well.

Spanish Eyes was a popular one on KROQ, too.
 
I don't want any fuc#%ing best of anymore!!!!
3 is MORE than enough.

Just new innovative albums.

(and if they will do a best of, Window in the Skies and The Saint are coming should be on it....however, i'll still not buy it)
 
(and if they will do a best of, Window in the Skies and The Saint are coming should be on it....however, i'll still not buy it)

"Saints" is a cover and just as much a Green Day song as a U2 one. The other Best Ofs didn't have covers. I'd leave it off so those that purchased U2:18 will still have an extra track. "WITS" would fill up a slot nicely and is an important single that the band really digs. It definitely can't be left out of a three part overview of the band.

I'd put on the next one:

1. Elevation (Tomb Raider Mix)
2. Walk On (Single Mix)
3. Kite
4. Vertigo
5. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
6. City Of Blinding Lights
7. All Because Of You (Single Mix)
8. Original Of The Species (Single Mix)
9. Window In The Skies

A new song + 4 from the next album gives us 14 tracks. If the next Best Of draws from two new albums, we could go:

1. Elevation (Tomb Raider Mix)
2. Walk On (Single Mix)
3. Vertigo
4. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
5. City Of Blinding Lights
6. All Because Of You (Single Mix)
7. Window In The Skies
8-11: four tracks from 2008 album
12-15: four tracks from the album after
16: one new track

This would be a little stronger and eliminate an album track ("Kite") and a relatively minor (and-not-so-great) single ("Original of the Species")
 
Bonus disc tracklisting?

The B-Sides 2000-2010

1. Elevation (Influx Remix) (from "Elevation" single)
2. Big Girls Are Best (from "Walk On" single)
3. 2008 album b-side
4. Don't Take Your Guns To Town (from "Elevation" single)
5. All Because Of You (Killahurts Fly Remix) (from "City Of Blinding Lights" single)
6. Are You Gonna Wait Forever? (from "Vertigo" single)
7. Tower Of Song (ft. Leonard Cohen) (from "Window in the Skies" single)
8. 2008 album b-side
9. 2008 album b-side
10. New York (Nice Mix) (from "Electrical Storm" single)
11. New York (Nasty Mix) (from "Electrical Storm" single)
12. Ave Maria (Jacknife Lee Remix) (from "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" single)
13. Fast Cars (Jacknife Lee Remix) (from "All Because Of You" single)
14. Neon Lights (from "Vertigo" single)
 
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