Compilation help

[rickphisto]

i have been asked to create a u2 compilation for some friends of the family. i was thinking of making a 4 disc compilation. can i get some ideas, feedback, tips, etc.. from everyone here? i am going to take my wife dinner at her work and then i am going to get on this full tilt. i am also going to do cover art, and mix this with live and studio tracks. or sho uld i go with all live? its just a thought.

thanx !

 

[phattom]

You could make it like a storybook of U2. I don't think you'd have to have it in chronological order, but it would probably be more "Whoa, what the sweet jane is going now?!?!" as whoever was listening to it heard the evolution of U2 through the years. And definitely make it a mix of live and album cuts (maybe ending a disc off with the "We're going to have to dream it all up again" speech before ripping into Zoo Station or Even Better Than The Real Thing).

Put some B-Sides on there (Walk To The Water, etc.), too, as whoever is listening to them has probably never heard them before, so it'd be kind of like discovering parts of U2 which they never knew existed, which is hard to do for a lot of peole considering everyone knows practically every U2 song (or at least the singles).

Oh, and I've shown people (both those who did and did not like the album) the alternate cuts of the Bomb tracks and they were utterly blown away by the fact the U2 didn't release those songs instead of the ones they did, so you can look at that from an outsider U2's perspective.

 

[phattom]

Maybe you could end the whole thing with Mercy as well, as it kind of embodies a lot of the ideas, music, and moods that make up the band, as well keeping them salviating for what's going to come next.

 

[vaz02]

key things that must be added i think are

sunday bloody sunday ( live aid )
zoo tv ( convo with bush)
(accoustic) starring at the sun
all i want is you > streets ( slane )
bad ( rattle and hum )

 

[rickphisto]

thanx a lot! please keep the ideas coming. i am working on some ideas. ripping some more stuff onto my computer.

what version of mothers of the diss. should i use?

some songs i am going to put on twice such as pride. a studio version and live version , i will do this with some other songs as well but not a lot. i want to make this look as professional as possible.

also the miss sarajevo from u2-communication is a must. i love that version. the emotion is amazing.

 

[phattom]

One orchestrated (with Pavarotti and co.) would be great to have on there as another way of hearing one. It's always good to rediscover songs you've heard before and hear them in a different way and style, and that is a great way to hear that song.

Do you know how you're going to orgazine it, mearning chronological or some other style? Are they already U2 fans or newbies? If they're already U2 fans, it'd be funny it start off with one of their really old songs, pre-Boy, that really some new degree of bad so they could see the full swing sweep of the band, as opposed to jumping right into I Will Follow or Outta Control, which are embarrasingly awesome songs that would be great to open for new fans.

Have you ever seen the BBC video feature of U2's career when Acthung Baby came out? If you haven't, you should try and check that out as it has an amazing showcase of the band's career up until that point.

 

[Goocher100]

You should definitely try and incorporate songs throughout their career that weren't released as singles but are still very good. I don't know why but I am in love with Tomorrow and I Threw A Brick Through A Window. You Could also use songs like Crumbs and When You Look At The World. Of course, there are classic live performances that you could incorporate as well but you probably know all about those.

 

[rickphisto]

i am not going to make it chronological, no i havent seen the BBC feature on the band i would love to though. ill have to check and see if i can find it.

i agree with you on tomorrow and i threw a brick, as well as the other songs goocher100.

im thinking of starting cd1 with the studio version of the song "40". then go straight into "streets" from boston 2001 with the crowd repeating the line from "40", and then end cd4 with a live version of 40.

 

[POP-ROMANCER]

Because you want to make 4 cd's I should split the u2 career in their 4 era's.

Cd1: Boy,october,war
Cd2: UF, JT, RH
cd3: Achtung, zooropa,pop
Cd4: Atyclb, htdaab

As people here said it's a good idea to throw some live versions in. And the speech of dreaming it all over again. As for cover art, I should just choose for cd 1: the boy. cd2: black & white picture like JT/RAH. Cd3: Maybe the lemon or the 4 AB singles covers. And cd4 ???

 

[rickphisto]

here is what i am thinking so far. again, any recommendations on these ideas as well as anything else is highly appreciated.

cd1
40 (studio)
where the streets... (boston 2001)
i will follow (boston 2001)
Vertigo
All Because of You
Sunday Bloody Sunday (rattle & hum)
Desire
Stay (faraway, so close)
stuck in a moment (acoustic)
Another Time, Another Place

CD2
The Ocean
Eleven O'clock Tick Tock (Boston 83)


CD3
City of Blinding Lights
Acrobat
Cry-The Electric Co. (Chicago 2005)
An Cat Dub-Into the Heart (chicago 2005)
The Unforgettable Fire
When I Look At The World
Gloria
Out of Control
Whose Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
Sometimes You Can't Make it ...

CD4
Elevation (tomb raider mix)
Beautiful Day

 

[phillyfan26]

CD1

Electric Co.
I Will Follow
An Cat Dubh/Into the Heart (Vertigo: Chicago)
Gloria
Fire
Sunday Bloody Sunday (UABRS: Red Rocks)
New Year's Day
Bad (Live Aid)
Unforgettable Fire
Pride (Rattle and Hum)
A Sort of Homecoming
40

CD2

Where the Streets Have No Name (ZooTV: Sydney)
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
Bullet the Blue Sky
Exit (Rattle and Hum)
Desire
Sunday Bloody Sunday (Rattle and Hum)
Running to Stand Still (ZooTV: Sydney)
All I Want is You
One Tree Hill
Mothers of the Disappeared

CD3

Zoo Station
The Fly (ZooTV: Sydney)
Even Better Than the Real Thing
Mysterious Ways
One
Until the End of the World (Slane Castle)
Dirty Day (ZooTV: Sydney)
Zooropa
The First Time
Miss Sarajevo
Discotheque (Best of 90-00 mix)
Mofo (PopMart: Mexico City)
Wake Up Dead Man (Slane Castle)

CD4

City of Blinding Lights
All Because of You
Elevation (Vertigo: Chicago)
Vertigo (Vertigo: Chicago)
Walk On
Beautiful Day (Live 8)
Original of the Species
Miracle Drug (Vertigo: Chicago)
Sometimes You Can't Make it On Your Own
Yahweh

I'd probably redo my own several times but it's a rough sketch.

The interesting thing is whether you want live performances to be of the era the song came from or of the era it was performed.

 

[phattom]

Because you want to make 4 cd's I should split the u2 career in their 4 era's.

Cd1: Boy,october,war
Cd2: UF, JT, RH
cd3: Achtung, zooropa,pop
Cd4: Atyclb, htdaab

As people here said it's a good idea to throw some live versions in. And the speech of dreaming it all over again. As for cover art, I should just choose for cd 1: the boy. cd2: black & white picture like JT/RAH. Cd3: Maybe the lemon or the 4 AB singles covers. And cd4 ???

CD4: A giant $, Just kidding. Something that translates into the message of equality and everything U2 stands for. Like $ (just kidding!)

 

[Goocher100]

I'm not exactly sure how easy it would be to do this but for CD #4's cover how about one of the shows of all 4 members of the band standing next to each other on stage (maybe make it black and white) and use make that album cover size? Just a thought.

 

[gareth brown]

(maybe ending a disc off with the "We're going to have to dream it all up again" speech before ripping into Zoo Station or Even Better Than The Real Thing).

Hahaha! That'd just be cheesy!

-

I reccomend not putting it in a chronological order simply to mix things up a little and surprise whoever's going to hear this when it flips from one period to the next. If sounds a little over the top so perhaps do that but split it into two seperate 2-disc compilations. One for 1979-1990 then 1990-2006 so you don't have something like the original Out of Control being followed by one of the more 'alternative' pieces of Zooropa if you know what I mean.

Definitely stick live versions on, especially if they're better than the originals. B-sides are a must too! If you don't include The Three Sunrises and Lady with the Spinning Head I want you off interference by the end of the week.

Plus I'd try and avoid unreleased stuff altogether. People will argue that some songs are just as good as their album tracks and A-sides, I do so all the time, but perhaps we're romanticising them a bit and first time listeners won't feel the same and completely hate it when 'Wild Irish Rose' pops up thanks to a reccomendation from Axver.

 

[the tourist]

CD1

I Will Follow
Twilight
Out Of Control
Stories For Boys
The Electric Co.
Gloria
Rejoice
Fire
Tomorrow
October
Is That All?
A Celebration
Sunday Bloody Sunday
New Year's Day (edit)
Like A Song
Drowning Man
Two Hearts Beat As One
Surrender


CD2

A Sort Of Homecoming
Pride
The Unforgettable Fire
Promenade
Bad
MLK
Where The Streets Have No Name
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
Spanish Eyes
Walk To The Water
With Or Without You
In God's Country
One Tree Hill
Desire
Angel Of Harlem
Heartland
God Part 2
All I Want Is You



CD3

Even Better Than The Real Thing
One
Lady With The Spinning Head (extended dance mix)
Until The End Of The World
The Fly
Mysterious Ways
Ultraviolet
Acrobat
Love Is Blindness
Zooropa
Numb
Lemon
Stay
The First Time
Dirty Day
Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me
Your Blue Room
Miss Sarajevo (single version)



CD4

Discotheque
Staring At The Sun
Last Night On Earth (single version)
Gone
Please (single version)
The Sweetest Thing (single version)
The Ground Beneath Her Feet
Beautiful Day
Elevation
Walk On
New York
Electrical Storm
Vertigo
Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
Love And Peace Or Else
City Of Blinding Lights
Original Of The Species

 

[rickphisto]

what are some opinions on these matters?

live versions of these songs?
the fly
i still havent found

what songs should i not put on the compilation?

 

[the tourist]

Don't put Elvis Presley And America, Elvis Ate America, or The Playboy Mansion.

 

[phattom]

what are some opinions on these matters?

live versions of these songs?
the fly
i still havent found

what songs should i not put on the compilation?

The Fly: Album
I Still...: Either or as long as the live version isn't with a gospel choir. I'd say the album version simply because sometimes listening to the live version, with just the crowd singing the chorus, can take away from it being personal to person listening to it.

Also, I would have to disagree with whomever said not to put alternate versions on the album on for the simply because of you. I'm sure it'd be weird to hear Native Son instead of Vertigo or whatever but everybody hate ABOY anyways and the other version is actually pretty awesome.

 

[gareth brown]

yeah avoid stuff alternate versions simply because there's little point and surely it'd be easier to just say 'Here's U2's best tracks' instead of 'Here's U2's best tracks and alternate versions, this song later became etc etc blahblah....'

 

[rickphisto]

ahh!! almost time to go to work, after that, two days off to work on and finish this. i was thinking of using this as one of the covers for the compilation. what does everyone think?






i was thinking of cover pics of along these lines. feedback?