Shuttlecock XXI: Laz is Bigger Than Anyone in His Way

[Headache in a Suitcase]

btw the next single is called HITS HITS HITS (there are no hits)

 

[Hewson]

If we put together one album from this Songs Of era, it could have been a pretty damned good one.

Problem of course is that if U2 put together one album from this era, it would suck as they'd take all the songs they shouldn't take because HITS HITS HITS (there are no hits)

Here's the 2 options: (I won't use B-side tracks, and will split each into 12 tracks.)

SOH: (Songs of Hewson, my version)

1. Reach Around
2. Lights of Home
3. Raised By Wolves
4. Summer of Love
5. Red Flag Day
6. Sleep Like a Baby Tonight
7. The Troubles
8. The Blackout
9. Cedarwood Road
10. Volcano
11. The Showman
12. The Little Things That Give You Away

SOE (Songs of Excrement, Bono and Edge's [mainly Edge] version):

1. The Miracle (Of Tommy Ramone)
2. Get Out of Your Own Way.
3. American Soul
4. Every Breaking Wave
5. Landlady
6. Love is All We Have Left
7. California (There is a Bad Intro to This Song)
8. Love is Bigger Than Anything in its Way
9. Iris
10. You're the Best thing About Me
11. Song For Someone
12. 13


My version would have Reach Around open as it was intended, and Little Things close as it should.
Edge would yes in fact put SFS and 13 back to back, and would still name it 13 even though the album now has only 12 tracks.

If I were to include Crystal Ballroom & Invisible in place of The Showman & Volcano in my version, then you're really talking.

 

[cobl04]

I'll take the bait...

Good Innocence x Experience (flow's not great, but these are the only songs I'd take)

The Blackout
Reach Around
Summer of Love
Every Breaking Wave
Red Flag Day
Raised By Wolves
Cedarwood Road
Sleep Like a Baby Tonight
Little Things
Landlady
Love is Bigger
The Troubles

Strangely enough, I listened to most of SOI Saturday while in the car, skipped the first 4 and listened to everything from Iris on, plus popped in the bonus disc and listened to Lucifer's Hands and Crystal Ballroom. Made me think just the opposite of Cobbler, now much better SOI (specifically the back half) is than SOE.
It has you know, guitars.
And Volcano, while no great shakes, is miles better than American Soul, especially the bass line.

"it has guitar" is half the reason we're in this predicament. Edge is playing lazy, blunt guitar and scarcely anything interesting.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

Strangely enough, I listened to most of SOI Saturday while in the car, skipped the first 4 and listened to everything from Iris on, plus popped in the bonus disc and listened to Lucifer's Hands and Crystal Ballroom. Made me think just the opposite of Cobbler, now much better SOI (specifically the back half) is than SOE.
It has you know, guitars.
And Volcano, while no great shakes, is miles better than American Soul, especially the bass line.

This in every way.
#teamhewson

(It’s like The Hew in this side war).

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

So I went with a double album approach, 9 tracks per, and tried to stick with some sort of narrative (cause tight narratives are important now!)

Red Flag Day doesn't really fit in any narrative but wanted it in there, so kinda shoehorned it in

Songs of Innocence & Experience

Disc 1
1. The Crystal Ballroom
2. Cedarwood Road
3. Iris
4. Volcano
5. Song For Someone
6. Sleep Like A Baby Tonight
7. Raised By Wolves
8. The Troubles
9. This is Where You Can Reach Me Now

Disc 2
1. Invisible
2. California
3. Red Flag Day
4. You're The Best Thing About Me
5. The Showman
6. The Blackout
7. Lights of Home (St. Peters mix)
8. The Little Things That Give You Away
9. Love Is Bigger Than Anything In Its Way

 

[BoMac]

Just like The Hew!, I really enjoy the second half of SOI. In fact, I'm on record as saying that the back half is their best run of songs since POP.

 

[kabigon]

btw the next single is called HITS HITS HITS (there are no hits)

Where the Hits Have No Name
I Still Haven't Found Hits I'm Looking For
With or Without Hits
Bullet the Blue Hit
Running to Stand Hits
Red Hit Mining Town
In Hits Country
Trip Through Your Hits
One Tree Hit
Hit
Mothers of the Hits

 

[Hewson]

Where the Hits Have No Name
I Still Haven't Found Hits I'm Looking For
With or Without Hits
Bullet the Blue Hit
Running to Stand Hits
Red Hit Mining Town
In Hits Country
Trip Through Your Hits
One Tree Hit
Hit
Mothers of the Hits

Hit Station
Even Better Than The Real Hits
Hit
Until the Hits of the World
Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Hits
So Hits
The Hit
Mysterious Hits
Tryin' to Throw Your Hits Around the World
UltraHit (Hit My Way)
Hitrobat
Hits Are Blindness

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Hitcock

 

[Hewson]

Hitcock

Ouch

 

[kabigon]

Hitcock

Truffhit

 

[Kieran McConville]

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

As in I'd rather hitcock than go through 10 pages of Hit album puns.

 

[Hewson]

As in I'd rather hitcock than go through 10 pages of Hit album puns.

You started it, so you will read every hit pun and like it Spaulding.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

God damn it

 

[LuckyNumber7]

God dam knit

 

[Hewson]

God damn hits!

 

[BoMac]

Looking forward to U2's cover of LCD Soundsystem's You Wanted a Hit.

 

[gump]

gump, how was it?!

Spoiler

I've been trying to sit down and write a review, and it's been difficult to figure out what to say. Tldy: this was the U2 show I’ve enjoyed the least, by a good margin. I expected to like it more than I did, even having low expectations due to the setlists. But I was still disappointed. This show made me question the idea that even a bad U2 show is a great show. I didn’t feel this way – but perhaps this is only partially the band’s fault.

Surprisingly, apart from a couple of songs (you know which ones), the new material was the most compelling part of the show. Love Is All We Have Left / The Blackout / Lights of Home formed an excellent opening, and I respect them for that. Blackout is huge live, I wish they had invested more in it during the promotional phase rather than moving straight to the garbage singles.

There is an excess of bad new material, though: You’re the Best Thing, Get Out Of Your Own Way, American Soul and 13 are all completely unnecessary. American Soul was cringeworthy to be honest, and the huge American flag did not help it (did they feature a Canadian flag in Canada?) – especially given that it is supposed to perform the role that Bullet did admirably well in I&E. There is something remarkably out of touch regarding U2’s continued infatuation with the “American dream”, and it’s getting more and more frustrating to listen to it.

I was ecstatic to get The Electric Co. for this show, even though it was obvious that they were following the U2 6th commandment (Thou shall only introduce a good song if it replaces another good song). Streets is iconic and all, but I think Electric Co. has a claim to be the best live U2 song. It destroys.

But that’s where the show peaked. Everything from The Ocean onwards, with the exception of Acrobat, was a slog. I get playing Iris/Cedarwood for those that missed I&E, and for the thematic narrative, but do we really need those songs?

And if we are talking about narrative, where the fuck are the 90s in this show? I&E did such a better job of capturing AB. The B-stage part of the show was really disappointing to me. The great incredible EBTTRT-Mysterious Ways combo was a highlight in I&E (it goes to show that you don’t just need only rarities to make it enjoyable). Elevation/Vertigo/Desire is just such an unimaginative stretch of music, it left me bored. It was amazing to hear Acrobat live, no question about it (although security almost ruined that song by creating a huge commotion around the B-stage to move people and create a corridor for Edge to leave to the side stage before Pride). But how can you follow it by playing an acoustic version of Get Out of Your Own Way (during which I may have checked the score of the Yankees/Mets game), and then play acoustic Staring at the Sun just after you publicly trash Pop as a record? It was so incredibly frustrating.

Now, some of my frustration is a bit of I&E fatigue – especially after the joy that was JT30. I went to way too many I&E shows for me not to be bored by Iris at this point. But I don’t recall, even towards the end of the I&E tour, being so annoyed about the lack of inventiveness from the band. It was a great show then, it just isn’t now.

 

[PhilsFan]

Prices have gone back up for Philly 1 so I'm probably skipping it and sticking with Philly 2.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

Wanna take your good friend Chris

 

[corianderstem]

To answer gump's question: They did not have the giant US flag backdrop in Montreal for that song; instead there was a Canadian flag on the screen, I believe.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

They didn't put up an Australian flag, that's for sure

 

[lazarus]

Hitcock

Truffhit

I see what you did there.


I’m mildly excited about the Apollo show tonight, hoping that the historic nature of this appearance forces some song changes.

Then again, there’s the Glastonbury performance.

 

[corianderstem]

Someone cobbled together a video of the Roxy show from 2015 and put it on the Torrents site. They didn't have footage for everything, but it's pretty decent.

But man, other than a few good things right at the start, it was pretty basic. Don't get me wrong, it would have been a blast, and I'm sure tonight's show will be as well, but I'll be stunned if it's anything beyond one or two surprises, and then a smattering of expected songs.

 

[gump]

To answer gump's question: They did not have the giant US flag backdrop in Montreal for that song; instead there was a Canadian flag on the screen, I believe.

I see. I wonder what they will do in Europe. I think they should drop the song altogether, but that's unlikely for a single.

 

[corianderstem]

Yeah. I don't expect them to drop it, but if non-Americans are annoyed by its message, the band will have to face the consequences of their decision to choose it as a single which apparently cannot be dropped from a setlist.






Those consequences are mostly just fans bitching about it on social media. But annoyance is a consequence. DEAL WITH IT, BONO.

 

[Axver]

cori, Edge says you're not a real fan. Same goes for you, gump.

Prices have gone back up for Philly 1 so I'm probably skipping it and sticking with Philly 2.

Right, so, Philly 2 gets Magnificent instead of Gloria or The Electric Co.

(Would be better than getting All Because of You, let's be honest.)

 

[Axver]

They didn't put up an Australian flag, that's for sure

Can't wait for them to come down here and unfurl an Austrian flag while they make up for not touring here on Elevation by playing Stuck again.

There will be no JT songs, not even at JT60 Melbourne.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Can't wait for the #SOI10 Australian tour