Well...
First,
HelloAngel, I *did* send this info. to you via PM for your U2News forum - so no lip from you, young lady!
My comments....
The Bad:
If this is indeed "official" and Dotmusic.com isn't misleading us, I must say I am disappointed that songs from ATYCLB appear on this "Best Of." That said, it does appear that U2 limited the songs to only those that were released in 2000 on a CD single in Ireland, Australia and the U.K., like "Beautiful Day" and "Stuck in a Moment...". If you recall, "Stuck..." was the second official single in Ireland and the U.K. (whereas, "Walk On" was the second official single in Canada and the U.S.). As such, "Stuck..." was officially released in 2000. This suggests that if and when a third "Best Of" collection is released (let's assume 2001 to 2010), "Walk On" and "Elevation" will appear there. It's only right to make sure that these two Grammy-award winning songs find a second home on another "Best Of" collection. ;-)
Second, it really seems like the b-sides are really lacking. Yes, it's nice to have all of these remixes on one CD, and I admit that many of them were released as b-sides on U2's 90's single CDs. However, U2 also released quite a few new songs too, like "Holy Joe", "Alex Descends into Hell...", "Always", "I'm Not Your Baby", "Viva Davidoff", "Slow Dancing", "Where Did It All Go Wrong", "Two Shots of Happy, One Shot of Sad", and "Big Girls are Best" (and there are a few more). I enjoy remixes as much as anyone, but I'd much rather see some - if not all - of these songs in place of all the remixes (especially a-side remixes - like of "Discotheque") listed.
The Good:
To end on a more positive note, here's what I like about this collection, if indeed it is real.
I like the fact that U2 have revamped some songs. I know "J" (Jick) won't and he'll just use this info. to start another tirade about how bad "Pop" was.
But I like the fact that U2 have remixed some "Pop" songs - it gives me something to look forward to, instead of having the "same old/same old" songs that we just heard a few years ago.
I like the fact that U2 threw in a few curves here and there. "Gone", for example, was not a hit song - not even released as a single. The same is true for "Until the End of the World", which became a hit on the U.S. Modern Rock stations, but technically was never released as a single, and "The First Time" - one of Bono's most brilliantly written songs ever. It's nice to see some fan and band favorites mixed in this list, and not just the hit songs. Good move!
While there are too many remixes on the b-sides collection, U2 do seem to have picked their favorite version of the songs they have chosen. I adore the "Junk Day remix" of "Dirty Day" (better than the "Zooropa" version, IMO) and the "Extended Version Mix" of "Lady with the Spinning Head" is the only way to go.
Plus, I like the fact we'll get to hear two versions of "Electrical Storm" - which is always good.
Lastly, this article mentions a DVD release that will have even MORE goodies! Yay!!
Perhaps some of the b-side songs I discussed above will appear on this release.
Overall:
Until this is 100% confirmed, and we learn the track-listing of the DVD, I can't make any "official" judgment on the collection. However, given that this is a reliable source, I think this is pretty much the real thing. Therefore, my overall assessment is that while the remix list is a bit high, there does appear to be a good mix of songs in this list. Some of the b-sides, like "Lemon", were actual hit songs in other countries ("Lemon" was #1 in Australia). I think U2 did a much better job of mixing up this collection than they did the first "Best Of" collection.
I am anxious to hear some of these new mixes and can't wait for the DVD with extra footage. Still, I think if U2 had left off any ATYCLB material, they would have had more room for some of their 90's work (that I listed above).