New Album Discussion 1 - Songs of..... - Unreasonable guitar album

[BEAL]

The guitar was a little harsh in the original, but I love the "Saaaaave meeeeeee......" Everything about that part is great. But the disjointed chords always throws it for me

 

[Hewson]

I still prefer the Jacknife Lee mix of Fast Cars to the original.

I still prefer Xanax and Wine to Fast Cars.

 

[phanan]

I'm probably in the minority but I don't.

 

[mikal]

I really enjoy the spanish flair to Fast Cars. It's also a joy to play on guitar.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Mikal played with a cat the other day

 

[lazarus]

I really would love to know what the original tracklist was for the 13 song HTDAAB

I think the official album sequence is very good, actually. Energetic opener, catchy #2, ballad #3, dark rocker #4, epic #5, etc.

Yahweh isn't the typical closer as it's more upbeat, but I don't know if One Step Closer is powerful enough to go there in its place.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Take this mouth
So quick to eat some fries
Take this mouth
Give it some swiss

Hungry
Hungryyyy
My tummy rumbles before dinner time
Hungry
Hungryyyy
Still I'm waiting for the pie

 

[mikal]

I think the official album sequence is very good, actually. Energetic opener, catchy #2, ballad #3, dark rocker #4, epic #5, etc.

Yahweh isn't the typical closer as it's more upbeat, but I don't know if One Step Closer is powerful enough to go there in its place.

Yeah I remember almost 20 years ago, I kept trying to tweak the tracklist, but now almost 2 decades removed and just listening to the whole album, I thought it flowed well and I really enjoyed the listen.

 

[wolbersu2]

As I love this album (HTDAAB) very much, it's not in my top 10 u2 albums. Only Miracle drug, Vertigo, Fast cars and Crumbs are the only songs from this album I play sometimes nowadays.
I hope the new album won't contain this type of rock. It would be really cool they'd return to their 80-85 sounds. Red Flag Day and Book of your heart from SOE were a nice try.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

I think it's out of my Top 10 as well at this point.

JT
ATYCLB
AB
UF
Zooropa
War
October
Boy
NLOTH
OST 1

I'd have had it right behind October around the time it came out. But when half the album continually reveals itself to be subpar and the overly loud mastering makes it more annoying with each listen, well, it can only drop.

I guess we can call it their "eleventh good album"...I consider the other four to range from mediocre (Rattle and Hum) to completely terrible (SOE).

 

[mikal]

Mikal played with a cat the other day

And I had a plan

 

[mikal]

I'd put this album in my 8-10 range, which isn't bad because the albums in front of it are really fucking great. I do think it was their last great album though.

I'd rank AB, Zooropa, Pop, JT, UF, Boy, and War ahead of. Probably ATYCLB too.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

The throwing Bono from a van video has been remastered. The Madden video can't be far behind

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

If he crashes a bike instead of being tossed from a van it would have made the video much better.

 

[mikal]

"I've Got You Under My Pigskin"

 

[BigMacPhisto]

I'll never understand why the football video gets so much hate. I thought the cheeky U2 references were nice and that it suited the song a lot better than the blander other video with a half-assed concept.

The Tomb Raider advertising in Elevation was far more corny. (However, Tomb Raider mix IS the best version of that song as is the single version of Walk On)

 

[Achtung Ya'll]

Props to Bono for managing to look even older than Springsteen.

Regarding Mercy and Dan's post above, it's clear that any version they release different from what was leaked is going to be a mistake. If you think U2 in 2024 is going to improve on anything they did 20 years ago you're insane. And removing the "ripping the stitches" pre-chorus is an absolute mortal sin. "On top of that, "You want to kill me and I want to die" is a terrible rewrite.

What makes the original so good is its sprawl, and deviating from the more direct/streamlined writing and recording on ATYCLB and HTDAAB. And before any idiots chime in about it being "unfinished", let's remind everyone that according to the interview in the 2004 Blender magazine article it was dropped from the original tracklisting along with Fast Cars because Larry (the true villain of this band) thought the album was too long. Since the version of the latter song that they released as a bonus track is "finished", there's no reason to assume that Mercy wasn't as well, not to mention it fits the description in the article.




What we get from this is that it was still part of the full album in a leaked version, the person didn't get an isolated recording of just Mercy by itself. The reason for the low quality is because it was from a cassette. Not because it's a demo, or hadn't been mixed yet.

Sorry if this is old news to most of you, but there's always some buffoon that wants to chime in that this track wasn't completed and uses this to argue against the quality of the song.

Also look at Bad. Basically an unfinished song that, if I'm remembering right from the book, was only released because Eno implored Bono to release it as is (with a tiny bit of melodic polish) because the fragmented nature of it was beautiful.

Shame that he didn't learn from that.

 

[Rich79]

On the topic of Mercy, "Unfinished" is really subjective up to a point. I look to the band "Mansun" who released an "unfinished" fourth album after they broke up; but nobody would know those songs weren't finished save for someone telling you there weren't. In my mind, they're done unless a finished release ever materializes; and even then, I'm so used to and in love with the versions that exist that I surely wouldn't consider it better, most likely. I'm not in the camp that Mercy is some masterpiece, but I do believe they have a "finished" song no matter what they or other people may say and it'd be nice to have it included in the upcoming set as-is, but with the non-bootlegged audio format of course. They can include a redone updated one if they want, but don't toss the one that's already beloved by many.

On HTDAAB as a whole (and sorry if I'm joining late and this has been covered ad nauseum), it's too much a consolation prize for not having an album out this Fall. I think a lot of us have heard most, if not all, the bonus material they could possibly offer (yes, there are probably some demos out there that haven't surfaced, but that's not exactly their style to release and not without tinkering). Anyway, I don't know that it's an album in need of a remaster. So, the album proper isn't really a draw here (unless they re-mix a little too with Bono's voice down more in the mix!). Keep in mind, I'm a bit biased here because this album didn't have much staying power for me, personally; and I've always viewed it as the start of a noticeable decline. When I first heard it, it felt like a Best of U2 just with all new material. There's no real cohesiveness to the songs. So, color me not excited, but as a U2 fan, probably a sucker and I'll likely be getting one of the formats offered.

 

[phanan]

It needs more of a remix than a remaster, as it's way too loud.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

It needs more of a remix than a remaster, as it's way too loud.

Well, that's the mastering because it was mastered too loudly as part of the loudness wars. Vinyl editions of that record, NLOTH, etc. are all absolutely fine because you can't chuck that sort of mastering onto vinyl. So, really, tweaking the sound levels would solve the problems AND you'd be able to hear the finer details in the mix.

 

[Achtung Ya'll]

On the topic of Mercy, "Unfinished" is really subjective up to a point. I look to the band "Mansun" who released an "unfinished" fourth album after they broke up; but nobody would know those songs weren't finished save for someone telling you there weren't.

wow. Mansun. There's a name I haven't heard in a while. I remember going to London on my senior trip in 1997 and discovering Attack of the Grey Lantern. So good.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

Was bored looking at the Global streams for some artists (my god, Sufjan Stevens is really fucking popular via that Call Me By Your Name boost) and looked at what would change regarding U218 Singles if it were released today.

Of the 16 older songs:

Elevation, Walk On and Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own would get dumped. They would be replaced by Stay, All I Want Is You and Every Breaking Wave.

If we imagined it as an 18 song compilation of their most popular tracks and ignored the two new ones that were on it at the time:

Elevation hangs on as Track #17 (it also would replace I Will Follow on the standard bonus track versions that had 19 songs). Song for Someone (!!!) would be #18 but it's barely ahead of City of Blinding Lights and I imagine the latter gets more plays day-by-day since SFS likely had a big boost out of the gate when SOI was released.


Kendrick Lamar collaboration is their 7th most streamed song ever. Given how popular he happens to be, it could end up rising even higher. Pride isn't too far away but then it would require some massive leaps to get above the rest.

U2 - Spotify Top Songs

A website that collects and analyzes music data from around the world. All of the charts, sales and streams, constantly updated.

kworb.net

 

[BigMacPhisto]

The Best Of 1980-1990 (14 most streamed songs edition):

Running To Stand Still would be #14 and bump When Love Comes To Town out (which would then replace October as the bonus track). If we're going by the non-US versions that included One Tree Hill as well, then that song would get bumped by In God's Country for the 16th spot.

The Best of 1990-2000 (14 most streamed songs, including BD and Stuck + the two brand new ones):

Wild Horses, Ultra Violet, The Fly and Lemon are IN. The First Time, Miss Sarajevo, Discotheque, Gone are all out.

So Cruel would be your #17 bonus track.

So Cruel and Zoo Station join in on the 16-track hypothetical variety without the two new songs that were exclusive for that compilation. The #17 bonus track for that one would be Discotheque.


A lot more listening from streamers for Achtung Baby than the rest of the 90s stuff. Also a massive gulf between Stay at #18 and Until The End of the World, the next 90s song, at #41.

 

[Rich79]

Since we have no new album to talk about and we're dismantling Dismantle, I've always been curious if I'm the only one that absolutely loves the opening ~14 seconds of Yahweh and thinks it goes to sh*t after that. I hear about Mercy being U2 at their most U2, but I'd make the case it's that song's intro. That they go into something totally different as soon as the verse starts is a shame. I prefer the early version because it retains that guitar line more (unfortunately it's missing something atmospheric though that the final has). I also prefer the live acoustic version because of Edge's vocals. The album version is...well, one of their most skippable songs save for those precious few seconds at the beginning.

 

[MattD]

Also look at Bad. Basically an unfinished song that, if I'm remembering right from the book, was only released because Eno implored Bono to release it as is (with a tiny bit of melodic polish) because the fragmented nature of it was beautiful.

Shame that he didn't learn from that.

Blame Rick Rubin who brainwashed them by saying their songs were shite with only window dressing sonics to disguise it.

Now we only get songs with no soundscapes and bland lyrics and melodies.

Cheers for that Rick...

 

[dazzledbylight]

As far as HUTDUB goes
I think Miracle Drug is very pretty.
While I really like Vertigo; I really prefer Native Son. Rawer. And embarrassing enough idk till just before googling it to get a relisten sonicaly - that it was written for Leonard Peltier. Have followed a certain amount of Native American issues through the years.
City Of Blinding Lights is one of my most favorite U2 sons. Joyful!

*I was lucky enough to get into their MTV show near below The Brooklyn Bridge where the played COBL! I Ieven arrived back into Brooklyn having tried to catch them in Manhattan on the flatbed truck in time to be in the other park closer to the Manhattan Bridge which they soon
rode across.

Since listing albums
AB
NLOTH
E+I
JT

Have to think about the rest since there are always a few fantastic songs on each one. Where as these four the songs are almost all very good, to excellent, to superb.

And I hope they have one more in them.

 

[Achtung Ya'll]

Blame Rick Rubin who brainwashed them by saying their songs were shite with only window dressing sonics to disguise it.

Now we only get songs with no soundscapes and bland lyrics and melodies.

Cheers for that Rick...

Fuckin' Rubin man. You can just pinpoint his presence on their songs. Does it start with a promising guitar riff only for the sonics to immediately fade deep into the background while Bono drones on top of it? Rick did that!

 

[BigMacPhisto]

I just remembered Songs of Surrender exists and I really, really like it. Not every take works but most of them really do bring out the band's songwriting qualities (or at least that of Bono and Edge).

 

[djerdap]

Since we have no new album to talk about and we're dismantling Dismantle, I've always been curious if I'm the only one that absolutely loves the opening ~14 seconds of Yahweh and thinks it goes to sh*t after that. I hear about Mercy being U2 at their most U2, but I'd make the case it's that song's intro. That they go into something totally different as soon as the verse starts is a shame. I prefer the early version because it retains that guitar line more (unfortunately it's missing something atmospheric though that the final has). I also prefer the live acoustic version because of Edge's vocals. The album version is...well, one of their most skippable songs save for those precious few seconds at the beginning.

I'm with you on this. It does start with a promising melody, and then it just devolves into... that.

As far as the tracklisting on The Bomb is concerned, Miracle Drug should never have been a no. 2 song. It kills any momentum Vertigo had made. City of Blinding Lights should have been the opener, followed by Vertigo.

My main issue with the record is that it goes into awful mode with the final two or three songs. As much as I am not a fan of Mercy, I guess if that song was the closer and Xanax and Wine was in there somewhere (preferably as no. 2), it would have been an improvement.

 

[lazarus]

Disagree on Miracle Drug. While the verses are downbeat, the pre-chorus picks up the pace and intensity with the beat and vocasl ,and the chorus is even more energetic, Edge crashing in with some powerful guitar work.

It works better than Stuck as a #2 song which is why I only listen to the original leaked version of ATYCLB where Elevation is in that spot. To me that switch is a bigger offense than what they did on The Bomb.