The Plan to Leak Mercy to the Radio

[U2SJ]

Its ok! I know it seems wierd! I was talking to my boyfriend this weekend about just how bizarre it is. Its the truth though, I swear.
Again, an acquantance gave me a copy, basically a friend of a friend when I was at a party right before the album came out... This person had no idea what Mercy is or anything, and didnt even know it was on there either. When I got home and listened to the cd, I realized there was an extra track on it.... and since I had read all the stuff about Mercy already, I thought to myself, maybe this is Mercy... and came here to see what you all thought.... and thats how it all happened....

 

[gareth brown]

...and the band did NOT give it to me so there is no point of returning it to them.

I know, I know, they didn't give it to you was just wondering if you had tried to contact them and mention it to them or anything...surely, it's practically one of the only copies in the world that actually came with that track on it? Who do you think made the disc and managed to get that track on there??

 

[Hallucination]

True story: I played Mercy on Saturday night as my closeing song when I was djing. Not since I played the Sundays cover version of Wild Horses have so many people come up to me durring and after the song to ask who it was. 6 in all. 4 girls and 2 guys. Every single one of them said it sounded awsome. When I told them it was U2 they all said that's who they thought it sounded like but they had never heard the song before. I told them that it's never been released in any format other than a leak on the internet. Anyways I played it once and that was the response. Perhaps a glimpse into the future popularity of Mercy.

 

[U2SJ]

gareth, I have spent a lot of time trying to figure out why Mercy was on there... I have no idea either. I wish I knew.

 

[GAGV]

gareth, I have spent a lot of time trying to figure out why Mercy was on there... I have no idea either. I wish I knew.

Is the track order the same as in the production HTDAAB? If not, it COULD have come from the stolen disc from the photo sessions.

I've also played it in one party, and my friends (who aren't U2 fans) really liked it. Not many bands well into their 40's can pull off a song like this.

 

[U2SJ]

The track order was identical to the album release.....

 

[GAGV]

The track order was identical to the album release.....

And Mercy was in what position (just out of curiosity)?

From what I've read, Edge had a tracklisting and Bono had another one... and they just couldn't decide what would be the final version.

 

[U2SJ]

It is the last track on the cd.....

 

[gareth brown]

hmmm, interesting!

really does make you wonder where the hell it came from!

 

[LastEdgeOnEarth]

I DON'T THINK ANY OF YOU REALIZE THAT IT IS ALREADY TOO LATE....the song will be played over the air if it hasn't already...if it isn't as we speak. People are downloading it and burning it as we speak. I already did. I'm a dj and could play it tomorrow. Do I feel bad about that? I'm not sure to be honest. Part of me says shame on U2 for being so careless with this gem of a song. As we all know, it's not the first time they've been careless with protecting their music. They lost HTDAAB and even stuff from ATYCLB and Pop. I wouldn't be the first dj to leak an unreleased U2 song either.....Electrical Storm was leaked early, and it was a FRIEND

 

[LastEdgeOnEarth]

I DON'T THINK ANY OF YOU REALIZE THAT IT IS ALREADY TOO LATE....the song WILL be played over the air if it hasn't already...if it isn't as we speak. People are downloading it and burning it as we speak. I already did. I'm a dj and could play it tomorrow. Do I feel bad about that? I'm not sure to be honest. Part of me says shame on U2 for being so careless with this gem of a song. As we all know, it's not the first time they've been careless with protecting their music. They misplaced HTDAAB and even stuff from ATYCLB and Pop. I wouldn't be the first dj to leak an unreleased U2 song either.....Electrical Storm was leaked early, and the jock was FRIEND of the band!!! Another part of me says it should be played because the song deserves it!!! But another part of me says U2 should be able to decide for themselves if and when this song deserves to be played. The only question left is will people like me be unselfish enough to overlook the bands carelessness and let them decide.

 

[Layton]

There's no doubt that U2 should not be profited from by radio stations and their advertisers without proper compensatory concerns dealt with. It is fair to say, though that U2 may've already lost the 'ownership' of Mercy's release into the public domain. Purposely or not, it's already in the public domain. Theoretically, if a station got their hands on a copy of HTDAAB that includes "Mercy" it's not that different from playing all the other non-singles from the album. If consumer demand dictates that this part (Mercy) of the public domain get more attention then U2 is forced to decide whether to 'cease and desist' or not. This is probably a decision that should've already been made by management since it's safe to assume that they are of knowledge regarding the 'accidental' release of "Mercy" into the public domain.

 

[AtomicBono]

Reading this thread makes me detest the idea of 'leaking' this song to the radio even more.

I suddenly realised what a complete and utter fool I myself, and a fair few others here have been regarding the song's status. Simply making throwaway comments like "Oh, yeah it needs to be heard by everyone..." when that's just the thing, it DOESN'T. Not yet anyway.

Since this song leaked, a vast majority of us have taken to the idea that the fans technically "own" this song and can do what they please with it. It just makes me feel sick now. I could never take part in publicly exposing such a work of art that U2 obviously DIDN'T intend for us to hear! I just couldn't take part in basically making a mockery of the band who I have loved and respected for so many years and probably owe a hefty chunk of my life to.

Thanks to those who finally cleared up that myth for me...since we know Bono never actually gave the CD to anyone and the track was given to someone by some unnamed entity, we know the band took it off the album at kept it in the vaults, where it's really SUPPOSED TO BE NOW.

I thought they might have intentionally leaked it and got people to check around forums like this one to see how we all reacted and decide either "Hey, they seem to love it, let's put it on the next record..." or "Fuck it, B-side it is..." but that seems less and less likely, However the idea of sending it out to all and sundry in the hope it will become some cult radio hit at 6:31, effectively forcing a decision out of U2 is just wrong...

Imagine some plank went and sent it to a major national radio station and a midday DJ went and made the decision to suddenly play it in the middle of a popular afternoon show. [unlikely, yes, but hypothetically speaking...]

What would happen? They would have to answer to Island records why they were playing [what is nothing other than] an illegally acquired song on public radio, and they would have to say how they got it and that would mean the record company would be all over U2 forums like a fucking rash searching high and low for whoever originally received the CD with the 'bonus' track and uploaded it for us all?

What if they came here and [with a little searching] came up with U2SJ's thread that says "I have a CD of 'How To...' with "Mercy" on it and need help uploading it" [or something to that effect] Surely the forum would come under fire for playing host to a mass sharing frenzy of this track.

I just don't want to think what would happen if this track was played and exposed when it's quite obvious the band didn't want it to see the light of day for some time yet. I think a lot of people here need to stop and properly think about what they're doing before just sending this around willy-nilly.

Nobody here owns the copyright to the song, no-one here has a say in what happens to it, and at the end of the day [no matter who says differently] EVERY SINGLE PERSON who has an MP3 of the track has acquired it illegally, and attempting to get it played on the radio when it's obviously not meant to be made public is just going to do more harm than good, will probably just anger the band that their fans are willingly spreading around 'stolen' material just like they were 15 years ago [though obviously not to that large an extent] and there is a strong chance it could put places like Interference in jeapordy.

What would say to the band if you happened to meet them after a show?! "Oh, hi guys! We're too impatient to wait for you to put 'Mercy' on a record so we've just sent it to multiple Radio stations in the hope you'll see how much we like it." I think it would just make the band angry at whoever's instigating this proposed mass distribution of an unreleased piece of work...what if they just lost trust in their fans after all of this?

To top this off, I think you should just be patient. Like somebody's said, it's one of those songs like 'Bad' which the really enthusiastic fan will find hidden away on an album that you would never hear on the radio...Mercy is definitely one of these songs and what harm is it going to do to just keep it quiet and wait for U2 themselves to decide what they're going to do before we try and force it upon radio and the casual listener just because we want it to get more recognition...

Yes, we love the track but surely it would be better for both the band and us as fans to let 'nature take it's course'. I'm losing track of what I was going to say but all I can say now GOOD THINGS COME TO THOSE WHO WAIT. U2 aren't stupid, they don't just record stuff and keep it hidden away forever just because it wasn't used the latest album. "Mercy" is probably likely to appear on their next record [that is if you people don't go and BLOW IT by trying to force it out of them by getting it played everywhere], and I think the only thing we can and SHOULD do is WAIT AND SEE.

If you really feel strongly about this, write to the band! Write to McGuinness, or principal management and let them know that, yes, the track IS out there and it's the best thing they've done and ask what's going to happen to it...that's really all you can do. Stop taking things into your own hands when you don't have ANY ownership of the track, U2 will do the right thing, I'm sure...

Excellent post, I agree wholeheartedly!

U2SJ - I just want to thank you personally for giving us all Mercy! It's in my top 10 U2 songs ever; I think it's just incredible and it was very kind of you to share it with us all... don't feel bad!! You did the right thing sharing it with the diehards, I would have done the same...unfortunately some people feel it necessary to push U2's hand. However I'm thinking hopefully nothing will come of it, Mercy is not a typical radio song and any sort of mainstream station would get in hella trouble for playing an unreleased track.

I am however hoping that Mercy ends up on the next album...! I really don't believe U2 are finished with this track. Surely not a song as good as this. We'll see it again somewhere...

U2dork nice sig

 

[starsgoblue]

I DON'T THINK ANY OF YOU REALIZE THAT IT IS ALREADY TOO LATE....the song WILL be played over the air if it hasn't already...if it isn't as we speak. People are downloading it and burning it as we speak. I already did. I'm a dj and could play it tomorrow. Do I feel bad about that? I'm not sure to be honest. Part of me says shame on U2 for being so careless with this gem of a song. As we all know, it's not the first time they've been careless with protecting their music. They misplaced HTDAAB and even stuff from ATYCLB and Pop. I wouldn't be the first dj to leak an unreleased U2 song either.....Electrical Storm was leaked early, and the jock was FRIEND of the band!!! Another part of me says it should be played because the song deserves it!!! But another part of me says U2 should be able to decide for themselves if and when this song deserves to be played. The only question left is will people like me be unselfish enough to overlook the bands carelessness and let them decide.

You're missing a not so subtle point here: It's not your freggin' song!

 

[U2SJ]

Thanks AtomicBono

 

[-macphisto-]

Some very good points on both sides of the table.
So was this cd in fact the stolen cd from the photoshoot? Or was the cd purposely handed out to get it to the public to hype the album. And if it was leaked purposley, maybe U2 wants Mercy to get to the public, through any means. I also agree that it is not our song to leak, and that U2 should be able to do what they want with the song, but what if this was there intention?
Also, the song is not ours, so I dont see much diffrence in someone downloading the song knowing that U2 does not want us to listen to it, then for it to be leaked on the radio.

I think the next person that gets a chance meeting U2, should bring this up, what is the deal with Mercy, and report back here!

 

[gareth brown]

I think we should just write to the band/their management and let them know what the hell is going on?! I don't like the idea of this track going any further than communities like this one for the time being, and there's a chance they could just scrap the track all together because people started fucking around and trying to force it into the public eye, what would we do then?!

 

[rock888nwo]

do not follow through with this...it is a terrible idea

 

[LastEdgeOnEarth]

to starsgoblue:

Exactly.....it's the world's now. Ever hear the old saying "don't shoot the messenger"? It's out of our hands now. This was the fault of someone in U2's camp. I'm not saying I agree wth or totally condone whats going on with this song, but the fact is this: it's out and nothing can really stop anything that happens after that. They're the biggest band in the world, what do you expect? It's gonna get out and people are going to hear it. The internet and file sharing changed the landscape of music forever. Whether we like it or not thats something that all just have to accept.

 

[lazarus]

A very good point, LastEdgeOnEarth. It's rather funny how a U2 fan sees no problem with leaking it to Interference, but opposes going to the radio. The moment you uploaded that file is the moment you lost all right to criticize what we're suggesting now. It's not like only Interference members have heard Mercy. I've had friends talk to me about it who haven't even heard of this fansite.

I don't want to make U2SJ feel guilty, and I appreciate what she's given to us, but it wasn't your place to leak it here. How was that not an ethical violation?

The bottom line is that all the privileged U2 fans want whatever they can get their hands on, but don't want to share it with the masses. And that's hypocritical. You talk about how it isn't our song, but how the fuck did you get it? Why did you download it? You knew it was unreleased and unauthorized.

Also, we're not advocating selling the goddamned thing on ebay. You may think radio stations will "profit" from playing Mercy but that's fuzzy math. Their advertisers (how they make their money) won't suddenly start pouring more ads to the station just because they played an unreleased U2 song. As many have mentioned, they probably won't be playing it for long. The idea is to get journos and fans talking about it.

I'll say it one more time: if Bono didn't personally give you this track and you own it, you have NO RIGHT to start drawing the ethics line.

And it's funny how everyone's being so protective of the band in the same week that they elected to rape the fans yet again with U2.com.

How sad.

 

[U2DMfan]

I don't endorse shipping it off to a radio station or anything but if it caused U2 to not releases it, better it remain a cult classic for U2 diehards than to be held for the next album and have Steve Lillywhite ruin it.

Really though, how much would this song change by the time another album will come out? (minimum two years, I think)
Going off the precedent set by the band, it would at least need a piano/chime melody throughout and at least a worse vocal take.
Not to mention trimmed to 4:30, or give more time to Bono to include an embrassing phrase about "the lot of the smell of freedom of what you got on your baby's head"

"fuck you wanker, have you ever smelled a baby's head?"



Really though, I think let the band do what they want with it.
We will always have this version, even if it never sees the light of day properly. I actually think it's going to be released on a soundtrack or something, it's too good to be the B-side to OOTS.

 

[-macphisto-]

The bottom line is that all the privileged U2 fans want whatever they can get their hands on, but don't want to share it with the masses. And that's hypocritical. You talk about how it isn't our song, but how the fuck did you get it? Why did you download it? You knew it was unreleased and unauthorized.


How sad.

Thats what I was trying to say in my post up above, well said.

 

[Ellay]

was the cd purposely handed out to get it to the public to hype the album.

I doubt it, if they were going to do that, then surely it would make sense to release a song that was actually on the album.

 

[Ellay]

The bottom line is that all the privileged U2 fans want whatever they can get their hands on, but don't want to share it with the masses. And that's hypocritical. You talk about how it isn't our song, but how the fuck did you get it? Why did you download it? You knew it was unreleased and unauthorized.

Surely the masses can download it in exactly the same way that I did if they want to.

It's not like there's an exclusive club hoarding it.

 

[gareth brown]

Exactly. The song is more than available now to anyone.

People may think people are being hypocritical by saying 'Yeah, upload it for us' then saying 'Don't send it to the radio', if you think about it that's not very hypoctical at all...by uploading the track, U2SJ's made it available to everyone. It's not as if it's being traded round here and we're telling each other to keep it hushed...if anyone wanted the track, all they'd have to do is look and they'd find it...

Anyone can get the track nowadays anyway via P2P programs, people are playing it everywhere and their friends are taking interest...I'm just saying leaking it to the radio will just make things worse for both the band and fans...not to mention put fansites/forums in danger of being overrun by the RIAA...

 

[innocent_eyes]

If Mercy is not the centerpeice on the next album because the band are angry that it was leakedto radio...I'm gonna be VERY dissappointed and pissed off!!!

It's clearly the best tune they have made in the last 4 years, lets not blow it, it deserves to be on a U2 album, and leaking this tune to the radio will not make the band want it on their album..the opposite if anything.

It could change U2's future...what if the next album is only sub-par without Mercy...what if it becomes a Huge hit...what if it is a hidden classic like Bad...do we really want to put U2's stature and future in jepordy for no appearent reason???

They won't completely discard the song...if enough diehards say, "hey Bono, I've heard mercy, it's been around the hardcore U2 fansites...we all think it is brilliant and deserves a spot on the next album...what do you think?"

that is better than saying, "hey B. we released Mercy to the radio without your consent...what do you think?" Larry might hit you in the face with a baseball bat!! And he'd have every right to!! lol!!! (that was a bit extreme)

Anyway...there's a real impact on what you do with the song. What if the next Mercy ends up being the single that gives this band the legendary status they have a major boost and they are fully recognized as most relevant rock act 30 yrs into their career?

What if they don't write a tune 1/2 as good as mercy for the next album because they decided to scrap mercy b/c smeone leaked it to radio? Then U2 are known as the rolling stones, irrelevant touring act....

...thats not how i want u2 to be remembered.

 

[innocent_eyes]

One more thing...

if future songs are discovered, lets say for the next album, people won't share them with the die hards because of how mercy is being treated. If I discovered rehearsals for the next album tommorrow, I wouldn't share them here because of what people feel is their right to do with mercy.

The way it is now, doesn't make the song any less enjoyable!

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

people who believe that a major radio station these days would play anything that's not on their pre-aproved set-list must be the same people who try to vote for u2 videos on TRL.

 

[U2SJ]

lazarus.... all I have to say is that I guess I have learned a valuable lesson through this whole thing. I wish I wouldve thought more about what I was doing...but in the moment, it was exciting and I didnt realize what a bad idea it was to put out there. I also did NOT believe I would be the only one to have it in my possession, actually Im sure there are other people that have it, but they just dont frequent these sites.
There is nothing I can do about it now.....but I do feel bad about it. I just want the song to be released now so that this mess will be over.

 

[ramblin rose]

And it's funny how everyone's being so protective of the band in the same week that they elected to rape the fans yet again with U2.com.

wtf are you talking about? Why don't you get your facts straight before you start throwing accusations around.

You know Marisa, forget about it. Don't feel bad, you did nothing wrong.