"Just What I Needed" by the Cars is pitched sharp on the record because Roy Thomas Baker sped it up, but it was always played live in a different, lower key.
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 13:10 (one year ago) link
I have an idea that 'The Unforgettable Fire' posed Bono a problem also, but then again I have a DVD of them playing that in USA 1987. It's exciting to see, but they can't really replicate the instrumental thrills in the middle.When I saw them in 1985 they didn’t seem to struggle with it, though Bono didn’t attempt the highest falsetto notes. The instrumental midsection worked well with Edge doing the string parts on slide guitar against a sequencer. But since so much of the chorus is at the absolute top of Bono’s range, I can see why they may not have played it live much.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Tuesday, 14 February 2023 13:25 (one year ago) link
how many bands lowered the keys of brand-new songs (as opposed to older songs the singer may struggle with) in order to play them live?
Would Friday I'm in Love count? The studio version of which was pitched up.
― you can see me from westbury white horse, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 13:44 (one year ago) link
Energy-wise you ain’t gonna get these guys anymore
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEyrhdBIyD8
― omar little, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 14:46 (one year ago) link
Iirc they've been playing Even Better Than the Real Thing for years now with sort of energy-sapped verses. Maybe it's a purely artistic decision but idk.
― you can see me from westbury white horse, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 15:08 (one year ago) link
Just watched that "The Fly" 2018 clip and it sounds pretty great. I think Edge is the one hitting those notes with just the organ/pad and percussive elements in the backing track, as it is on the album
― Vinnie, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 15:50 (one year ago) link
FWIW, for post-2000 U2, the 2001 show at Slane is hands down the one to see IMHO. Cheap DVD's are easy to find for those who want a physical copy, and it challenges even the Red Rocks DVD for the best one they've released. (The Zoo TV DVD at Sydney is still my favorite, but a lot of people complain that the sound quality - perhaps the mix - isn't as good as it could be judging by audio-only releases from that tour, but I think the visuals make up for it.)
― birdistheword, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 16:25 (one year ago) link
that 2018 version of the fly does sound really good. that one remains solidly within Bono's vocal wheelhouse, probably 3/4 of achtung baby remains well within reach for him -- wild horses, mysterious ways, and ultraviolet are the ones where he really stretched out i think but the former pair might be well-served by the lower register vox, they would prob sound better. ultraviolet is the one where i kinda wish he'd still be able to hit all the high notes.
― omar little, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 17:27 (one year ago) link
Bono's own father pointed out early on that he was a baritone masquerading as a tenor. That being the case, a lot of U2's material had an inbuilt shelf-life. If even guys like Robert Plant lose their high notes, what chance did Bono have to still be able to sing something like "The Unforgettable Fire" by his sixties?
― Vast Halo, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 17:36 (one year ago) link
Bono's own father pointed out early on that he was a baritone masquerading as a tenor.
This makes sense. But did Bono take care of his voice? I feel like there's a lot of musicians for whom long-term self-care is an afterthought at best, or is maybe addressed too late to have much of an effect. I mean, Roger Daltrey is 78 and still singing "Tattoo" in its original key, and Paul Thompson is 71 and driving Roxy Music like he's 21, so it's definitely possible to retain one's strengths over the years.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Tuesday, 14 February 2023 17:58 (one year ago) link
Paul Thompson is 71 and driving Roxy Music like he's 21
lol he sooooo wasn't. PT is one of my all time favorite drummers, and my eyes were on him most of the show, but there was no way he was driving much anything. Still good, tho.
Daltrey, not sure he was ever much of a smoker, which may be key.
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 18:22 (one year ago) link
Bono def pushed his voice past its natural zone on earlier recordings and frequently sounded awkward in certain spots. i sense he probably got some vocal training after awhile which allowed him to lose that awkwardness and smooth everything out, but it all likely took its toll. He smoked for awhile too, which didn't help. He sounds good in the lower register, so it could be a net gain should he choose to go that route exclusively on future albums though who knows how many of those there will be.
― omar little, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 18:41 (one year ago) link
as far as old timers who can still do it, Richard Thompson is in a class by himself
― Blues Guitar Solo Heatmap (Free Download) (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 14 February 2023 19:09 (one year ago) link
Andy McCluskey of OMD still has the chops, and the dancing
― omar little, Tuesday, 14 February 2023 19:11 (one year ago) link
Michael Penn recorded "No Myth" in C, but when he performed it on TV at that time he sang it in G.
― Halfway there but for you, Wednesday, 15 February 2023 17:03 (one year ago) link
regarding taking care of his voice, Bono is similar to Ewan McGregor in Moulin Rouge, he's very throaty and punches the high notes out, but his technique isn't actually very good, so no doubt he lost that range faster than if he'd sang properly - but even then, if you're operating at the top of your range in your prime and continue to tour for 100+ days a year for decades and decades, you're singing live more than the average musician, and for a longer time at each show, so the wear and tear adds up a lot quicker.
― waiting for a czar to fall (Neanderthal), Wednesday, 15 February 2023 17:56 (one year ago) link
^^ that plus the fact that he did more between- (and during-) song patter than probably any vocalist of his generation, most of which was shouted. And he didn’t get any relief during the shows: it’s not like there’s any long U2 instrumentals or more than two songs that the Edge could sing on his own.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Wednesday, 15 February 2023 18:26 (one year ago) link
holy shit bono & edge did a tiny desk concert & it’s so greathttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxo-loXdcH0
― werewolves of laudanum (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 March 2023 19:46 (one year ago) link
I want a Tiny Desk Concert that is just Adam and Larry.
― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 18 March 2023 20:07 (one year ago) link
Mission: Tiny Desk
― an icon of a worried-looking, long-haired, bespectacled man (C. Grisso/McCain), Saturday, 18 March 2023 20:12 (one year ago) link
bugger.i hate acoustic versions so was going to avoid this album.but yeah .. this is really good.
― mark e, Saturday, 18 March 2023 20:19 (one year ago) link
I checked out when boner started directing the choir
― calstars, Saturday, 18 March 2023 22:34 (one year ago) link
Beautiful Day had strong Flight of the Conchords vibes for me but I bailed on the rest
― assert (matttkkkk), Saturday, 18 March 2023 23:56 (one year ago) link
rmde i should have expected nothing less
― werewolves of laudanum (VegemiteGrrl), Sunday, 19 March 2023 00:12 (one year ago) link
had no idea that the tiny desk space isn't tiny at all, I remember a Bono interview some years ago regretting not spending more time writing and recording new stuff, would have been totally possible and legendary to play the batman song acoustic though, and with a choir!? seems like a missed opportunity
― Florin Cuchares, Sunday, 19 March 2023 02:03 (one year ago) link
My sister and I used to joke about the day they'd do a Vegas residency.
― immodesty blaise (jimbeaux), Sunday, 19 March 2023 02:05 (one year ago) link
I remember them releasing an acoustic version of "Stuck in a Moment..."on that 7 CD EP that was a Target exclusive back in the day. Not sure if they stopped doing this, but IIRC they used to do short acoustic sets of a selection of hits at all of their shows (like three or four songs), and they usually held up pretty well that way.
― birdistheword, Sunday, 19 March 2023 18:28 (one year ago) link
Dud
― ꙮ (map), Sunday, 19 March 2023 18:40 (one year ago) link
they also did a BBC piano room session with One, Vertigo and this, SOS by ABBA:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLbexDnt_a8
― StanM, Sunday, 19 March 2023 21:44 (one year ago) link
I listened to all of this yesterday. Better than I expected, not as good as I hoped it might be in the best case scenario, and it probably should just be regarded as U2: the acoustic sessions or as a bonus to Bono’s book vs any new path being charted. It’s not essential but not bad.
The last album suffered from overproduction so it’s nice to hear them a bit more back to basics. Just four two guys in a room, making music! Some of the versions are pretty stellar, some are a bit more perfunctory. I’m a completist, so I’m inclined to get this. but maybe not at the current price.
― omar little, Monday, 20 March 2023 18:11 (one year ago) link
You mean the 4-cd thing? Is it like "U2: Naked," minus all the (mostly) awesome production?
― Josh in Chicago, Monday, 20 March 2023 18:15 (one year ago) link
More like Bono and the edge naked, in a room together, just two guys etc. etc.
― omar little, Monday, 20 March 2023 18:28 (one year ago) link
boner and the wedge
― calstars, Monday, 20 March 2023 18:29 (one year ago) link
I watched the Tiny Desk concert and thought it was awful. Like monumentally bad. It's time to retire and enjoy being billionaires for the rest of their lives.
― brotherlovesdub, Monday, 20 March 2023 18:42 (one year ago) link
Counter opinion: I thought it stripped away some of their heavy-handed seriousness, and looked like they were having fun. Note, I pretty much stopped listening to U2 circa Rattle and Hum, so I knew none of these songs previously.
― Three Rings for the Elven Bishop (Dan Peterson), Monday, 20 March 2023 19:23 (one year ago) link
It's not a completely bad idea - just to use one old example, they created a new, "less-produced" arrangement of the Pop-era B-side "North and South of the River" for a special broadcast that was held in response to the bombing in Omagh. To date, it's the only time the song's been performed live, and it's actually one of my favorites - I wish it was given an official release (it would've fit perfectly on this set had they been open to older recordings), but plenty of home recordings are out there: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueqt_KY1YlU
Having said that, most of this set is for collectors only as I can't imagine playing this whole thing ever again. It probably would've helped to make one LP of the best stuff and leave the complete four-disc set as a "limited edition" type of thing. "11 O'Clock Tick Tock," "Every Breaking Wave," and at least a few others made a nice impression, but they kind of get lost in a giant load of 40 tracks.
― birdistheword, Monday, 20 March 2023 21:16 (one year ago) link
Nm, I didn't realize there was a single disc version!
― birdistheword, Monday, 20 March 2023 21:46 (one year ago) link
giant load you say
― calstars, Monday, 20 March 2023 21:56 (one year ago) link
I enjoyed the Bono, Edge & Dave show on Disney+
― BrianB, Monday, 20 March 2023 22:43 (one year ago) link
I heard the full thing on release day and I may never hear it in full again but the best tracks imo are Dirty Day, Until the End of the World and the weird '93 fat lady falsetto arrangement given to Desire.
― you can see me from westbury white horse, Monday, 20 March 2023 22:43 (one year ago) link
lol this version of "desire" is so weird
― ufo, Tuesday, 21 March 2023 00:02 (one year ago) link
This is so sleepy I h a t e it
― MaresNest, Tuesday, 21 March 2023 00:19 (one year ago) link
oh man this new album is so bad. There's 4 discs of it????????
The best version of "Dirty Day" was a remix that was a b-Side on the "Please" CD single
― "The pudding incident?" (Boring, Maryland), Thursday, 23 March 2023 20:12 (one year ago) link
4U2 would be U8 no?
― hootenanny-soundtracking clusterfucks about milking cows (Neanderthal), Thursday, 23 March 2023 20:17 (one year ago) link
unless 2 is a power and not a multiplier
suspect i will buy this when its cheap in a years time to flesh out a deal at amazon to get free delivery.
― mark e, Thursday, 23 March 2023 20:21 (one year ago) link
u-cubed
― "The pudding incident?" (Boring, Maryland), Thursday, 23 March 2023 20:22 (one year ago) link
Sadly this is a snooze. The takes of classic good songs aren’t any better than the originals and any hope that there’s a hidden gem amongst the more recent interpretations is soon scotched. Bono should definitely give up trying to do a falsetto.
Will make an exception for Stay (Faraway so close) which has a spectral beauty.
― Dan Worsley, Thursday, 23 March 2023 20:39 (one year ago) link
I think I'll take back what I said, even when you try to whittle it down to the ten best, it really is a snooze. Ah well, at least I was trying it before I actually bought it.
― birdistheword, Friday, 24 March 2023 21:22 (one year ago) link
My daughter's at Bono's son's band tonight, wild when your kid and you are at different shows in the same city at the same time.
― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 25 March 2023 02:24 (one year ago) link