Who needs bathrooms? ([email protected])
Sun, 29 Nov 1998 10:16:10 -0700
The Hardrock Cafe was nice enough to send a press password
my a week or two ago -- it's a pretty cool site with all sorts of
interesting things.
Check it out at http://www.hardrock.com .
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>From an EXIT post by Douglas Laidlaw:
The Edge is interviewed in the January issue (it's only November!)
of Guitar World magazine. Hole is on the cover (gimme a break). The Edge
talk about the Best Of and the future. He hinted that a Best of 1991-2000
would come soon after the millennium. The interviewer seemed to know a lot
about U2 and early details. The Edge said the album October is embarrassing
to listen to now. They were young at the time, and he feels the material
doesn't hold up as well. He said they left "Gloria" off the Best Of because
it seemed dated, where as the material on Boy still sounds fresh. By the
time they had to go in the studio and record Boy, they'd toured anywhere
they could playing all their songs, therefore they knew which ones worked
the best and would go on Boy. They didn't have that luxury with October.
Edge said he wanted to put "Running to Stand Still" on the new
record. They also thought about "Bullet the Blue Sky," but the live version
on Rattle & Hum is superior and they didn't want to put live songs on this
collection. It's got some photos of Edge with his cowboy hat on, and an old
pre-Boy photo. They transcribe "Where the Street Have No Name" as well.
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U2 Best of 1980-1990
Australia #1
Austria #1
Canada #4(2CD), #5(1CD)
Germany #1
US #5
UK #9
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>From Bigmouth:
U2, Bob Geldof and The Corrs pay their respects to Omagh
U2, Bob Geldof, and The Corrs along with other Irish performers
have appeared live, on Irish TV, to pay tribute to the victims of the
Omagh bombing. The show, performed in front of many of the
survivors and their families, was opened and closed by U2, with the
tracks, 'North And South Of the River' and 'All I Want Is You', with
Bono himself speaking at length on the atrocity that maimed and
killed dozens of innocent people - "The only grain of hope that you
can possibly glean from this terror," said Bono, "is that this has to
be the end of it." Noel Gallagher had been scheduled to appear at the
gathering, but could not make it, sending instead a tape with a
message and a song, an early demo of 'She's Electric' from
their 'Morning Glory' album. Bob Geldof read a poem, 'The
Second Coming', by Yeats and also gave a rendition of his
biggest solo hit 'The Great Song of Indifference'. The Corrs
contribution was their version of REM's 'Everybody Hurts' plus
they were one of the organisers of the event.
A charity album is also to be released to mark the tragedy with
track donations from various Irish artists. Sinead O'Connor,
though, specially recorded a track, 'Chiquita', for the album and
Liam Neeson recorded a Seamus Heaney poem, 'The Cure at
Troy'.
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Thanks to Rajiv Udani for the following information on the Best Of:
1.New Years Day 4:17. This may be the same as the original Japanese 7�
single which states �Special Version 4:16�, I haven�t played my single
recently, but the timings match up...
2.Where the Streets... 4:35. the single version (i.e. edited intro) is
4:48.
3. Bad 5:50. original version is 6:08.
4. Love Comes Tumbling 4:40. This mix with Larry�s intro (clicking
drumsticks) is from the original UK 12� single (not sure of the German
or Canadian 12�) and on the UK 7� doublepack. The version on the Wide
Awake in America EP and the Unforgettable Fire CD single is 4:44
(Larry�s intro on the 4:40 version is about 10 sec, so the Wide Awake...
version has a clean intro and a shorter outro).
[There is a completely different vocal-take on the Australian and New
Zealand Unforgettable Fire 12� and cassette singles and is NOT available
on any legit CD.]
5. Bass Trap 3:31. The original version on the Unforgettable Fire vinyl
and CD singles is 5:10
6.Dancing Barefoot 4:45. This �longer� version is on the original When
Love Comes... 7� single (and I think cassette single). It is also on the
US promo CD �God Part II� (a promo compilation which had some R&H
b-sides). The version on the CD single and 12� single is 4:13.
7. Hallelujah Here She Comes 4:00. The original version on the Desire
single is 4:15.
8. Endless Deep - this is the first time this has appeared on legit
Island CD release.
9. A Room at the Heartbreak Hotel 4:32. The original version on the
Angel of Harlem single is 5:30.
10. Party Girl -this is the first time this has appeared on legit Island
CD release. (useless trivia:supposedly the drum track is identical to
the drum track on �A Celebration� but played backwards!)
-------------
Thanks to Marilyn for the following from the New York Daily News'
Bullets & Bombs:
U2's a Two-Timer / Sales gimmick has LP chart seeing double/by Jim Farber
It's not every album that can appear in two spots on the same
Billboard chart. But U2's new "Best Of 1980-90" just managed that
unprecedented feat.
Last week, the Irish band's LP debuted at No. 2 on the Top 200 Album
list, moving 237,434 copies. This week, it hangs tough at No. 5 with 136,149
copies hawked. At the same time, another version of the album appears at No.
58, having moved 28,578 copies.
What gives?
The higher-placed album measures sales of a two-CD incarnation of the
release- one pairing the hits disc with a second disc devoted to obscure B-
sides. The lower-ranking version of the "Best Of" offers just the single hits
disc.
Island Records used the one-two punch as a canny gimmick to goose the
high debut. The company baited fans with a clever threat: that the two-CD
version would be available for one week only. Because that label sent out more
than 1 million copies of the two-CD version, though, any time limit couldn't
possibly be enforced. Retailers clearly couldn't clear their shelves of a
million U2 CDs in just one week- at least not at this point of the band's
career.
So, why pick up the single CD when you can nab a double? Well, the
double package has a sale price of about 19 bucks; the single's, $13. Casual
fans, or cheapskates, probably went for the latter. Meanwhile, Island got what
it wanted: to set a record. U2's set enjoyed the largest opening week for a
hits album for any group in SoundScan era. Even here, though, there's a small
cheat: U2 didn't enjoy the top hits debut for any performer- just for any
group. Garth Brooks and Michael Jackson beat U2's butt overall.
-Jim Farber, Monday, November 23.1998
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I made a serious mistake in reporting yesterday's AI Fan Site Day.
I erroneously thanked Zoonation, when in fact, I should have thanked
Interference.com U2Dublin and Heidi Dutton for their efforts.
My apolgies to all those concerned.
-------------
The Adam Clayton Hot Press interview can be found at
http://www.members.home.net/u2-news/u2note291198a.html
Thanks to des for the article.
-------------
>From NME:
OMAGH: STILL PICKING UP THE PIECES
U2, THE CORRS and BOB GELDOF featured on an Irish TV tribute to the victims
of the Omagh Bombing. The special edition of The Late Late Show was broadcast
live on RTE on Friday, November 20.
NOEL GALLAGHER would have appeared on the show, but he was ill and sent a
message instead. He gave the show a cassette, containing a demo version of
'She's Electric', recorded before OASIS signed to Creation Records. He also
sent a gold disc of 'Be Here Now' to Claire Gallagher, an Oasis fan. She was
blinded by the bombing.
U2 bookended the programme with the songs 'North And South Of the River' and
'All I Want Is You'. Bono also spoke about the day in Omagh, Northern Ireland,
which caused 30 deaths when a 'Real IRA' car bomb went off on August 15.
"The only grain of hope that you can possibly glean from this terror," Bono
said, "is that this has to be the end of it. That was the moment that marked
the end of The troubles. We have to belive that - the polititians, the police
and the paramilitaries and priests and whoever, that they will go that extra
mile now to understand their adversaries and then go one mile further. That is
the only thing that we can hope for."
The Corrs had helped to organise the programme, and they sang REM's 'Everybody
Hurts' to an audience that was made up of people from Omagh and Buncrana who
had been traumatised by the bombing. Other guests included Brian Kennedy and
Paul Brady.
Bob Geldof brought an angry note into the show by slamming "the shame and
horror of 30 years" and reading from the apocalyptic WB Yeats poem 'The Second
Coming'. He said that the event had left him "sick with rage". He performed
'The Great Song Of Indifference'.
OMAGH TRIBUTE ALBUM
Here is the full tracklisting for the album, 'Across The Bridge Of Hope'. This
has been compiled in response to the bombing in Omagh, Northern Ireland on
August 15, which killed 30 people.
LIAM NEESON 'The Cure At Troy' (Seamus Heaney poem),
SINEAD O' CONNOR 'Chiquitita',
THE DIVINE COMEDY 'Sunrise',
BOYZONE 'Words',
The Corrs 'What Can I do?',
DANIEL O' DONNELL 'Beyond The Great Divide',
VAN MORRISON 'The Healing Game' (acoustic version),
ASH 'I'm Gonna Fall',
U2 'Please',
JULIET TURNER 'Broken Things',
PAUL BRADY 'The Island',
OMAGH COMMUNITY CHOIR 'Across The Bridge Of Hope'
ENYA 'Silent Night'
The record will be released on November 30. The net proceeds will be donated
to the Omagh Memorial Fund.
-------------
>From CNN:
U2 'Legends' Episode to Debut on VH1 on December 11;
Band's Two Best of Collections in Billboard's Top 100 Albums Chart
NEW YORK, Nov. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- It was announced today that the rock
band U2 will be the subject of a one hour documentary on December 11 on
VH1's acclaimed "Legends" series. The special includes new interviews
with the band and extremely rare footage of their earliest
performances. The program will air twice on Friday, December 11 at 9:00
P.M. and 11:00 P.M. and will re-air again on Sunday, December 13 at 12
Noon.
"U2 is a magical force in music," said Wayne Isaak, VH1 Senior Vice
President of Music & Talent Relations. "They are truly legendary and
we're thrilled they agreed to participate in the making of this rare and
rich 'Legends' special."
The announcement coincides with the release of two versions of the
band's very first greatest hits collection, U2 The Best of 1980-1990.
The releases are available in a one-disc 14 track version, as well as a
version which includes an additional 15 track b-sides disc. The two
sets are currently both in the Top 100 in Billboard's album chart,
resting comfortably at #5 (two disc version) and #57 with a bullet (one
disc version), selling a combined 402,161 units in the first two weeks
of release.
"We decided to release the two different versions to give everyone, from
the hardcore U2 devotee to the more casual fan, a choice of packages,"
explained Island Records Senior Vice President/General Manager Pat
Monaco. "We have a Top Ten track at modern rock radio, this great VH1
'Legends' program, along with excellent overall video airplay, and a
country full of elated retailers. We are delighted with the response."
U2 The Best of 1980-1990 was the highest selling greatest hits
collection by any band in its first week of release since the advent of
SoundScan. The album has already qualified for Double Platinum status.
VH1's "Legends" series focuses on the lives of the greatest and most
influential musicians of our time. Powerful writing, personal
photographs and rare performance footage bring the artists' triumphs and
tragedies to life. The critically-acclaimed series has highlighted the
careers of Janis Joplin, Marvin Gaye, The Who, The Doors and many
others.
SOURCE Island Records
-------------
>From Dotmusic:
Internet bootlegging - the survey results
The BPI has discovered more than 100 bootleg sites on the
Internet as part of a monitoring exercise to assess the impact of
the web on the UK music industry.
Using key words such as "bootleg", "trading" and "unofficial
release", the study identified 104 bootleg sites from a total of
18,000 sites analysed. The majority were offering music by top
league artists including The Beatles, Blur and U2. The BPI now
plans to make test purchases from the bootleg sites and take
action where appropriate.
The nine-week study, carried out by research firm Net Searches,
also looked at sites using short audio clips on the web. Of the 85
sites identified that used clips of 30 seconds or less, 24 were
record company sites, 15 were operated by radio or TV
broadcasters, 14 by music fans and 10 by music retailers. Two
non-music retailers were found using clips.
Some sites � such as ourselves � have obtained licences to
broadcast music, while others have not. However, Net Searchers
says the range of sites containing the clips indicates there is a
widespread belief that it is legal to carry them regardless.
BPI operations executive Jollyon Benn says, "The main point of the
exercise was to see what�s out there � it wasn�t a desire to stop
people using music on the Internet. But we would like to encourage
people to get proper licences."
-------------
>From Jam!:
Family pays tribute to Hutchence
SYDNEY, Australia (AP) -- A year after his
death, INXS star Michael Hutchence was
remembered Sunday by 250 fans and family at
a chapel in the Sydney suburb of North Ryde.
Hutchence's brother Rhett paid tribute, a friend
read a poem, and a solo saxophonist played.
After the 40-minute service, Hutchence's
father, Kel Hutchence, unveiled a memorial on
the grounds of the Northern Suburbs Memorial
Gardens and Crematorium to mark the life of
the singer who committed suicide in a Sydney
hotel room last Nov. 22 at the age of 37.
"He was a good and loving man and an
excellent musician," his father said.
At the peak of INXS's musical success, their
1987 album Kick sold more than five million
copies worldwide.
-------------
U.K. Charts:
The "Best Of + B-sides" dropped from #1 to
#2 and is now down to #15. It's difficult to ascertain if this
precipitous drop is because the double CD version
of the album is simply "running out" or if the "Best Of"
isn't as popular as one might have thought. I feel it
is the former due to the fact that U2's "Best Of" without
the b-side CD debuted at #8 on the U.K. charts last week
and held steady this week, dropping just a notch to #9.
It appears that in the weeks to come the "Best Of + B-sides"
will see huge drops on the charts (as its limited release
period expires) while the "Best Of" without the b-sides may
hold steady or see a rise on the charts as the sales increase.
For comparison's sake, Alanis' album dropped from
#3 to #10 to #17. Oasis' B-side album dropped from
#2 to #3 to #12. Mariah Carey's "#1's" debuted
at #10 - sorry Mariah, no #1 here (maybe in the U.S.?).
"The Sweetest Thing" went from #3 to #4 to #10 to
#18 and now #31. It will most likely drop from the top
40 next week. Still, its 5 weeks in the U.K. top 40 is
4 more than "If God Will Send His Angels". Make of that
what you will. Amazingly, Cher's "Believe" has held the
#1 spot for 5 weeks now.
U2's "POPMart" video debuted at #4 on the U.K.
video music sales chart. It dropped to #5 last week and
is now at #10. However, videos often bounce around in
the charts longer than albums/singles, so this drop may
only be due to new titles coming in (3 videos debuted
in the top 10 this week) and simple shifting of popular
videos (i.e., 6 of the remaining 7 videos in the top 10
dropped).
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U2Dublin/Zoonation (amongst a list of many others) are
redirecting their sites to that Irish Amnesty International
Site in order for them to collect 1,000,000 signatures for the
UDHR by December 10, 1998.
If you haven't signed it, check out http://www.amnesty.org or
http://www.amnesty.ie .
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The review from www.now.com has been added to the Best of
reviews page available at:
http://www.members.home.net/u2-news/gh_reviews.html
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The review from Q magazine has been added to the Best of
reviews page available at:
http://www.members.home.net/u2-news/gh_reviews.html
-------------
From The Northside People:
(Prarit's note: This paper is a local paper that seems to be
relatively new to the 'net. It is situated in the area of Dublin in
which Bono grew up...)
FEATURES EXTRA
U2 - The Real Thing
The Real Thing
As U2 mania sweeps the nation with the release of a new singles
compilation - the fastest selling Irish album of all time - Bono and
the boys are as important now as they ever were, writes ALAN BIRD
I can remember distinctly one Thursday evening
in 1984 chatting away to my aunt who used to
come up and visit us every week. Mid-way
through a long-forgotten conversation, my
mother told both of us to �Ssssh, quiet, these are
Irish�, as �Top of the Pops� played the latest new
entry.
It was a catchy one, called �Pride (In the Name of
Love)� by a young Irish band, U2. I remember at the
time everyone thinking what a great achievement that
was: an Irish band crashing into the British top 10 at
number three. From then on, U2 were a household
name, revered by many and abhorred by many.
I�ve always been a great fan of U2 and every time a
new single, video or whatever arrives, I�m there (not
first in the queue, but I�ll go in and by it that day at
lunchtime).
The band always held a special attraction to me
because Bono�s old house in Cedarwood Road is
literally a minute from my own. I can remember Bono
and his friends, some who went on to become Virgin
Prunes (another local band), hanging around the area.
My earliest memory of them is from 1978. I was only
four, Bono (or Paul as his father preferred!), would
have been 18.
Another neighbour is the young boy who appeared on
the cover of their first single, �U23�, and the �Boy� and
�War� albums. Peter Rowan is his name and his
reappearance on the new Greatest Hits compilation
brings back memories of those early days.
The neighbourhood where the three of us grew up in
was a relatively new one and was very quiet - indeed
it still is. Everyone knew each other and when the
early U2 demos and recordings began to get a regular
airing on the radio, there was a sense of pride in that a
local lad was fronting that band and that another was
adorning the cover of the new single.
Some people thought Bono went on a bit too much,
but, at the back of it all, they were delighted when
things started happening for them.
Of course, no-one at that time could have imagined
what they would go on to achieve. That was still the
�70s, long before they began selling singles and
albums.
Now everyone knows what happened during the �80s.
Despite their success, the global tours, every time U2
got a break in their schedule, a certain frontman could
always be seen walking around his old
neighbourhood, calling in to old friends or chatting to
neighbours. He still does that. Now and again
someone would remark to me that they just passed
Bono down by the shops or somewhere. Some people
think he�s obnoxious or whatever, but believe me, he�s
not. I�ve met the guy. He�s as human as the rest of us.
Too many people knock them. I have no problem with
that, everyone is entitled to their opinion. However, we
seem to forget that they are four Northsiders who put
us on the music map. And they still live in Dublin.
Had the court injunction against them playing in
Lansdowne Road last year been successful, it would
have been, musically speaking, Ireland�s darkest day.
It was ridiculous. One of the biggest bands in the
world having to go to court to be allowed play in their
own city. I remember reading countless letters in
various music publications from people across the
world marvelling at the sheer lunacy of the situation.
I�ve seen them in concert on the last four world tours
and they get better every time. As a live act they have
no equals. It�s not the fancy gimmickry, the massive
screens or mechanical lemons, but the sheer quality of
the songs that hits you at each show. They play from
the heart.
I brought a friend of mine along to see �Popmart� last
year. He had no interest in U2; he liked the odd song
but that was that. He came away from the show saying
it was the best he�d ever seen. Again, it was the
quality of the songs that grabbed him.
And that�s the main thing.
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Prarit.....
[email protected]
http://www.members.home.net/u2-news/u2.html
This page is brought to you by the letter "U" and the number "2".
-- Prarit....[email protected] U2 news: http://www.members.home.net/u2-news/u2.html
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