Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Updates

"The Best of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame + Museum Live" 3-CD set features U2's performances of "Pride" and "I Still Haven't Found" from the 2005 induction ceremony, not the version of "I Still Haven't Found" performed in 2009 as we previously reported.

That 3-CD set also features "Let it Be" performed by Paul McCartney, and the Rock Hall Jam Band, which featured Bono on stage in 1999 amongst a crowd of dozens. Any video clips I've seen has him far away from a mic, but he was part of the performance. Also featured is the Who and the Rock Hall Jam Band, from 1990, which was the year Bono inducted them into the Rock Hall. Based on footage I've seen from that night Bono was not part of this performance.

In further news, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame released a 10 "disc" set on iTunes called "Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Live" which features performances from the various Induction ceremonies from 1986-2009.

Lots of U2 content here on Volume 2. It starts with The Edge performing with the Rock Hall Jam Band in 1992 on "All Along the Watchtower" and "Shout". He also played with Johnny Cash on "Big River" that year. He may also have contributed to "Soul Man" but I was unable to verify footage of that performance, as I was able to with "Watchtower" and "Shout". Volume 2 finishes with Bono's 1994 performance of "One Love" with Ziggy Marley.

Volume 5 features the above mentioned version of "Let it Be" where Bono was a background participant on stage. I have confirmed Bono was not part of the show for McCartney's 2nd performance on that disc, "Blue Suede Shoes". I could not find video of the third song McCartney did with the Rock Hall Jam Band, "What'd I Say". But I expect Bono was only a participant on "Let it Be".

Volume 8 has U2's induction performance from 2005. Two songs were released on the 3-CD set mentioned above, but this digital "disc" has the other two songs as well, "Vertigo" and "Until the End of the World".

Lots of U2 content there on that set. If anyone can help confirm whether U2 performed on other tracks on this set, it would be greatly appreciated. Big thanks to Ian for the tip about this release of digital tracks.

Hi-res Achtung Baby and Best of Rock Hall CD

Just a couple of quick release updates. HDtracks.net is now offering Achtung Baby in high-resolution 24-bit FLAC, in both the standard and deluxe formats. As far as I know, this is the first U2 release ever in a high-resolution audio format.

Another release that slipped under the radar this week, The Best Of Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame + Museum Live is now out on CD. This is an expanded (3-CD) version of the album released on iTunes back in March. U2's 2005 Rock Hall performance of Pride is included, as well as their 2009 collaboration with Bruce Springsteen on I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For. This is the first time this particular version of Pride has been available on CD.

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Baby

I haven't listened to Achtung Baby from beginning to end in quite a few years. As it's 20th anniversary approaches and the Uber/Super/Deluxe box sets are starting to arrive, it was high time for me to give it another listen. So today, I loaded up the new "tweaked and polished" version on my iPod and took it out for a run, literally.

My formative years, musically, were primarily occupied by my father's oldies and country records and my mother's old Beatles and Beach Boys albums. My cousins introduced me to Van Halen and Michael Jackson, and by my early adolescence I was consuming a steady diet of 80's new wave 45's. To say that The Joshua Tree, which was released when I was an impressionable 15, was the greatest album I had ever heard is an understatement. For the next several years (and still, to a degree) I held such reverence for that album that I could never listen to it casually. It was only meant for serious listening sessions when I was in the proper frame of mind to really appreciate it.

I enjoyed (and defended) Rattle and Hum, but I never held it in the high regard that I did The Joshua Tree. As the release of Achtung Baby approached, I was wishing with every fiber of my being for The Joshua Tree Part II. I recognized, primarily because of U2's cover of Night and Day, that they were experimenting with new sounds, and The Fly single drove that point home, but I remained steadfastly confident that the boys would not disappoint, and I would soon be listening to the natural evolution of Streets.

Achtung Baby was released my second semester of college. I bought it at a midnight sale and carried it back to my dorm room. I put the CD in and… Zoo Station was a slap in the face. And as I went through the album track by track, I realized what Bono so eloquently stated years later, "There are no reverse gears on this tank." This wasn't The Joshua Tree Part II, and there was never going to be one. Don't get me wrong, I was excited by the new sound and delighted that my favorite band was exploring new sonic territory, but was this record up to the standard of my favorite album of all time? At that point, I simply wasn't prepared to admit that an album I had put on a pedestal could be surpassed by irony and distortion. And that is essentially the position I have held in all the years since. Achtung Baby is a fabulous album and one of the greatest second acts in the history of music, but The Joshua Tree is and always will be U2's true masterpiece.

Until today. Today I listened to Achtung Baby with new ears, and I don't believe it was the it's-not-remastered-but-it's-tweaked sheen they put on the CD. I really and truly heard it again for the first time, and I was amazed by what I heard. Here is one of the greatest bands in rock history at the peak of their creative and experimental careers, and this is their magnum opus. Irony be damned, this is a rock and roll band in full flight, and this is the greatest record they have ever made. I haven't listened to the whole deluxe set yet, but I have heard some of the outtakes and the "baby" versions. U2 clearly made the right choices with which tracks to include on the album and which direction to take them musically. The alternative versions are nice to have in my library, but Achtung Baby is just perfect the way it is.

Then again, I did cover seven hilly miles today in under an hour, so maybe it's just the endorphins talking.

U22 Tracklist Details

As you have probably already read, the final tracklist for this year's subscriber gift will be decided by the votes of U2.com paid members. Titled U22, this will be a two CD set containing 22 live tracks, picked from 46 possible tracks from the U2360° tour. Current and renewing members have until December 2 to vote for their favorites. Members can preview the possible tracks and vote here, and here are further details on the shows the tracks are taken from.

I Will Follow from Glastonbury on iTunes

U2 have posted I Will Follow from last night's Glastonbury performance on iTunes. 100% of the proceeds from the track are being donated to Glasto's three official charities: Oxfam, WaterAid, and the Greenpeace Environmental Trust. It will be available for 30 days only. The track is supposed to be available on the UK, Irish, US, Canadian, and Mexican iTunes Stores. (Confirmed in the UK and US stores so far.)

Spider-Music II - New Single Tonight.

Keep your eye on the Spider-Man on Broadway official site for the release info of the new single "Rise Again 1" featuring Reeve Carney, Bono and The Edge. Thanks to our friends at u2tour.de for tipping off to this one. The single should be released digitally tonight at 8pm EST for Americans and should be available within a couple of days worldwide. No details of a CD single at this point.

Update: Now available on iTunes: http://tinyurl.com/3gdoxwu

Spider-Music

Amazon is now listing Music from Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark for a June 14 release. Producer Steve Lillywhite also tweets that Bono, Edge, and the cast will be performing "the first single" from the soundtrack album on the American Idol finale Wednesday (5/25) night, though there has so far been no official announcement regarding a single release.

Duals spotted in Wild...

From our friend DGH on the East Coast in the US, we've found out that Duals has started arriving in homes. He's sent along the photo below.

It appears from the track listings that there isn't much to get excited about. Not even any new edits, and instead of using the single edits of tracks it looks like material off of albums, is from the albums themselves.

The Wanderer has had the DJ Alarm edited from the end of the track. And if you add the two tracks together from u2 with the Soweto Gospel Choir it is a bit longer than the Christmas track from u2.com but I assume that's just a little crossfading to make the transition less jarring between the two.

I don't have my copy in hand yet, but will go through the tracks a little closer when I do.

Bono with Swizz Beatz and Kanye West

From: OMG via @u2

Swizz Beatz has collaborated with rapper Kanye West and U2 frontman Bono on a track for his new album. The song, which is named Skyscrapers, will appear on the producer's upcoming second record Haute Living.

"It’s me, Bono, and Kanye on this one song called Skyscrapers," Beatz told Paper magazine about the project. "I recorded with Kanye in the studio and then I recorded with Bono in this actual studio right here.”

Although there's no fixed release date for Haute Living, the album is expected later this year.

Sad To See You Go

U2's current UK/European record label, Mercury Records, has announced that it will no longer produce physical singles and will instead focus on digital downloads. It seems this has been coming for awhile given that sales of physical singles have been sinking and simply aren't profitable any longer, at least on a mass scale. As someone who has been collecting U2 singles for nearly 25 years, I will certainly miss the next round with the new album. This is either going to save me some cash or cost me dearly trying to track down promos. I suppose we shall have to wait and see if Universal imprints in other regions will produce any singles in the future. Interscope did manage to release two singles in the US last time around.

U2 Contribute To Japanese Relief Album

Universal Music is putting together a charity album to raise money for the Red Cross in Japan. The album will reportedly be digital only and will feature a track by U2, though there is currently no word on whether this will be a previously unreleased track. More details when we get them.

U2:Duals Shipping Soon

A subscriber email distributed by U2.com this morning indicates that the oft-maligned U2:Duals will begin shipping this week. Shipping times for the annual subscribers’ gift are reportedly up to two weeks for North America and Europe and three weeks for the rest of the world. Subscribers are also advised to make sure that their address information is up to date. I also see that the annual eBay gouging for the CD has begun. As unpopular as the tracklisting for this release has been, I anticipate demand to be relatively low, so don’t go paying a ridiculous price for one. These CDs can typically be had for under $20 once they start arriving in scalpers' subscribers' mailboxes.

Pride on Rock Hall Live Album

A live version of Pride appears on the iTunes exclusive album, The Best of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Live, which is released on 03/15. This appears to be the performance from U2's induction in 2005. This version has previously been available on DVD, but this is the first time the audio has been commercially available.

Bono in Swizz Beatz Brooklyn Studio

Rapper/producer Swizz Beatz is tweeting again about hangin' with Bono, this time supposedly in his Brooklyn studio where he is working on his new album titled Haute Living. Bono and The Edge are reportedly back in New York putting the finishing(?) touches on the Spider-Man musical. Bono is rumored to be making a guest appearance on the album on a track also featuring John Legend, a snippet of which can be heard here. You may recall that Swizz produced the Bono/Jay-Z/Rihanna collaboration "Stranded," which was a charity track for Haiti.

Killing Bono Soundtrack

There seems to be some confusion in the mainstream press regarding the Killing Bono Soundtrack. A number of outlets are reporting that "Street Mission" is a previously unreleased U2 track, but the Sony Music press release is pretty clear that this is a cover version performed by the film cast. The only U2 track included on the soundtrack is "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," and there's no indication that this is anything other than the album version. Incidentally, ISHFWILF may fit the theme of the film, but it's totally from the wrong time period, even if Hot Press claims it's from 1982. :)

U2 Duals Tracklisting

We are actively discussing the recently announced tracklisting for U2 Duals in our forums. The details are posted there and on U2.com, so I will spare you the details. I do have to say that the general consensus in our forums (and in others I have visited) is that there is too much recycled material on this release for die-hard fans and collectors, particularly the inclusion of album tracks. It will be interesting to see how they spun a one-minute snippet of Amazing Grace into a stand-alone track.

McGuiness says new album out "before North American tour dates."

On the heels of yesterday's report that Amazon.de has listed a May release date for the next U2 album comes a quote in the German press from Paul McGuinness, apparently confirming that release schedule. McGuinees told reporters at the recent MIDEM conference in Cannes (January 22-26) that the new album would be released prior to the upcoming North American tour dates. Also of note, it seems that the record is indeed being produced by Danger Mouse, is already largely completed, and likely won't be titled Songs of Ascent after all.

Steve Lillywhite to produce Spider-Man Original Cast Album

The New York Times reports that Steve Lillywhite is indeed assisting Bono and Edge with the score for “Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark.” The article also reports that he will be producing the original cast recording album, though no release date is given.