20.3.09

Rock Music Menu: U2 wants to rewrite history

Friday, March 20, 2009 5:49 AM EDT
By MICHAEL CHRISTOPHER Times Music Columnist

Maybe it was an off the cuff remark by the band, but the comments by U2 about re-recording some of its earlier material, including the debut “Boy,” has left fans in a fit of excitement.

“I would love to sing that album (Boy) again and finish that,” Bono told an intimate audience last week in Somerville, Ma., where the band wrapped up a whirlwind promotional tour for its latest release, “No Line on the Horizon” with a brief performance and an audience Q&A.

Tapping back into “Boy” would be a mistake for U2, but there is an alternative to toying with a classic debut; the band is already sitting on a much better prospect: re-record the album “October” in its entirety.

Why? Because the 1981 sophomore effort wasn’t supposed to turn out like it did; it remains a testament to the drive and tenacity by U2 to quickly recover from an unfortunate situation, in this case, all the lyrics that Bono had written for the record went missing just before entering the studio.

It’s one of the lesser known stories in U2 lore to the casual listener, but the record that routinely falls to the bottom of the list when it comes to ranking the band’s output in terms of greatness once had endless potential.

U2 were a few months away from heading into the studio to record what would become “October” in March 1981, and they were playing in a small club in Portland, OR in support of “Boy.” After the show, some fans gathered backstage, including some local girls - two of which were assumed to have made off with a briefcase that contained all the lyrics and notes that Bono had been working on since the first album was in the can.

Studio time was already booked, and Bono was stuck as was the band, frantically trying to make the most of their money and under pressure to come up with lyrics on the spot. Two years later when U2 came through Portland, the singer asked the crowd if anyone knew the whereabouts of the briefcase. He pleaded again as recently as 2001, ironically on the tour for “All That You Can’t Leave Behind” during a show at the Rose Garden.

Twenty years had gone by and the band was long out of the dingy, beer-soaked clubs, but the fact that Bono was still inquiring about the loss was a testament to how important the contents of the case were.

Incredibly, in 2004, it turned up. A woman found the briefcase in the attic to her Tacoma, Wa., home. And it turned out the material wasn’t stolen at all — Bono accidentally left it at the venue.

According to an article in The Oregonian, Denny Livingston Jr., who handled sound at the show in ‘81, was doing a final walk through of the club to make sure nothing was left behind. He found the case, and intended to give it back to the band at its next gig. It didn’t happen, and he eventually forgot about the case and it contents, even moving from the house and leaving it in the attic.

Cut to 23 years later, and an appreciative Bono is in the area for a speaking engagement, thrilled to have the cargo back in his possession.

How cool would it be if U2 were to approach the “October” material again but with the original intent? Of course, these are musicians with almost three decades under their belt and so far removed from the struggling artists they were then. But still, it would be a novel idea to rework what could’ve been a masterpiece, and not just another merely “good” rock album.

Music columnist Michael Christopher appears Thursday nights at 9:45pm on 1210 “The Big Talker” with Dom Giordano. To contact him, send an e-mail to rockmusicmenu@hotmail.com.

source: delcotimes

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Jackpot: This is basically a video game. Welcome true skate cheats come to games.
When you are an allied commando who true skate cheats as part of a computer programming language or platform you choose, make the game.
This Side Scrolling Brawler puts you into the true skate cheats ultimate one to
ten cells.

my weblog - true skate hack tool zip password