Adam Clayton "The Album Could Be Finished by the Summer"

Adam Clayton talked on the phone on the Ray Foley show. The interview was about his involvement with the campaing "Walk in my Shoes" (a campaign to raise mental health awareness of the St. Patrick's Mental Health Foundation in Dublin). Before even started,Adam explained:

"I'm just back from doing some recordings. I think there's a lot of recording going on but we're coming to an end which is good."


Ray: "Is it for the new album?"

Adam: "Yeah, you know, I can't say when   we're gonna be releasing it, but I can say we hope to have it finished before the end of the summer, which will be great...and we're very excited about it, and we all want to get it out as quickly as possible but I don't want to  pre-empt anything until I know it's actually finished..."





http://www.walkinmyshoes.ie//http://news.u2fanlife.com//https://soundcloud.com/rayfoleyshow/adam-clayton-interview-on-the-ray-foley-show

How We Met: The Edge & Howie B - "He worked with us on "Pop" and cost us an absolute fortune!"

The Edge:

It must have been the mid-1990s. We were making an experimental record called Passengers, with Brian Eno producing, and Howie was recommended to us as a potential collaborator because we were in a phase of exploring, looking for something different to inspire us. Howie, it is safe to say, inspired us. He came from a dance-music background, from club culture, and we were fascinated by that scene. We loved what he did musically but we also loved the man himself, his attitude. He has this infectious enthusiasm.

As for whether he was daunted by the idea of working with us, I think we are a lot easier than most people might imagine. You have to remember that U2 started out in a garage, so we are the quintessential garage band. We haven't really changed in our work approach ever since, so we're good at disarming people who come to us because there is no preciousness; everyone is part of the team. What we look for in collaborators are people who have a reserve of self-belief and stamina, optimism. Howie had all that in spades, and the most propulsive energy.

He went on to work with us on [1997's] Pop, and he cost us an absolute fortune! He'd encourage us to use all these samples, which we were happy to do, but we're a big band. We can't be using samples without clearing them first, without going to all these publishing houses and saying, "Excuse me, we are using an eight-bar bit of one of your tunes." We had to pay out loads of cash – but we didn't care, it was worth it. It was a wonderful opportunity to get to work in a completely different way.

He came on the PopMart tour with us, which really cemented our friendship. We would introduce him to our favourite night-time activities, and he did the same for us: tiny bars in Tokyo, the pubs of south Dublin.

I remember one date of the tour in particular. It was in Nuremberg. We were getting ready for the show – Howie was DJing before our set – when he came into the dressing-room, white as a sheet. He couldn't speak for a couple of minutes. Eventually he told us specifically where we were: the Albert Speer Stadium, where so many Nazi rallies were put on, and where Hitler made some of his biggest speeches. Howie is Jewish, so it freaked him out. His set afterwards was amazing, though: every song had a subtext, and he finished with the Three Degrees' "When Will I See You Again". We were sat backstage listening to it. It was so poignant.

We are in touch all the time, and he often visits us on holiday. We've had a lot of fun in a lot of exotic locations: Japanese hotels at the base of Mount Fuji; ski resorts in the Alps; and Dublin, of course – always Dublin.

Howie B:

It was 1994 or 1995, something like that, when I got a call from Island Records telling me U2 were recording an experimental album, and were looking for new people to work with. I was surprised they were interested in me, as I was from the dance-music scene and about as far from the guitar as possible.

I wouldn't say I was a huge fan: I didn't own their albums, but I knew all their big songs. Who didn't? So in many ways I was like a rock virgin, but the hungriest virgin you could imagine! For me, music is life, and as long as I'm making good music, with good people, it doesn't matter if it's coming from a violin or a guitar. And I knew that U2 were special, at the top of their game. I was excited.

I took the plane to Dublin to meet them straightaway. There must be about three or four days that register as the most important in my career, and that was probably the most important of them all, the defining one. I was about to walk into a studio where Brian Eno and U2 were waiting – for me! Eno was the man who had given me my driving licence, a major inspiration, and U2 were the biggest band in the world. I had to have a pint of Guinness beforehand just to calm down a bit.

But they were great, so down to earth, and there was a spark between us right off. We did all the hellos, then it was down to business. "What can you do for us?" was what they wanted to know, and what I liked about them was their desire to take risks, to listen to new ideas. It's like, they eat strawberries one day, blueberries the next, then blackberries, then bananas. They don't eat the same bloody fruit every day! I loved that approach, and the work we did together was some of the best work I've ever done.

The Edge has the most astonishing musical mind. He'd always have a Dictaphone with him, taping everything we did, eight, 10, 12 hours a day, five days a week. Then we'd be working on something when he'd say, "How about we go back to the riff we recorded three weeks ago, on a Thursday, about four o'clock?" And he'd go off and find it! I've got to tell you, it changed the way I worked as a producer. I thought to myself: I'm going to get myself a notepad! I'm going to keep notes, too!

After Pop, they invited me on tour with them, and we really bonded. They became my closest friends, all of them. I still send The Edge haikus and poems all the time; we're always in contact. I'll go and visit him on holiday with his wife and kids, like I'm part of the family. I was there at his 40th birthday and his 50th, and I'll be there at his 60th.

http://www.independent.co.uk/

Milestone For Music Rising

Milestone for Music Rising

Edge spoke by video (below) at the launch of a 'Music Rising' initiative at Tulane University, New Orleans, on Wednesday.

'Music Rising At Tulane' is a specialist website focusing on the musical cultures of the Gulf South. It features original content, artists’ biographies, K-12 learning modules and a state-of-the-art music instructional program. The School’s New Orleans Center for the Gulf South is providing lectures and symposia to scholars and the public. Classes such as the Trombone Shorty Academy are 'breaking down the walls between classroom and community, creating unmatched opportunities for the exchange of ideas and experience.'

'It's a remarkable milestone for Music Rising,' says Edge, who co-founded the organisation with music producer Bob Ezrin after Hurricane Katrina tore through the Gulf Coast in 2005. 'Out of this partnership we were able to create a program which fosters national and international study through the work of K-12 educators and university scholars. 
'I hope that this is only the beginning of an opportunity to provide future generations of students a chance to experience the colorful and dynamic musical history from this very special part of the world. On behalf of myself and our entire Music Rising team I extend my heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped make this happen.'

Along with performances by local artists, Wednesday's launch - billed as a 'Musical Cultures Jam' - was a chance to explore the new site, a one-stop shop for music of every genre from blues, rock, zydeco and jazz to the rhythms of Congo Square and the Second Line tradition.  

Music Rising was originally set up to support the restoration and preservation of New Orleans’ unique musical traditions. Since 2005 it's become a national disaster relief fund for music education and supplied aid to thousands of music students, professional musicians and church members.  More on Music Rising at Tulane here. 





http://www.u2.com/

Bono and Edge Take Part in Tribute to Irish Poet Seamus Heaney

Bono, The Edge, Paul Simon and Paul McGuinness have helped pay tribute to Seamus Heaney, the Nobel Prize-winning Irish poet who died last year.

A tapestry titled "Out Of The Marvelous" was commissioned by Amnesty International and partially funded by the rock stars. Designed by Czech artist Peter Sis and woven in France, it's now hanging in Dublin Airport's Terminal 2 .

According to the Belfast Telegraph, Bono said Heaney should be an inspiration to people on their travels:

"With my life, I pass through a lot of airports. Seamus' poems are my companion on every journey ... they come with me wherever I go. Now, when any of us travel -- be it leaving our home, or our visitors returning to their own homes, Seamus will be there to bid us all farewell."

Edge agreed that Heaney was an inspiration to U2:

"Seamus Heaney was an inspiration to our band -- as well as to politicians, artists, dreamers and all in between, from every corner of the world. I love the idea that the words of this great poet -- and Sis' beautiful tapestry -- will send travelers from Ireland and beyond safely on their way 'out of the marvelous.'"

http://www.atu2.com/

All-Time Top 40: U2

Country Artists Count Down Their Favorite Artists

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Globe-trotting rockers U2 may seem out of place on CMT All-Time Top 40: Artist's Choice, but country stars have strong reasons for placing the band at No. 35 on the list of their favorite artists ever.

Each influential musician or band is ranked based on an artist poll conducted by CMT among the biggest stars in country music. The ballot isn't limited to just country artists, so over the course of 2014, CMT All-Time Top 40 highlights artists from all genres that influence country's biggest names.

Formed in Dublin, Ireland, in 1976 by four schoolmates, U2 rose to international fame on the strength of personal but culturally-insightful songwriting. Over the years, the band tailored its rock-based sound to the current trends in pop music.

After the release of their landmark 1987 album The Joshua Tree, members Bono, the Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. became household names in the U.S. Songs from that album -- including "Where the Streets Have No Name," "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" and "With or Without You" -- continue to receive radio airplay to this day. The band's star power has grown exponentially, giving lead singer Bono a platform to promote social change around the world.

Still touring and recording regularly, U2 is renowned for their massive live concerts. Their 360° tour from 2009-2011 required hundreds of tractor trailers to transport the largest stage construction ever built, nicknamed "The Claw."

Despite their European roots, U2 did seek out a country music education. John Carter Cash described the famous ties between the band and his late father, Johnny Cash.

"My father, he created a kinship with Bono," Carter Cash revealed. "First from writing letters. Bono had a vision for writing a song, and he and my dad wrote lyrics back and forth, talked on the telephone. ... They had an instant connection because Bono and my dad were both like scholars.

"My dad never judged an artist based necessarily on their music. I mean, yes, he loved their music. But he judged an artist based on their integrity -- you know, who they were in spirit, whether he could honestly relate to what they believed in. He would stand up for artists that you maybe wouldn't think Johnny Cash would. It was normal for him to do that because he believed in who they were as a person."

Country stars Dierks Bentley, Darius Rucker and LeAnn Rimes were among those agreeing that U2 deserves a spot on CMT All-Time Top 40: Artist's Choice.

"I really love the energy of U2, not only in the writing but the live show," said Bentley. "It just such an intense experience, and I guess the one thing that I really love about that band is their roots and ties to country music. You know, their relationship with Johnny Cash and guys like Cowboy Jack Clement and just their respect for the genre and the songwriting."

Bentley enlisted The Del McCoury Band and the Punch Brothers to record U2's "Pride (In the Name of Love)" for Up on the Ridge, his bluegrass-influenced album released in 2010.

"U2 is just a band that was perfect when they came out," Rucker said. "I just remember hearing Live at Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky, and I was just blown away. I couldn't believe that a band could sound that powerful on record. ... I just remember hearing that and going, 'This band's going to be the biggest band in the world.' There was no way there was going to be anything different. Their songwriting, for themselves, is perfect. It's one of the reasons I wanted to be in a band."

"I love U2," said Rimes. "I love Bono. I love everything about them. Their stage show is absolutely insane. I've always been so amazed by their hooks in their songs. It's so simple, but they have such a message behind them and they've always been so positive. They've always stood for something that was important to them."

http://www.cmt.com/

Mojo's U2's 10 Best Albums

Blood, sweat and tears from the globe-bestriding Dublin quartet. Plus their 10 greatest albums. By Danny Eccleston.

One man’s gauche is another man’s heartfelt; one man’s art another man’s pretention. And so it is with U2, loved and loathed in equal measure almost from the moment Larry Mullen Jr pinned a musicians wanted ad to the noticeboard at Dublin’s Temple Mount school in 1978 and shanghai’d Paul “Bono” Hewson, Dave “The Edge” Evans and Adam Clayton. From the start, rock’n’roll for The Larry Mullen Band (as they were originally to be called) was an opportunity to bite off more than they could chew.

At first, with pals the Virgin Prunes they provided a provincial beach-head for post-punk, The Edge’s frigid guitars providing a platform for Bono’s unfettered hollering. Then Ireland-only singles (Three, and Another Day) tempted Chris Blackwell’s Island label to the table; cue a run of chiming albums that soundtracked their inner struggle with a brand of charismatic Christianity that Edge, Bono and (less enthusiastically) Mullen had embraced back in Dublin. By the commercial breakthrough of 1983’s War album (New Year’s Day became their first UK Number 1 single that March), they’d been born again, but this time in red-blooded rock…
Thematically, a struggle between the sacred and profane, the earnest and honest, would define their progress, while periodic sonic reinventions would save their skins. The Unforgettable Fire (1983) saw the debut of Brian Eno behind the faders, and the ethereal result horrified a label hoping for another War. But it was only when U2 resisted change (as they did on 1988’s über-trad, half-live Rattle & Hum) that they disappointed. Bono called the subsequent Achtung Baby (1991) “the sound of four men chopping down the Joshua Tree”, and the complicated, eclectic result set them fair for the complicated, eclectic ’90s.

n the new century, they’ve thrived (’04’s How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb debuted at #1 in America, toppling Eminem) and their “wobble” (mixed reviews for ’09’s No Line On The Horizon) was followed by the biggest-grossing rock’n’roll tour of all time. Why so durable? Because, alone among their contemporaries, U2 move at the same speed as contemporary popular culture. “Spending time with Bono [is] like eating dinner on a train,” wrote Dylan in Chronicles Volume 1. “Feels like you’re moving, going somewhere.” Strap yourselves in; it’s a bumpy ride.

According to Mojo:

10- October
9- Zooropa
8- Pop
7- Under a Blood Red Sky
6- All That You Can't Leave Behind
5- The Unforgettable Fire
4- How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
3- Boy
2- Achtung Baby
1- The Joshua Tree


Read more.

Oliver Jeffers: 'The U2 thing just came together by chance'

Jeffers last year directed the video for U2's single "Ordinary Love". "The U2 thing just came together by chance," he says. Bono's wife used to read Jeffers' books to her children, and one day he and Bono met for a drink. "And one thing led to another. That's the way I work. Nothing's really planned – it's organic."





In Jeffers' self-defined three categories of work – "the books I make, the paintings I do, and Other" – the U2 video counts as Other. For a long time, he supported his own art by taking on commercial illustration work, but he's now in the fortunate position of being able to pick and choose what Other stuff he wants to do. "I make art for love rather than money," he says. "The difference is, now I'm able to make money by making art for love." After years of exhausting effort – he suffered for a time from insomnia – he's also now worked out a fine work‑life balance. His wife acts as his manager. "There's no way I could manage this amount of work without help. I'm basically running two or three careers at once."


http://www.theguardian.com/

U2 pay surprise tribute to The Alarm’s Mike Peters at concert last night

The Irish rockers surprised the singer with a special message during the performance with BBC National Orchestra Of Wales.

Irish superstars U2 were the surprise guests as Mike Peters recorded a special concert for BBC Radio Wales at Hoddinott Hall in Cardiff last night.

Alarm frontman Peters joined forces with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the Acquire Choir from Rhuddlan in North Wales for a performance to be broadcast on BBC Radio Wales Music Day.

The concert also marked 30 years since The Alarm’s debut album Declaration was released and Swansea-based conductor John Quirk worked with Mike Peters to orchestrate the celebrated Welsh band’s back catalogue for the first time.

And it was Bono, The Edge, Larry Mullen and Adam Clayon who were keen to join in the celebration – recording a video message from their studio in Dublin for a musician who they admire greatly – ending their heartfelt message with an impromptu rendition of Declaration fan favourite, Blaze Of Glory.

In the video, Bono starts off by saying: "Congratulations, 30 years..."

Both bands have history and have built up a firm friendship forged through playing and touring together in the early ‘80s, when both groups were starting out their illustrious careers in rock ‘n’ roll.

Running through a set list that including many of the rousing anthems from The Alarm’s debut album that included 68 Guns, The Deceiver and Where Were You Hiding When The Storm Broke reworked to a stunning effect by BBC NOW, there were also a selection of the band’s classic songs such as A New South Wales, Rain In The Summertime and Spirit Of 76 which similarly pulled at the heartstrings on a night of great emotion for everyone in the Hall.

You can hear the concert in full on BBC Radio Wales on Friday, April 25 at 9pm.

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/

'Starting From Scratch'

North Side Story, the definitive account of the emergence of U2 in Dublin, is a limited edition publication which comes with a U2.com subscription.  Among the scores of revealing interviews is one with Paul McGuinness and in this extract he recalls his earliest days in the music business - and first meeting U2. 

'I first got involved in the music business managing Spud, who I suppose were a kind of a poor man’s Horslips. This was in the mid ‘70s. They didn’t write their own songs. They did bluegrass and a bit of trad, which was never going to be easy to sell internationally. Initially they didn’t have a drummer and that meant that they were only able to do cabaret gigs and pub gigs – so there was no future in that. And so when I started to manage them I encouraged them to get a drummer, which was pretty obvious really. But it meant that they could do concerts and it helped me to get them gigs outside Ireland.

One important thing I learned managing Spud was this. They were about the same age as I was. They were in their mid twenties and they had started to get married and have kids and so their attitude to touring was pretty limited and lacking in ambition. They didn’t want to spend too much time on the road. They needed to get home and be with their families. And so I realised that at 25 or 26 or whatever, they were too old to make it. It needed a level of commitment that they couldn’t give. One place where we did get a bit of traction with Spud was Sweden. That was a little bit to do with the exchange rates, so that you could actually go there and make a bit of money. And so for a while I became a sort of agent, booking tours in Sweden. I also managed the Thom Moore band, Midnight Well, but I knew they were never going to be a really big band internationally. So I was always looking for something else, ideally a baby band, with youth on their side, that you could start with from scratch and aim to take over the world with.

I always felt that the Horslips model was a good one. I knew the guys in the band and their manager Michael Deeney was a friend of mine. What they did in business terms was very significant. They based themselves in Ireland and had their own record label – and so they controlled the recordings and they licensed the records for release outside Ireland. So they showed that a band could be based in Ireland and run their operation from here, which was what we eventually did with U2. When the punk thing started to happen in the UK, The Boomtown Rats came along and they were very determined to get out of Ireland as quickly as they could. They were very aggressive in their approach to getting a deal. They were very good at generating publicity and at selling themselves, so there was a lot to be learnt from them. So I was observing the business and how it operates – and doing things like reading Billboard magazine. And all the time, I was on the lookout for a young band that

would have the potential to become internationally successful.

U2, of course, were very young when they started out. They formed at Mount Temple which was a very liberal school in terms of its music policy. The music teacher there Albert Bradshaw was a remarkable man and they actually encouraged bands to play. The most important thing, I would say, was that they allowed the band to rehearse there, which was of huge significance, because a place to rehearse is the hardest thing for a young band to find. They won that talent competition in Limerick – at which Jackie Hayden was one of the judges. And the prize included studio time to do a demo, which they recorded in Keystone Studios. So they had begun to make things happen.

Adam had been managing the band up to that point and he got Bill Graham of Hot Press along to one of their rehearsals, I’m not sure where. They played some songs, which Bill immediately spotted were Ramones songs, which was a bit embarrassing! But he was impressed all the same. It is well documented that it was Bill who subsequently introduced me to the band and told me that I was going to manage them. The first time I saw them was in the Project Arts Centre, in June of 1978, supporting a band called The Gamblers – who as it happens were managed by my 16 year old sister Katy. I didn’t like to say it to her, but U2 were clearly the better band.

What struck me most about U2 that night was that they had presence. They weren’t shy in the way a lot of Irish bands were shy. The Radiators From Space had come through a little bit earlier – they were sponsored to an extent by Eamon Carr of Horslips. But they were rather shy and quiet. U2 were very different in that respect. Bono was always at the front of the stage, trying to engage with the crowd, getting them to look into his eyes. And even if they were a bit unsophisticated at that point, they had an energy and a confidence about them. They looked like a proper band on stage. And when I spoke to them, I could see immediately that they were smart. They were ambitious. And they knew that you had to work hard if you were going to become successful. And they were prepared to do that, in a way that a lot of other bands weren’t.  

They were also interested in every aspect of the process. They were interested in photography. They were interested in design. And so they were good at finding people who could become collaborators. Steve Averill, who of course had given them their name,  was working with them. And though Bill Graham wasn’t a collaborator as such, he was a very big influence at that stage. So they were very intelligent and tuned in. They wanted to know how everything worked. I started to manage them that night – at least I told them that night that I would and we spent a few months skirting around one another trying to work out who was going to do what and whether we were on the same wavelength. And, it turned out, we were.'

Commissioned from the Hot Press team in Ireland, North Side Story  covers six formative years from 1978 to 1983, from the first single, 'U23', to the live album, Under A Blood Red Sky.  Running to 274 pages, this heavyweight book of rare photos, original interviews, diaries, letters and profiles comes with 'North & South Of The River, Wandering In U2's Dublin', a poster-size map charting U2's Dublin. 

http://www.u2.com/

African Well Found: there is no them, there's only us

From April 1 to May 10, the African Well Fund invites U2 fans and others who are inspired by Bono's tireless activism on behalf of Africa to donate to the 12th Annual Build a Well for Bono's Birthday fundraiser in honor of Bono's 54th birthday. This year's campaign will benefit a community-based water and sanitation project in the Ebo municipality of the Kwanza Sul Province in Angola. The project aims to increase access to safe drinking water and improved sanitation for more than 12,000 people living in these communities. Complete project details can be found here.

The 11 previous campaigns have raised over $225,000 in Bono's honor to fund the construction of clean water and sanitation projects implemented by AWF partner Africare that are benefiting more than 60,000 people in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Mali, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Your donation will help give the people of Ebo the tools and training needed to improve public health in their communities.

To Donate and  Sign 2014 Birthday Card go to www.africanwellfund.org

Every year, AWF collects messages and signatures from donors that are compiled into a birthday card and sent to Bono via Principal Management along with the total amount raised. After donating, please click the button to add your name.

http://www.africanwellfund.org/