All That You Can't Leave Behind
Encyclopedia
All That You Can't Leave Behind is the tenth studio album by rock
band U2
. It was released on 30 October 2000 by Island Records
in the United Kingdom
and Interscope Records
in the United States
. Following the mixed reception to their 1997 album, Pop, All That You Can't Leave Behind represented a return to a more conventional sound for the band after they experimented with alternative rock
and dance music
in the 1990s. At the time of the album's release, U2 said on a number of occasions that they were "reapplying for the job ... [of] the best band in the world". U2 brought back producers Brian Eno
and Daniel Lanois
who had produced a number of the band's previous albums. The album was originally named "U2000", which was a working title for their past PopMart Tour
.
All That You Can't Leave Behind has sold over 12 million copies, received wide critical acclaim, and won seven Grammy Awards. The songs "Beautiful Day
", "Walk On", "Elevation
", and "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of
" were all successful singles. In 2003, the album was ranked number 139 on Rolling Stone
magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
".
and electronic dance music
, culminating with their 1997 album Pop and the accompanying PopMart Tour
. Guitarist The Edge
said that with Pop, the band had "taken the deconstruction of the rock 'n' roll band format to its absolute 'nth degree." However, following the poor reception to the album and tour, the band wished to return to song arrangements that consisted almost entirely of guitar, bass, and drums, and to quickly regroup in the studio after the tour. They reunited with producer
s Brian Eno
and Daniel Lanois
, who also produced their albums The Unforgettable Fire
, The Joshua Tree
and Achtung Baby
.
Although the band wanted to develop material before they entered the recording studio, Eno convinced them to write material quickly in the studio. For three weeks in late 1998, U2, Eno, and Lanois recorded demos in Hanover Quay Studios. One of the few quality ideas that stemmed from these brief sessions was the song "Kite
". Lead singer Bono
's vocals inspired everyone in the studio, particularly after he had been suffering from vocal problems for the previous few years. U2 thought they would have a new record completed in time for 1999. After the band's brief demo sessions, The Edge worked alone on song ideas before the band reunited at Hanover Quays. They recorded with the mentality of a "band in a room playing together", an approach that led to the album's more stripped-down sound.
Bono's involvement in the Jubilee 2000
campaign prevented him from dedicating all of his time to the album's recording, something Eno thought was a distraction. There was also a two-month break in the sessions when Bono collaborated with Lanois and Hal Wilner on the Million Dollar Hotel film soundtrack
. The band had thought they could complete the album for 1999, but the sessions ran long, with band members' conflicting schedules playing a large part in the delay. U2 did not want to put a deadline on completing the album after their experience with Pop, which had to be rushed to completion into order to meet the deadline set by their pre-booked PopMart Tour.
In the summer 1999, bassist Adam Clayton
and drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. bought houses in the South of France, in order to be near Bono and The Edge's homes so they could have a place to both "work and play".
The band have said that All That You Can't Leave Behind was an album that acknowledged the band's past. For example, there was a big debate amongst the band members during the writing and recording of "Beautiful Day
"; The Edge was playing with a guitar tone that he hadn't used much since their 1983 album War and the band wanted something more forward-looking. The Edge won out and the sound made it into the final studio version of the song. Additionally, although the record was described as "a return to the traditional U2 sound", many songs were complex and retained elements of the band's 1990s experimenting; "Beautiful Day" features an electronic drum beat, and the song's intro features an "electronification of the [chorus] chords with a beat box and a string part"; "New York" came together when the band members were away at a meeting and Lanois and Eno were playing around with a drum loop that drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. had recorded. The album's recording wrapped up in 2000.
," for instance, is an optimistic anthem that opens with a drum machine and a rhythm sequencer. The album also includes "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of
," a song written by Bono
for his friend, lead singer of INXS
, Michael Hutchence
, who committed suicide
in 1997.
's Total Request Live
, USA Network
's Farm Club, and Saturday Night Live
. The band kicked off the release of the album by performing a short concert for about 600 people at the ManRay club in Paris
, France
, on 19 October 2000, as part of the promotion for the 30 October release of the album.
", released on 9 October 2000. It was U2's fourth #1 single in the UK, their first #1 in the Netherlands, and was also #1 for a week in Australia
. The song peaked at #21 in the US.
The album's second single, "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of
", was originally released 29 January 2001. It was also a success, reaching #2 on the UK Singles Chart.
A third single, "Elevation
", was released 12 June 2001. The version of the song released as the single was the "Tomb Raider Mix", which appeared in television commercials for the Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
movie. It featured a much more hard rock
arrangement than the album version, and it is this arrangement that the band plays live.
The album's fourth and final single, "Walk On" was released on 19 November 2001. The song was originally written about and dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi
, a Burmese activist, but the song took on new meaning with listeners following the 11 September attacks.
ned in Burma by SPDC
because "Walk On" is a song dedicated to Burmese human rights
activist Aung San Suu Kyi
.
in the Roissy Hall 2F of the Charles de Gaulle International Airport
in Paris, France. Unlike the busy colour sleeves of the band's 1990s records, the cover is a single monochrome image of the band in the airport's departure terminal. The designers describe the look they created as "grown up". Early versions of the cover released to the press show a departure sign that reads "F21-36", however, this was changed to J33-3 in reference to the Bible verse Jeremiah 33:3, "Call unto me and I will answer thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not." Bono referred to it as "God's phone number" The lyric "3:33 when the numbers fell off the clock face" appears on the song "Unknown Caller
" from the group's 2009 album No Line on the Horizon.
). Many critics, such as Rolling Stone
magazine, declared it as "U2's third masterpiece", alongside The Joshua Tree
and Achtung Baby
. Steve Morse of The Boston Globe
said the record "has great songs that tie together beautifully—a welcome change from the disjointed nature of U2 discs such as 1993's Zooropa
and 1997's Pop". He believed that Bono took extra care in crafting the lyrics, resulting in the "most thoughtful, personal, and tender U2 songs in memory".
The first single released was "Beautiful Day", which reached #1 in the UK
single charts (which tracks the popularity of individual songs) and in most Europe
an countries, Canada
and Australia
. All That You Can't Leave Behind became the fourth-highest-selling U2 album, with total sales of over 12 million. The album holds an average critic score of 79/100 on Metacritic
.
s in two years. In 2001, "Beautiful Day" won "Song of the Year
", "Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
", and "Record of the Year
". In 2002, "Walk On" won "Record of the Year", "Elevation" won "Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal", and "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" won "Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal". The album also won "Best Rock Album
" that year. All That You Can't Leave Behind is the only album ever to have two singles win "Record of the Year" in two consecutive years.
In 2003, All That You Can't Leave Behind was ranked number 139 on Rolling Stone
magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
". In 2009, it was ranked by Rolling Stone as the 13th-best album of the decade, while "Beautiful Day" was rated the 9th best song.
, and ended back in Miami, Florida
on 2 December 2001 at the American Airlines Arena. The tour featured three legs and a total of 113 shows. The Elevation Tour saw U2 return to playing indoor arenas after they spent the 1990s in outdoor stadiums. The stage design of the Elevation Tour was more stripped-down and intimate for the fans. The tour grossed approximately US$110 million, and was at the time the third highest-grossing tour of all time by Pollstar
, with many of the stops selling out immediately. The band performed multiple shows in the same location including four consecutive shows in Chicago
, Boston and London
, respectively.
The song "Beautiful Day", which debuted on the tour, is one of only three U2 songs to have been played at every concert since their introduction (the other two being "One
" and "Vertigo").
, Australia
, Ireland
and the UK
, "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" (3:44) is a bonus track at the end. The lyrics were written by Salman Rushdie, and he is featured in the video, shown writing the song. Rushdie also provides an account of his relationship with the band and how the song came to be written in his book of essays, Step Across This Line.
Various limited edition copies included a bonus disc with either "Always," "Summer Rain," or "Big Girls are Best". The 7 (EP)
was subsequently released in the U.S.
, collecting these B-sides previously unavailable in that region.
Additional performers
Technical
Singles
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
. It was released on 30 October 2000 by Island Records
Island Records
Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Following the mixed reception to their 1997 album, Pop, All That You Can't Leave Behind represented a return to a more conventional sound for the band after they experimented with alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
and dance music
Electronic dance music
Electronic dance music is electronic music produced primarily for the purposes of use within a nightclub setting, or in an environment that is centered upon dance-based entertainment...
in the 1990s. At the time of the album's release, U2 said on a number of occasions that they were "reapplying for the job ... [of] the best band in the world". U2 brought back producers Brian Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
and Daniel Lanois
Daniel Lanois
Daniel Lanois born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Quebec) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has released a number of albums of his own work and has produced albums for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie...
who had produced a number of the band's previous albums. The album was originally named "U2000", which was a working title for their past PopMart Tour
Popmart Tour
The PopMart Tour was a worldwide concert tour by rock band U2. Launched in support of the group's 1997 album, Pop, the tour's concerts were performed in stadiums and parks from 1997 through 1998...
.
All That You Can't Leave Behind has sold over 12 million copies, received wide critical acclaim, and won seven Grammy Awards. The songs "Beautiful Day
Beautiful Day
"Beautiful Day" is a song by the rock band U2. It is the first track from their 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind, and it was released as the album's lead single. It was a commercial success, helping launch the album to multi-platinum status, and is one of U2's biggest hits to date...
", "Walk On", "Elevation
Elevation (song)
"Elevation" is the third track and third single release from U2's 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind. Featuring a thunderous beat, a variety of sound effects on the central guitar riff, and an easy rhyming lyric for the audience to shout along with, it was highly effective in its...
", and "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of
Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of
"Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" is the second single from U2's 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind. The song, characterised by gospel-tinged melodies and saccharine lead guitar part, won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 2002...
" were all successful singles. In 2003, the album was ranked number 139 on Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is the title of a 2003 special issue of American magazine Rolling Stone, and a related book published in 2005.Related news articles:...
".
Recording
Throughout the 1990s, U2 experimented with alternative rockAlternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
and electronic dance music
Electronic dance music
Electronic dance music is electronic music produced primarily for the purposes of use within a nightclub setting, or in an environment that is centered upon dance-based entertainment...
, culminating with their 1997 album Pop and the accompanying PopMart Tour
Popmart Tour
The PopMart Tour was a worldwide concert tour by rock band U2. Launched in support of the group's 1997 album, Pop, the tour's concerts were performed in stadiums and parks from 1997 through 1998...
. Guitarist The Edge
The Edge
David Howell Evans , more widely known by his stage name The Edge , is a musician best known as the guitarist, backing vocalist, and keyboardist of the Irish rock band U2. A member of the group since its inception, he has recorded 12 studio albums with the band and has released one solo record...
said that with Pop, the band had "taken the deconstruction of the rock 'n' roll band format to its absolute 'nth degree." However, following the poor reception to the album and tour, the band wished to return to song arrangements that consisted almost entirely of guitar, bass, and drums, and to quickly regroup in the studio after the tour. They reunited with producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
s Brian Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
and Daniel Lanois
Daniel Lanois
Daniel Lanois born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Quebec) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has released a number of albums of his own work and has produced albums for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie...
, who also produced their albums The Unforgettable Fire
The Unforgettable Fire
U2 feared that following the overt rock of their 1983 War album and War Tour, they were in danger of becoming another "shrill", "sloganeering arena-rock band". The success of the 1983 Under a Blood Red Sky live album and the Live at Red Rocks video, however, had given them artistic—and for the...
, The Joshua Tree
The Joshua Tree
The Joshua Tree is the fifth studio album by rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 9 March 1987 on Island Records. In contrast to the ambient experimentation of their 1984 release The Unforgettable Fire, U2 aimed for a harder-hitting sound on The Joshua...
and Achtung Baby
Achtung Baby
Achtung Baby is the seventh studio album by Irish rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 19 November 1991 on Island Records. Stung by the criticism of their 1988 release Rattle and Hum, U2 shifted their musical direction to incorporate alternative...
.
Although the band wanted to develop material before they entered the recording studio, Eno convinced them to write material quickly in the studio. For three weeks in late 1998, U2, Eno, and Lanois recorded demos in Hanover Quay Studios. One of the few quality ideas that stemmed from these brief sessions was the song "Kite
Kite (song)
"Kite" is the fifth track from U2's 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind.-Composition:The idea for the song came from a kite-flying outing on Killiney Hill overlooking Dublin Bay that Bono attempted with his daughters. The outing went quickly awry when the kite crashed and one of the girls...
". Lead singer Bono
Bono
Paul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
's vocals inspired everyone in the studio, particularly after he had been suffering from vocal problems for the previous few years. U2 thought they would have a new record completed in time for 1999. After the band's brief demo sessions, The Edge worked alone on song ideas before the band reunited at Hanover Quays. They recorded with the mentality of a "band in a room playing together", an approach that led to the album's more stripped-down sound.
Bono's involvement in the Jubilee 2000
Jubilee 2000
Jubilee 2000 was an international coalition movement in over 40 countries that called for cancellation of third world debt by the year 2000. This movement coincided with the Great Jubilee, the celebration of the year 2000 in the Catholic Church...
campaign prevented him from dedicating all of his time to the album's recording, something Eno thought was a distraction. There was also a two-month break in the sessions when Bono collaborated with Lanois and Hal Wilner on the Million Dollar Hotel film soundtrack
The Million Dollar Hotel: Music from the Motion Picture
-Personnel:U2*Bono – lead vocals, guitar, production on 4*Adam Clayton – bass guitar*The Edge – guitar, keyboards, backing vocals, production on 7*Larry Mullen, Jr. – drums, percussionThe Million Dollar Hotel Band...
. The band had thought they could complete the album for 1999, but the sessions ran long, with band members' conflicting schedules playing a large part in the delay. U2 did not want to put a deadline on completing the album after their experience with Pop, which had to be rushed to completion into order to meet the deadline set by their pre-booked PopMart Tour.
In the summer 1999, bassist Adam Clayton
Adam Clayton
Adam Charles Clayton is a musician, best known as the bassist of the Irish rock band U2. Clayton has resided in County Dublin since the time his family moved to Malahide when he was five years old in 1965...
and drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. bought houses in the South of France, in order to be near Bono and The Edge's homes so they could have a place to both "work and play".
The band have said that All That You Can't Leave Behind was an album that acknowledged the band's past. For example, there was a big debate amongst the band members during the writing and recording of "Beautiful Day
Beautiful Day
"Beautiful Day" is a song by the rock band U2. It is the first track from their 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind, and it was released as the album's lead single. It was a commercial success, helping launch the album to multi-platinum status, and is one of U2's biggest hits to date...
"; The Edge was playing with a guitar tone that he hadn't used much since their 1983 album War and the band wanted something more forward-looking. The Edge won out and the sound made it into the final studio version of the song. Additionally, although the record was described as "a return to the traditional U2 sound", many songs were complex and retained elements of the band's 1990s experimenting; "Beautiful Day" features an electronic drum beat, and the song's intro features an "electronification of the [chorus] chords with a beat box and a string part"; "New York" came together when the band members were away at a meeting and Lanois and Eno were playing around with a drum loop that drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. had recorded. The album's recording wrapped up in 2000.
Composition
The album was seen as a return to the band's traditional sound after their more experimental records of the 1990s. In many ways, however, this is an oversimplification, as the album breaks new ground by retaining the sonic nuances of their 1990s work and reconciling it with the melodic, hook-filled rock of their 1980s work. The first song (and lead single), "Beautiful DayBeautiful Day
"Beautiful Day" is a song by the rock band U2. It is the first track from their 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind, and it was released as the album's lead single. It was a commercial success, helping launch the album to multi-platinum status, and is one of U2's biggest hits to date...
," for instance, is an optimistic anthem that opens with a drum machine and a rhythm sequencer. The album also includes "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of
Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of
"Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" is the second single from U2's 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind. The song, characterised by gospel-tinged melodies and saccharine lead guitar part, won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 2002...
," a song written by Bono
Bono
Paul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
for his friend, lead singer of INXS
INXS
INXS are an Australian rock band, formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. Mainstays are Garry Gary Beers on bass guitar, Andrew Farriss on guitar/keyboards, Jon Farriss on drums, Tim Farriss on lead guitar and Kirk Pengilly on guitar/sax...
, Michael Hutchence
Michael Hutchence
Michael Kelland John Hutchence was an Australian musician and actor. He was the founding lead singer-songwriter of rock band :INXS from 1977 to his death in 1997, a period of twenty years. Hutchence was a member of short-lived pop rock group Max Q and recorded solo material which was released...
, who committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
in 1997.
Promotion
Following the comparatively poor reception of their previous album Pop, U2 declared on a number of occasions that they were "re-applying for the job ... of best band in the world." Promotional activities for the album included a number of U2 firsts such as appearances on MTVMTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's Total Request Live
Total Request Live
Total Request Live is a television series on MTV that featured popular music videos. TRL was MTV's prime outlet for music videos as the network continues to concentrate on reality-based programming. In addition to music videos, TRL featured daily guests...
, USA Network
USA Network
USA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
's Farm Club, and Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
. The band kicked off the release of the album by performing a short concert for about 600 people at the ManRay club in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, on 19 October 2000, as part of the promotion for the 30 October release of the album.
Single releases
The album was preceded by the lead single "Beautiful DayBeautiful Day
"Beautiful Day" is a song by the rock band U2. It is the first track from their 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind, and it was released as the album's lead single. It was a commercial success, helping launch the album to multi-platinum status, and is one of U2's biggest hits to date...
", released on 9 October 2000. It was U2's fourth #1 single in the UK, their first #1 in the Netherlands, and was also #1 for a week in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The song peaked at #21 in the US.
The album's second single, "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of
Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of
"Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" is the second single from U2's 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind. The song, characterised by gospel-tinged melodies and saccharine lead guitar part, won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 2002...
", was originally released 29 January 2001. It was also a success, reaching #2 on the UK Singles Chart.
A third single, "Elevation
Elevation (song)
"Elevation" is the third track and third single release from U2's 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind. Featuring a thunderous beat, a variety of sound effects on the central guitar riff, and an easy rhyming lyric for the audience to shout along with, it was highly effective in its...
", was released 12 June 2001. The version of the song released as the single was the "Tomb Raider Mix", which appeared in television commercials for the Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider is a 2001 adventure thriller film adapted from the Tomb Raider video game series. Directed by Simon West and starring Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft, it was released in U.S. theaters on June 15, 2001. The film was a commercial success...
movie. It featured a much more hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
arrangement than the album version, and it is this arrangement that the band plays live.
The album's fourth and final single, "Walk On" was released on 19 November 2001. The song was originally written about and dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi
Aung San Suu Kyi
Aung San Suu Kyi, AC is a Burmese opposition politician and the General Secretary of the National League for Democracy. In the 1990 general election, her National League for Democracy party won 59% of the national votes and 81% of the seats in Parliament. She had, however, already been detained...
, a Burmese activist, but the song took on new meaning with listeners following the 11 September attacks.
Ban in Burma
The album is banBan (law)
A ban is, generally, any decree that prohibits something.Bans are formed for the prohibition of activities within a certain political territory. Some see this as a negative act and others see it as maintaining the "status quo"...
ned in Burma by SPDC
State Peace and Development Council
The State Peace and Development Council was the official name of the military regime of Burma , which seized power in 1988. On 30 March 2011, Senior General Than Shwe signed a decree to officially dissolve the Council....
because "Walk On" is a song dedicated to Burmese human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist Aung San Suu Kyi
Aung San Suu Kyi
Aung San Suu Kyi, AC is a Burmese opposition politician and the General Secretary of the National League for Democracy. In the 1990 general election, her National League for Democracy party won 59% of the national votes and 81% of the seats in Parliament. She had, however, already been detained...
.
Cover art
The photograph on the album cover was taken by long-time U2 photographer Anton CorbijnAnton Corbijn
Anton Corbijn is a Dutch photographer, music video and film director. He is the creative director behind the visual output of Depeche Mode and U2, having handled the principal promotion and sleeve photography for both for more than a decade...
in the Roissy Hall 2F of the Charles de Gaulle International Airport
Charles de Gaulle International Airport
Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport , also known as Roissy Airport , in the Paris area, is one of the world's principal aviation centres, as well as France's largest airport. It is named after Charles de Gaulle , leader of the Free French Forces and founder of the French Fifth Republic...
in Paris, France. Unlike the busy colour sleeves of the band's 1990s records, the cover is a single monochrome image of the band in the airport's departure terminal. The designers describe the look they created as "grown up". Early versions of the cover released to the press show a departure sign that reads "F21-36", however, this was changed to J33-3 in reference to the Bible verse Jeremiah 33:3, "Call unto me and I will answer thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not." Bono referred to it as "God's phone number" The lyric "3:33 when the numbers fell off the clock face" appears on the song "Unknown Caller
Unknown Caller
"Unknown Caller" is a song by Irish rock band U2 and the fourth track on their 2009 album No Line on the Horizon. It was written from the perspective of a drug addict, who begins to receive bizarre text messages on his cellphone...
" from the group's 2009 album No Line on the Horizon.
Reception
The album was generally well-received by critics and the public, debuting at #1 in 32 countries (#3 in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
). Many critics, such as Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine, declared it as "U2's third masterpiece", alongside The Joshua Tree
The Joshua Tree
The Joshua Tree is the fifth studio album by rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 9 March 1987 on Island Records. In contrast to the ambient experimentation of their 1984 release The Unforgettable Fire, U2 aimed for a harder-hitting sound on The Joshua...
and Achtung Baby
Achtung Baby
Achtung Baby is the seventh studio album by Irish rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 19 November 1991 on Island Records. Stung by the criticism of their 1988 release Rattle and Hum, U2 shifted their musical direction to incorporate alternative...
. Steve Morse of The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
said the record "has great songs that tie together beautifully—a welcome change from the disjointed nature of U2 discs such as 1993's Zooropa
Zooropa
Zooropa Based on the pronunciations of "zoo" and "Europa". is the eighth studio album by rock band U2. Produced by Flood, Brian Eno, and The Edge, it was released on 5 July 1993 on Island Records. Inspired by the band's experiences on the Zoo TV Tour, Zooropa expanded on many of the tour's themes...
and 1997's Pop". He believed that Bono took extra care in crafting the lyrics, resulting in the "most thoughtful, personal, and tender U2 songs in memory".
The first single released was "Beautiful Day", which reached #1 in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
single charts (which tracks the popularity of individual songs) and in most Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an countries, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. All That You Can't Leave Behind became the fourth-highest-selling U2 album, with total sales of over 12 million. The album holds an average critic score of 79/100 on Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
.
Awards and accolades
All That You Can't Leave Behind and its singles won seven Grammy AwardGrammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s in two years. In 2001, "Beautiful Day" won "Song of the Year
Grammy Award for Song of the Year
The Song of the Year is one of the four most prestigious awards in the Grammy Awards ceremony, if not in all of the American music industry. It has been awarded since 1959 and unlike the Record of the Year award, which goes to the performer and production team of a single song, Song of the Year...
", "Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1980 and 2011.The award was discontinued after the 2011 award season in a major overhaul of Grammy categories...
", and "Record of the Year
Grammy Award for Record of the Year
The Record of the Year is one of the four most prestigious Grammy Awards presented annually. It has been awarded since 1959.-History:The honorees through its history have been:*1959-1965: Artist only.*1966-1998: Artist and producer....
". In 2002, "Walk On" won "Record of the Year", "Elevation" won "Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal", and "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" won "Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal". The album also won "Best Rock Album
Grammy Award for Best Rock Album
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality albums in the rock music genre...
" that year. All That You Can't Leave Behind is the only album ever to have two singles win "Record of the Year" in two consecutive years.
In 2003, All That You Can't Leave Behind was ranked number 139 on Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is the title of a 2003 special issue of American magazine Rolling Stone, and a related book published in 2005.Related news articles:...
". In 2009, it was ranked by Rolling Stone as the 13th-best album of the decade, while "Beautiful Day" was rated the 9th best song.
Elevation Tour
The accompanying Elevation Tour officially began on 24 March 2001 with a two-night stay at the National Car Rental Center near Fort Lauderdale, FloridaFort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010...
, and ended back in Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
on 2 December 2001 at the American Airlines Arena. The tour featured three legs and a total of 113 shows. The Elevation Tour saw U2 return to playing indoor arenas after they spent the 1990s in outdoor stadiums. The stage design of the Elevation Tour was more stripped-down and intimate for the fans. The tour grossed approximately US$110 million, and was at the time the third highest-grossing tour of all time by Pollstar
Pollstar
Pollstar is a concert tour industry's leading trade publication that gets its information primarily from the agents, managers and promoters who are producing concerts. Founded in 1981, it is based in Fresno, California and has an office in London with correspondents in six countries. Pollstar is...
, with many of the stops selling out immediately. The band performed multiple shows in the same location including four consecutive shows in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Boston and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, respectively.
The song "Beautiful Day", which debuted on the tour, is one of only three U2 songs to have been played at every concert since their introduction (the other two being "One
One (U2 song)
"One" is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is the third track from their 1991 album Achtung Baby, and it was released as the record's third single in March 1992. It was recorded at three recording studios, Hansa Ton Studios, Elsinore, and Windmill Lane Studios...
" and "Vertigo").
Track listing
In JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" (3:44) is a bonus track at the end. The lyrics were written by Salman Rushdie, and he is featured in the video, shown writing the song. Rushdie also provides an account of his relationship with the band and how the song came to be written in his book of essays, Step Across This Line.
Various limited edition copies included a bonus disc with either "Always," "Summer Rain," or "Big Girls are Best". The 7 (EP)
7 (EP)
"Always" is an early version of "Beautiful Day". "Big Girls Are Best" was a leftover from the Pop sessions. This Influx mix of "Elevation" was used to open shows on the Elevation Tour. The single version of "Walk On", which was released on the single with the blue cover, was also featured in...
was subsequently released in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, collecting these B-sides previously unavailable in that region.
Personnel
U2- BonoBonoPaul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, synthesisers (track 2) - The EdgeThe EdgeDavid Howell Evans , more widely known by his stage name The Edge , is a musician best known as the guitarist, backing vocalist, and keyboardist of the Irish rock band U2. A member of the group since its inception, he has recorded 12 studio albums with the band and has released one solo record...
– guitar, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, vocals, synthesisers (track 3), stringsString instrumentA string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
(track 5) - Adam ClaytonAdam ClaytonAdam Charles Clayton is a musician, best known as the bassist of the Irish rock band U2. Clayton has resided in County Dublin since the time his family moved to Malahide when he was five years old in 1965...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Larry Mullen, Jr. – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
Additional performers
- Brian EnoBrian EnoBrian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
– synthesisers, programmingProgramming (music)Programming is a form of music production and performance using electronic devices, often sequencers or computer programs, to generate music. Programming is used in nearly all forms of electronic music and in most hip hop music since the 1990s. It is also frequently used in modern pop and rock...
, backing vocals, string arrangement - Daniel LanoisDaniel LanoisDaniel Lanois born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Quebec) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has released a number of albums of his own work and has produced albums for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie...
– backing vocals, additional guitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together... - Paul Barrett – brassBrass instrumentA brass instrument is a musical instrument whose sound is produced by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips...
(track 2)
Technical
- ProductionRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
– Daniel Lanois, Brian Eno - Additional production – Steve LillywhiteSteve LillywhiteSteve Lillywhite is an English Grammy Award winning record producer. Since he began his career in 1977, Lillywhite has been credited for working on over 500 records and has collaborated with a variety of musicians including XTC, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Dave Matthews Band, U2, Peter Gabriel,...
, Mike HedgesMike Hedges-Career:Mike Hedges started as a tape-op at Morgan Studios in London in the late 1970s. Having graduated to engineer, he went freelance in 1981 and became an engineer/producer....
, Richard Stannard, Julian GallagherJulian GallagherJulian Gallagher is a British songwriter and record producer, known for helping Kylie Minogue on her 2001 album, Fever. He also co-wrote songs with Gabrielle on her 2007 album, Always.-External links:**Paul Nash, , Sound on Sound, December 2001... - EngineeringAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
– Richard Rainey - MixingAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
– Richard Rainey, Tim PalmerTim PalmerTim Palmer is a British music producer, audio engineer and songwriter of rock and alternative music.-1980-1990:Palmer worked as an assistant engineer at Utopia Studios in London, England in the early 1980s...
, Mike Hedges, Richard Stannard and Julian Gallagher, Brian Eno, Daniel Lanois, Steve FitzmauriceSteve FitzmauriceSteven Fitzmaurice is a Grammy Award-winning mixer and producer based in London, UK. His credits include albums for Craig David, Depeche Mode, Kate Nash, Seal, and U2.Born in Ireland, Fitzmaurice moved to London in 1987 to carve out a career in music... - Engineering and mixing assistance – Chris Heaney, Alvin Sweeney, Jay Goin
- Additional engineering – Tim Palmer, Stephen Harris, Ger McDonnell, Mark Howard, Alex Haas
- Additional engineering assistance – Keith McDonnell, Stephen Harris
- MasteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
– Arnie Acosta
Charts and certifications
Album| Country | Peak position | Certification | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 1 | Multi Platinum | |
| Australia | 1 | 4× Platinum | |
| Austria | 1 | Platinum | |
| Canada | 1 | 5× Platinum | 500,000+ |
| Denmark | 2 | 2× Platinum | |
| Finland | 1 | Gold | 27,312 |
| Netherlands | 1 | 2× Platinum | |
| Poland | 3 | Gold | 20,000+ |
| Switzerland | 2 | 2× Platinum | |
| United Kingdom | 1 | 3× Platinum | 900,000+ |
| United States | 3 | 4× Platinum | 4,000,000+ |
Singles
| Year | Song | Peak | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRE Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
BE (Wal) Ultratop 40 Ultratop 40 singles, often just Ultratop 40, is the weekly chart of best-selling singles in Wallonia and Brussels Capital Region, the french-speaking parts of Belgium. Its equivalent covering the Flanders region is Ultratop 50. Both charts are produced and published by the Ultratop organization... |
CAN Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
||
| 2000 | "Beautiful Day" | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 21 |
| 2001 | "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" | 1 | 3 | 33 | 1 | 2 | 52 |
| "Elevation" | 1 | 6 | 13 | 1 | 3 | — | |
| "Walk On" | 7 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 5 | — | |
| "—" denotes a release that did not chart. | |||||||
External links
- All That You Can't Leave Behind on U2.com