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Beautiful Day
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"Beautiful Day" is the first song and lead single from U2's 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind. It was a commercial success, helping launch the album to multi-platinum status, and is one of U2's biggest hits to date. It was their fourth #1 single in the UK and their first #1 in the Netherlands, while the single also was #1 for a week in Australia. The song peaked at #21 in the US, the band's highest position since "Discothèque" in 1997.
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Encyclopedia
"Beautiful Day" is the first song and lead single from U2's 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind. It was a commercial success, helping launch the album to multi-platinum status, and is one of U2's biggest hits to date. It was their fourth #1 single in the UK and their first #1 in the Netherlands, while the single also was #1 for a week in Australia. The song peaked at #21 in the US, the band's highest position since "Discothèque" in 1997. The song won three Grammy Awards in 2001.
Composition
According to Bono, "Beautiful Day" is about "a man who has lost everything, but finds joy in what he still has." In recent interviews, Bono also mentioned that "Beautiful Day" could be seen as a modern Christmas song.
The song is an optimistic anthem that opens with a drum machine and a rhythm sequencer. The verses are relatively quiet before The Edge's guitar and the song's signature riff join in for the choruses. The Edge recorded this song on his Gibson Les Paul Standard and plays the song live with his Gibson Explorer, which helps add the distinctive shimmering, chiming sound that made the band unique when they first debuted in the early 1980s.
In the book "Sounds Like Teen Spirit: Stolen Melodies, Ripped-Off Riffs, and the Secret History of Rock and Roll", author Tim English argues that the song sounds very similar to a-ha's song "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." and includes references to the a-ha track in the lyrics.
In an episode of the Sundance Channel's Iconoclast, R.E.M. vocalist Michael Stipe said "I love that song. I wish I'd written it, and they know I wish I'd written it. It makes me dance, It makes me angry that I didn't write it." Beautiful Day also opens ITV's football show "The Championship", and previously ITV's "Premiership".
Reception
Beautiful Day is the most known track on the All That You Can't Leave Behind album, and has been regarded as one of U2's most famous songs. The song hit No.1 on charts in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland and also boosted sales of All That You Can't Leave Behind. Beautiful Day is included on The Best of 1990-2000 and U218 Singles.
The song won three Grammys in 2001: "Record of the Year", "Song of the Year", and "Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal".
In 2008 the song was chosen to play over the end titles of the children's film Nim's Island, starring Abigail Breslin, Jodie Foster and Gerard Butler.
President Barack Obama used the song as his entrance for campaign events during his 2008 Presidential campaign.
Live history
Ever since its tour debut at the first date of the Elevation Tour on March 24, 2001 in Miami, "Beautiful Day" has been played at every single full tour concert, as well as a number of promotional appearances and concerts not connected with a tour. On the Elevation Tour, "Beautiful Day" was normally the second song played, though it did open one show and was played late in the setlist at two concerts. During the Vertigo Tour, it has appeared in the first half of the main set. It is featured on the live films Elevation 2001: Live from Boston, U2 Go Home: Live from Slane Castle, and Vertigo 2005: Live From Chicago. The song was also performed on stage to open the Live 8 concerts, with slightly different lyrics that mentioned the different sites that Live 8 concerts took place in, along with "Vertigo" and "One", at Hyde Park in London. It was performed live in New Orleans for Super Bowl XXXVI and for the New Orleans Saints first game in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina. During the band's five night stand on The Late Show with David Letterman (March 2-6, 2009) to promote their most recent album No Line on the Horizon, "Beautiful Day" was the only song not from that album to be performed all week.
Music video
The song's video showed the band walking around in Paris' Charles de Gaulle International Airport, with scenes of the band playing on a runway interspliced with large jets taking off and landing overhead. The video is directed by Jonas Åkerlund.
An alternative video for the song, shot in Èze, France, was featured on the The Best of 1990-2000 bonus disc and the U218 Videos DVD. A month before the album release, a live version of the song was filmed in Dublin on the rooftop of The Clarence hotel. It is featured on the extra features of the Elevation 2001: Live from Boston DVD.
Track listings
Version 1
- "Beautiful Day" (Album Version) (4:06)
- "Summer Rain" (4:06)
- "Always" (3:46)
This is the common CD release. A cassette single was released with only "Summer Rain" as the B-side. The Australian CD edition also had an enhanced video of "Last Night on Earth" (Live from Mexico City).
Version 2
- "Beautiful Day" (Album Version) (4:06)
- "Discothèque" (Live from Mexico City December 3, 1997) (5:10)
- "If You Wear that Velvet Dress" (Live from Mexico City December 3, 1997) (2:43)
This is the "live" release. The Australian edition also had "Last Night on Earth" (Live from Mexico City) as an extra audio track.
Version 3
- "Beautiful Day" (Album Version) (4:06)
- "Summer Rain" (4:06)
- "Always" (3:46)
- "Discothèque" (Live from Mexico City December 3, 1997) (5:10)
- "If You Wear that Velvet Dress" (Live from Mexico City December 3, 1997) (2:43)
This CD version, with almost all available B-sides, was only released in Japan.
Live Version
- "Beautiful Day" (Live from Slane Castle) (4:34)
This version is a digital only release on iTunes, and it was taken off of the DVD release "U2 Go Home: Live from Slane Castle".
Hot 100 entrys
- Top 100 entry: October 7, 2000 at #75
- Top 50 entry: November 18, 2000 at #47
- Top 40 entry: December 2, 2000 at #40
Chart positions
See also
- List of covers of U2 songs - Beautiful Day
External links
- --Comprehensive details on various editions, cover scans, lyrics, and more.
- --Lists all concerts at which "Beautiful Day" has been performed.
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