Rattle and Hum
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Rattle and Hum | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album with live tracks by U2 | ||||
| Released | 10 October 1988 | |||
| Recorded | Sun Studio, Memphis, Tennessee, 1987–1988 | |||
| Genre | Rock, roots rock[1] | |||
| Length | 72:27 | |||
| Label | Island | |||
| Producer | Jimmy Iovine | |||
| Professional reviews | ||||
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| U2 chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Rattle and Hum | ||||
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Rattle and Hum is the name of both an album and a companion motion picture recorded by Irish rock band U2. Both were released in 1988.
The album, which was made following the band's 1987 Joshua Tree Tour, is a mix of live recordings, covers, and new songs. To a greater extent than their previous album, The Joshua Tree, the band explores roots rock, and incorporates elements of blues-rock, folk rock, and country. The accompanying documentary film documents the band's Joshua Tree Tour of the United States and the band's experiences with American music. Although the album and motion picture were intended to represent the band paying tribute to rock legends, some critics accused U2 of trying to place themselves amongst the ranks of these artists.
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[edit] History
The movie is a rockumentary, which was initially financed by the band and intended to be screened in a small number of cinemas as an independent film. After going over budget, the film was bought by Paramount Pictures and released in theaters in 1988, before arriving on video in 1989. It was produced by Michael Hamlyn and directed by Phil Joanou. It incorporates live footage with studio outtakes and band interviews. The album is a mix of live material and new studio recordings that furthers the band's experimentation with American music styles and recognizes many of their musical influences. It was produced by Jimmy Iovine and also released in 1988.
The title, Rattle and Hum, is taken from a lyric from "Bullet the Blue Sky", the fourth track on The Joshua Tree.
[edit] Studio recordings
The album opens with a live cover of The Beatles' "Helter Skelter." Its inclusion on the album was intended by the band to reflect the confusion of The Joshua Tree Tour and their new found superstar status. Bono's introduction of the song—"this song Charles Manson stole from The Beatles...we're stealing it back"—was interpreted as U2 claiming to be the new Beatles.[2][who?]
Bono said "Hawkmoon 269" was in part as a tribute to writer Sam Shepard, who had released a book entitled Hawk Moon. Bono also said that the band mixed the song 269 times. This was thought to be a joke for years until it was recently confirmed by The Edge in U2 by U2, who said that they spent three weeks mixing the song. He also conflicted Bono's assertion about Shepard, saying that Hawkmoon came from a section of a town in the midwestern United States.[citation needed]
The album contains a live version of Bob Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower", which can be seen as a dual tribute to Dylan and to Jimi Hendrix, who popularized the song with his own blistering rendition. Aside from the covers, a couple of songs were written for other artists. "Angel of Harlem" is a vivacious, horn-filled tribute to Billie Holiday. The bass-heavy "God Part II" is an introduction to the Achtung Baby sound, and is a sequel of sorts to John Lennon's "God", his stark denunciation of everyone from Elvis Presley to Jesus Christ.
The songs are also musically in line with the predecessors they honor.[citation needed] The punchy lead single, "Desire", for instance, sports a Bo Diddley beat. "Love Rescue Me" (featuring co-author Bob Dylan on vocals) and the live performance of "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" (recorded with a full church choir) are gospel songs. "When Love Comes to Town" is a blues rocker featuring B. B. King on guitar and vocals.
U2 recorded "Angel of Harlem", "Love Rescue Me" and "When Love Comes to Town" at Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, where Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash and many others also recorded. They also recorded an unreleased version of "She's a Mystery to Me" and Woody Guthrie's "Jesus Christ," which appeared on Folkways: A Vision Shared.
All of the studio tracks apart from "Heartland" were performed in concert on the Lovetown Tour, which began almost a year after Rattle and Hum's release.
[edit] Live performances
Most of the video from the movie is black-and-white indoor concert footage from the band's Denver, Colorado show on 8 November 1987 or colour outdoor concert footage from the band's Tempe, Arizona shows on 19 December 1987 and 20 December 1987.
The performance of Bob Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower" is from the band's impromptu "Save the Yuppies" concert in Justin Herman Plaza in San Francisco, California on 11 November 1987. The video intersperses the performance of the song with footage from the band's performance of "Pride" from the same show, during which Bono spray-painted "Rock and Roll Stops the Traffic" on the Vaillancourt Fountain. This caused a bit of controversy, and ultimately, the band paid to repair the damage and publicly apologized for the incident. The phrase "Rock and Roll Stops the Traffic" reappeared 18 years later in the video "All Because of You" when an unnamed fan appeared with the sign at 1:55 in the video.[3][4]
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" is from the band's New York City show on 28 September 1987 and features the New Voices of Freedom, a gospel choir.
During "Silver and Gold", Bono explains that the song is an attack on apartheid.
"Sunday Bloody Sunday" is from the Denver show, which was performed on the day that an IRA bomb killed eleven people at a Remembrance Day ceremony in the Northern Irish town of Enniskillen (see Remembrance Day Bombing). As the band went into a long musical break, Bono condemned the violence in a furious mid-song rant—capped by an emotional cry of "Fuck the revolution!" — and led the crowd in a brief chant of "No more! No more!"
"The Star Spangled Banner" is an excerpt of Jimi Hendrix's famous Woodstock performance in 1969.
The noise of the crowd was sampled extensively by the The KLF for 'the Stadium House Trilogy' of singles on their 1990 album The White Room.[5]
[edit] Reception
After the success of The Joshua Tree, the album received a generally positive reception. Writing in Rolling Stone, Anthony DeCurtis said, "The album ably demonstrates U2's force but devotes too little attention to the band's vision." The album received an 8/10 marking in the NME from Stuart Baillie but was controversial as Mark Sinker originally gave it a much poorer review, which was pulled in favour of Baillie's more positive one. Sinker left the NME shortly after.[6]
Roger Ebert slammed the movie saying the footage was badly lit and monotonous, with little use made of the crowds. However, review partner Gene Siskel was more sympathetic, praising the music and finding the footage of the Harlem gospel choir particularly moving.[7]
"Rattle and Hum was conceived as a scrapbook, a memento of that time spent in America on the Joshua Tree tour. It changed when the movie, which was initially conceived of as a low-budget film, suddenly became a big Hollywood affair. That put a different emphasis on the album, which suffered from the huge promotion and publicity, and people reacted against it."[8]
[edit] Album
[edit] Track listing
| # | Title | Writer(s) | Performer | Length | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Helter Skelter" (Live) | Lennon/McCartney | U2 | 3:07 | |||||
| 2. | "Van Diemen's Land" | The Edge | U2 | 3:05 | |||||
| 3. | "Desire" | U2 | U2 | 2:59 | |||||
| 4. | "Hawkmoon 269" | U2 | U2 | 6:22 | |||||
| 5. | "All Along the Watchtower" (Live) | Bob Dylan | U2 | 4:24 | |||||
| 6. | "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" (Live) | U2 | U2 with The New Voices of Freedom | 5:53 | |||||
| 7. | "Freedom for My People" | Adam Gussow and Sterling Magee | Satan and Adam | 0:38 | |||||
| 8. | "Silver and Gold" (Live) | Bono | U2 | 5:49 | |||||
| 9. | "Pride (In the Name of Love)" (Live) | U2 | U2 | 4:27 | |||||
| 10. | "Angel of Harlem" | U2 | U2 | 3:49 | |||||
| 11. | "Love Rescue Me" | U2 | U2 with Bob Dylan | 6:24 | |||||
| 12. | "When Love Comes to Town" | U2 | U2 with B. B. King | 4:15 | |||||
| 13. | "Heartland" | U2 | U2 | 5:03 | |||||
| 14. | "God Part II" | U2 | U2 | 3:15 | |||||
| 15. | "The Star Spangled Banner" (Excerpt) | John Stafford Smith | Jimi Hendrix | 0:43 | |||||
| 16. | "Bullet the Blue Sky" (Live) | U2 | U2 | 5:36 | |||||
| 17. | "All I Want Is You" | U2 | U2 | 6:30 | |||||
| 72:27 | |||||||||
All tracks were produced by Jimmy Iovine, except "Heartland", a left-over from The Joshua Tree that was produced by Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois.
[edit] Charts and certifications
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Album
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Songs
"—" denotes releases that did not chart. |
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[edit] Film
| Rattle and Hum | |
|---|---|
Film poster |
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| Directed by | Phil Joanou |
| Produced by | Michael Hamlyn |
| Starring | Bono The Edge Adam Clayton Larry Mullen Jr. |
| Music by | Adam Clayton Larry Mullen Jr. The Edge |
| Cinematography | Robert Brinkmann (color) Jordan Cronenweth (B&W) |
| Editing by | Phil Joanou |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | 27 October 1988 (Ireland) 4 November 1988 (U.S.) |
| Running time | 99 min |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $5,000,000 |
| Gross revenue | US$8,600,823 U.S. |
| # | Title | Writer(s) | Performer | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Helter Skelter" (Live) | Lennon/McCartney | U2 | |
| 2. | "Van Diemen's Land" | The Edge | U2 | |
| 3. | "Desire" (Demo) | U2 | U2 | |
| 4. | "Exit"/"Gloria" (Live) | U2 ("Exit"), Van Morrison ("Gloria") | U2 | |
| 5. | "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" (Rehearsal) | U2 | U2 with The New Voices of Freedom | |
| 6. | "Freedom for My People" | Adam Gussow and Sterling Magee | Satan and Adam | |
| 7. | "Silver and Gold" (Live) | Bono | U2 | |
| 8. | "Angel of Harlem" (Demo) | U2 | U2 | |
| 9. | "All Along the Watchtower" (Live) | Bob Dylan | U2 | |
| 10. | "In God's Country" (Live) | U2 | U2 | |
| 11. | "When Love Comes to Town" (Rehearsel, live, recital medley) | Bono | U2 with B. B. King | |
| 12. | "Heartland" | U2 | U2 | |
| 13. | "Bad"/"Ruby Tuesday"/"Sympathy for the Devil" (Live) | U2 ("Bad"), Jagger/Richards ("Ruby Tuesday", "Sympathy for the Devil") | U2 | |
| 14. | "Where the Streets Have No Name" (Live) | U2 | U2 | |
| 15. | "MLK" (Live) | U2 | U2 | |
| 16. | "With or Without You" (Live) | U2 | U2 | |
| 17. | "The Star Spangled Banner" (Excerpt) | John Stafford Smith | Jimi Hendrix | |
| 18. | "Bullet the Blue Sky" (Live) | U2 | U2 | |
| 19. | "Running to Stand Still" (Live) | Bono | U2 | |
| 20. | "Sunday Bloody Sunday" (Live) | U2 | U2 | |
| 21. | "Pride (In the Name of Love)" (Live) | U2 | U2 | |
| 22. | "All I Want Is You" | U2 | U2 |
[edit] Personnel
- Bono – lead vocals, additional guitar, harmonica
- The Edge – guitar, keyboards, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Van Diemen's Land"
- Adam Clayton – bass guitar
- Larry Mullen, Jr. – drums, percussion
[edit] Guest performers
- B. B. King – guitar and vocals on "When Love Comes to Town"
- Bob Dylan – Hammond organ on "Hawkmoon 269", vocals on "Love Rescue Me"
- The New Voices of Freedom – vocals on "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"
- The Memphis Horns – horns on "Angel of Harlem" and "Love Rescue Me"
- Benmont Tench – Hammond organ on "All I Want Is You"
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Rattle and Hum > Overview". Allmusic. http://www.allmusicguide.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:wcfexql5ldde. Retrieved 2008-08-01.
- ^ Graham (2004), p. 36.
- ^ "U2 All Because of You". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlBdaxB1Wy4.
- ^ "Rock and Roll Stops the Traffic Photo". http://seeingfurther.com/U2.jpg.
- ^ "KLF Interview". http://cardhouse.com. http://cardhouse.com/x07/klf.html. Retrieved 2008-09-26.
- ^ "Mark Sinker". Rocksbackpages.com. http://www.rocksbackpages.com/writer.html?WriterID=sinker. Retrieved September 25, 2008.
- ^ "At the movies - Rattle and Hum". Bventertainment.go.com. http://bventertainment.go.com/tv/buenavista/ebertandroeper/index2.html?sec=1&subsec=51. Retrieved September 25, 2008.
- ^ atu2.com
- ^ a b c d e f "U2 - Rattle and Hum". Hung Median. http://www.ultratop.be/en/showitem.asp?interpret=U2&titel=Rattle+And+Hum&cat=a. Retrieved 2009-11-26.
- ^ a b "CRIA Certification Results: U2". Canadian Recording Industry Association. 2000-12-11. http://www.cria.ca/cert_db_search.php?page=4&wclause=WHERE+artist_name+like+%27%25U2%25%27+ORDER+BY+cert_date%2C+cert_award+&rcnt=81&csearch=80&nextprev=1. Retrieved 2009-11-17.
- ^ a b "Kulta - ja platinalevyt" (in Finnish). IFPI Finland. http://www.ifpi.fi/tilastot/kultalevyt/haku/?q=U2&national=0&type=album. Retrieved 2009-11-26.
- ^ Disque En France
- ^ IFPI Germany
- ^ NVPI
- ^ IFPI Switzerland
- ^ "Album Chart History". The Official UK Charts Company. http://www.theofficialcharts.com/album_chart_history.php. Retrieved 2009-11-26. Note: U2 must be searched manually.
- ^ BPI
- ^ "Rattle and Hum - U2". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/#/album/u2/rattle-and-hum/43871. Retrieved 2009-11-26.
- ^ RIAA
- ^ "Introduction - RPM". RPM, archives hosted by Library and Archives Canada. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/index-e.html. Retrieved 2009-11-26. Note: Songs must be searched manually.
- ^ "Search the charts". Irishcharts.ie. http://www.irishcharts.ie/search/placement. Retrieved 2009-10-29. Note: U2 must be searched manually
- ^ "U2 singles". Everyhit.com. http://everyhit.com/. Retrieved 2009-10-29. Note: U2 must be searched manually.
- ^ "U2 songs". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/#/search/?Nty=1&Ntx=mode%2bmatchallpartial&Ntk=Keyword&Ns=FULL_DATE%7c1&Ne=125&N=129&Ntt=U2. Retrieved 2009-10-29. Note: Songs must be searched manually
[edit] References
- Graham, Bill; van Oosten de Boer (2004). U2: The Complete Guide to their Music. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-9886-8.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by New Jersey by Bon Jovi |
Billboard 200 number-one album November 12 - December 23, 1988 |
Succeeded by Giving You the Best That I Got by Anita Baker |
| Preceded by Flying Colours by Chris de Burgh |
UK number one album October 22, 1988 – October 28, 1988 |
Succeeded by Money for Nothing by Dire Straits |
| Preceded by New Jersey by Bon Jovi |
Australian ARIA Albums Chart number-one album October 31 - December 4, 1988 |
Succeeded by Barnestorming by Jimmy Barnes |
| Rattle and Hum track listing |
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| "Helter Skelter" • "Van Diemen's Land" • "Desire" • "Hawkmoon 269" • "All Along the Watchtower" • "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" • "Freedom for My People" • "Silver and Gold" • "Pride (In the Name of Love)" • "Angel of Harlem" • "Love Rescue Me" • "When Love Comes to Town" • "Heartland" • "God Part II" • "The Star Spangled Banner" • "Bullet the Blue Sky" • "All I Want Is You" |
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