Zooropa

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This article is about the U2 album. For the opening song on the album of the same name, see Zooropa (song).
Zooropa
Studio album by U2
Released 5 July 1993
Recorded February 1993 – May 1993
Genre Alternative rock
Length 51:15
Label Island
Producer Flood, Brian Eno, The Edge
U2 chronology
Achtung Baby
(1991)		 Zooropa
(1993)		 Pop
(1997)
Singles from Zooropa
  1. "Numb"
    Released: June 1993
  2. "Lemon"
    Released: September 1993
  3. "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)"
    Released: 22 November 1993

Zooropa (pronounced /zuːˈroʊpə/, zoo-ROH-pə)[a] is the eighth studio album by the Irish rock band U2. Originally intended as an EP,[1] it was recorded between legs of the Zoo TV Tour and released on 5 July 1993 by Island Records as a full-length album. Influenced by both tour life and the ideas of media barrage and irony from the tour, Zooropa continues the band's experimentation with alternative rock and electronic music from their previous album Achtung Baby. Much like that album, Zooropa was critically and commercially successful. The album's title is a combination of "Zoo TV" and "Europa."

Contents

[edit] Recording and production

U2 had completed the third leg of their Zoo TV Tour, the "Outside Broadcast", on November 25, 1992 and were left with a six month break before their tour resumed in Europe in May 1993 for its fourth leg. The band decided to record an EP of new material to promote the upcoming leg of the tour.[1] Guitarist The Edge described the band's mentality in deciding to record new material: "We've got a bit of time off. We've got some ideas hanging around from the last record, let's do an EP, maybe four new songs to spice the next phase of the tour up a bit. It'll be a fan thing. It'll be cool."[2]

The band entered The Factory studio in Dublin in February 1993 to record, but soon afterwards, vocalist Bono pushed for the band to use the sessions to produce a full LP.[2] The Edge was initially hesitant, but saw the opportunity as a challenge to record an album in twelve weeks before returning to tour and prove the band had not become spoiled by the luxury of having ample recording time.[2] Additionally, Bono and band manager Paul McGuinness had discussed the possibility of releasing a "one-two punch" of records since the beginning of the Achtung Baby sessions.[2] The band agreed to proceed with the intention of recording an LP.[2] Brian Eno was brought on as producer, with Flood as his assisting partner;[2] longtime Eno collaborator Daniel Lanois was busy promoting his solo album.[3] Along with The Factory, the band also recorded in Dublin at Westland Studios and the new Windmill Lane Studios facilities, which opened after the original facilities on Windmill Lane had closed.[3]

Due to the time limit, the band were forced to write and then record songs in a more straight-forward fashion, as opposed to the band's approach of improvising material in the studio.[2] Songs originated and were inspired from a variety of places. "Zooropa" was the result of combining two separate pieces of music together, one of which the band had improvised during soundchecks to gigs on tour.[2] The verse melody to "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" and an instrumental backing track that became "Numb" were originally from the sessions to Achtung Baby.[2] "Babyface", "Dirty Day", "Lemon", and "The Wanderer" were written during the Zooropa sessions.[2][4] Although the band was writing and recording songs at a rapid pace, the album was not completed by the time the band had to go back on tour, and Flood and Eno had to begin work on other projects. Edge remembers everyone was telling the band, "Well, it's an EP. You did good but there's a lot more work needed to finish some of these songs."[2]

U2 was forced to return to the Zoo TV Tour, beginning their European leg in May 1993. However, for the first month of the tour, the band continually flew back to Dublin after their concerts to finish recording songs at night and during their off-days, before immediately returning to their tour destinations.[2] Bassist Adam Clayton called the process "about the craziest thing you could do to yourself", while drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. said of it, "It was mad, but it was mad good, as opposed to mad bad."[2] The album was eventually completed at the end of May.

There were 14 songs that were considered for inclusion on the album, but ultimately 10 were chosen. One piece that was left off the record was "In Cold Blood", which featured somber lyrics written by Bono and was previewed prior to the album's release.[5] The record was ultimately named Zooropa, although Squeaky was considered as an album title at one point.[5]

[edit] Composition

Zooropa was very much an "alternative rock" album in the climate of 1993. In North America, grunge was at its peak - meanwhile, U2 released an album lacking angst and guitar solos. In Europe, Britpop was beginning to conquer the charts, yet Zooropa owed more to the experimentation of David Bowie and Brian Eno than to the melodic pop of The Beatles and The Kinks.

As the album's title suggests, Zooropa has a distinctly European texture (in contrast to the distinctly American roots of their late eighties work), continuing the band's experimentation with electronica, techno, and other predominantly European forms of music. Heavy on samples and irony, it also ties the "sensory overload" themes of the Zoo TV Tour into the context of a post-Berlin Wall Europe. The lyrics touch on how technology unites as well as separates us.[citation needed] The title track, "Zooropa", for instance, contains ad slogans such as "Better by design", "Be All That You Can Be" and "Vorsprung durch Technik". The song was the result of combining two pieces of music, the first of which was conceived in the studio, and the second of which was discovered by The Edge while listening to soundchecks the band had done while on tour.[6] The lyrics were written by Bono, describing two characters in a brightly-lit city in a futuristic version of European society.[7]

"Babyface" is about a man practicing his obsessive love for a celebrity by manipulating her image on a TV recording.[5]

On the industrial rock-influenced "Numb", The Edge provides lead vocals with a monotonous list of "don'ts", overwhelmed by a noisy backdrop of samples of "arcade sounds"[8] and "fat lady vocals" by Bono.[8] One of the samples is of a Hitler Youth boy banging a bass drum in the 1936 propaganda film Triumph of the Will.[5] The Edge notes that the inspiration for this song came from "that sense that you were getting bombarded with so much that you actually were finding yourself shutting down and unable to respond because there was so much imagery and information being thrown at you".[6]

"Lemon", sung by Bono in a falsetto, has been described as a "futuristic German disco". The Edge plays waves of almost unrecognisably-processed guitar, while Bono sings about man's futile attempts to preserve time through technology. The song was inspired by a video sent to Bono by family friends, which featured Bono's late mother in a lemon-coloured dress.[9]

"Daddy's Gonna Pay For Your Crashed Car" was originally conceived as a blues song, but ended up, as Bono describes, as "industrial blues".[5] The lyrics were written about a heroin addict.[10]

The closing track, "The Wanderer", features country music legend Johnny Cash on lead vocals. His haggard voice sings over a wobbly synthesiser line, a bizarre juxtaposition in line with the album's central irony: that the band's most synthesized and postmodern album would be a condemnation of technology.[11] The song's narrator wanders through a soul-less world "in search of experience", ultimately finding meaning in the spiritual rather than the superficial.

[edit] Release

Zooropa was released on July 5, 1993, midway through the Zooropa leg of the Zoo TV Tour.

The names of three songs from the sessions — "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me", "Wake Up Dead Man", and "If You Wear That Velvet Dress" — appear superimposed on the album cover. "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" was used in the 1995 film Batman Forever and included on the film's soundtrack. "Wake Up Dead Man", and "If You Wear That Velvet Dress" were included on the 1997 Pop album.

[edit] Singles

The first single "Numb" was an unconventional choice for a first single, and was released exclusively on VHS as a "video single". The single very much reflects the avant-gardism and obsession with multimedia that marked both the album and the accompanying world tour. It was directed by Kevin Godley. Three more conventional singles were released from the album; "Lemon" received a limited release in North America, Australia, and Japan; "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" was released worldwide, and "Zooropa" was released as a promotional single in Mexico and the United States.

[edit] Reception

 Professional ratings
Source Rating
Allmusic 4/5 stars [12]
The Boston Globe (favourable)[13]
Entertainment Weekly (A)[14]
New York Times (favourable)[15]
Robert Christgau (B-)[16]
Rolling Stone 4/5 stars[17]
Sputnikmusic 4/5 stars[18]

Zooropa was a successful release, riding the wave of popularity started by Achtung Baby and the Zoo TV Tour. It won a Grammy Award for "Best Alternative Music Album" in the year of its release and spent two weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200, despite lacking a strong single. It has subsequently sold 9 million copies worldwide.[citation needed] The album also spent one week at #1 on the UK Albums Chart, and four weeks at #1 on the ARIA Albums Chart.[citation needed]

[edit] Zoo TV Tour

Main article: Zoo TV Tour

The band had begun the Zoo TV Tour in February 1992 in support of their previous album Achtung Baby. The tour was an elaborately-staged multimedia event, designed to instill a feeling of "sensory overload" in its audience.[19] The stage design featured vidi walls, 36 video monitors, numerous television cameras, 176 speakers, and 11 elaborately painted Trabant cars. Songs were complemented by a myriad of bewildering visual effects and intentionally ironic, self-mocking band performances.

During a six-month break between the third and fourth legs of the tour, the band recorded Zooropa. The album was released in July 1993, halfway through the fourth leg of the tour in Europe. Of the 157 shows the band played during the Zoo TV Tour, approximately 30 of them were after the release of Zooropa. Many of the album's songs found permanent places in the shows' setlists. "Lemon" and "Daddy's Gonna Pay for Your Crashed Car" were performed with Bono in his MacPhisto persona, during encores of the Zoomerang Leg of the tour. "Dirty Day" was also played on this leg after the acoustic set. "Numb" was performed with The Edge playing guitar and on lead vocals, with Larry Mullen Jr. performing backing vocals while drumming. "Zooropa" was played only three times and "Babyface" twice more[20] at the same shows on the Zooropa leg, but were cut out of the setlist after the band didn't feel they sounded right live. "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" was performed acoustically for the Zooropa and Zoomerang legs.

[edit] Track listing

All songs written and composed by U2, with lyrics by Bono (except where noted). 

# Title Mixed by Length
1. "Zooropa"   Flood 6:31
2. "Babyface"   Flood 4:01
3. "Numb" (The Edge) Robbie Adams 4:20
4. "Lemon"   Flood 6:58
5. "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)"   Flood 4:58
6. "Daddy's Gonna Pay for Your Crashed Car"   Flood 5:20
7. "Some Days Are Better Than Others"   Robbie Adams 4:17
8. "The First Time"   Flood 3:45
9. "Dirty Day" (Bono and The Edge) Robbie Adams 5:24
10. "The Wanderer" (featuring Johnny Cash) Flood, Adams 5:41
51:15

A "hidden track" after "The Wanderer" features a ringing alarm similar to that which disc jockeys hear when there is 10 seconds of dead air.

[edit] Chart positions and sales

Country Peak position Certification Sales
Australia 1
Austria 1 Gold[21] 15,000+
Brazil Gold 50,000+
Canada 1[22] 4x Platinum[23] 400,000+[23]
France Platinum[24] 300,000+
Germany Gold[25] 100,000+
United Kingdom Platinum[26] 300,000+
United States 1 2x Platinum 2,000,000+

[edit] Personnel

U2
  • Bono – lead vocals, additional guitar
  • Adam Clayton – bass guitar
  • The Edge – guitar, piano, synthesizers, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Numb", production
  • Larry Mullen, Jr. – drums, percussion, backing vocals on "Numb"
Additional personnel
  • Johnny Cash – lead vocal on "The Wanderer"
  • Brian Eno – production, synthesizers, piano, arcade sounds, backing vocals, loops, harmonium
  • Flood – production, loops
  • Des Broadbery – loops

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Based on the pronunciations of "zoo"[27] and "Europa".[28]

[edit] General

[edit] Sources

  1. ^ a b Decurtis, Anthony (1993-08-03). "Zooropa: U2: Review". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/119445/review/5942533/zooropa. Retrieved 2009-03-15. 
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m McCormick (2006), p. 247.
  3. ^ a b Graham, Bill (2004). U2: The Complete Guide to Their Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780711998865. http://books.google.com/books?id=wBmegw6vgMgC&pg=PA46&dq=zooropa&lr=&ei=_dT6Su2MIKLwNPi20PcOe. 
  4. ^ McCormick (2006), p. 249.
  5. ^ a b c d e Jackson, Joe (19 May 1993). "The Magical Mystery Tour". Hot Press. Archived from the original on 2009-07-26. http://74.125.47.132/search?q=cache:IZwkr_O1mnUJ:www.hotpress.com/archive/2613077.html. Retrieved 2009-08-01. 
  6. ^ a b McCormick, Neil (ed), (2006). U2 by U2. HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. p. 248.
  7. ^ Stokes, (2005). U2: Into the Heart – The Stories Behind Every Song (3rd ed.). New York: Thunder's Mouth Press. ISBN 1-56025-765-2. OCLC 61694066. p. 111.
  8. ^ a b "Zooropa" Liner Notes
  9. ^ "U2 MoL - Zooropa - Lemon". http://hem.bredband.net/steverud/U2MoL/Zooropa/lemon.html. Retrieved 2006-12-20. 
  10. ^ Browne, David (1993-07-09). "Future Rock". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,307144,00.html. Retrieved 2009-10-14. 
  11. ^ DeCurtis, Anthony (1993-08-03). "U2 - Review - Zooropa". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/119445/review/5942533/zooropa. Retrieved 2009-10-14. 
  12. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Zooropa: Overview". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:hh2gtq2zbu4o. Retrieved 2009-12-10. 
  13. ^ Sullivan, Jim (1993-07-04). "U2 again braves new worlds". The Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/ae/music/packages/U2Fleetcenter/album_review_zooropa/. Retrieved 2009-12-10. 
  14. ^ Browne, David (1993-07-09). "Zooropa: Music". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,307144,00.html. Retrieved 2009-12-10. 
  15. ^ Pareles, Jon (1993-07-04). "A Raucous U2 Moves Farther Out on a Limb". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1993/07/04/arts/recordings-view-a-raucous-u2-moves-farther-out-on-a-limb.html?scp=2. Retrieved 2009-12-10. 
  16. ^ "U2 - Consumer Guide Reviews". Robert Christgau. http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=u2. Retrieved 2009-10-13. 
  17. ^ DeCurtis, Anthony (1993-08-03). "Zooropa: U2: Review". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/119445/review/5942533/zooropa. Retrieved 2009-12-10. 
  18. ^ Cruz, John (2007-07-02). "U2 - Zooropa Review". Sputnikmusic. http://www.sputnikmusic.com/album.php?albumid=6282. Retrieved 2009-12-10. 
  19. ^ Hot Press, "Closer to the Edge (pt. 1)", 4 December 4, 2002. Edge says: "... we got the idea of taking images, taking TV as an idea, and putting screens on stage. That started us down that road ..."
  20. ^ Live performances of Babyface
  21. ^ IFPI Austria
  22. ^ "Search Results: Zooropa". RPM. 1993-07-24. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-110.01-e.php?PHPSESSID=s8avl4qqqlcn0uk7dtnn8aj1u5&q1=Zooropa. Retrieved 2009-11-25. 
  23. ^ 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. 
  24. ^ Disque En France
  25. ^ IFPI Germany
  26. ^ BPI
  27. ^ "Zoo". Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/zoo. Retrieved 2009-05-12. 
  28. ^ "Europa". Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Europa. Retrieved 2009-05-12. 
Preceded by
Back to Broadway by Barbra Streisand		 Billboard 200 number-one album
July 24 - August 6, 1993		 Succeeded by
Black Sunday by Cypress Hill
Preceded by
Emergency on Planet Earth by Jamiroquai		 UK number one album
July 17, 1993 – July 23, 1993		 Succeeded by
Promises and Lies by UB40
Preceded by
Remasters by Led Zeppelin		 Australian ARIA Albums Chart number-one album
July 18 - August 14, 1993		 Succeeded by
Promises and Lies by UB40
v • d • e
Zooropa track listing
"Zooropa"  • "Babyface"  • "Numb"  • "Lemon"  • "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)"  • "Daddy's Gonna Pay for Your Crashed Car"  • "Some Days Are Better Than Others"  • "The First Time"  • "Dirty Day"  • "The Wanderer"
v • d • e
U2
Bono • Adam Clayton • The Edge • Larry Mullen, Jr.
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