U2 have shared a new song ‘Luckiest Man In The World’, that was previously recorded in 2004. Check it out below.
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The track comes as part of the 20th-anniversary celebrations for the band’s 2004 LP ‘How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb’. A re-release is out today and available here.
So far, Bono and co. have shared three previously unheard songs: ‘Happiness’, ‘Country Mile’ and ‘Picture Of You (X + W)’, to feature on the shadow album ‘How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb’ – which features new, unreleased songs dug up from the archive of the album’s original sessions.
Now, they’ve released another – the euphoric ‘Luckiest Man In The World’. Above a classic U2 guitar riff, Bono sings: “Love puts the blue back in my eye / The sand inside the pearl / You were the luckiest man in the world.” Check it out below.
‘How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb’, will be exclusively available in physical format for Record Store Day Black Friday as a limited edition black and red marble 1LP vinyl, and as a standalone 10 track digital release on November 29.
Alongside the track’s release, in celebration of the album’s 20th anniversary, and in anticipation of ‘How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb’s release, U2 are livestreaming a fan-favourite concert that took place in Chicago’s United Center in May 2005 as part of their ‘Vertigo’ tour. The film will premiere at 5pm GMT, and you can watch it here.
Per a press release, The Edge said of ‘How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb’: “The sessions for ‘How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb’ were such a creative period for the band, we were exploring so many song ideas in the studio. We were inspired to revisit our early music influences, and it was a time of deep personal introspection for Bono who was attempting to process – dismantle – the death of his father.
“For this anniversary edition I went into my personal archive to see if there were any unreleased gems and I hit the jackpot. We chose 10 that really spoke to us. Although at the time we left these songs to one side, with the benefit of hindsight we recognise that our initial instincts about them being contenders for the album were right, we were onto something.
“What you’re getting on this shadow album is that raw energy of discovery, the visceral impact of the music, a sonic narrative, a moment in time, the exploration and interaction of four musicians playing together in a room… this is the pure U2 drop.”
In other news, The Edge recently gave an update on the upcoming U2 album, saying that it will not be “a straight-up rock thing”.
“I guess we’re at that great honeymoon period of a lot of experimentation, and looking at all kinds of possible themes musically,” he explained in an interview with Rolling Stone. “I think the guitar will be a big part of the next record, but I don’t think it’s going to be a heavy rock album. I think it’s going to be a very different kind of use of the guitar, not a straight-up rock thing.”
He continued that he believes in that sense, it will be in keeping with the band’s typical process. “We’ve always tried to avoid using the instrument in a way that’s too mainstream and kind of normal,” he said. “We’ve always tried to find ways to use the guitar that has never been heard before, and it seems that that’s an important part of what gets us excited.”
