u2.com streaming unreleased or rare songs

[morgan1098]

Let me add my thanks as well.  It's nice to get something totally out of left field like this!  The string arrangement makes this much more interesting and different than just a typical "acoustic version."

I'd be curious to learn how this all came about.  The edit sounds like it segues from the album version, and as someone else has mentioned, the "you'll never walk alone" line may or may not be a studio recording rather than a live snippet.

[Brad]

Now regarding the 24-bit quality, I, too, noticed this, but I wonder if it actually is 24-bit quality or if it was just up-sampled.  Can someone who knows what they're doing check the waveform or do some spectral analysis or whatever it is you need to do to verify this?

I did some research into this, and it's not as simple as running a spectral analysis.

The simplest algorithm for upconverting 16-bit to 24-bit is to pad the 8 least significant bits with zeroes. The FLAC command line encoder is able to scan FLAC files for these padded or "wasted" bits. More detail on that here.

I scanned the "full version" using this method and FLAC returned 0 wasted bits, so this appears to be a true 24-bit file.

The problem is, if any noise shaping or other digital signal processing was applied to an unconverted file after the fact, the least significant bits would be non-zero, and would mask the evidence of the upconversion.

I don't see any reason for duplicitousness in this case since they are giving the files away for free, so I would assume these are true 24-bit FLACs.

[George]

Thanks for checking that out, Brad!

My concern wasn't that someone was being deceitful.  Rather, I thought that maybe it recorded in 16-bit and then someone simply chose "Save as" and selected 24-bit.  As you point out, though, that would just lead to having padded zeros.

I agree, there's no reason do doubt.

Am I right that this is the highest digital quality U2 release to date?  (The previous, I believe, was Achtung Baby on hdtracks.com in 44100 Hz / 24-bit.)

[Brad]

Am I right that this is the highest digital quality U2 release to date?  (The previous, I believe, was Achtung Baby on hdtracks.com in 44100 Hz / 24-bit.)

I can't think of any other compilations with U2 content that have been released in hi-rez, so I think that's correct.

[morgan1098]

Releases like this are strange.  Apparently this was released in mid-2011, and yet it has gone completely unacknowledged--certainly not acknowledged by U2 or the record company in any official capacity--until George stumbled across it a few days ago.  It's strange that it has been so under-the-radar, especially since it's a quality remix and a unique take on the song.

I feel the same way about "Magnificent (RAC Mix)."  It's as good or better than any of the remixes on the official Magnificent single, and yet as far as I know it hasn't been acknowledged anywhere as an "official" release.

[George]

I feel the same way about "Magnificent (RAC Mix)."  It's as good or better than any of the remixes on the official Magnificent single, and yet as far as I know it hasn't been acknowledged anywhere as an "official" release.

Indeed it is good.

There's a similar lack of acknowledgement for six of remixes of Magnificent that were, as far as I am aware, only available from masterbeat.com or eventvibe.com.

edit: I just went to check masterbeat.com.  Are they no longer selling music?

[Brad]

Masterbeat killed off their MP3 store awhile back. I still get emails from them inviting me to attend raves and such.

[Brad]

I haven't confirmed this myself, but this Burma Soldier version of Walk On is apparently a live acoustic performance (Saitama Super Arena, Tokyo, 29th November 2006) with (most of) the crowd noise edited out and the strings added in.

[George]

Including the "you will never walk alone" part?  I thought that was only done on the most recent tour.

[Aaron]

I've had a recording of that on my drive for a long time now and never put two and two together.  It's the same performance, right down to the ending with the "You will never walk alone".  The version I have sounds like it's from a soundboard, very little to no sound of the crowd in the mix.  The only thing missing is the orcherstral bits...the recording claimed to be from an IEM device, and was actually a recording of the 12-04 show in Saitama.  The acoustic version of "Walk On" is an extra from the other night...

[slaneman]

Thanks for posting where that came from. I just had to dig out my recordings and check it out myself though I would not have remembered they did this in 2006. Ha.

Yep, definitely Saitama 11-29 and quite an interesting mix job. As far as what was posted on the Burma Soldier website, they must have been using a different meaning for 'new' in 'new acoustic version'. 

They edited out Bono's dedication at the beginning and Edge running thru the changes a couple times waiting for Bono...and the audience sounds sneak in here and there during the song. But from what I hear (IEM matrix and audience recordings) it's otherwise unedited. Edge's singing was also the same. And 'all that you can and cannot feel" 

Anyways, it's a very good performance.

[morgan1098]

Interesting history on this version.  So I guess it belongs in the same category as the Brothers in Rhythm remixes of "Staring at the Sun," which added studio elements to the live version from the PopHeart EP.

[Brad]

Yep, and the Jacknife Lee remix of Ave Maria.

[George]

To add:
song: Ordinary Love
file: U2_Ordinary_Love.zip
release date: 2013-11-30
format: MP3 320Kbps, 44100 Hz
duration: 3:39
from: http://www.u2.com/service/profile
note: U2.com exclusive to active subscribers

[Aaron]

http://www.u2.com/news/title/the-crystal-ballroom-12-mix-now-streaming
The Crystal Ballroom (12" Mix) - remix by Tchad Blake
256kbps mp3 file.
07:27 in length.