Remastered, Reissued, Reimagined

23 Aug 201265

Since 2007 some of the band's seminal albums have been born again: remastered, reimagined, reissued. Now we want your reviews of those re-released classics.

October, for example, returned in 2008 with remastered audio and a bonus CD of live tracks and rarities along with a commentary from Edge.

1991's Achtung Baby came back just last year, this time with  a raft of unreleased material; video, remixes, b-sides and documentary footage along with a second album's worth of demo and early versions of the final 1991 tracklisting.



A quarter century after Kerrang first said of it 'This ain't mere genius, this is rock'n'roll…' , The Unforgettable Fire was remastered and rereleased in 2009 with a shedload of bonus content.

And twenty years after it's debut, The Joshua Tree came back remastered in 2007, with liner notes from Bill Flanagan, unseen photographs from Anton Corbijn and unheard material like Wave of Sorrow (Birdland) and Desert of Our Love.

We've now added a comment facility to each title which means you can add your own review to each re-release. What did it bring you that the original release didn't? Was there a hidden gem or unexpected surprise ? How does the reissued edition stand up to the passing of time - what memories does it all bring back?

Start listening. Start reviewing...add your thoughts in the comments window at the foot of each album page. We'll be highlighting some of your best album reviews in the coming months and sending you exclusive prizes.

Comments
65
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harryu2
25 Years of R&H (2013) + POP20 (2017)
I love them ALL; from 'BOY' to 'ACHTUNG BABY' ...most the new artwork, new songs, the 'KINDERGARTEN'-CD and the 'JOSHUA TREE Live in Paris'-DVD! But I was really disappointed about the 'UNFORGETTABLE FIRE' and 'ZOO TV Live from Sidney'-DVD's! Nothing NEW...and there is SO much stuff! Hope they're doing it better with the 'RATTLE & HUM' and 'POP'-Editions! By the way...can't wait for there next masterpiece (hopefully 20 new Songs)... and an Indoor Tour with a complete new setlist! See you at there shows in 2014???
PCIRELAND
25 Years of RATTLE AND HUM
Love the chance to hear the extra stuff with the remastered issues but just persuming as it turns 25, RnH is surley going to get the same treatment.................cant wait. Love the version of One Tree Hill that sits on the end of The best of 1980-1990 video set.....from a previously unreleased cut of Rattle and Hum, hope there is more of the same....Brilliant. Would imagine that Pop n Zooropa have some great alternative versions of some of their tunes also.......Cant Wait.
MartinTexas
Live Unreleased DVD Concerts!!!
One of the most best disc of all reissues is DVD from TJT Super Deluxe Box - with nearly full unreleased concert!! :D No more Sydney '93, Mexico '98 or any other of released concerts on DVD. I like to see some new material! TUF has great double CD but poor DVD material, witout any concert from that era.... like Dortmund 1984. PS Don't forget to remaster Rattle And Hum, Zooropa (solely) and maybe Passengers (together with Pop?).
paoladegliesposti
Unforgettable Fire album, to me.
Unforgettable Fire' Album, this is the band and their fourth album. ' Sleep sleep tonight and may your dreams be realised (MLK),it is shadow and light, 'Coca-cola, football radio, radio, radio, radio, radio, radio.' (Promenade) offset in evidence. Sweet guitar sound, thougtful rithme of bass guitar, drums in prompt research. ' Pride'! ,there is a strong go up and echoes of fightings, and drums underlines this with a tough beat,' One man comes in the name of love' and rebellion bursts ''Throw your life away Such a nice day Let it go( Wire). ' If I could, yes I would' ( Bad), tones are softly lowered, sometimes, nuances are enriched and the way is found back ' I am wide awake ( Bad) ,'Sky, it's a blue sky ( Indian Summer Sky). 'And still we run, we run and don't look back' ( a sort of homecoming). In this album with a foot forward there are specific enviroments with special carpets of sounds just like in ' Elvis Presley and America', The Unforgettable Fire' and 4th of July.'Stay this time, stay tonight in a lie. Ever after is a long time.' ( The Unforgettable Fire). Also in this remastered album there are songs not previously released , ' Disappearing act' ,with a singular construction of the song, voice and guitar that seems so distant, amazing wise lyrics and ' Yoshino Blossom'. A 21th century song.
PauloSilva
this is why u2 its special
we wait for ratlle and hum remaster,,zooropa,,pop and the others...love you boys,,,from portugal
paoladegliesposti
Achtung baby album , to me.
Achtung baby album, the album that marks the re entry of U2 after a pause of years. And it really is another level. ' Rattle and hum ' is back and the dream goes on, and it sounds high,' Even better than the real thing', the musical journey still is and it gains in enrichment as regards possibilities . The album starts with ' Zoo station' and the first lines of the lyrics are more than explicative, they are steps :' I'm ready Ready for the laughing gas I'm ready Ready for what's next Ready to duck Ready to dive Ready to say I'm glad to be alive' The World with the W in capital letter is coming nearer ,part and counterpart ' Until the end of the world'. Everybody having a good time except you. You were talking about the end of the world.' Life can be advertised, piece by piece,as we can admire in the pictoresque cover , but through ' Mysterious ways ', rithme and story it is 'One 'in its entity. It is to say that inner world calls for clarity, new light ' Ultraviolet'. There is a boquet of songs ,' The fly' , ' Who' gonna ride your wild horses', ' So cruel' , ' Trying to throw your arms around the world', ' Acrobat' and ' Love is blindness' that vividly communicates this phase. The sound of the album is precisely measured in the rithme and we can perceive the hard malleability of the metal in the industries. In the new release songs not previously included are now ready to be appreciated in its beauty and arrangements :' Where did all go wrong' , atmosphere of the sixties, ' Blow your house down' ,atmosphere more seventies , ' Lady with the spinning head' , more eighties. Acthung baby is a suffered album, to me, a new level has been reached , the world has been growing and we can do nothing but being part of it. ' From the sky down' is a loyal view of all this.
fly39
remastered
i don't want to say that the remasterd versions of the old things are not good.but when you are born and grown up with vynils it's difficult to accept these kind of things.i've travelling around the world ( not the whole ) searching for 45 or 12",rare vynils,different versions,picture discs,etc...and when you find all the bisdes in just a cd it's like...entering your intimacy.when you spend your money on rare 45...in England or in Australia it's like reaching a...destination.you go back home and you play it,then you discover that the b side is a new song...you play it...and it sounds magic,fresh.and you think.it's only me that got this song... anyway.i bought every remasterd cd.i like em.but the treasure that every record hides,is immense.thanks and bye.Fly39
GMU2
U2 treasure
All the remastered/reissued CD/DVD's are brilliant. To have not only the albums but also the B-sides is U2 treasure. The Joshua Tree box set is the best with having the Paris 87 show on DVD. Bring on Rattle and Hum with a special DVD set that includes a Lovetown Tour show!
LOVE ALL
All remasters are awesome! I like the most B-sides of course and some extra materials like concert in Paris from The Joshua Tour or From the Sky Down.. as a fan I'm really happy when I can discover and see something new. All remasters are great I want to see for example new look of POP album but I would rather you go to the studio and make some new, fantastic (as always) music. Can't wait for the next album, I hope see you soon :)
utwothefly
UF boxset
I think the 2 'new' songs from the unforgettable fire deluxe box set were great I still listen to them now. One thing about that boxset it should have had the dortmund 1984 concert cleaned up and put on as an audio and a dvd, better than red rocks imo, got some great performances of some of my favourite songs. AB uber boxset was way to over priced unfortunately but the b-sides etc.. are quality. The 3 first re-issues were great but maybe there was a lot of stuff left off? Nice box to go with though. Like to see POP get reissued next with some nice re workings of songs, and a dvd but hopefully not one that has been released already, I know its a reissue but another concert the same isn't trying.
mdalton
Auctung Baby
I completely agree with Consigliererocker, AB has not been removed from my car cd player since it went in when i got the remastered version. Without a doubt my favourite album of all time and the only album I would listen to from start to finish over and over! The songs are inspirational and mean alot, From the Sky Down was an amazing piece of work that nicely compliments 20yrs of Auctung Baby.
Luciano_Claro
All I Want is Achtung Baaaaaaby!!
Friends, All the reissues are great. Started Great With The first 4 Records, Become Even Better With Joshua Tree and Unforgettable Fire Boxes, and them reached the sky with Achtung Baby Boxes!! U2 Fans, please listen carefully to Love Is Blindness Kindergarten version. Jesus it is the most beautiful guitar work the band has ever done. Edge? Thank you for that!! Even Better Than The Real Thing!!! Now, let`s Wait for POP and RATTLE AND HUM!! Don`t deny these records!!! They Are great!!
cjkos
Superb remasters
Although Achtung Baby (was not remastered, it) is one of my favorite re-releases. I think the Joshua tree box was the greatest remastered. And as mentioned before, where is the 'Rattle and Hum' remaster?
jazzyjoesig
jazzyjoesig
I enjoy listening to the albums more now with greater clarity and volume. With that said, I also appreciate the care taken when remastering Joshua Tree to retain the mystic and spiritual feeling of the album. Wave of Sorrow fits right in. The extra materials (i.e. Postcards, fold out posters, big boxes) are great for a collector but I prefer rare songs or concert material.
PatrickSHenry
Fear of A Woman - She moves...
First of all, U22 kicks ass! But I'd have to say the Kindergarten version of Achtung Baby is it for me. This album will always remind me of going off to film school at the Rhode Island School of Design. U2's discovery of the medium with Zoo TV coincides with my own discovery of the medium, a very exciting time in my life! In my degree project at RISD, one of the main characters wants to build a Monument to Television on The Mall in Washington DC between the Washington Monument and the the U.S. State Capitol Building, which was very much inspired by Zoo TV, a concert I saw 6 times on that tour. It's really amazing to hear these works-in-progress with The Kindergarten version. For U2, this time period represents drastic change and to hear early versions of these songs in the midst of this change is a special gift that will be cherished forever, and extremely welcomed. I would love to hear early demos of all of their albums! The rawness of these songs brings pure joy to me, from the added lines in the chorus of "Zoo Station" to the crisp acoustic guitar in 'One" to the stellar arrangement of "Whose Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses" to "So Cruel' - 'I can't have ya, cause you're not there' to "Mysterious Ways" - 'Fear of A Woman' to the down and dirty "Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World". For me, hands down, U2's best re-issue!!! Thank you!!!
pepebasabeleoz1
About the re editions
I have the Joshua Tree 20th box, and I think is just great, the idea of including the paris show was great, but with the acthung baby box, i disagreed, at least in part, zootv sydney again? nothing about from the sky down backstage or rehearsals? thumbs up with the kindergarten, but not enough for me. It was the 90´s, you don´t have more stuff in video or audio? sad. Waiting more for the future (maybe Pop 15th)
follow
Boy
Have Boy reissue on vinyl. Just cannot beat it!
choberka
Unforgettaable Fire
I agree with jsvJAVI... As many times I've seen U2 in concert..never have heard "Loves Come Tumbling"..or much from that album live...
magnificat
AB uber deluxe & bootleg series
the bsides cds & kindergarten are very important documents of that era. also the tv show of zootv is very beatiful: i remember then when i watched it on tv. but i think is useless the sidney video, maybe could have been better include the tribute to achtung baby . i'd like not omit rattle & hum and passengers in the series. and i'm waiting for pop: one of my favourite u2 album with all the bsides. and most of all i still waiting for a bootleg series as robert fripp is doing with king crimson. there are so many documents to leave to everybody. for example concerts of zoo tv tour with all songs of AB. i remember in milan the concert with so cruel like a bridge bettween bad and bullet the blue sky. or concerts of unforgettable fire tour, or the concerts at the new year's day eve of 1990 and so on... greetings from italy
jsvJAVI
Remasterd, reissued and reimagined
I think the most beautiful remastered disc is The Unforgettable Fire,where I heard one of the most beautiful song I had forgotten called Love comes tumbling...and Yoshino blossom. thanks for give me a wonderful music life.
nicoverhelle
Pop
It's maybe time to give Pop the makeover that it deserves! With the Sarajevo-concert! Bought all of them, AB Deluxe being my fabourite!
septiembrepro
Rattle and Hum!!!
Hope you can release the Rattle and Hum remastered (with b sides and the tracks from Excerpts from R&H)... please, please please!!
U2Gator92
This is a box we stole from the Beatles
Where the hell is the Rattle and Hum box set? Let's make that happen boys. After almost 25 years it's not as bad as the original reviews. In fact it's damn good. Actually it's crucial. Glorify the past...
johno11
ZOOROPA
I wanna hear Zooropa Album given the remix treatment. As I think those songs would sound great given a club remix.
Bretho
Missing Pieces?
Rattle & Hum please. Perhaps a 2 Disc set with songs that did not make the CD but were in the Movie...plus there has to be a few songs that missed the cut of the movie and CD... Cmon lads!
haemoglobin269
Rattle&Hum?
What about this one? It would be great to be remastered + some additional outtakes.
Consigliererocker
Remasterd, reissued and reimagined
The best reboot that I believe in is 1991's Achtung Baby. The remixes and b-sides of this album could have ultimatey been an entirely other album. From the Sky Down was a honor to watch and the remastering that was put forth on this album is uncanny. I love every song on this album. Each song has a special story in my life and I still listen to the entire album in its entirety. The only album that I listen fully to this day is Achtung Baby.
NanyandGonzo
B-sides!
Love the remasters and deluxes editions. I love the one from The Unforgettable Fire, I guess it sounds so great, not from this time or before but from always. The Three Sunshines is such a great, fantastic song which I think should be taken into account in a concert. Love the one from October and obviously for someone who loves the War Album, the b-side one is incredible listening to many New Year's Day's versions. Wow!!!
nickvicktash
Kindergarten!
Disc 6 on the 'uber' collection sounds so raw, 'throw your arms' has Bono whooping and laughing, it's simply amazing, THE best re-issue of them all and yes i do have all the others!
kevfly82
I can now hear Everything on the JT Rema
The Joshua Tree Remaster was essential. It revealed the artistry, depth and beauty of every song & each of the band members contributions. Perhaps the most improved track on the remastered album is 'Exit'. I love being able to clearly hear the haunting opening sequence without readjusting the volume. Also giving us a concert never officially released with the Paris July 4th show was amazing! Please package more unreleased shows like that instead of the shows we already own like ZooTV Sydney. For Pop remaster, Popmart shows from either Santiago, Tel Aviv or Leeds instead of another Mexico re-release. Keep the remasters coming with more newer Concert footage, a proper Zooropa release with B-sides, Pop & Rattle & Hum! Kevin, Chicago
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