U2 Vinyl & CDs

Review: This is a white vinyl verison of U2's latest album which finds the iconic rock band re-recording some of their back catalogue songs. The whole record has been produced by The Edge and in all there are 40 tunes coming in companion to famous bespectacled front man Bono's memoir, Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story, from last year. The record took two years to record during the pandemic and after reviewing demos arrangements were tweaked and in some cases reinterpreted and often redone in a more acoustic setting.

Review: Has it really been 40 years since we saw Bono clad in a black sleeveless tee and brown waistcoat, mullet-topped and leading his band of equally early-80s looking musos to the rooftop of a Dublin building to perform one of their finest songs? Well, based on this limited edition release, the answer is clearly 'yes'.

Originally unveiled in 1971, 'Gloria' is a powerhouse single if ever there was one, and a track that marries melody, message, and the atmosphere U2 are best known for. It's a track that soars over those rooftops, The Edge's riffs acting as wings while Bono cries heartfelt rallying calls atop the lot. Unashamed, unabashed, and unapologetic (check the verse in Latin), now you get four different versions, three from the band in their natural habitat (i.e. live on stage), and the original.