Pete The Chop

I have noticed something very interesting over the past few years. The “collectibles” market for U2 memorabilia has really changed. Things like magazines, CD Singles, “limited edition” packaging, calendars and concert tourbooks really have not retained any investment value for collectors. Perhaps the landscape has changed because of the number of rare finds has declined a bit, and maybe it’s because the market is now being flooded by the record label. There are still a few items out there that are truly rare…like a Best Of 1990-2000 Weather Station (which I’ve found on eBay only twice), and the purple vinyl for “All I Want Is You” where there is less than 100 or so out there.

Last night while I was shopping at my local Newbury Comics independent record store, I found in the “used” section a mint condition “Collectors Edition” How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb copy with the hard cover book for $6.99. This was the same item I purchased when the album was first released for $49.99. On eBay, Amazon, and some other shopping sites, you can find this item for anywhere between $2.85 and $51.99 depending on the seller and the condition.

Bottom line - in this economy where every penny counts, I’m now considering waiting a year or two (or more) for the limited edition No Line On The Horizon until I can find it for a fraction of what the going rate is. I’ll probably download the CD off of iTunes when it becomes available and then wait for the used copies to start showing up to have the physical copy. If a record store is going to deeply discount a “collectors” version of something, then my investment just will not be worth anything…much like anything else in this economy it seems at the moment.

Oh yeah - the record store also had used box sets for The Joshua Tree and the various reissues from earlier this year. If I can just control my inner-fan who wants to buy it when it first comes out, think of of the savings! I might be able to afford concert tickets after all!

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Attention U2 Shoppers…

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Do you remember the poll we started one month ago? We’ve got the result! 200 readers told us their opinion. Is the crisis affecting u2 fans? It seems so. 42% of our readers can’t spend more than 80€ 26% will not spend more than 120 € Despite the crisis a good 16% will save enough money to see [...]

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Q Magazine is out in the english shops and now we can read more info about the meaning of U2’s new songs and how they have been developed. That’s the tracklist: Stand Up/Magnificent/Get on your boots/Moment of Surrender/Unknown caller/No Line on the Horizon/Crazy Tonight/Every Breaking Wave/Breathe/Winter/Cedars of Lebanon. The following pictures are taken from Q website [...]

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VOTW: U2’s new song, Greg Lake’s “I Believe In Father Christmas.”

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VOTW: I Believe In Father Christmas

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U2’s Spiderman musical could open within a year, guitarist The Edge has revealed. He and Bono have been writing the music and lyrics for the project which is being made with Tony-winning director Julie Taymor. Speaking for the first time about the project, The Edge said a number of the songs had already been written and the [...]

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Niamh Horan, Irish Independent

Bono may have upstaged everyone at the opening of the Leopardstown Racing Festival, but not even the U2 frontman could halt the decline in betting turnover at the famous Christmas meeting.

Fresh from Christmas dinner in Dalkey and his victory over An Taisce, who tried to stop his rooftop extension, Bono was among the first to arrive at the Dublin race meeting.

He was there enjoying a well-earned break after putting the finishing touches to U2's latest album.

"Sure, you're always nervous, but we've gone at it as if it was our first and the critics who have gotten a chance to listen to it already have all said it's the best yet" Bono told me, referring to the album No Line on the Horizon. "We're going after the younger audience this time too," he revealed.

So could he sum up the album in three words for the fans who have yet to get the pleasure? "It's very long," he said with a laugh.

"My favourite song is a song called 'Moment of Surrender' and the first track is 150 BPM, the fastest song we've ever recorded," he said, beaming with a glint in his eye behind his trademark blue glasses.

Before he left he gave me a gentleman's kiss on the back of my hand.

Over at the bar, ordering hot whiskies, was millionaire property developer Johnny Ronan, who said he had received "about 10 copies" of The Builders as a present this Christmas but hasn't got around to reading the book -- in which he features -- just yet.

Outside in the parade ring, businessman and gambler JP McManus received his prize after his horse pipped Ryanair's Michael O'Leary's nag at the post.

When I enquired how it felt to beat the Ryanair boss by a hair's breadth, he gave me a smile and a very politically correct comment. "It's great to win any race."

O'Leary himself wasn't at the races. He was busy planning his own photo finish against Aer Lingus.

Still in the Leopardstown winners' enclosure, former Taoiseach Albert Reynolds stood joshing with RTE's Colm Murray.

"You taught me everything I know," said the sports commentator.

"You taught a lot of people everything they know. Sure look at Brian Cowen, he wouldn't be where he is today without you, would he?" Another politically correct smile spread over another flushed face.

Also enjoying the day's action was Dublin businessman Charlie Chawke, who said, rather optimistically, that "Sunderland is going to win the league," as he headed off with his son.

But while everybody was in good spirits, the betting ring was feeling the pinch.

The Tote reported a drop of approximately 20 percent in turnover at the traditional holiday race meetings in Leopardstown and Limerick.

This year, race organisers made the decision to do away with the reserved enclosure area for "equality purposes," according to Horse Racing Ireland's Michael O'Rourke.

And despite all the talk of a downturn, it seems to have paid off, with attendance hitting almost 17,000 -- slightly down on last year.

© Independent, 2008.

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You may recall this post from the start of the month — Perfect Gift for U2 Fans — where I showed a photo of five (5) copies of U2 - a Diary on the shelf at my local Barnes & Noble bookstore.

A fear came over me right around Christmas … a fear that no one in my hometown had bought a copy of the book! I was thinking to myself, What if I go into B&N after Christmas and all five copies are still there?

The horror! The shame! The embarrassment!

Well, talk about relief: I walked into the store yesterday and, holding my breath the whole time, ventured into the music books section. Great news: There were only three copies left!

Whew! You have no idea what a relief that was.

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Bono may have upstaged everyone at the opening of the Leopardstown Racing Festival, but not even the U2 frontman could halt the decline in betting turnover at the famous Christmas meeting.

Fresh from Christmas dinner in Dalkey and his victory over An Taisce, who tried to stop his rooftop extension, Bono was among the first to arrive at the Dublin race meeting.

He was there enjoying a well-earned break after putting the finishing touches to U2’s latest album.

“Sure, you’re always nervous, but we’ve gone at it as if it was our first and the critics who have gotten a chance to listen to it already have all said it’s the best yet” Bono told me, referring to the album No Line On The Horizon. ” We’re going after the younger audience this time too,” he revealed.

So could he sum up the album in three words for the fans who have yet to get the pleasure? “It’s very long,” he said with a laugh.

“My favourite song is a song called Moment of Surrender, and the first track is 150 BPM, the fastest song we’ve ever recorded,” he said, beaming with a glint in his eye behind his trademark blue glasses.

Before he left he gave me a gentleman’s kiss on the back of my hand.

- By NIAMH HORAN - Independent.ie

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Is Bono nervous about the new U2 album? You bet

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 Bono is mentioned very briefly on p.19 of the current issue of Reader’s Digest. Although there’s a picture of him, the article is mostly about the origins of the World Economic Forum in Davos, of which Bono has been an attendee for the last few years. The piece contains some very interesting things about the event which make it worth a glance.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

A Random Titbit…

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When you receive six Latin Grammy awards including Album of The Year and your record sells 112,000 copies since January, most people would have trouble finding the bright spot in a very bright year.

For Colombian singer-songwriter Juanes however, the highlight of the year is clear and it came in June when he had the chance to meet the person who inspired him into music in the first place: Bono.

Talking with reporters and the local media before finishing the year with a four night concert stand in Bogota, Juanes spoke of the moment he met his idol in Japan.

“It was an experience that as a Musician, can’t be explained. His music and what they stand for is something that touches very deeply into my guts. Having talked with Bono is one of the biggest experiences that music has given me, and if it wasn’t for him I wouldn’t be here. Believe it.”

The two met in Yokohama, Japan to reach out and support the fight against extreme poverty in a peaceful protest to coincide with the G8 Summit.

Juanes also added:

“Bono is very knowledgeable about Colombia and he was very interested and asked a lot of questions about its social and economic progress. He also said he would very much like to play here”.

HERE is a Reuters video of the meeting between the two. (I apologize, only found video in Spanish)

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

The Highlight Of His Year

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Wow, who knew eyeliner would be the hottest trend among rock stars in 2008?

From Brandon Flowers to David Cook, and a few others, eyeliner use among lead singers is once again on the rise.

Sure, it was hip among the Virgin Prunes and during most of Gavin Friday’s career, but now that Bono’s unleashed his need to don the eyeliner, is it now something to rebel *against* doing? Is it hip to see someone like Bono (at age 48) wearing it? After all, Bono’s A Clockwork Orange days were almost 20 years ago on the London stage…and Alex DeLarge’s use of eyeliner was a part of his trademark look.

After watching the video clip on Q magazine microsite, Adam explains that Bono’s once again getting into character and “experiments with a few different things to bring it alive again.” Does this mean that we’ll see a new character joining the ranks of The Fly, MacPhisto, The Mirrorball Man, and Fidel Bono (from PopMart during “Miami”)? I suppose we’ll have to wait and see as their promotional campaign unfolds and the new music becomes available.

That said, the eyeliner is a cheaper alternative to the $250+ shades for fans who want to join Bono’s look. They say the eyes are the window to the soul, and if Bono wants to bring your attention to his eyes, that must mean he wants to let you in as the shades are stripped away. Or, it could be his way of separating his rockstar image from his world leader image. Whatever it is (and I’m sure this question may be brought up by some magazine interviewer at some stage), it is something that is certainly causing a stir among fans not used to seeing yer man Bono wearing eye makeup while not in drag.

By the way…speaking of Brandon Flowers…here’s a great photo sans eyeliner of Bono with Brandon and Johnny Borrell that I hadn’t seen before…anyone know what magazine this came from?

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Easy, Breezy, Beautiful: Cover Boy

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Irish rockers U2 have announced plans to release five different versions of their latest album NO LINE ON THE HORIZON.

According to reports, in addition to CD and vinyl copies, three limited edition volumes will be launched, with one accompanied by a 60-page magazine-style book and a downloadable version of a new ANTON CORBIJN film.

A digi-pack edition will come complete with a 36-page booklet, a fold-out poster and the Corbijn film which contains music by U2.

The final version of the album is a box set featuring a 60-page hardback book, a second poster and a DVD version of the film.

NO LINE ON THE HORIZON is expected to be released in March 2009, it is the groups 12th studio album.

Meanwhile, U2’s lead singer BONO hit the headlines this week when it was reported he invested £100 million in Palm smartphones.

The cash came from the private equity company Elevation Partners which the musician co-founded.

- ContactMusic

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U2 TO RELEASE FIVE VERSIONS OF ALBUM

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You might have caught the news a few days ago where Elevation Partners (where Bono is a board member) poured another $100m into Palm in the hopes that the company will stay stable and proceed with releasing their latest smartphone technology. Palm’s upcoming smartphone will rival Apple’s iPhone and provide competition on the market.

An alert @U2 reader spotted this story from a few years ago where Apple is buying U2. (note: it’s a parody blog…but pretty darn funny to say the least).

Thanks Moshe for the humor today! That blog is still funny to read two years later, although it’s sort of like the ghost of Christmas Past, Present *and* Future as the market and music industry continues to change.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Post-Holiday Investing

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U2 frontman BONO’s investment firm will give another $100 million (GBP67.6 million) to rescue smart telephone maker Palm Inc. The Irish rocker’s Elevation Partners company announced on Monday (22Dec08) it would make the investment to save the debt-riddled firm, the maker of Treo and Centro smart phones, as it prepares to introduce new products next month [...]

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U2’s first record since 2004’s ‘How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb’ is due on March 2 2009. The album, titled ‘No Line On The Horizon’, will be released through CD and vinyl issue as well as three limited editions, report Billboard. The digi-pack version includes the full album along with a 36-page booklet, a fold-out poster [...]

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