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  1. Hi all,

    I just finished (at least for now...) compiling a collection of bootlegs that I think are a good representation of each tour. I wanted to share the list both as suggestions for those who are just starting their own collection and for those with more knowledge to critique/point out any obvious missing shows. A few things about the list:

    -I am pretty picky about audio quality, so most of these are 5 star recordings. There are a few 4 and 4.5 star ones because of great setlists or a lack of 5 star recordings.
    -I limited myself to two shows per tour. I just wanted a few shows that represented that era of U2.
    -I don't like IEM recordings because of the metronome (click track) that plays. I find it really distracting. That did, however, eliminate some good recordings (Vertigo Tour in particular was very difficult to collect recordings of).

    Here we go...

    Pre-Boy
    1980.02.26 - Dublin - Great collection of old and unreleased songs. Interesting to see the band that early on.

    Boy
    1981.01.23 - Belfast
    1981.02.12 - The Hague (great radio recording!)

    October
    1981.12.13 - Lido Beach, NY (great version of With a Shout)
    1982.03.17 - New York, NY

    War
    1983.05.06 - Boston, MA - I chose this over Red Rocks because I have the Red Rocks DVD. Both are great, and I think the set lists are exactly the same
    1983.05.30 - Devore, CA - a shorter festival show

    Unforgettable Fire
    1984.10.23 - Nantes - Great soundboard, but not my favorite show of the tour. A must-have though because of the setlist (especially Indian Summer Sky!)
    1985.03.21 - Chicago - better performance than Nantes

    Joshua Tree
    1987.04.29 - Chicago - the famous "Rock's Hottest Ticket" bootleg. Great show with rare songs.
    1987.11.07 - Denver - Another great recording. I like this better than Chicago.

    Lovetown
    1989.12.26 - Dublin - IMO the best show of the Lovetown Tour, and one of my favorite of all time. The definitive version of One Tree Hill.
    1989.12.30 - Dublin - another great show at the Point Depot with a great setlist. Out of Control, 11 O'Clock Tick Tock, She's a Mystery to Me...

    Zoo TV
    1993.08.28 - Dublin - another of my favorite bootlegs. Great all around show
    1993.11.27 - Sydney - has a few more Zooropa tunes than Dublin. Decent show overall

    Popmart
    1997.04.25 - Las Vegas - the infamous opening show of Popmart. The show is a disaster performance-wise, but that makes it interesting. It also has a lot of Pop songs that were very short-lived (Do You Feel Loved, full performances of IGWSHA, SATS, IYWTVD)
    1998.02.11 - Santiago - better than Sarajevo, IMO. Fantastic setlist and very tight performance.

    Elevation
    2001.05.15 - Chicago - Good 1st leg Elevation that includes rarer songs like Discotheque and 11 O'Clock Tick Tock
    2001.10.25 - New York - Post 9/11 show that is incredible. Better audio than the 10.24 show, so I picked this one.

    Vertigo (this was the hardest one to do)
    2005.06.18 - London - good standard setlist that's a great representation of the Vertigo tour
    2005.09.21 - Chicago - Good 3rd leg show when they started to vary the setlist. Some great rare songs.
    2006.11.29 - Tokyo - I broke my two-show rule because this concert has so many rare songs and is just a great performance overall. I have the audience recording, but there's an IEM version that's better quality. I just can't stand the click track...

    360
    2009.07.27 - Dublin - one of the best shows of the tour that features a lot of NLOTH songs
    2010.09.15 - Munich - Mixed up set list that includes North Star and Mercy. Really good sounding bootleg.
    2011.06.24 - Glastonbury - again, I broke the two-show rule because this is such a historical show

    That about does it. I noticed that I have a lot of shows from Chicago... Maybe I should try to see them there next time around. Comments are welcome if you made it this far!
  2. Looks like a good list, based on the ones I'm familiar with...

    I have to recommend Stockholm 1992-06-11 for ZooTV - I think that it's better than either of the two (admittedly very excellent) post-Zooropa bootlegs you've selected, and offers a look at the tour pre-Zooropa. It's got a few more Achtung Baby songs and a few odds and ends (Stand By Me and Dancing Queen, most notably). Not sure which one of those two shows, Dublin or Sydney, I'd replace, though, as they're both very strong...

    I'm not familiar with the two Elevation shows (yet; I believe I've got them both, just need to listen!) but I would like to say the show in South Bend 2001-10-10 is one of the best U2 concerts I've ever heard.

    A few other shows I'd like to put forth for consideration for anyone looking to collect a 'Best of the Bootlegs':

    -London 1982-12-06 - From the War Pre-Tour, it offers a 'sneak peak' at the upcoming album. All the songs are played excellently, and this concert includes my favourite performances of many Boy and especially October songs. One of my all-time favourite concerts.

    -Dortmund, 1984-11-21 - The bootleg on U2start is only partial (or at least my download was) but it offers some very, very good performances of material covering the first four records.

    -Mexico City 1997-12-03 - Perhaps the definitive PopMart show, and with good reason. A high-quality boot with strong performances of the standard PopMart setlist. I do have to say I like the Santiago show better, however.

    -Honolulu 2006-12-09 - The last Vertigo show. It's a well-played and unusual setlist that really makes this show a treat.

    -Montreal 2011-07-09 - My favourite (so far) U2360 show. A wide range of material is played, and it's all done very, very well. Perfect sound quality, too.

    Just my take on The Best Of. Of course, I'm unfamiliar with several of the shows above; I'll have to check them out!
  3. This has been done a thousand times before
  4. Originally posted by TheFly33:Hi all,

    I just finished (at least for now...) compiling a collection of bootlegs that I think are a good representation of each tour. I wanted to share the list both as suggestions for those who are just starting their own collection and for those with more knowledge to critique/point out any obvious missing shows. A few things about the list:

    -I am pretty picky about audio quality, so most of these are 5 star recordings. There are a few 4 and 4.5 star ones because of great setlists or a lack of 5 star recordings.
    -I limited myself to two shows per tour. I just wanted a few shows that represented that era of U2.
    -I don't like IEM recordings because of the metronome (click track) that plays. I find it really distracting. That did, however, eliminate some good recordings (Vertigo Tour in particular was very difficult to collect recordings of).

    Here we go...

    Pre-Boy
    1980.02.26 - Dublin - Great collection of old and unreleased songs. Interesting to see the band that early on.

    Boy
    1981.01.23 - Belfast
    1981.02.12 - The Hague (great radio recording!)

    October
    1981.12.13 - Lido Beach, NY (great version of With a Shout)
    1982.03.17 - New York, NY

    War
    1983.05.06 - Boston, MA - I chose this over Red Rocks because I have the Red Rocks DVD. Both are great, and I think the set lists are exactly the same
    1983.05.30 - Devore, CA - a shorter festival show

    Unforgettable Fire
    1984.10.23 - Nantes - Great soundboard, but not my favorite show of the tour. A must-have though because of the setlist (especially Indian Summer Sky!)
    1985.03.21 - Chicago - better performance than Nantes

    Joshua Tree
    1987.04.29 - Chicago - the famous "Rock's Hottest Ticket" bootleg. Great show with rare songs.
    1987.11.07 - Denver - Another great recording. I like this better than Chicago.

    Lovetown
    1989.12.26 - Dublin - IMO the best show of the Lovetown Tour, and one of my favorite of all time. The definitive version of One Tree Hill.
    1989.12.30 - Dublin - another great show at the Point Depot with a great setlist. Out of Control, 11 O'Clock Tick Tock, She's a Mystery to Me...

    Zoo TV
    1993.08.28 - Dublin - another of my favorite bootlegs. Great all around show
    1993.11.27 - Sydney - has a few more Zooropa tunes than Dublin. Decent show overall

    Popmart
    1997.04.25 - Las Vegas - the infamous opening show of Popmart. The show is a disaster performance-wise, but that makes it interesting. It also has a lot of Pop songs that were very short-lived (Do You Feel Loved, full performances of IGWSHA, SATS, IYWTVD)
    1998.02.11 - Santiago - better than Sarajevo, IMO. Fantastic setlist and very tight performance.

    Elevation
    2001.05.15 - Chicago - Good 1st leg Elevation that includes rarer songs like Discotheque and 11 O'Clock Tick Tock
    2001.10.25 - New York - Post 9/11 show that is incredible. Better audio than the 10.24 show, so I picked this one.

    Vertigo (this was the hardest one to do)
    2005.06.18 - London - good standard setlist that's a great representation of the Vertigo tour
    2005.09.21 - Chicago - Good 3rd leg show when they started to vary the setlist. Some great rare songs.
    2006.11.29 - Tokyo - I broke my two-show rule because this concert has so many rare songs and is just a great performance overall. I have the audience recording, but there's an IEM version that's better quality. I just can't stand the click track...

    360
    2009.07.27 - Dublin - one of the best shows of the tour that features a lot of NLOTH songs
    2010.09.15 - Munich - Mixed up set list that includes North Star and Mercy. Really good sounding bootleg.
    2011.06.24 - Glastonbury - again, I broke the two-show rule because this is such a historical show

    That about does it. I noticed that I have a lot of shows from Chicago... Maybe I should try to see them there next time around. Comments are welcome if you made it this far!
    Thanks a lot for your reccommendations. Whether it's been done before or not, as a newbie to the world of U2 boots, I found your list very useful. Balance of great performance and audio quality is where to begin in exploring boots of any band. Checked out Dublin 2009, phenominal!
  5. Check this topic. Lots of good stuff there.
  6. What is IEM?
  7. In Ear Monitors are devices used by performers to hear a mix of microphones and/or instrument pickups that are on the stage. They are often custom fitted to the individuals ears and provide a high level of noise reduction from stage noise. An IEM recording is a recording of this wireless audio feed, there can be a difference between an IEM recording from Bono's feed and the recording from Adam's for instance.
  8. Ah..thanks.

    Anything good from the current tour yet? The few I've downloaded and listened to have not been the best sound in my opinion, often hollow and tinny. Never been a fan of audience recordings.
  9. The big problem I have with IEM is there's usually an audible click track (metronome) in the background the entire time. It helps the band stay in time with each other, but I find it really distracting. It also can emphasize certain instruments more than others. For example, if it's Edge's IEM, then his guitar and voice are going to be louder than everything else since that's what he's focusing on (his voice may even be louder than Bono's). It can be interesting to hear what a concert sounds like from the perspective of one of the band members, but in general I prefer a good soundboard or audience recording.
  10. Been listening to a few snippets of IEM shows...who's doing the counting and calling out of cues?

    Very annoying and distracting.
  11. It's annoying, but in the band's defense, no one else was supposed to listen to them.
  12. Originally posted by spfletty:Been listening to a few snippets of IEM shows...who's doing the counting and calling out of cues?

    Very annoying and distracting.
    Give it a try with Sharebear's IEM of 360 Anaheim. The sound quality is amazing, like an official recording, and the clicks and counts are barely there (although you can hear them in the background for some songs).