Artist: U2 Album: October (2-CD) {2008 Remaster, Deluxe Edition} Release Date (U.S.): July 22nd, 2008 Original Album Release Year: 1981 Label: Universal-Island Records Limited / Interscope Records Info: Following the 2007 remastered release of The Joshua Tree, Edge has overseen a similar remastering of Boy (1980), October (1981) and War (1983), all of which have been remastered from the original audio tapes. Each album has been released in three different formats: 1. Standard Format: A single CD with remastered audio and restored packaging. Includes a 16 page booklet featuring previously unseen photos, full lyrics and new liner notes by Neil McCormick. The 11-tracks match the previous release of the album. 2. Deluxe Format: A standard CD (as above) and a bonus CD. The bonus CD includes five live tracks from Hammersmith Palais, three live tracks from the Beeb, the "A Celebration"/"Trash, Trampoline and the Party Girl" single released after October, the two b-sides from the album's singles, four additional live tracks from the Boston Paradise show and two other rarities. Also includes a 32-page booklet with previously-unseen photos, full lyrics, new liner notes by Neil McCormick, and explanatory notes on the bonus material by The Edge. 3. Vinyl Format: A single album remastered version on 180gram vinyl with restored packaging. October is the second album by Irish rock band U2, released in 1981. The album featured spiritual themes, inspired by Bono, The Edge, and Mullen's memberships in a Christian group called the "Shalom Fellowship", which led them to question the relationship between the Christian faith and the rock and roll lifestyle. The album received mixed reviews and limited radio play. Credits: October Album Credits: Original Credits: U2: Vocals: Bono Guitars-Piano: The Edge Bass: Adam Clayton Drums: Larry Mullen Jr Other Musician: Oillean Pipes & Bodhran: Vincent Kilduff Technical & Production Credits: Producer: Steve Lillywhite Studio: Windmill Lane, Dublin, July-August 81 Manager: Paul McGuinness Engineer: Paul Thomas Assistant Engineer: Kevin Maloney Sleeve Layout: Rapid Exteriors Photography: Ian Finlay Mastered by Ian Cooper - Townhouse 2008 Edition Credits: Re-mastering Directed by The Edge Album Production Managers: Steve Matthews, Sally-Anne McKeown & Candida Bottaci Research And Archive Analysis: Cheryl Engels, Partial Productions Re-mastering Produced by Cheryl Engels, Partial Productions Re-mastering Engineering by Arnie Acosta at Bernie Grundman Mastering Mastering Assistance by Scott Sedillo Technical Support by Thomas "Beno" May U2 Catalogue Re-Release Co-ordinator: Nick Stewart & Associates Cover Design and Art Direction by Steve Averill Packaging Design by Gary Kelly at Four5One Creative Additional Photography: Adrian Boot & Hugo McGuinness Bonus CD Credits: Too many to list. See booklet for credits on individual songs. All titles written by U2. Liner Notes by Neil McCormick and The Edge See booklet for lyrics and liner notes. Tracklist: Disc 1 (2008 Remaster): 01. Gloria 4:12 02. I Fall Down 3:39 03. I Threw A Brick Through A Window 4:54 04. Rejoice 3:38 05. Fire 3:52 06. Tomorrow 4:39 07. October 2:21 08. With A Shout 4:02 09. Stranger In A Strange Land 3:56 10. Scarlet 2:53 11. Is That All? 3:01 Disc 2 (2008 Bonus CD): 01. Gloria (Live) 4:43 Live In Concert At Hammersmith Palais, December 6th, 1982 02. I Fall Down (Live) 3:01 Live In Concert At Hammersmith Palais, December 6th, 1982 03. I Threw A Brick Through A Window (Live) 3:52 Live In Concert At Hammersmith Palais, December 6th, 1982 04. Fire (Live) 3:31 Live In Concert At Hammersmith Palais, December 6th, 1982 05. October (Live) 2:22 Live In Concert At Hammersmith Palais, December 6th, 1982 06. With A Shout (BBC Session) 3:33 BBC Radio Session With Richard Skinner, September 3rd, 1981 07. Scarlet (BBC Session) 2:45 BBC Radio Session With Richard Skinner, September 3rd, 1981 08. I Threw A Brick Through A Window (BBC Session) 4:17 BBC Radio Session With Richard Skinner, September 3rd, 1981 09. A Celebration 2:57 Non Album Single 10. J. Swallo 2:20 Featured on "Fire" Double 7" Vinyl Pack 11. Trash, Trampoline And The Party Girl 2:35 B-side to "A Celebration" 12. I Will Follow (Live) 3:44 Live At The Paradise Theatre, Boston, March 6, 1981 13. The Ocean (Live) 2:15 Live At The Paradise Theatre, Boston, March 6, 1981 14. The Cry / Electric Co. (Live) 4:27 Live At The Paradise Theatre, Boston, March 6, 1981 15. 11 O'Clock Tick Tock (Live) 4:57 Live At The Paradise Theatre, Boston, March 6, 1981 16. I Will Follow (Live) 3:52 Live From Hattem, Holland for Veronica's Countdown, May 14, 1982 17. Tomorrow (Common Ground Remix) 4:35 Bono & Adam Clayton - Included on the Common Ground compilation album Reviews: U2 sounded so confident and assured on their debut that perhaps it was inevitable they would stumble slightly on its follow-up, October. The record isn't weaker than its predecessor because it repeats the formula of Boy. It's because the band tries too hard to move forward. Bono, in particular, tries too hard to make big political, emotional, and religious statements, but the remainder of the band isn't innocent. In general, the music is too pompous, with the sound overwhelming the actual songs. But when U2 do marry the message, melody, and sound together, as on "Gloria," "I Threw a Brick Through a Window," and "I Fall Down," the results are thoroughly impressive. Compared to the gangly, green early songs that comprise the bonus disc of Boy, the bonus disc on October is a great leap forward ? which is a bit ironic, as the album proper is often considered a holding pattern for U2, containing the great "Gloria" but finding the group uneasy in the studio. Based on this bonus disc, the place where U2 was growing with leaps and bounds was on the stage, as this 17-track collection contains no less than 13 live cuts (including three tracks from Richard Skinner's BBC sessions), eight of them reprising songs from October that all sound bigger and better on-stage. They have muscle, might, and majesty, the earliest indications of U2 developing their seemingly effortless command of melodrama. That illusion of effortlessness is of course merely a mirage. It took them a long time to sound so at ease, but their constant road work in the wake of Boy not only tightened them up, it gave them focus, something that's evident here on the clutch of live material from Boy. Just over a year after the album's release, U2 sound vigorous and dramatic with these song and this authority helps give the non-LP single "A Celebration"/"Trash, Trampoline and Party Girl" intrigue. U2 could still stumble into the ridiculous, as on the "Fire" B-side "J. Swallo," but overall they were beginning to gel, to learn their strengths and how to use them. That gives October the best bonus disc out of this trilogy, even if Boy remains the most fascinating and historically relevant. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide ------------- FOLLOWING the success of the re-mastered release of The Joshua Tree last year (2007), The Edge has overseen a similar re-mastering of U2?s early LPs Boy (1980), October (1981) and War (1983), all of which have been re-mastered from the original audio tapes. The Deluxe versions include a standard CD and a bonus CD. The bonus CD ? which is the most worthwhile version ? includes B-sides, live tracks and rarities. They also include a 32-page booklet with previously unseen photos, full lyrics, new liner notes by Niall Stokes, and explanatory notes on the bonus material by The Edge. Of the trio of releases, 1983?s War is likely to be the most popular, featuring as it does seminal hits Sunday Bloody Sunday and New Year?s Day, as well as solid album tracks Red Light and Seconds. Some of the songs do sound dated, unlike some of the band?s material once they?d properly established themselves, but purists will want to grab the restored versions to revisit past glories and complete the U2 picture on CD. And the Deluxe editions are certainly worth owning. On War, for instance, the previously unreleased Angels Too Tied To The Ground is a collector?s piece, while remixes of New Year?s Day (especially by Ferry Corsten) offer worthwhole re-interpretations. While on Boy, a previously unreleased mix of I Will Follow succeeds in giving it extra zip, Speed Of Life emerges as an undiscovered gem, and there?s a killer live version of Boy-Girl to look out for, recorded at The Marquee. The stories behind the songs, and some of the bonus selections, are also well-realised in the 32-page booklet, which really is a must-have for any die-hard U2 follower. There are similar highlights to be plucked from the Deluxe October package, with BBC Sessions of Scarlet and With A Shout among the obvious picks, as well as a Common Ground remix of Tomorrow. In all, then, everything a U2 purist could want and more. ~ Jack Foley, IndieLondon ------------- From the beginning, U2 aspired to profound ecstasy. But it took Bono, the Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. a while to get there. Two of U2's first three albums are undeniable classics: 1980's precociously magnificent Boy for its proudly spiritual optimism in the thick of post-punk nihilism and for the Edge's reveille-treble guitar; 1983's War for its arena-rock muscle tone (honed over three years of touring) and the matured blend of soldier's ardor and pop wile in the singles "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "New Year's Day."...
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