I’ve been warm and lukewarm on U2 for a while. I can’t deny that they’ve done some great stuff, but I’ve failed to appreciate some of it. Take the band’s previous work, All That You Can’t Leave Behind, for example. It seemed like a sad attempt to capture a younger audience, and was out of line from the band’s other work. Aging is tough on everybody, but neither the band-members, nor their fans are getting any younger.
Anyway, it took me a while to appreciate Apple’s excitement over U2 and their latest album, How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. Apple has selling a special, gloss black U2 iPod and is releasing a special collection of U2 works they call the Complete U2 Digital Box Set.
Even if you own every U2 album, The Complete U2 digital box set will double your collection of tracks by the band. Its 446 songs include U2’s newest album, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb; all of the group’s previous albums; more than 100 rare live cuts, remixes, covers, demos, and b-sides; and 40 previously-unreleased tracks.
More than 24 hours of revelatory music, The Complete U2 follows the band from its earliest recordings in the late ’70s through classic albums such as War, The Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby, and All That You Can’t Leave Behind. It’s priced at $149, but purchasers of the iPod U2 Special Edition get a $50 discount (see offer below). This iTunes exclusive comes with a digital booklet featuring cover art, track listings, and band commentary.
The fact is, U2’s primary audience — 25 to 40 year olds — is also the prime iTunes consumer.
An NPR story by Tom Moon talks about the proliferation of corporate partnerships with musicians.