Under a Blood Red Sky

Under a Blood Red Sky
Live album by
Released21 November 1983 (1983-11-21)
Recorded6 May 1983 – 20 August 1983
Venue
GenrePost-punk
Length35:29
LabelIsland
ProducerJimmy Iovine
U2 chronology
War
(1983)
Under a Blood Red Sky
(1983)
U2 Live at Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky
(1984)
Singles from Under a Blood Red Sky
  1. "I Will Follow"
    Released: August 20, 1983
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic
Chicago Tribune
Entertainment WeeklyA−
Mojo
The New Zealand Herald8/10
Pitchfork9.0/10
Record Collector
Rolling Stone
The Rolling Stone Album Guide
The Village VoiceA−

Under a Blood Red Sky is a live album by Irish rock band U2, produced by Jimmy Iovine and released on 21 November 1983. The record's eight tracks were compiled from three concerts during the group's 1983 War Tour, including two songs from their 5 June performance at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. The concert film U2 Live at Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky, recorded at the same Red Rocks show, was released as a companion to the live album. Both releases helped establish U2's reputation globally as a renowned live act.

History

The album consists of live recordings from three shows on the band's War Tour, from Colorado and Boston in the US and from Germany.

An accompanying concert video entitled Live at Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky was released the following year. The film was recorded entirely at the outdoor Red Rocks Amphitheatre on 5 June 1983, while two songs from that show are included on the album.

The title is taken from the lyrics of the song "New Year's Day", originally released on U2's War album.

The album was re-released on 29 September 2008 as a remastered CD with a DVD of the Red Rocks concert.

Track listing

All tracks are written by U2, with lyrics by Bono

Side one
No.TitleRecording location/dateLength
1."Gloria" (from October)Red Rocks Amphitheatre on 5 June 19834:32
2."11 O'Clock Tick Tock" (single)Boston, Massachusetts on 6 May 19834:34
3."I Will Follow" (from Boy)Sankt Goarshausen, Germany on 20 August 19833:36
4."Party Girl" (B-side of "A Celebration" single)Red Rocks Amphitheatre on 5 June 19832:52
Side two
No.TitleRecording location/dateLength
1."Sunday Bloody Sunday" (from War)Sankt Goarshausen, Germany on 20 August 19834:55
2."The Electric Co." (from Boy)Sankt Goarshausen, Germany on 20 August 19835:18
3."New Year's Day" (from War)Sankt Goarshausen, Germany on 20 August 19834:29
4."40" (from War)Sankt Goarshausen, Germany on 20 August 19833:36

Notes
During the performance of "The Electric Co.", Bono included a 27-second snippet of Stephen Sondheim's "Send in the Clowns". When Under a Blood Red Sky was released, U2 failed to get permission and pay the appropriate licensing and royalty fees to include Sondheim's tune on the album. When Sondheim objected, U2 agreed to pay a $50,000 (US) penalty for the unauthorized use and to press all future releases with a new version that did not include the snippet.

Essentially, there are now two versions of the vinyl album: the original with the full "The Electric Co." running 5:18 and the edited version which runs 4:51. However, the various CDs pressed around the world all vary in the versions of the song that are included.

  • The trifold digipack CD pressed in the U.S. correctly lists "The Electric Co." at 4:51 and contains the edited version of the song.
  • Later U.S. CD pressings in the standard jewel box format incorrectly list "The Electric Co." at 5:18, but have the edited version of the song.
  • Some, and perhaps all, European pressings of the CD correctly list "The Electric Co." at 5:18 and have the unedited version of the song (the same is likely true of other worldwide CD pressings).
  • An Australian pressing of the CD lists the track at 4:57, but the song actually runs the full 5:18.
  • The remastered editions all contain the edited version of the song.

On the streaming platforms YouTube Music, Spotify, and Apple Music the album contains the edited version of the song.

Personnel

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) 4× Platinum 280,000^
Belgium (BEA) Gold 25,000*
Canada (Music Canada) 2× Platinum 200,000^
France (SNEP) Platinum 300,000*
Germany (BVMI) Platinum 500,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ) Platinum 15,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE) Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) 3× Platinum 900,000^
United States (RIAA) 3× Platinum 3,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also


This page was last updated at 2023-11-26 06:58 UTC. Update now. View original page.

All our content comes from Wikipedia and under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.


Top

If mathematical, chemical, physical and other formulas are not displayed correctly on this page, please useFirefox or Safari