“Achtung Baby”, a coveted album of the legendary pop/rock band U2, was re-released this week as a single disk and deluxe box set edition, to mark the original album’s 20th anniversary. The box set features several B-sides and a separate DVD with a documentary and video of several U2 performances.
The Uber Deluxe Edition is a fan’s dream with six discs including “Achtung Baby,” “Zooropa,” B-sides, outtakes, and rarities, four DVDs, vinyl, art prints, an 84-page hard-bound book, an issue of their fanzine, stickers, badges, and a replica of Bono’s “The Fly” sunglasses.
Four other remastered sets offer scaled-down versions of the above.
“Achtung Baby”, a pivotal album for U2, was recorded and released in 1991.
While recording the album, front man Bono, guitarist The Edge, bassist Adam Clayton, and drummer Larry Mullen Jr. were walled up inside Hanson Ton Studios in Berlin, Germany soon after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
As the story goes, amidst what were attempts to advance past their prior musical recordings and the overall direction of the album, tensions arose and the band members considered breaking up.
The Edge began playing a riff that crystallized the moment. Adding Bono’s lyrics, the song that emerged transitioned from what could have been the end of the band, into the creation of “One,” regarded by many as one of the most memorable rock songs of all time.
“One”, a song about being a cohesive unit, but separate as individuals, would become the thread that wove all of “Achtung Baby” together.
The re-released album is now available in stores.
