Firstly, if there is a similar topic, please re-direct me!
I was thinking about creating a CD for a friend whose only experience of U2 is their chart hits. The CD is going to be a "Hidden Gems" list, steering clear of well known U2 songs.
1. Gone
2. Xanax and Wine
3. New York
4. A Day Without Me
5. Until the End of the World
6. Neon Lights
7. No Line On The Horizon
8. Fez-Being Born
9. Zooropa
10. Dirty Day
11. Kite
12. A Sort of Homecoming
13. In God's Country
14. Acrobat
15. MLK
I find it interesting that U2's version of Night and Day works so well, when most of their other covers are haphazard to say the least (Forunate Son, Paint it Black, early versions of Watchtower). They aren't that much of a cover band and have admitted that quite often.
I'm sure that N&D can surprise a lot of people with preconceptions about what U2 are and what they are capable of. There's another song with similar stylistic background: Two Shots of Happy. But I would not necessarily recommend that for a first introduction to non-single tracks. But it's funny to read comments from Jazz lovers who know a version by Nancy Sinatra or some Frank Sinatra wannabee and go mental when they find out that "Two Shots" is a U2 song.
BTW I just remembered some other gems:
Silver and Gold, although being featured in R&H makes it less hidden. But I've noticed a lot of newer fans leave R&H aside and go for standard concert DVDs first.
Seconds: I've recently noticed some people quoting this as their new favourite from War. I guess it was always a bit lost between SBS and NYD.
I've done several Hidden Gems CDs to give away to friends who were becoming U2 fans or stuff like that... The average tracklist was something like:
01 - Drowning Man
02 - Like A Song
03 - Tomorrow
04 - Heartland
05 - Luminous Times (Hold On To Love)
06 - Exit
07 - Dirty Day
08 - Last Night On Earth
09 - Acrobat
10 - Stories For Boys
11 - Zooropa
12 - Shadows And Tall Trees
13 - One Tree Hill
14 - A Sort Of Homecoming (Australian WAIA version)
15 - If You Wear That Velvet Dress
16 - Love Is Blindness
but I dont think this: