Seattle 26-05-1983

Paramount Theater

Seattle (Washington), USA.

26 - May - 1983.

Attendance: 3.000 - Support: Dream Syndicate

Disc 1 (55:40)

01. Out of Control

02. Twilight

03. An Cat Dubh

04. Into the Heart

05. Surrender

06. Two Hearts Beat As One

07. Seconds

08. Sunday Bloody Sunday

09. Cry / The Electric Co.

10. I Fall Down

11. 11 O'Clock Tick Tock

12. I Will Follow

13. "40"

Recording Equipment - History

Analog 2nd > Nakamichi CD-7A transfer > Peak 5.2 > FLAC

Transfer: JEMS

Additional notes (JEMS): Here's an odd one from the low shelves in the JEMS archives. The cassette is marked second generation and I copied it more than 15 years ago from a writer for a local music magazine in Seattle. From what I remember, a buddy of his had recorded the show but there were no details on how or with what. I have always assumed the tape was pretty ordinary.

Well, it is not excellent to be sure, but I suspect this recording is considerably better than what you've heard before. I'd rate it VG for a random show from the era. The negative to this tape is that it is incomplete.

During "I Fall Down" Bono tells a story about receiving a phone call at his hotel from a guy who was telling him how great his local band was and then proceeds to invite him on stage. Unfortunately the tape fades out right after Bono instructs the crew to get him a guitar. After a sizable cut, the tape resumes in the last minute of "11 O'Clock Tick Tock" and the rest of the show is intact.

Comments

A very clear recording that represents a big upgrade to War Seattle. Sound quality is very good, but as JEMS mentioned, the bad new is that this one doesn't offer the complete show, missing a bunch of songs. Audience noise is minimal and track divisions are absolutely seamless. To me, the band delivered a very energetic performance.

About the drawbacks, there is a small edit after Sunday Bloody Sunday, with no loss of music. On the other hand, all these songs are missing: October - New Year's Day - I Threw A Brick Through A Window - A Day Without Me - Gloria - Party Girl. Moreover, I Fall Down cuts out, and only lasts 03:01, and 11 O'Clock Tick Tock cuts in near its end, so it only lasts 01:10.

Fantastic show by the band with some memorable spots. Sunday Bloody Sunday is stopped halfway due to a fight in the audience. A guy from the audience comes onstage to play extra drums during I Fall Down. The whole story is reported by author Pimm Jal de la Parra in his book U2 Live by Omnibus Press. It is as follows:

-- The show takes a funny turn when Bono recalls "I remember when we used to make demo-tapes and send them out to record companies and radio stations. Some said that we were great, some said we were not so great, but we kept on making these tapes. This song is about trying, it's called I Fall Down". Halfway into the song, he stops singing to tell the crowd what happened prior to the show: "Earlier on, in the hotel, somebody from this city rang me. He woke me up, sort of hassled me, saying that his band was the greatest band in the world. He reminded me about the way we used to work!". The audience laugh, then Bono asks if the caller in question is present. He is, so the guy comes on stage and Bono makes him an offer he can't refuse: "You wanna play drums?" The guy nods and amidst loud cheers from the audience some roadies bring extra drums onstage and the guy picks up the rhythm of I Fall Down and happily drums along.--

Well, I Fall Down cuts out just when the guy comes onstage, but Bono asks for a guitar, and not for a drum kit for the guy. However, as the song is not complete, probably the roadies brought extra drums instead of a guitar.