Bits & Bytes

A collection of the latest U2 news and announcements posted by our staff.

Curbing Hunger With Bono

At the Global Food Summit in D.C. today, NBC's Andrea Mitchell interviewed U2 frontman Bono about efforts to curb hunger in Africa.

"Hunger is a ridiculous thing. And we know what to do in order to fix it.  There's, you know, these whole new approaches to agriculture to increase productivity, etc. But what's key about today's announcement is that the president of the United States is supporting African ideas on how to fix their problem. There are country-owned, country-devised plans in 30 African countries. And that's what it will take to get to that 50 million people taken out of -- out of hunger over the next decade."

Vintage U2

With over 7,000 items in our news archives, it's a safe bet you haven't read all of them! This month we begin our look at 1988.

Mullen It Over, Star Hits

Larry: "I'm not prepared to give up my humanity for rock and roll. I'd give up anything but that. I fight for my rights. I say no to people, do not follow me, no I will not sign my autograph now; I'm going to dinner. I'm very straightforward with people. Therefore, I get away with a bit more. Sometimes the only way you get away with it is being harsh."

U2, In Fashion magazine

Bono: "People throw too much responsibility on me and the group. There's a guy who reckons he wrote the lyrics on the new album and he wants royalties. He's a sick man. But he's armed and dangerous. You let someone put their arm round you for a photograph and then you got a paternity suit."

A Mighty Long Way Down Rock 'n' Roll, Hot Press

Adam: "We have felt that, because we've become a big band, you can actually lose touch with the one thing that makes you feel alive, which is music...because you get caught up in the whole celebrity thing, the business trip and all that stuff. And we need people around us who keep us grounded to music, and we go after those people and [Bob] Dylan is one of them."

Bono Performs at Jazz Foundation of America Concert

As expected, Bono performed Thursday night at the Jazz Foundation of America's (JFA) annual concert and gala at the famous Apollo Theater in New York City. He sang "Angel Of Harlem" and -- much like on the first leg of the 360 tour in 2009 -- added in a bit of Michael Jackson's hit, "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough."

The photo above is from the @NewYorkNatives Twitter account, and the @ApolloTheater account also posted a photo of Bono's appearance. The Apollo also shared an incomplete video that doesn't seem able to be embedded.

UPDATE: Guitar Shop TV has posted a full video of Bono's performance on YouTube, which you can also see below.

U22 Song Order Revealed

We've known for several months what songs are on U22, the upcoming U2.com members-only CD, but only today has the final song order been posted on U2.com. Here are the 22 tracks as they're spread over two CDs:

Disc One

1. Even Better Than The Real Thing
2. The Fly
3. Mysterious Ways
4. Magnificent
5. Until The End Of The World
6. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
7. Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
8. One Tree Hill
9. Beautiful Day
10. Elevation
11. Bad

Disc Two

12. All I Want Is You/Love Rescue Me
13. The Unforgettable Fire
14. Zooropa
15. City Of Blinding Lights
16. Mlk/Walk On
17. One
18. Where The Streets Have No Name
19. Ultra Violet (Light My Way)
20. With Or Without You
21. Moment Of Surrender
22. Out Of Control

With only a couple exceptions, the song order actually comes pretty close to resembling a U2 360 concert. As we reported yesterday, U22 should begin shipping by the end of May.

U22 to be shipped by end of May

U2.com subscribers should be getting an email today with news that U22 will be shipped by the end of May to everyone who's a current member for 2012. U22 is, of course, the latest fan club-only release -- a two-CD collection of 22 live tracks from various shows on the U2 360 tour.

Current U2.com members should also find a bonus live track, "Unknown Caller," available for download now on the Account Info page at U2.com. This is a bonus track that's not included on U22. The email also says that eight more tracks will be available for current members to download on May 30th.

Bono Due to Perform, Speak Later This Week

Bono is slated to make a pair of public appearances this week in the U.S.-- one singing performance and one speaking presentation.

First up is the Jazz Foundation of America's (JFA) annual concert and gala at the Apollo Theater in Harlem on Thursday night (May 17). Bono is listed as one of the concert performers on the JFA's website. Guests at the fund raiser will include Quincy Jones, Dr. John and others. Tickets are still available for the concert and start at $100.

Then on Friday, Bono is due to speak in Washington, DC at the Chicago Council’s 3rd Annual Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security. Bono will be there on behalf os his One Campaign to talk about food security and private sector investment in African agriculture. President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are also due to speak.

U2 Fan Survey 2012: Second Set of Results Posted

The second set of results from the 2012 U2 Fan Survey is now available, and it takes us through section D -- i.e., four of the nine total sections.

As a reminder, the survey was open from April 5th through April 30th. We received completed responses from 3,530 fans in 79 countries this year, both of which are down from 2010. We think that's likely due to the band being in downtime right now, meaning less traffic to @U2 and fewer fans being aware of the survey.

If you missed our recap of the first set of results, feel free to go back and catch up there. Below are a few thoughts on this second set:

WIRE (u2-list) population is slowly declining. When we asked this question on the first U2 Fan Survey in 2005, 19.4 percent of survey takers said they used to be members of the WIRE, the very first mailing list for U2 fans (started way back in 1992). This year, only 15.1 percent answered in the affirmative. Not surprising, just a little sad for us old-timers.

Forums are pretty popular. About 73 percent of all respondents said they're registered on at least one U2-related forum. But they're mostly lurkers because, in the follow-up question (C5), about 75 percent said they post less than once a month on forums. (Feel free to try the @U2 Forum if you want to join that 73 percent.)

Fewer freeloads? In this year's survey, 48 percent said "yes," they've downloaded a U2 song or album without paying for it. That's down a fair bit from the 55 percent who answered "yes" in 2010. So, either fewer U2 fans are downloading songs without paying, or fewer are willing to admit that they've done so!

Live setlists are a big hit. In this year's survey, a whopping 90 percent of fans said they've followed U2 setlists live online via Twitter or forums. Wow. That's up from about 78 percent back in 2010.

Twitter's gaining steam. On a related note, Twitter is a lot more popular this year (48.5 percent say they don't use it) than it was in 2010 (66 percent said they don't use it). Note, too, that only about 77 percent of fans who say they use Twitter also follow The Edge's account. Not sure what's up with that other 23 percent.

Bono is loved. Edge is respected. Adam was a fashion mistake. Just like in 2010, this year's survey takers said Bono is their favorite U2 band member, but Edge is far and away the choice as most skilled musician in the band. This year, fans voted Adam's October-era afro as the worst fashion mistake in U2 history, a switch from 2010 when Bono's mid-80s mullet won that honor.

U2 has longevity left. Although the numbers are down a bit from 2010, about 66 percent of fans think U2 will still be together and making new music for at least the next eight years. (Bono and Adam will turn 60 years old in eight years, by the way.) In 2010, 74 percent of survey takers felt the band has at least eight years left.

Ready to see all of the replies to Sections C and D? Visit our U2 Fan Survey page. And stay tuned as we post more from the 2012 U2 Fan Survey in the coming days and weeks.