U2 have shared a snippet of a reimagined version of ‘With Or Without You’.
The foursome – which currently boasts a lineup of Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr – have put out a preview of their updated edition of their 1987 hit and lead single from their fifth LP ‘The Joshua Tree’, which was a hit all over the world, as part of their ‘Songs of Surrender’ compilation album.
The project – which was announced earlier in January – is tipped for release on 17 March and will contain 40 revamped songs from the band’s career, which has stemmed more than 40 years and spanned 14 albums.
It is also believed to tie in with Bono -whose real name is Paul Hewson – publishing his memoir, ‘Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story’.
Writing in a handwritten note, The Edge first shared the impetus behind the record.
The 61-year-old musician – whose real name is David Howell Evans – detailed that “most of U2’s work “was written and recorded when we were a bunch of very young men” and that the songs had evolved in the passing years to “mean something quite different to us now”, prompting them to embark on this journey.
He continued: “Some have grown with us. Some we have outgrown, but we have not lost sight of what propelled us to write those songs in the first place. The essence of those songs is still in us. But how to reconnect with that essence when we have moved on and grown so much?”
He added they were giving them “a 21st century reimagining”, before saying “once we surrendered our reverence for the original version, each song started to open up to a new authentic voice of this time, of the people we are now, and particularly the singer that Bono has become”.