Walk On (U2 song)
"Walk On" is the second single in Canada, and the fourth single in the rest of the world, from U2's 2000 album, All That You Can't Leave Behind. The song was written about Aung San Suu Kyi. It won the "Grammy Award for Record of the Year" in 2002, marking the first time an artist had won the award for songs from the same album in consecutive years.
Composition
The song was written about and dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi. It is written in the form of a supporting, uplifting anthem, praising her for her activism and fighting for freedom in Burma. She had been intermittently under house arrest since 1989 for her efforts. Due to the political message of the album, those attempting to import the album, All That You Can't Leave Behind, into Burma could face a prison sentence lasting between three and twenty years.[1]
The title of All That You Can't Leave Behind come from the lyrics of this song: The only baggage you can bring / is all that you can't leave behind. "Walk On" was originally two different songs that, according to Adam Clayton, had great riffs but sounded terrible separately. The band combined them, and ended up with one of their most critically praised songs.
Ban in Burma
U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind album was banned in Burma because "Walk On" is dedicated to pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who was under house arrest for her pro-democracy activities. Democratic Voice of Burma correspondent Myint Maung Maung told British music magazine NME, "The album was banned because it includes a song, 'Walk On,' dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi and the democracy movement in Burma." When the album was released, U2.com had a page calling attention to the political situation in Burma, where they say 8 million people have been consigned to forced labor and half a million people are the target of ethnic cleansing campaigns.[2]
Music videos
"Walk On" has two videos, an international version, filmed in Rio de Janeiro in November 2000, and a US version, filmed in London in February 2001. Both are featured on the U218 Videos DVD.
Live performances
The song took on further meaning as a supporting, uplifting anthem following the September 11th attacks in 2001. It was performed live-in-studio during the America: A Tribute to Heroes[3] television benefit concert on September 21, 2001, and that performance earned the band a Grammy nomination. The first performance for a live audience following September 11 was at the University of Notre Dame on October 10, 2001, where the band brought out onstage members of the New York City Police and Fire Departments. The song's uplifting nature led to it being used frequently to close concerts during the Elevation Tour. Live versions of the song were released on the concert films Elevation 2001: Live from Boston, U2 Go Home: Live from Slane Castle, and U2 360° at the Rose Bowl. During the Vertigo Tour, it appeared rarely, typically in an acoustic format. It was snippeted after "Running to Stand Still" on the Vertigo Tour at the dates closest to 19 June, the birthday of Aung San Suu Kyi. The song is a regular part of the setlist for the U2 360° Tour. Prior to the tour, the band asked fans to bring masks of Suu Kyi to concerts and wear them during performances of "Walk On" in her support.[4] Also, during the same tour, in some cities such as Hannover, Barcelona, Coimbra and İstanbul, Amnesty International and One volunteers go on stage and walk on the outer circle of The Claw during the performance of the song carrying either Suu Kyi masks or Amnesty International lanterns.[5]
Release and track listings
"Walk On" was released on 20 February 2001 in Canada and on 19 November 2001 in the UK and Europe and on 26 November 2001 in Australia. The same photograph is used for each release though the colouring varies. The cover pictured here is the European two track CD.
| Lyrics |
Music |
| 1. |
"Walk On" (edit) |
Bono |
U2 |
4:25 |
| 2. |
"Beautiful Day" (Live from Farmclub.com) |
Bono |
U2 |
4:45 |
| 3. |
"New York" (Live from Farmclub.com) |
Bono |
U2 |
6:00 |
| Lyrics |
Music |
| 1. |
"Walk On" (edit) |
Bono |
U2 |
4:25 |
| 2. |
"Big Girls are Best" |
Bono, The Edge |
U2 |
3:34 |
| 3. |
"Beautiful Day" (Quincey and Sonance Remix) |
Bono |
U2 |
7:56 |
| Lyrics |
Music |
| 1. |
"Walk On" (single version) |
Bono |
U2 |
4:09 |
| 2. |
"Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" (Acoustic Version) |
Bono, The Edge |
U2 |
3:42 |
| 3. |
"Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" (US Video) |
Bono, The Edge |
U2 |
4:27 |
| 4. |
"Elevation" (The Vandit Club Mix) (Australian bonus track) |
Bono |
U2 |
8:54 |
| Lyrics |
Music |
| 1. |
"Walk On" (video version) |
Bono |
U2 |
4:28 |
| 2. |
"Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" (Acoustic Version) |
Bono, The Edge |
U2 |
3:42 |
| Lyrics |
Music |
| 1. |
"Walk On" (single version) |
Bono |
U2 |
4:09 |
| 2. |
"4 x 30s Clips from Elevation 2001 DVD" |
|
|
2:00 |
| 3. |
"Walk On" (Europe Video) |
Bono |
U2 |
4:45 |
Charts
References
External links
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"Smooth"* by Santana (Rodney Holmes, Tony Lindsay, Karl Perazzo, Raul Rekow, Benny Rietveld, Carlos Santana, Chester Thompson) featuring Rob Thomas
engineered/mixed by David Thoener, produced by Matt Serletic (2000) |
"Beautiful Day"* by U2 (Bono, Adam Clayton, The Edge, Larry Mullen, Jr.)
engineered/mixed by Richard Rainey & Steve Lillywhite; produced by Brian Eno & Daniel Lanois (2001) |
"Walk On" by U2 (Bono, Adam Clayton, The Edge, Larry Mullen, Jr.)
engineered/mixed by Richard Rainey & Steve Lillywhite; produced by Brian Eno & Daniel Lanois (2002) |
"Don't Know Why"* by Norah Jones;
engineered/mixed by Jay Newland; produced by Arif Mardin, Jay Newland & Norah Jones (2003) |
"Clocks" by Coldplay (Guy Berryman, Jon Buckland, Will Champion, Phil Harvey, Chris Martin)
engineered/mixed by Coldplay, Ken Nelson & Mark Phythian; produced by Coldplay & Ken Nelson (2004) |
"Here We Go Again" by Ray Charles and Norah Jones
engineered/mixed by Al Schmitt, Mark Fleming, & Terry Howard; produced by John R. Burk (2005) |
"Boulevard of Broken Dreams" by Green Day (Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, Frank Edwin Wright III)
engineered/mixed by Chris Lord-Alge & Doug McKean, produced by Green Day & Rob Cavallo (2006) |
"Not Ready to Make Nice"* by Dixie Chicks (Martie Maguire, Natalie Maines, Emily Robison)
engineered/mixed by Chris Testa, Jim Scott & Richard Dodd; produced by Rick Rubin (2007) |
"Rehab"* by Amy Winehouse
engineered/mixed by Tom Elmhirst, Vaughan Merrick, Dom Morley, Mark Ronson & Gabriel Roth; produced by Mark Ronson (2008) |
"Please Read the Letter" by Alison Krauss and Robert Plant
engineered/mixed by Mike Piersante; produced by T-Bone Burnett (2009) |
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