Babyface (song)

"Babyface" is a song by U2 and the second track from their 1993 album Zooropa.

Composition

"Babyface" was written by Bono during the Zooropa recording sessions in late 1992/early 1993. The song contains themes of desire, voyeurism, image, celebrity and technology. It involves a man having an obsession with a famous woman, whose image he keeps on a televised recording.^[1] Through the course of production, U2 and producer Brian Eno incorporated a toy piano into the melody of the song. The Edge sings the vocals with Bono during the verses and chorus.

Reception

"Babyface" received mixed reviews from critics. The New York Times critic Jon Pareles described the song as U2 combining "'With or Without You' and Bowie's 'Ashes to Ashes'" while praising the "tinkling countermelody" of the song.^[2] The Boston Globe's Jim Sullivan called it "the most conventional song" on the album and "a smooth-glider where the subversiveness is half-buried in the rolling rhythms and the soft, seductive melody."^[3] In contrast, Parry Gettelman of Orlando Sentinel felt the song was "tediously repetitive" and caused the album to falter.^[4]

Live performances

After the release of Zooropa, several of the album's songs were incorporated into the setlist of the then-ongoing Zoo TV Tour. "Babyface" was only played five times on the European Zooropa leg of the tour. It made its debut at London's Wembley Stadium on August 11, 1993. However, as with other Zooropa songs, U2 found it difficult to perform it live onstage.^[5] During the Wembley concert, Edge did not perform vocals on the track, while Bono struggled to find the right key in which to sing the song. After its first performance, Bono joked to the audience that the band had the "nice idea" of putting such songs on the record and having to play them as a result. The song was dropped from the setlist after the 20 August concert and has never been played since.

References

External links