"Walk On" - U2

Single (Canada)

Track Listing:

Background Information

In North America, “Walk On” was the second single released from All That You Can’t Leave Behind. Throughout the rest of the world, “Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of” was the second single, followed by “Walk On.” “Stuck in a Moment” became the third single in North America. (As these later releases would feature different track listings and artwork, they are covered by a separate discography entry.) The release of “Walk On” was early in North America to coincide with U2’s appearance at the 2001 Grammy Awards in March. The awards ceremony was broadcast during the same week that the single was released, and Interscope’s promotional material made mention of U2’s appearance at the Grammys. The band would win three awards that year, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year (for “Beautiful Day”).

The song itself was inspired by Aung San Suu Kyi, a longtime human rights campaigner who was wrongfully imprisoned by the Burmese government in an effort to prevent her from assuming leadership of that country. U2 became aware of Suu Kyi after she received the Freedom of Dublin Award in 2000, the same year the honour was bestowed upon the band.

A commercial single was not issued in the USA, although promotional copies were sent to radio in January. The Canadian CD release, in two formats, came on February, 20, 2001. Both CDs included “Walk On (Edit),” an edit of the album version of the song. (When “Walk On” was released in other territories later in the year, it would feature a different edit called the “Video Version,” as well as a completely new remix called the “Single Version”). The Canadian CDs were rounded out by the same tracks that were used as B-sides for the “Stuck in a Moment” CDs issued throughout the rest of the world: “Beautiful Day” and “New York,” both recorded live at Farmclub.com on CD 1, and “Big Girls Are Best” and “Beautiful Day (Quincey & Sonance Remix)” on CD 2. “Big Girls Are Best” was initially recorded towards the end of The PopMart tour in 1998, while the live Farmclub.com tracks were recorded at Universal City, on October 27, 2000.

Two videos were filmed for “Walk On.” The first was directed by Liz Friedlander and released in February 2001 to promote the song in the USA and Canada. The video was shot in London in November of 2000. It featured footage of U2 performing in-studio and walking through the streets of London. This is intercut with shots of people running through the streets, being bullied, and then later escaping their situations and tearing at their clothing. It ends with an infinite view of people making up the inside of an eye as the camera pans out. The second video, directed by Jonas Akerlund, was released in the fall of 2001 to promote the worldwide single release. It features footage shot in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in November 2000, during the promotional tour for All That You Can’t Leave Behind. Footage includes U2 interacting with fans, walking through Rio, playing soccer on the beach, and standing on the balcony of the Copacabana Hotel. It is interspersed with footage from their performance at Globo Studios. Both versions of the video were included on the U218 Singles compilation.

“Walk On” was first performed live at Irving Plaza in New York on December 5, 2000, during the All That You Can’t Leave Behind promotional tour. It was performed every night on the 2001 Elevation Tour, with the exception of one concert in Manchester, UK. The song was rarely played during The Vertigo Tour, appearing in-full at just eleven shows. It made a permanent return to the setlist for The U2360 Tour, however, being played at every show between 2009 and 2011. Live recordings of the song have appeared on the Go Home: Live from Slane Castle, Ireland DVD and fan club CD (Dublin, September 1, 2001), the Elevation 2001: Live from Boston DVD (Boston, MA, June 2001), and the multi-artist America: A Tribute to Heroes album and DVD (London, UK, September 21, 2001). This version, which is preceded by an excerpt of U2’s “Peace on Earth,” was recorded in a studio in London and features David Stewart, Natalie Imbruglia and Morleigh Steinberg on backing vocals. Finally, a version recorded in Zagreb, Croatia on August 9, 2009 (and preceded by “MLK”) during the U2360° tour was included on the fan club album U22. The 22 tracks on this live compilation, out of an eligible 46 recordings, were selected by popular vote by members of the U2 fan club.

Several different versions of “Walk On” have been released in addition to the album version and the Canadian edit. A “Remix” version with slightly different instrumental levels was released on promotional CD. As mentioned previously, alternate versions were included on the worldwide single release later in the year, including the “Video Version” and the completely remixed “Single Version” (the “Video Version” was included on the U218 Singles compilation). Another promotional CD was released in February, 2002 to coincide with that year’s Grammy Awards ceremony. It included a unique mix by Mike Hedges called the “Hallelujah Mix.” The b-sides “Big Girls are Best” and “Beautiful Day (Quincey & Sonance Remix)” were later included on the Target-exclusive “7 (Rare and Remixed)” EP.

Liner Notes

Walk On (Edit):
Lyrics by Bono. Produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno. Engineered by Richard Rainey. Assisted by Chris Heaney. Additional Production: Steve Lillywhite. Mixed by Steve Lillywhite. Additional engineering: Stephen Harris. Assisted by: Alvin Sweeney.

Big Girls are Best:
Music by U2. Lyrics by Bono and the Edge. Produced by Howie B and Flood. Assisted by Rob Kirwan. Engineered by Flood. Programming by Howie B. Original mix by Flood. Final mix and additional programming by Tim Palmer at Scream Studios, Los Angeles.

Beautiful Day (Quincey and Sonance Mix):
Music by U2. Lyrics by Bono. Produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno. Engineered by Richard Rainey. Assisted by Chris Heaney. Additional production by Steve Lillywhite. Mixed by Steve Lillywhite. Additional engineering by Tim Palmer and Stephen Harris. Remixed by Quincey and Sonance.

Beautiful Day (Live from Farmclub):
Music by U2. Lyrics by Bono. Recorded live from the Farmclub.com stage, Universal City on October 27, 2000. Mixed by Tim Palmer and Thom Panunzio. Recorded by Bart Chiate and Thom Panunzio.

New York (Live from Farmclub):
Music by U2. Lyrics by Bono. Recorded live from the Farmclub.com stage, Universal City on October 27, 2000. Mixed by Tim Palmer and Thom Panunzio. Recorded by Bart Chiate and Thom Panunzio.

Mastered by Arnie Acosta at The Mastering Lab, Los Angeles. Audio Post Production Manager: Cheryl Engels at Partial Productions Inc.

Artwork

Photography by Kevin Westenberg. Designed at Four 5 One, Dublin.

Recognition and Awards

  • Nomination and Win, Record of the Year (Grammy Awards, 2002)
  • Nomination, Best Rock Song (Grammy Awards, 2002)
  • Nomination, Best Rock Performance by Duo or Group (Grammy Awards, 2003) (Heroes version)
  • #6 Best Single, 2001 Awards (Hot Press, January 2002)
  • #3 Best Song, Readers Picks (Rolling Stone, 2001)

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