In a Little While

"In a Little While"
Song by U2
from the album All That You Can't Leave Behind
Released 30 October 2000
Genre Rock
Length 3:39
Label Island / Interscope
Songwriter(s) U2 (music), Bono (lyrics)
Producer(s) Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, with additional production by Richard Stannard and Julian Gallagher

"In a Little While" is a song by Irish rock band U2 and the sixth track on their 2000 album All That You Can't Leave Behind.

History

"It is sung in a voice that was up all night."

—Bono[1]

"In a Little While" came out of a jam with the band during the All That You Can't Leave Behind sessions. Bono has noted that his voice was in terrible shape at the time of the recording of this song.

The song is addressed to Ali Hewson.[2] In the band's biography, Bono states that people at school used to call him a baby-snatcher for dating a girl from the year below,[2] this is shown in the lyrics of the song: A little girl with Spanish eyes, when I saw her in a pram they pushed her by / Oh my, my how you've grown.[2]

The lyrics refer to a "lovestruck hangover", in the vein of their Achtung Baby track "Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World," which describes a similar topic. However, Bono has noted in live performances that it became a gospel song after he heard that Joey Ramone, the iconic front man of the punk band, the Ramones, listened to this song as his final one on his deathbed;[2] therefore, U2 dedicated the song to him for the rest of the tour.[2]

Live

The song was played at over half of the shows on the Elevation Tour. It was played for most of the first leg, about half of the second leg, and not at all on the third leg. On the live concert film, Elevation 2001: Live from Boston, Bono introduces the song by explaining it was the last song Joey Ramone heard on his deathbed. He notes his honor of having one of his favorite musicians loving a song of his.[3]

The Killers' frontman Brandon Flowers performed the song as a duet with Bono in Las Vegas in 2006 on the Vertigo Tour. This was one of only two performances of the song on the Vertigo Tour. However, it was snippeted almost forty times during performances of "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For".[4]

During the performance of "In a Little While", U2 made contact with Belgian astronaut Frank DeWinne who read the lyrics.

The song was also played several times during the U2 360° Tour.[4] During the YouTube live-streamed concert from the Rose Bowl, released on the U2 360° at the Rose Bowl concert video, lyrics from "In a Little While" were read by Belgian astronaut Frank DeWinne from the International Space Station.

See also

References

  1. ↑ McCormick (2006), p. 371
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Edge, Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen Jr. U2 by U2. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-077674-9.
  3. ↑ Hamilton, Hamish (Director) (2009-09-21). Elevation 2001: U2 Live from Boston (Motion picture). Boston, Massachusetts: Island/Interscope.
  4. 1 2 "In a Little While". U2Gigs.com. Retrieved 21 September 2009.
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