I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight Explained

I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight
Cover:Crazytonight.jpg
Type:single
Artist:U2
Album:No Line on the Horizon
Genre:Pop rock
Length:
Label:
Composer:U2
Lyricist:Bono
Producer:
Prev Title:Magnificent
Prev Year:2009
Next Title:I Will Follow (live from Glastonbury)
Next Year:2011

"I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" is the fifth song from U2's 2009 album No Line on the Horizon. The song was released as the album's third single in a digital format on 25 August 2009 and in a physical version released on 7 September 2009.[1] Two music videos were made, one directed by David O'Reilly, and one by Alex Courtes.

Writing and recording

The band collaborated with will.i.am in the creation of the track;[2] will.i.am receives an "additional production" credit on the finished version. It was first developed by Brian Eno under the title "Diorama" during a break in the recording sessions.[3] The band reworked the track under the new title of "Crazy Tonight" before retitling it again as "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight".[4] [5] Several of the song's lyrics were influenced by Barack Obama's presidential campaign.[6] Bono stated to Q magazine that the lyrics "[sound] like a T-shirt slogan to me",[7] also noting that it was No Line on the Horizons equivalent to "Beautiful Day".

Live performances

"I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" was first played on 4 March 2009 on the Late Show with David Letterman, one of three performances of the song during No Line on the Horizon promotional appearances.[8] [9]

Redanka's "Kick the Darkness" remix arrangement of the song was played throughout the U2 360° Tour. Club feel lighting accompanied the song, while Larry Mullen Jr. walked around the outer stage playing a djembe.[10] The performance in this unfamiliar style was intended to disorient the audience as the band moved from the "personal" first half of the concert into the "political" second half.[11] (The only time the album version was performed during the tour was during the second show of the 360 Tour° in Barcelona where it was performed two times. For the first time the band played the remix and, then, as one of the encores, the album version was performed for a video shoot.[12])

Music videos

The first music video received its world premiere on 17 July 2009 through U2's YouTube channel.[13] Directed by David O'Reilly and designed by Jon Klassen, it is the band's first animated music video since 1995's "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me", and is one of the few not to feature the band.[14] It depicts several people in a city undergoing hardships, and the events that interconnect them and bring them happiness as they decide to make changes in their lives.[15] The video was entered in the 2009 Ottawa International Animation Festival.[16]

The second music video was directed by Alex Courtes and produced by Malachy Mcanenny.[17] While the O'Reilly video plays over the studio version of the song, the Courtes version is the single edit. It consists of a live performance taken from the U2 360° Tour, filmed at Camp Nou in Barcelona, Spain, on 2 July 2009.[18]

Reception

Q called "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" the band's "most unabashed pop song since 'Sweetest Thing'". while Mojo labelled it a "superficial pop anthem formed around a dainty kernel of pure melodic gold", calling the performance "[s]o cumulatively devastating is the band's delivery that it ennobles the succession of cute self-referential Bono homilies".[19] [20] Blender likened the "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight"'s piano parts to the hook of the Journey song "Faithfully", while Rolling Stone noted that the lyrics reflected Bono's inability to meet his own ideals.[21] [22] Rolling Stone also likened the "harrowing" beginning of the O'Reilly video to a Disney film, calling the animation "incredible". Eoin Butler, writing in The Irish Times The Ticket supplement, was less enthused about the release, labelling it U2's "most lacklustre offering to date".[23] The song was nominated in the categories "Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals" and "Best Rock Song" for the 52nd Grammy Awards in 2010.[24]

Release

In promotion "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" was used in television commercials for a Blackberry application, called the "U2 Mobile App", which was developed as part of Research in Motion's sponsorship of the U2 360° Tour.[25]

DateType
17 August 2009Amazon.com MP3
25 August 2009Digital EP
7 September 2009CD

Formats and track listings

All lyrics written by Bono, all music composed by U2, except "Magnificent" (music also by Brian Eno and Danny Lanois, and lyrics also by the Edge).

Digital releases

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from No Line on the Horizon liner notes.[26]

Charts

Chart (2009)Peak
Position
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[27] 5
Italy (Musica e Dischi)[28] 24

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 'Crazy' set for September 7th . U2.com . 25 August 2009 . 26 August 2009.
  2. Web site: U2 Preview New Album to Q . . 25 December 2008.
  3. News: U2's No Line On The Horizon: A track-by-track exclusive with producer/co-writer Daniel Lanois . . Brad . Frenette . 10 March 2009 . 19 September 2019 . https://archive.today/20091020204444/http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/theampersand/archive/2009/03/10/behind-the-scenes-on-u2-s-no-line-on-the-horizon-a-track-by-track-exclusive-with-producer-co-writer-daniel-lanois.aspx . live. 20 October 2009.
  4. Web site: Exclusive Adam Clayton Q&A! . Mojo . Danny . Eccleston . 26 February 2009 . 27 February 2009 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090301120424/http://www.mojo4music.com/blog/2009/02/exclusive_adam_clayton_qa.html . 1 March 2009 . dmy-all .
  5. U2 Break Down 'No Line on the Horizon' . https://web.archive.org/web/20090113204606/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/25328725/u2_break_down_no_line_on_the_horizon . dead . 13 January 2009 . . Brian . Hiatt . 22 January 2009. 15 February 2009.
  6. News: The Wanderers . . Sean . O'Hagan . 15 February 2009 . 15 February 2009 . London.
  7. Web site: Q Magazine previews new U2 record . 26 December 2008 . . reprint . 9 September 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110927214249/http://www.interference.com/9332-q-magazine-previews-new-u2-record/ . 27 September 2011 . dead .
  8. Web site: 2009-03-04: Ed Sullivan Theater - New York, New York, USA . U2Gigs.com . 4 March 2009 . Matthias . Mühlbradt . André . Axver . 20 August 2009.
  9. Web site: I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight . U2Gigs.com . Matthias . Mühlbradt . André . Axver . 20 August 2009.
  10. News: Review - U2 360 Tour - Toronto - Night One - Sept. 16, 2009 . Steve . Austin . . 17 September 2009 . 26 September 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090925102438/http://www.citytv.com/toronto/citynews/entertainment/music/article/58151--review-u2-360-tour-toronto-night-one-sept-16-2009 . 25 September 2009 . dead .
  11. News: U2: Secrets of Stadium Rock . https://web.archive.org/web/20090819071138/http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/culture/neilmccormick/100002560/u2-secrets-of-stadium-rock/ . dead . 19 August 2009 . The Telegraph . Neil . McCormick . 17 August 2009 . 17 August 2009 . London.
  12. Edith Bowman . Lunch with Bono . . . . 35:30 . 19 August 2009 . 19 August 2009 . 22 August 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090822203552/https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00m3zzc/Edith_Bowman_Lunch_with_Bono/ . dead .
  13. Web site: U2 - I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight . https://web.archive.org/web/20090723110245/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmJgdXkAqMU&feature=featured . 2009-07-23 . dead. YouTube . 17 July 2009. U2 official . 21 July 2009.
  14. I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight . . . iTunes 00602527175669 . Digital liner notes.
  15. U2 Unveil "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" Animated Video . https://web.archive.org/web/20090724071723/http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/07/22/u2-unveil-ill-go-crazy-if-i-dont-go-crazy-tonight-animated-video/ . dead . 24 July 2009 . Rolling Stone . Daniel . Kreps . 22 July 2009 . 7 August 2009.
  16. Web site: Ottawa International Animation Festival: 2009 Selections . Ottawa International Animation Festival . 7 August 2009.
  17. Web site: U2 - I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight: Live Action Version, Single Edit . https://web.archive.org/web/20090927195115/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObRoTaZOOj8 . 2009-09-27 . dead. Universal Music Group . YouTube . 30 July 2009 . 7 August 2009. Universal Music Group .
  18. Web site: 2009-07-02: Camp Nou - Barcelona, Spain . U2Gigs.com . 2 July 2009 . Matthias . Mühlbradt . André . Axver . 7 August 2009.
  19. Web site: U2 No Line on the Horizon . . reprint . Paul . Rees . 25 February 2009 . 25 February 2009.
  20. Web site: Blue Sky Thinking . . reprint . Keith . Cameron . 25 February 2009 . 23 August 2009.
  21. Web site: No Line on the Horizon . Blender . Rob . Sheffield . 28 February 2009 . 23 August 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100107184143/http://www.blender.com/guide/new/77038/no-line-on-horizon.html . 7 January 2010 . dead .
  22. No Line on the Horizon . . David . Fricke . 20 February 2009 . 18 October 2009. https://web.archive.org/web/20090526181723/http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/26079033/review/26212378/no_line_on_the_horizon . live. 26 May 2009.
  23. News: Shuffle . IrishTimes.com . 31 August 2009 . 8 August 2009.
  24. Web site: The 52nd Annual Grammy Awards Nomination List . https://web.archive.org/web/20091203194315/http://www.grammy.com/grammy_awards/52nd_show/list.aspx . Grammy.com . 3 December 2009 . 3 December 2009 . dead . dmy-all .
  25. Web site: What Blackberry Has in Store for U2 . . Alan . Cross . Alan Cross . 2 July 2009 . 4 July 2009 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090706192436/http://www.exploremusic.com/tech/2009-07-02/UPDATE-What-Blackberry-Has-in-Store-for-U2 . 6 July 2009 . dmy-all .
  26. . . 2009 . liner notes . Mercury Records, Island Records.
  27. Web site: Single: Top 20 (for the week ending 19 November 2009) . https://archive.today/20041226010450/http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Charts/SINGLES.html . usurped . 26 December 2004 . Nielsen SoundScan . 15 November 2009 . dmy-all .
  28. Web site: Classifiche. Musica e Dischi. it. 28 May 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "U2".

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