U2start.com | Shows | 1987-04-20 - Los Angeles, California

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"KeithM Master via JEMS"

Origins: Audience microphone
Credits: JEMS (Recording transferer), KeithM (Audio Taper)
Equipment: Sony ECM-939 (Microphone), Sony WM-D6C (Audio recording device)
Lineage: [analogue master] > Nakamichi CR-7A > Sound Devices USBPre2 > Audacity 2.0 > iZotope RX6 & Ozone 6 > Peak Pro 6 > xACT 2.37 > .flac [ > fre:ac > mp3]
Quality based on reviews:
Downloads: 276

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"KeithM Master via JEMS"

Recording Gear: Sony ECM-939 Stereo Microphone > Sony Walkman D6C

JEMS 2017 Transfer: master cassettes > Nakamichi CR-7A azimuth-adjusted playback > Sound Devices USBPre2 > Audacity 2.0 > iZotope RX6 and Ozone 6 mastering > Peak Pro 6 (post production) > xACT 2.37 > FLAC

01 Where The Streets Have No Name
02 I Will Follow
03 I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For
04 MLK
05 The Unforgettable Fire
06 Bullet The Blue Sky
07 Running To Stand Still
08 Exit
09 In God’s Country
10 Sunday Bloody Sunday
11 Maggie’s Farm
12 Bad
13 October
14 New Year’s Day
15 Pride
16 With Or Without You
17 Gloria
18 I Shall Be Released (w/ Bob Dylan)
19 Knockin’ On Heavens Door (w/ Bob Dylan)
20 40

Known Issues:
-Maggie's Farm: start cut

Introduction To The KeithM Masters

JEMS is pleased to present the outstanding work of KeithM to U2 fans the world over and resume our series from the 1987 Joshua Tree tour.

KeithM recorded hundreds of concerts in, around and beyond Southern California starting in the early ‘80s, including what can only be described as a series of essential recordings from April 1987, the start of the Joshua Tree tour. Of the tour’s first 16 performances, incredibly KeithM recorded nine of them using a Sony ECM-939 stereo microphone and Walkman D6C. In my opinion, they range from really good to excellent and offer a striking balance in that they capture the extraordinary excitement of the crowd, but somehow little to no up-close chatter or talking.

Some of KeithM’s recordings have circulated before (though perhaps not all?) and the lineage of what is around ranges from an analog generation or two removed to “unknown.”

This series presents the first proper digital transfers ever made from KeithM’s metal master tapes and, as such, we believe each and every one of them represents a substantial upgrade to circulating copies of these nine incredible shows. In other words, 31 years later, we get to hear some of the formative shows of the original Joshua Tree tour in best-ever quality thanks to the remarkable preservation and generosity of KeithM.

Los Angeles, April 20

Night three of a high-profile, five-night stand in Los Angeles is one more step in cementing U2’s position is the biggest band in the world at that moment. The tour is firing on all cylinders now, and this concert is legendary for the guest appearance by Bob Dylan in the encore.

Once again, I suspect KeithM’s recording is the underlying source of prior releases, though at least based versions of the show found on You Tube, KeithM’s tape sounds different to me. Among the predecessors are Tonight Bob Is Playing With Us, which exists both as a commercial bootleg and an upgraded fan-released title. 4/20/87 has also circulated from a Justin Cook CD-R and in a Francesco Donadel remaster, supposedly made from a first generation cassette.

The difference I hear in KeithM’s master is that it is more open sounding and, despite the excitement of the audience, the band still cuts through, whereas on the YT audio of the show, the audience often overwhelms the music.

Like this entire run, the enthusiasm of the crowd is incredible and once again, KeithM’s technique of pushing his levels has high as he can to help get more music pays off. With several shows under his belt by this point, KeithM has his process down and the result is an excellent and consistent recording, one of the very best of this April ’87 run. Samples provided.

The performance is every bit as good as the recording, too. Surely the band was buzzing with the knowledge that they would be sharing the stage with Dylan. It puts a charge into an electric main set, with nearly flawless performances of the new Joshua Tree material, plus “Maggie’s Farm” added in as a hint of what was to come (at the expense of “A Sort of Homecoming”).

The teasing continues at the start of “I Shall Be Released” in the encore as Bono says, “I can’t remember who wrote it.” A minute or so later, that question is answered definitively as he says, “Will you welcome Bob Dylan.”

Many have cited the muffled and improvised lyrics that follow on this and “Knockin’ On Heavens Door,” but I see it as a sign of the comfort both men have in making a moment, rehearsed or not. This priceless exchange sums that feeling up amusingly:

Bono: “You know I usually make up my own words to Bob Dylan songs. He says he doesn’t mind.”

Dylan: “I do it, too.”

As guest appearances go, it is a pretty fucking great one. And it has never sounded better than it does on KeithM’s master tape.

I’d like to express my personal gratitude to KeithM for loaning us his precious master tapes and allowing us to share his work. He is enjoying reading your comments so please keep them coming. Special credit goes to DIME member bitrate for helping me connect to KeithM and remaining persistent as the months went by before we finally got things going with the tapes. Lastly, there’s no one JEMS trusts more to handle post-production of this series than our esteemed colleague mjk5510. Thanks to him for his continued critical support of our efforts.

BK for JEMS

Audio / MP3

Bit rate: 256, bit depth: 16, sample rate: 44100, channels: 2

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Audio / FLAC

Bit depth: 16, sample rate: 44100, channels: 2

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Audio samples

"New Horizon (2CD)"

Credits: Flashback Worldproductions (Silver Manufacturer)
Lineage: Flashback World Productions ‎– Flash 09.91.0161 (barcode: 4 014074 321615)
Downloads: 31

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Audio / MP3

Bit rate: 320, bit depth: 16, sample rate: 44100, channels: 2

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"FD Remaster - Speed Fix"

Origins: Audience microphone
Credits: Francesco Donadel (Remasterer)
Lineage: [unknown analogue master] > analogue copy > [remaster] > CD-R > EAC > Goldwave > .wav > FLAC > fre:ac > mp3
Downloads: 21

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(1st Gen Cass.>Remaster>Speed Fix)

Disc 1:
1. Where The Streets Have No Name
2. I Will Follow
3. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For/Exodus
4. MLK
5. The Unforgettable Fire
6. Bullet The Blue Sky
7. Running To Stand Still
8. Exit/Gloria
9. In God's Country
10. Sunday Bloody Sunday
11. Maggie's Farm/School’s Out/Cold Turkey
Disc 2:
1. Bad/Ruby Tuesday/Sympathy for the Devil
2. October
3. New Year's Day
4. Pride (In The Name Of Love)
5. With Or Without You/Love Will Tear Us Apart
6. Gloria
7. I Shall Be Released (with Bob Dylan)
8. Knockin' on Heaven's Door (with Bob Dylan)
9. "40"

Source:
April 20, 1987, Los Angeles, California. Sports Arena

History should be: Unknown taper/equipment/tape > 1st gen. cassette
> Francesco Donadel remaster > CDR > CDR (Mine) > EAC Secure
> Goldwave (speed correction only) > WAV > FLAC

Comments:

First of all, this is a pretty nice recording, which sounds a lot better
if you EQ it (turn up the treble), but one thing to note is that the taper
seems to have been a little nervous, because when the audience gets loud,
it sounds like he/she turns down the recording level. It’s not a huge deal though.

This was one of Francesco Donadel’s remasters, supposedly transferred from
a first generation cassette. I don’t know what he did to it exactly but
I remember an old version of this I had being a bit rough on the high end
(clipping I think), and I think he may have done something about that, but
I’m not sure. What he didn’t do, however, is fix the speed, so I did this,
as it was off by about the same amount as most other shows that play too fast.

On this night, U2 performed three Bob Dylan songs, which sounds like a lot
except that two of them were done with Bob Dylan himself. During “Knockin’”
Bono mentions coming back and seeing a thousand more bands in the streets,
I think this might be referring to the video shoot for Streets, done in LA,
but I am not sure. Bono says “You know I usually make up my own words to
Bob Dylan songs; he says he doesn’t mind.” Bob says “Hey I do it too.”

Flaws I noticed (all OK):
WTSHNN 1:15-1:18 pop left channel and then tiny miniscule skip
Some skipping in “New Year’s Day” that is also on other versions of the show
A click at "40" at 4:11 on the CDs received by Justin Cook

Audio / MP3

Bit rate: 224, bit depth: 16, sample rate: 44100, channels: 2

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Audio samples

"Tonight Bob Is Playing With Us"

Origins: Audience microphone
Credits: KeithM (Audio Taper)
Lineage: [Unknown Analogue Generation] > CD-R > EAC > .wav > Frontend FLAC > .flac > fre:ac >mp3
Quality based on reviews:
Downloads: 556

View info file

Audio / MP3

Bit rate: 224, bit depth: 16, sample rate: 44100, channels: 2

Download via Mega.nz

Download this recording

Audio samples

"Sories Of Boys (Part Two)"

Origins: Audience microphone, Vinyl
Credits: Amazing Stork Records (Manufacturer)
Lineage: 2xLP [Amazing Stork Records 7487 A-D] > Original vinyl LPs (Side C & D) > AT-LP60-USB Turntable > Audacity > .wav > TLH > .flac

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U2
Sports Arena
Los Angeles, CA
April 20, 1987.

"STORIES OF BOYS (aka STORIES OF THE BOYS)" - PART TWO

SOURCE: 2xLP [Amazing Stork Records 7487 A-D]

Lineage: Original vinyl LPs (Side C & D) > Audio Technica
AT-LP60-USB Turntable > Audacity > .wav > TLH (8) > .flac

01-Sunday, Bloody Sunday
02-Maggie's Farm / School's Out (For Summer)
03-Bad / Ruby Tuesday / Sympathy For The Devil
04-Gloria
05-I Shall Be Released (Featuring Bob Dylan)
06-Knockin' On Heaven's Door (Featuring Bob Dylan)
07-"40"

^^ SBS has a small skip at 4:35

Side C: T01-T03
Side D: T04-T07

ORIGINAL NOTES:
This recording is a curious one to me. I purchased these vinyl LPs at my local
record shop some years ago with the hope of digitizing them someday. (This despite
the fact that I did not own a turntable at the time!) Unfortunately, I didn't get
around to purchasing a USB turntable until very recently. Once I did that, I listened
to this recording for the first time. This generated more questions that it answered.
When I purchased the set, I naturally assumed that this was a complete recording from
a single show on The Joshua Tree tour. Part of my reason for this assumption was that
the spine of the LP sleeve identifies the show as coming from "Wembly 87". And yes,
Wembley is misspelled on the spine. (The spine also identifies the title as
STORIES OF THE BOYS) whereas the front labels it as simply STORIES OF BOYS.) I had also
hoped that this recording was a soundboard recording. But upon listening to the albums,
it became apparent that at least two different shows were sourced, and both were audience
recordings. My best guess (and I've listed several clues below that will hopefully help
to positively identify the sources) is that Sides 1 & 2 are taken from the show at
Wembley Stadium on 12 June 1987, and Sides 3 & 4 are taken from the show at The Sports Arena
in Los Angeles on 20 April 1987. If I am correct, then that makes this an incomplete concert
and therefore probably only of interest to collectors and fans of vinyl bootlegs.
I hope someone out there gets some enjoyment out of it.

[...]

NB: Sides A & B (The 1987-06-12 Wembley Stadium) show are omitted.

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Audio samples

Covers

"Live from Los Angeles 04.20.1987"

Origins: Audience microphone
Lineage: ANA-1 > Cassette > CDR

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Here you can find and post reviews of this show. We encourage everyone that either attended or listened to this show to write a review. Currently we have 9 reviews for you to read.

review by jean_pasquerel

15 years ago

Performance

The concert starts with WTSHNN, as the band kicks in, the whole stadium roars. the song itself is solid, a great starter for the night. I Will Follow is even more enthusiastic, Bono screams and shouts, gives his all to the song, and the crowd response is as good as it can get. ISHFWILF has a spoken introduction, it goes well, but this will only bloom during the third leg, this is the only song when we can feel that we are at the beginning of the tour. MLK is disturbed by some crowd noises, we get no dedications here. The Unforgettable Fire is like thunder, Larry's performance is exceptionally perfect, the falsetto parts are crystal clear, this is the first highlight of the concert. During Bullet The Blue Sky, the energy just shines down from the stage, it is good to hear this tune played without the mention of routine, the song sounds and feels fresh. Bono's second spoken part is a bit weak though, maybe his voice tired a bit by this time.
Running To Stand Still is not as kicking as it could be, there's a rush feeling in it, the emotional power that this song has, is not coming through the recording. The band gets back to top form by Exit. Though it's disturbed by some glitches in the beginning (tape mistake), this is an awesome performance, it grabs the audience, and gives goosebumps to the listener as well.
The good shape continues with In God's Country, where The Edge simply rules the house, like he's been in a fight with his Fender. Sunday Bloody Sunday is great, but no extraordinary performance here, we get an Amnesty International speech instead. Time for a cover, but Maggie's Farm is definately not a good choice here, it's just not fits in with the concert's flow, it's clearly the lowest point of the show. But after this... the band re-emerges with one of the greatest live versions of Bad ever, it's really, really exceptional, whatever brought Bono to write this song, it's all here in its full glory. Cannot explain it further, listen to it, it's really one of the strongest renditions of this track. October lets the band rest a bit, but just to let them slip to New Year's Day, which is fast and dynamic. Pride is next, Edge's riffs leading the song, Bono dedicates it to late rocks stars and Steven Biko, the murdered South African Black Conciousness leader. With Or Without You is a gift to the audience, they sing it from the top of their throats, but the same problem that is with all the live performances of this song is also presented here: WOWY is not a good live tune. The studio performance is very intense, but it's too radio-friendly compared with all the other songs that they play onstage - it just breaks the U2 concert cycle every time I hear it - and it's no exception unfortunately. A fast version of Gloria comes along, and it marks the end of the main part of the concert, as Bono introduces the band members for the audience.
The most unique moment of this show comes after this, the band starts to play a Bob Dylan song called I Shall Be Released, then the Master comes on stage to join them, and the crowd gets nuts. They play together one more song, a loose version of Knocking On Heaven's Door, they all seem to enjoy it. The finale of the show is a nice rendition of 40 - as usual, the band then goes off stage by a Clannad song played over the PA - the night ends perfectly.

Highlights: The Unforgettable Fire, Exit, In God's Country, and of course BAD.

Lowlights: MLK (disturbing crowd shoutings), Running To Stand Still (bit lame), Maggie's Farm (bad choice)

Sound

This is not a 4/5 quality recording, that's for sure. The taper could have been sitting in the back side of the arena, the bass dominance is clear (just like in the case of nearly every audience recording), so Adam's performance is easy to be recognized. We can not say the same about Edge, his guitars are just like chiming bells from far away, but in most of the songs, the riffs and main parts are enjoyable, it's only some more ambient parts, which are less precise. Larry has no problem at all as he drives through the songs, and neither Bono, his voice is strong, at some time he gets lost in the musical flow, but I'm sure we can blame it on the taper
Recording: "Tonight Bob Is Playing With Us" - 3.5 stars

Audience

This part is only rated, not commented on

Overall

This is a great early Joshua Tree concert, which has its higlights and downhills as well, but the overall view is good

all reviews

show	performance	audience	sound	overall
fenderman
germcevoy
djrlewis
haytrain
ReclinerMan
jean_pasquerel
easports43
patou2
DanielLikeAlbum

1987-04-20 - Los Angeles, California - Sports Arena

setlist

songs per album

show attendees: 14

review by jean_pasquerel

all reviews

useful links

contribute

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"KeithM Master via JEMS"

Audio / MP3

Download via Mega.nz

Audio / FLAC

Download via Mega.nz

Audio samples

"New Horizon (2CD)"

Audio / MP3

Download via Mega.nz

"FD Remaster - Speed Fix"

Audio / MP3

Download via Mega.nz

Audio samples

"Tonight Bob Is Playing With Us"

Audio / MP3

Download via Mega.nz

Audio samples

"Sories Of Boys (Part Two)"

Audio samples

"Live from Los Angeles 04.20.1987"

what they said

did you know

you

U2start

1987-04-20 - Los Angeles, California - Sports Arena

setlist

songs per album

show attendees: 14

review by jean_pasquerel

all reviews

useful links

contribute

support us

"KeithM Master via JEMS"

Info file

Audio / MP3

Download via Mega.nz

Audio / FLAC

Download via Mega.nz

Audio samples

"New Horizon (2CD)"

Info file

Audio / MP3

Download via Mega.nz

"FD Remaster - Speed Fix"

Info file

Audio / MP3

Download via Mega.nz

Audio samples

"Tonight Bob Is Playing With Us"

Info file

Audio / MP3

Download via Mega.nz

Audio samples

"Sories Of Boys (Part Two)"

Info file

Covers

Audio samples

"Live from Los Angeles 04.20.1987"

Info file

what they said

did you know

you

U2start