All That You Can't Leave Behind



The photographs used on All That You Can't Leave Behind were taken in Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris, and the video for Beautiful Day was also filmed there. The picture on the front cover of the album has been doctored slightly since it was first taken, and has caused a lot of debate among U2 fans as a result. Originally the board on the left of the picture showed the name of a departure gate in the airport, but the band changed this to "J33-3->". It is generally agreed that this is a reference to a Biblical verse, but the debate centres around deciding which one. It was thought to be John 33: 3, but there is in fact no such verse. The J has also been said to stand for Jeremiah or Job, although Jeremiah is the more likely of the two, as it reads "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and hidden things which you have not known." Sounds plausible.

This latest album unsurprisingly includes references to some of the political causes to which the band are strongly committed. The song 'Walk On' is dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi who is a leading figure in the pro-democracy movement in Burma and has been under virtual house arrest since 1989. Because ATYCLB highlights the injustices present in Burma, the government there have banned it from sale and threatened anyone found in possession of it with a lengthy jail sentence. Each song on the LP has an individual icon associated with it, the one for 'Walk On' appropriately being the candle and barbed wire symbol for Amnesty International. A footnote in the sleeve notes urges fans to support action against the regime there by visiting the website burmacampaign.org.uk. Closer to home, 'Peace On Earth' makes a poignant reference to the victims of the terrorist bomb which killed 29 people in Omagh, Northern Ireland on 14th August 1998. The names "Sean and Julia, Gareth, Ann and Breda" mentioned in the song are actual names of people who died in the explosion: Sean McLaughlin (aged 12), Julie Hughes (21), Gareth Conway (18), Ann McCombe (48) and Breda Devine (1 year 8 months).
FromThree Chords and the Truth

Released 2000

Tracks on the album include:
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