It is that time of the year again when fans are anxiously awaiting the arrival of a new fan club CD and getting frustrated wondering when it will arrive. Given the past history of difficulties with these CDs, it is no surprise that people do get worried.

The subscriber CDs started with U2.Communication, which was first announced on Nov. 28, 2005. Three weeks passed between the announcement of the CD and the gift arriving in fans' hands. Zoo TV Live was announced in November of the following year, and also appeared in mailboxes within three weeks. U2 Go Home: Live From Slane Castle was announced in November 2007, and started arriving within seven weeks of the announcement.

In November 2008, U2.com announced they were working on the annual gift. A few weeks later they asked subscribers to hold off on subscribing until a new gift was ready. The Medium, Rare, And Remastered set was not announced until late February, and the first reports of it arriving in fans' hands was early April. Fans were also given an extension in subscriptions to make up for the late arrival of the gift. It was five months from the first mention of a new gift, until they started arriving.

Artificial Horizon was announced in September 2009, and started arriving in March 2010, six months from announcement until arrival. Duals was first announced in August 2010 and started arriving eight months later in April 2011. I wasn't even worried about U22 yet. The compilation was first mentioned last October, and we know that every year the time between announcement and fulfillment seems to be getting later and later. June would have them right on the expected pace for the annual gift, especially for a release that they seem to be putting additional work into designing and editing.

Speaking of U22, the recent information that it would start shipping at the end of May came with a note, "On May 30th download a further EIGHT tracks from the 22 on the double CD -- and U22 will be on the way to you." Am I the only one who is disappointed they aren't offering tracks that didn't make U22? We will all have the CD in a few weeks if we subscribe, so these downloads will mean little in the long run, but I would sure love to have some of the tracks that didn't make the CD.

"Unknown Caller (Live from London, Aug. 14, 2009)" was released this week as a present to U2.com subscribers. It will not be on the final U22 album. I was far more excited to have that song, knowing it won't be on the final release, than the other three songs U2.com has made available. I'm still hoping for a download of the never before released "Return Of The Stingray Guitar." Please let us hear "40," the last song of the last night of the tour. I would personally love to hear "Mothers Of The Disappeared" from Istanbul, one of those tour moments that gave me goose bumps.

Thank you so much for "Unknown Caller," and not to be greedy, but can we please have more?!

I was at my local HMV music store last week browsing through iPhone cases when I spotted one that said "U2" amongst other random words. The case was a celebrity-designed product, sold to raise funds for whateverittakes.org. The product is part of an artwork campaign launched by an organization that has gathered 660 leaders, from royalty to Nobel Peace Prize laureates and musicians, to design artwork that is used on products the foundation sells. Proceeds go to toward poverty alleviation, environmental conservation and protection of children.

The Chris Martin (of Coldplay) design is a cross, and inside the cross are multi-colored words including "U2." Looking at the case in the store, "U2," "Music," "Happiness," "Hope" and "Cakebread" were the words that stood out and caught my eye. The design has been made available on mugs, mouse mats and a plate.

Looking through the list of contributors I was surprised to see a doodle by The Edge as well. It looks pretty simple, mostly a blue dot. But the self-portrait doodle is fun. Unlike the Chris Martin design, no product is yet available with The Edge's design. I'd be happy to have a little "doodle" Edge on a mug someday, so I will be checking back.

Has the shine worn off All That You Can't Leave Behind? Rolling Stone magazine has published a "Top 500 Albums Of All Time" list. The list was first published in 2003, then updated in 2005 and again this year. The most recent version of the list is now available on store shelves.

U2 has had five albums on the list for each update. The Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby, All That You Can't Leave Behind, War and Boy all appear on the list. With each edition, new albums have been added and some shifting of placement has occurred for most albums in the list. For four of the U2 albums listed here, those shifts have been less than five places since the chart was first published in 2003. All That You Can't Leave Behind was initially placed at 139 on the list of "Top 500 Albums Of All Time." The most recent published list now has the album at 280, and the fourth U2 album on the list behind War. All That You Can't Leave Behind is the only album that has had a major shift downward.

My mother loves to suggest that given any artist, I can link them to U2, whether it be someone Bono has worked with, a producer in common, or maybe even Bono has covered a song live in concert. I'm usually pretty quick with an answer.

To test the theory, I looked up the artists born today, May 20, and found out it was Cher's birthday.

I knew my connection right away, and no, it wasn't marrying Sonny Bono! Cher has been using "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" to open her shows for years. If you don't believe me, there's always YouTube. Happy birthday Cher!

(c) @U2, 2012.

At the Global Food Summit in D.C. today, NBC's Andrea Mitchell interviewed U2 frontman Bono about efforts to curb hunger in Africa.

"Hunger is a ridiculous thing. And we know what to do in order to fix it.  There's, you know, these whole new approaches to agriculture to increase productivity, etc. But what's key about today's announcement is that the president of the United States is supporting African ideas on how to fix their problem. There are country-owned, country-devised plans in 30 African countries. And that's what it will take to get to that 50 million people taken out of -- out of hunger over the next decade."

With over 7,000 items in our news archives, it's a safe bet you haven't read all of them! This month we begin our look at 1988.

Mullen It Over, Star Hits

Larry: "I'm not prepared to give up my humanity for rock and roll. I'd give up anything but that. I fight for my rights. I say no to people, do not follow me, no I will not sign my autograph now; I'm going to dinner. I'm very straightforward with people. Therefore, I get away with a bit more. Sometimes the only way you get away with it is being harsh."

U2, In Fashion magazine

Bono: "People throw too much responsibility on me and the group. There's a guy who reckons he wrote the lyrics on the new album and he wants royalties. He's a sick man. But he's armed and dangerous. You let someone put their arm round you for a photograph and then you got a paternity suit."

A Mighty Long Way Down Rock 'n' Roll, Hot Press

Adam: "We have felt that, because we've become a big band, you can actually lose touch with the one thing that makes you feel alive, which is music...because you get caught up in the whole celebrity thing, the business trip and all that stuff. And we need people around us who keep us grounded to music, and we go after those people and [Bob] Dylan is one of them."

As expected, Bono performed Thursday night at the Jazz Foundation of America's (JFA) annual concert and gala at the famous Apollo Theater in New York City. He sang "Angel Of Harlem" and -- much like on the first leg of the 360 tour in 2009 -- added in a bit of Michael Jackson's hit, "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough."

The photo above is from the @NewYorkNatives Twitter account, and the @ApolloTheater account also posted a photo of Bono's appearance. The Apollo also shared an incomplete video that doesn't seem able to be embedded.

UPDATE: Guitar Shop TV has posted a full video of Bono's performance on YouTube, which you can also see below.

We've known for several months what songs are on U22, the upcoming U2.com members-only CD, but only today has the final song order been posted on U2.com. Here are the 22 tracks as they're spread over two CDs:

Disc One

1. Even Better Than The Real Thing
2. The Fly
3. Mysterious Ways
4. Magnificent
5. Until The End Of The World
6. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
7. Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
8. One Tree Hill
9. Beautiful Day
10. Elevation
11. Bad

Disc Two

12. All I Want Is You/Love Rescue Me
13. The Unforgettable Fire
14. Zooropa
15. City Of Blinding Lights
16. Mlk/Walk On
17. One
18. Where The Streets Have No Name
19. Ultra Violet (Light My Way)
20. With Or Without You
21. Moment Of Surrender
22. Out Of Control

With only a couple exceptions, the song order actually comes pretty close to resembling a U2 360 concert. As we reported yesterday, U22 should begin shipping by the end of May.

[Ed. note: This is the 67th in a series of personal essays by the @U2 staff about songs and/or albums that have had great meaning or impact in our lives.]

Despite its mixed critical reception and relative lack of commercial success (at least by U2's lofty standards), I really like the No Line On The Horizon album. It's a good collection of songs that, unfortunately, has been given little chance to mature. Rather than promote U2's latest studio album, the last few legs of the 360 tour turned into a greatest hits parade, with only two or three songs from NLOTH on the setlist.

Admittedly, it is not the band's most immediately accessible album, nor is it the most radio-friendly. It took me a handful of listenings to appreciate the entire record. Prior to the album's release, I had downloaded the "Get On Your Boots" single and was ambivalent about it. I did not dislike the song, but wasn't completely blown away by it either. So, when the limited-edition box set of No Line On The Horizon arrived that fateful Tuesday in early March 2009, I was a bit skeptical about it. But hearing "Magnificent" for the first time changed that.

"It was a joyful noise"

In fall 2000, I had heard "Beautiful Day" on the radio and was excited for All That You Can't Leave Behind. I remember liking the album's first three songs, but absolutely loving "Walk On." At the time, I still hadn't quite fully warmed up to Pop, so when I heard Edge's guitar enter in the second part of the introduction to "Walk On," I was overjoyed. "U2 is back!" I exclaimed. I had a nearly identical experience with "Magnificent" and NLOTH nine years later. The title track did not do much to assuage my initial worries. "No problem," I thought. "This is only the first track of my very first time through this new record. Give it a chance." During the opening of the second track, "Magnificent," I remember thinking, "Hmm, this is interesting. I wonder how this song develops?"

My curiosity quickly turned to excitement as the song's texture gradually filled in. First, Edge's guitar enters softly -- almost innocently -- in the background. Then, a synthesizer comes in, followed shortly by Adam's bass guitar, then Larry's snare drum. By the time the introduction is in full swing (around the 0:46 mark), I'm hooked. The instant The Edge's guitar echo entered, I smiled widely and said out loud, "Ah, there it is. There's the U2 I know and love." All my worries about the record vanished in that moment and, before I knew it, my list of favorite U2 songs had expanded by one.

One of the first things about "Magnificent" that stood out to me was the song's title. "Magnificent" is a wonderful word, but it is not used very often in song lyrics, likely because of the number of syllables or the fact that it is not the easiest word to use in a rhyme scheme. That U2 use the word as the title of the song was an attention grabber in itself, but the fact that Bono actually uses the word in the song is a credit to his songwriting skills.

Musically, "Magnificent" stands out from the rest of album in that it sounds like "old U2" and "new U2" simultaneously. The long, building introduction is reminiscent of "Where The Streets Have No Name" and "City Of Blinding Lights;" the guitar riff, with its copious amounts of echo, reminds me of "One" and "Walk On." But "Magnificent" also incorporates its fair share of new sounds, like the electronic "boops" and synthesizer in the introduction as well as Edge's seldom-used slide guitar in the interlude. The song successfully manages to break new sonic ground while retaining the essence of U2's unique sound.

"This foolishness can leave a heart black and blue"

As I listened to "Magnificent" a few more times, I thought back to my initial reactions to the band's previous release. It did not take me long to fall in love with 2004's How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. In particular, "Vertigo," "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" and "City Of Blinding Lights" have taken their places among my all-time U2 favorites. HTDAAB set an incredibly high bar: eight Grammy Awards, an iPod advertising campaign, and tons of radio airplay. I knew it was unfair and foolish of me to hold NLOTH to that standard, but the combination of U2's consistent success over the course of their long career with the popularity and acclaim of their previous release left me no choice but to expect NLOTH to be a great album.

"I was born to sing for you"

Along with The Edge's guitar echo, Bono's voice is perhaps U2's most immediately recognizable sonic characteristic. On "Magnificent," he displays much of the wide vocal range and power that has become part of his musical signature. Singing is not easy, to say nothing of singing well. To hit high notes with the kind of force and authority that Bono has for almost 40 years is nothing short of amazing. "Magnificent" starts out in the high part of his tessitura, but it is toward the end of the song, on the second syllable of "only" in the line "Only love unites our hearts," that always sends shivers down my spine.

In addition to Bono to being on top of his game, Adam's bass playing has rarely been better than it is on "Magnificent." The bass line entrance in the introduction gives the song its foundation and groove, and the slides he incorporates in the linking section between the second chorus and the interlude add yet another layer to an already complex texture. More than the technical aspects, though, his bass line sounds like it would be loads of fun to play.

"I didn't have a choice but to lift you up"

A little background before I conclude: I wrote a music theory dissertation on U2's music, so my deep connection to U2 runs along both the personal and professional veins. At the risk of sounding cheesy and overly dramatic, when I hear U2's music, not only are my heart and soul stirred, but my brain as well, which explains why I so often write about elements like bass lines, vocal range and guitar effects.

Because of these interesting musical technicalities and theoretical aspects, "Magnificent" means a great deal to me. It helped reaffirm my career choice as a music theorist, and more specifically a popular music analyst. When U2 released NLOTH, I was in the middle of my first year as a full-time assistant professor of music theory, living alone in a brand-new part of the country, in a city where I knew exactly zero people. Add to that the fact that I was in a long-distance relationship and you've got the ingredients for a very tough transition from graduate school to full-fledged adulthood. But one of the things that helped me through that period was a new U2 album. I had something to keep my mind and my heart occupied so that I wouldn't dwell on how much I missed my friends or how I wished the temperature would climb above freezing.

"Magnificent" not only reaffirmed my love of U2's music from an intellectual perspective, but also from an emotional standpoint. It is an uplifting song, and that is precisely why it captivated my attention almost instantaneously. My favorite aspect of the band's music in general is the inherent, unabashed hopefulness it exudes. These are trying times, with economic uncertainty, political discord and social tension casting clouds over just about every aspect of our daily lives. It is comforting and inspiring to know that, despite all the negativity in the world, people are still creating music that is unapologetically hopeful and positive. Times as low and as dark as these need music as buoyant and as bright as "Magnificent."

© @U2/Endrinal, 2012.

U2.com subscribers should be getting an email today with news that U22 will be shipped by the end of May to everyone who's a current member for 2012. U22 is, of course, the latest fan club-only release -- a two-CD collection of 22 live tracks from various shows on the U2 360 tour.

Current U2.com members should also find a bonus live track, "Unknown Caller," available for download now on the Account Info page at U2.com. This is a bonus track that's not included on U22. The email also says that eight more tracks will be available for current members to download on May 30th.

Bono is slated to make a pair of public appearances this week in the U.S.-- one singing performance and one speaking presentation.

First up is the Jazz Foundation of America's (JFA) annual concert and gala at the Apollo Theater in Harlem on Thursday night (May 17). Bono is listed as one of the concert performers on the JFA's website. Guests at the fund raiser will include Quincy Jones, Dr. John and others. Tickets are still available for the concert and start at $$100.

Then on Friday, Bono is due to speak in Washington, DC at the Chicago Council’s 3rd Annual Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security. Bono will be there on behalf os his One Campaign to talk about food security and private sector investment in African agriculture. President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are also due to speak.

The second set of results from the 2012 U2 Fan Survey is now available, and it takes us through section D -- i.e., four of the nine total sections.

As a reminder, the survey was open from April 5th through April 30th. We received completed responses from 3,530 fans in 79 countries this year, both of which are down from 2010. We think that's likely due to the band being in downtime right now, meaning less traffic to @U2 and fewer fans being aware of the survey.

If you missed our recap of the first set of results, feel free to go back and catch up there. Below are a few thoughts on this second set:

WIRE (u2-list) population is slowly declining. When we asked this question on the first U2 Fan Survey in 2005, 19.4 percent of survey takers said they used to be members of the WIRE, the very first mailing list for U2 fans (started way back in 1992). This year, only 15.1 percent answered in the affirmative. Not surprising, just a little sad for us old-timers.

Forums are pretty popular. About 73 percent of all respondents said they're registered on at least one U2-related forum. But they're mostly lurkers because, in the follow-up question (C5), about 75 percent said they post less than once a month on forums. (Feel free to try the @U2 Forum if you want to join that 73 percent.)

Fewer freeloads? In this year's survey, 48 percent said "yes," they've downloaded a U2 song or album without paying for it. That's down a fair bit from the 55 percent who answered "yes" in 2010. So, either fewer U2 fans are downloading songs without paying, or fewer are willing to admit that they've done so!

Live setlists are a big hit. In this year's survey, a whopping 90 percent of fans said they've followed U2 setlists live online via Twitter or forums. Wow. That's up from about 78 percent back in 2010.

Twitter's gaining steam. On a related note, Twitter is a lot more popular this year (48.5 percent say they don't use it) than it was in 2010 (66 percent said they don't use it). Note, too, that only about 77 percent of fans who say they use Twitter also follow The Edge's account. Not sure what's up with that other 23 percent.

Bono is loved. Edge is respected. Adam was a fashion mistake. Just like in 2010, this year's survey takers said Bono is their favorite U2 band member, but Edge is far and away the choice as most skilled musician in the band. This year, fans voted Adam's October-era afro as the worst fashion mistake in U2 history, a switch from 2010 when Bono's mid-80s mullet won that honor.

U2 has longevity left. Although the numbers are down a bit from 2010, about 66 percent of fans think U2 will still be together and making new music for at least the next eight years. (Bono and Adam will turn 60 years old in eight years, by the way.) In 2010, 74 percent of survey takers felt the band has at least eight years left.

Ready to see all of the replies to Sections C and D? Visit our U2 Fan Survey page. And stay tuned as we post more from the 2012 U2 Fan Survey in the coming days and weeks.

Fans at a Glen Hansard concert earlier this week got a nice surprise when Bono showed up to perform a duet of "The Auld Triangle" with him to close out the show. If you missed the videos that captured it, we have posted a few here.

This surprise appearance immediately reminded me of the time Brandon Flowers took the stage on the Vertigo tour to sing "In A Little While" with Bono. I was lucky enough to be in the audience that night in Las Vegas, and I remember my heart pounding out of control when he started singing.

So... what are your best "surprise appearance" memories? Post your answers in the @U2 forum.

Last week we released the first batch of results from our 2012 U2 Fan Survey. None of the responses shocked me (I've studied these surveys religiously since we started doing them), but I'll have to admit, I was somewhat surprised about the number of fans who have never purchased a (RED) or Edun product.

Nearly 86 percent say they haven't purchased Edun clothing; 55.4 percent say they haven't tried (RED).

Why so low?

I suppose folks who don't like the (RED) branding (or quite simply don't like the color red) may not be up for purchasing products that reflect this design. And Edun has always been a luxury brand, so the price points for its items probably scare some shoppers away.

But I would encourage those who may want to reconsider their choices to take a look at current products in both places. For example, (RED) now sells a bracelet that's only $$5; Edun has T-shirts and accessories that are significantly less expensive than their designer apparel.

On another note, the survey answer that made me the happiest was the one about causes. Over 58 percent of survey respondents mentioned that U2 had inspired them to join an organization or become active in some cause or campaign. I can't think of any other group of entertainers who have had such an impact on the greater good.

It's always a pleasure writing for @U2, but I'll have to say, that joy is heightened when we receive positive feedback about our work (especially the subjective stuff). The blistering responses I received after leaving "Spanish Eyes" off of my U2 Lists: Top 5 Bono Howls piece (intentionally -- because he screams vs. howls) almost caused me to throw in the U2 Lists towel for good, but thankfully I mustered the courage to have at it last month and scripted the piece about Essential U2 books. I'm humbled to say I've received a number of emails and tweets thanking me for recommending certain titles, or telling me how they'd picked up one of the books because they read my list. I can't speak for other staffers, but it means a lot to me when folks take the time to send us a note about something they enjoyed.

Speaking of U2 Lists, if you haven't already read Sherry Lawrence's timely piece on the mom-is-muse topic, I highly recommend you take a look. After all, today is Mother's Day!

And finally, in honor of the holiday, I'd like to offer a sincere "thank you" to all the moms out there for their love, dedication and wisdom. In addition, I'd like to extend that measure of gratitude to the aunts, sisters, grandmothers and friends who act as surrogate mommies or offer other mothers some much-needed support. The world owes a great deal to all of you.

© @U2/Kokkoris, 2012.