Tentative Cover for U2, A Diary
1 Apr 2008
Raul was first to notice a cover image for U2, A Diary on Amazon:
I checked with Chris at Omnibus (my editor) to see if this is the cover, and the answer, in one word is:
Maybe.
:) There’s a big publishing industry trade show coming up in London and this is the cover they’re using for the promotional material that will be displayed there. There’s a chance it’ll be the final cover image, too. But also a chance it’ll change.
So, there you have it. Nice find, Raul.
not a great cover – if it is going to show the band members – should have all 4.
I like the cover but if it is a diary about U2 I think all 4 of them should be on the cover . It is not about Bono & Edge. That is my opinion .
Thank you,
Maria Diorio
Montreal Quebec
Canada
It’s a great photo, just one problem…U2 has four members.
Can’t wait to get the book Matt!
I was wondering what was up with you and the book. Guess I could’ve just checked your blog, but that would have made sense.
Like the cover alot, however, I thought there are 4 members to u2??
However, will definitely be buying it when it’s released!! Keep up the great work Matt!!
It makes me kind of sad. There are four members of U2 not just two. The cover should incorporate all the members of this remarkable band.
hmmm but is someone missing in that photo? don’t? :D anyway, it’s a great cover!!
I agree with a number of previous comments: The cover should have all four members.
Looking forward to the final product.
Hey there…I know it’ll be a great read regardless but someone let the publishers know that just like the Beatles, and Led Zeppelin, ther are 4 members in the world’s greatest Band U2!!!!!:):) Awesome work Matt:)
Scott
First thing I noticed about this cover was… where is Larry & Adam? I think it would be an insult to publish the book with that cover. Think “With or Without You”, or “New Year’s Day”, that’s Adam man!
Oh, for goodness’ sake. So what if Adam and Larry aren’t featured? It’s not a Bono and Edge photo. It’s a U2 photo. How many great U2 book covers feature Bono only? Don’t listen to them, Matt. Your selection has to be artistic, not politically correct. When one puts aside the “Hey, where’s Adam and Larry?” rubbish, there’s something quite artistic, quite poignant – quite Zen, actually – about the starkness of this cover, which a photo dutifully and predictably containing all four members would ruin.
It is a great picture. But we are fans of all 4 U2 members and the cover should be of all of the band. Can’t wait to buy the book though.
I agree with the other comments. Also, this photo seems like very used stock art. Isn’t there something else. Maybe, since this is a diary going back a ways, an older photo would have been better?
The general consensus here is this cover definitely is incomplete :( Here’s hoping a cover showing all four members will be chosen :)
April Fools cover? ;)
I seriously believe that lots of improvements could be made to the cover and I would like to see Mr. Clayton and Mr. Mullen Jr. on it as well.
I don’t want to sound rude but honestly this cover doesn’t connect with me as a U2 fan other that it has “U2″ on it. I’m fine with the minimalistic approach but it just doesn’t have “it” in it’s current design.
Also, your name is too small. You’re the author after all. :) Keep up the good work, Matt!
lets not forget peeps…matt may have written the book but the publishers will cover it any way they see fit. of course we’d prefer it to show all 4 U2ers. but hey.
It’s been said here many times, but just in case your publisher is paying attention … the cover needs to show all four band members; U2 are not U2 without Larry and Adam!
All the best!
Matt,
Besides the 2 or 4 members question, there is another point: we already have a U2 Live Diary. So, as your book is by far more vast – it’s not only a live diary but also a diary of the whole carreer (and life!) – I would suggest not to use a live performance photo.
Raul
PS: It’s not easy because of copyright…
Hey Matt! The book is a great undertaking, good stuff.
I agree with many things previously said.
Honestly, this cover makes no sense. If your book was called…
“U2: To Be A Rocker, Yeah!”
then the purple lightning name would be appropriate, nay, rock n’ roll.
However, U2 is not glam rock and purple lightning letters don’t quite make it.
You are presenting them in your book, I believe, not as the arbitrary ‘rockers, yeah!’, but people who have dreams and wisdom and doubts and faith…
and who happen to express those things in music.
The cover should be warm, intimate, and deliberate.
Purple lightning is not very deliberately reminiscint of a diary. !!!
:)
So do you have any input on the cover design? Or do they exclusively control that?
take care.
As others have said, the lack of all four band members is conspicuous and not a good decision. Publisher people, if you’re reading, you should seriously reconsider this cover. It’s okay to have Bono and Edge “at the front”, but surely you can find an equally engaging photo that at least has Larry and Adam in the background? I mean, that would be a fairly accurate photo about how people view U2 as a whole in the first place. Furthermore, the current photo looks astonishingly similar to the photo used on U2 Live: A Concert Documentary. Shouldn’t this book be distinguished from that? As a DIARY, it’s about more than just live concerts – it goes well beyond that. Seriously, folks – give Matt’s book the cover it deserves. And it will help you sell more, too. Go figure…
Great style for the cover with good graphics. As a long time Rock Radio Programmer, I know fans are first and foremost likely to buy the book, at least initially. You will lose credibility and sales if the entire band is not shown on the cover.
Lennon/McCartney were the driving force behind the Beatles as are Jagger/Richards with the Stones. Yet, the success is derived from a Band and the Band must be included on the cover.
Good Luck!
Actually, I find this to be a rather classy and elegant cover (with the exception of the purple Ghostbusters slime behind the title), though like everyone I agree with the fact that it’s is kind of uncomfortable only seeing two members there.
Perhaps the man who founded the group (Larry) and the gentleman referred to as the musical conscience of the band (Adam) should be represented as well!
I always thought that the wide shot of the 4 of them playing “Yahweh” together at the tip of the ellipse would make for a beautiful book cover.
Best of luck Matt!
the image on the cover needs to be of the all four members of U2 they all deserve to be acknowledged!!!!
Thx for all the feedback on the tentative cover, gang. To answer the question(s) above, I can give feedback on the cover and design of the book, but I don’t make the final decisions.
I do agree with the idea that all four band members should be on the book cover, and am pleased to report that it appears things are moving in that direction. More to come when I know more.
The cover is beautiful . . . for a book on Bono and Edge. Larry and Adam are too awesome to leave off. However, I think it would be very fitting to put them on the back cover as a sort of acknowledgment of their unique role in the band. Like the back cover of a book, Mullen Jr. and Clayton don’t like to be in the limelight or do the marketing, but they hold the contents together just as much as Bono and Edge.
I have the same opinion…
All 4 members should be on the cover!
It’s a good photo, but all four band members should be on the cover.
Another comment is: the photo is instantly recognisable as being form the Elevation/Vertigo era. Something not so recognisable would be better. example U2 18 – CD cover, they used a very old black and white photo from around 1980. It had a very strong impact and at the same time it was a new photo previously unseen.
Seems many here believe as I do… great idea, and the book looks fantastic so far but a cover with all four members might be the better choice.