[WTSHNN]

This is a list of quotes compiled by Chris Edge over at u2pres.......
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"When Kelly told me about the bootlegs a few months ago, I wasn't sure that it would go," McGuinness says. "One worry was how enthusiastic the label would be to do it, but it would seem they've been cooperative. Three million total is a very significant result for Sony [Epic's parent company] as much as for the band. It just goes to show that if you make a good enough case, these giant corporations will do exactly what you want. It's been my experience they respond well to being infiltrated, and if you go to your corporation with a plan and it's a good one, very often you'll get total cooperation and have good results."
http://www.dallasobserver.com/issue...4-12/stuff.html


NIGHTINGALE: We've been asking people to ring in with some questions. This is an unusual one. Alan Ivory from Kent: "What do you think about bootleg tapes being sold?."

BONO: As long as people don't pay too much for them, we've no problem with bootlegs. What I have a problem with is people charging five quid for a record that's you know, inferior, or a live concert that's been done on a Walkman. They're just extorting people who are into music and into U2. So I really object to them, and I think that they should all have their toenails pulled out. But if they do them at reasonable prices, no problem.

MULLEN: I don't necessarily agree with Bono on this, because I think 99 per cent of it is rip-off merchants. The only system that works is when people tape things and swap them, no one has any objections to that. But when people start selling them on the street, I think it's always going to lead into extortion, and ripping people off.

SCOTT: Let's throw this over to Paul McGuinness, who's their manager. Do you actually go after the bootleggers?

McGUINNESS: Yes, if there are boatloads of them, yes. But I remember a few years ago when there was that stupid campaign that the record industry organised called "Home Taping is Killing Music". I remember thinking, "What a stupid thing to say. How could home taping kill music?. Home taping was spreading music, and I thought it was a good thing. Actually, let me qualify that a little. If there is some bastards in Taiwan who has got a boatload of couterfeit copies of Rattle and Hum, and he ships them to Europe, I hope it sinks….
http://classifieds.kingsoft-denmark.com/int1.htm


ADAM: "I think bootlegs are something that's very difficult to stop. There are fans out there that want to buy them. I don't like overpriced bootlegs that are ripping the fans off. If they're good quality recordings of a show then I'm happy enough that people have access to those things."


Tonster: Paul: what do you feel about boot legs
Paul: Well, I would distinguish between bootlegs and counterfeits. Counterfeits I take avery
dim view of because they're taking money from my clients' pockets. The bootleg
phenomenon I'm very relaxed about, quite honestly. I think everyone knows the difference
between an authorized recording we'd put out. The fact that people circulate and swap
recordings they've made at our concerts I'm actually very relaxed about even though the
industry is formally opposed to it. I do have a problem with the recordings produced in
Europe, particularly in Italy -- you can find a whole range of things that look like official U2
recordings in full color packaging -- they are extremely poor quality with a very high price tag
and I think there should be more legal protection against things like that. But in Italy the law
is inadequate to deal with that.


BONO ON BOOTLEGS:
"The only thing that can piss you off is if people are charging a lot of money for something that isn't very good. It [the Achtung Baby working tapes] got bootlegged in Berlin and it was just like having your notebook read out. That's the bit I didn't like about it. There were no undiscovered works of genius, unfortunately, it was more just gobbledy-gook..."
Note: Bono admits going out and buying a copy of that bootleg anyway!

Paul McGuiness (U2's manager) is asked:
What do you feel about bootlegs?

Paul says:
Well, I would distinguish between bootlegs and counterfeits. Counterfeit
albums, which are simply illegally produced reproductions of our records,
I obviously would take a very dim view of because they're taking money
from my clients' pockets.

The bootleg phenomenon, by which I presume you mean illegal live
recordings of the concerts - I'm very relaxed about that, quite honestly. I
think everyone knows the difference between an authorized live recording
that we would put out, for instance Under A Blood Red Sky or Rattle &
Hum - everyone kind of understands that that's a legitimate live recording.

The fact that people circulate and swap recordings they've made at our
concerts with tape recorders under their coats I'm actually very relaxed
about that. I know the industry is formally opposed to that kind of thing
but I'm not. I don't have a problem with it at all.

The other thing I do have a problem with are the recordings that are
produced in Europe in full color packaging, particularly in Italy, where
there's very inadequate copyright protection. In Italy, in any Italian record
store, you can find a whole range of things that look like official U2
recordings on CD with full color packaging and very often borrowing
from established U2 graphics and photography. They are usually of
extremely poor quality and they carry a very high price tag and I think
there should be more legal protection against things like that. But,
unfortunately, in Italy the law is utterly inadequate to deal with that.

Adam (U2's bassist) is asked:
How do you feel about bootlegs?

Adam says:
I think bootlegs are something that it's very difficult to stop. Obviously
there are fans out there that want to buy them. I don't like overpriced
bootlegs that are ripping the fans off. If they're good quality recordings of
a show then I'm happy enough that people have access to those things
and I know that there's a culture out there that listens to bootlegs. So I
kind of tolerate it, provided the quality is good and the fans aren't being ripped off.

Edge (U2's guitarist) is asked:
How do you feel about fans putting your copyrighted material on their webpages??

Edge says:
I don't have a problem with music being on the Internet, as long as
it's not resold because I don't believe that music on the Internet is bad for
music . . . I think it's OK for music. To me, it's a bit like when cassette
tapes were first made available, the music industry thought that blank
tapes would destroy the business because people would be at home
churning out copies for their friends. It never happened. I think music on
the Internet is going to work out as just another place for people to discover new things.

Edge is asked:
What do you think of bootlegs?

Edge says:
I have no problems with bootlegs. I think, again, if people make
recordings and give them to their friends - as long as people don't get ripped off.


The Edge on bootlegs: "I have no problems with bootlegs, I think, again, if people make recordings and give them to their friends - as long as people don't get ripped off."
Bono on bootlegs: "The only thing that can piss you off is if people are charging a lot of money for something that isn't very good. It [the Hansa Studios, Achtung Baby working tapes] got bootlegged in Berlin and it was just like having your notebook read out. That's the bit I didn't like about it. There were no undiscovered works of genius, unfortunately, it was more just gobbledy-gook..." Note: Bono admits going out and buying a copy of that bootleg anyway!


"Bootlegs are fine if you're making a few of them for your friends, I've no problem with that, but if it's big business, bad ass crime, I don't think you want to be a part of that -– and that's what this is. We're dealing with some nasty people and I don't think you should be paying for their summer holiday in Ibiza."
http://www.atu2.com/news/article.src?ID=3608


"People sharing our music, personally I have no problem with. It's when they're doing it as a business, I have a real problem with that." Bono, quoted in Contactmusic 12/23/2004