| "The Hands That Built America" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Song byU2 | |
| from the albumThe Best of 1990–2000 /Gangs of New York: Music from the Miramax Motion Picture | |
| Released | 5 November 2002 |
| Genre | Symphonic rock |
| Length | 4:35(Soundtrack Mix) 4:58(The Best of 1990–2000 Version) |
| Label | Interscope |
| Songwriter | U2 |
| Producer | The Edge |
"The Hands That Built America" is a song by Irishrock bandU2. It was released on thesoundtrack to the filmGangs of New York,[1] and was one of two new songs on the group'sThe Best of 1990–2000 compilation (the other being "Electrical Storm").[2] It was nominated forBest Original Song at the75th Academy Awards,[3] but lost toEminem's "Lose Yourself".
"The Hands That Built America" is a song about the experience of nineteenth century Irish migrants to New York and their contribution to building America. The song was considered for single release and was announced as such for a 2003 release. The songs "The Playboy Mansion" (2003 Version - originally fromPop) and "That's Life" (a cover song by Bono and released onthe soundtrack forThe Good Thief) were announced as B-sides. However, the release was canceled.
The soundtrack mix of the song featuresAndrea Corr, who played thetin whistle, andSharon Corr who played the violin.[4] The title of the song was inspired byHorslips title track to their album "The Man Who Built America" with the full blessing of Horslips singer and bass playerBarry Devlin,[citation needed] who had also produced a number of U2 videos. InGangs of New York the song is played with a long and grand intro and plays over the final sequence and the closing credits.
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U2 have performed this song live in its entirety seven times, the first being at the premiere ofGangs of New York on 9 December 2002, and the last occurrence done solely byBono andthe Edge as an acoustic performance at the opening of theClinton Presidential Library inLittle Rock, Arkansas on 18 November 2004.[5]
Although "The Hands That Built America" has not been played live since 2004, it was included at every concert on theVertigo Tour (2005–2006) as asnippet during performances of "Bullet the Blue Sky". This took place in conjunction with snippets of "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" and sometimes "Please".[5] It was later featured as a snippet again on theInnocence + Experience Tour before "Pride (In the Name of Love)".[6] It was later replaced by "Zooropa" on the European leg of the tour.[7]
Two different music videos were created for "The Hands That Built America". The first uses a combination of black-and-white footage of the band playing the song, and scenes fromGangs of New York. This video uses the version of the song found onThe Best of 1990–2000 CD. The second video is composed solely of black-and-white footage of U2 playing the song, and it was filmed on 9 May 2002. This video uses anacoustic version of the song, and is the version found onThe Best of 1990–2000DVD.
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