So Cruel - Writing and Inspiration

Writing and Inspiration

"So Cruel" was developed by lead singer Bono. Following the recording sessions at Hansa Studios in West Berlin in 1990, U2 resumed the album's sessions in February 1991 at the seaside manor Elsinore in Dalkey, renting the house for ₤10,000 per month. Producer Daniel Lanois' strategy was to record in houses, mansions, or castles, as he believed it brought atmosphere to the recordings. During the recording at Elsinore, while working on another song, audio engineer Flood changed the reel to listen to an earlier take. Bono picked up a guitar and began to sing. The rest of the band quickly joined in. Flood said, "All of a sudden, almost in the time it had taken for me to wind off the reel and wind the next reel on, it was quite obvious that there was a song about to pop out, and if I wasn't suddenly taking the reel off and getting a new piece of tape on, and changing from monitoring a backing track downstairs to everybody's in the control room wanting to record now, it would never have happened."

"So Cruel" was developed acoustically, with guitarist The Edge playing an acoustic guitar, bassist Adam Clayton playing an acoustic bass, and drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. using a bodhrán. Author John D. Luerssen interpreted the song as beginning "with the same kind of basic approach to songcraft that gave wings to 'She's a Mystery to Me'". Bono said that "People thought it was too traditional, one more attempt at writing a song for Roy Orbison". Lyrically, it was also inspired by Scott Walker. Bono said, "His is a very delicate mode of expression on the outside, though too often it is laced underneath with a lot of pain and rage."

According to Clayton, Flood "did a couple of treatments to the track that utterly transformed it." He keyed Clayton's bass with the bodhrán, which "gave it a much more bubbly, off-beat feel". This was followed by some overdubbing and the laying down of a full drum track. Flood said, "I think the way we shifted around the rhythm was very important... The bass is played, but in the studio we doctored it to change the emphasis of where the bass line lay. That turned it into something that had a more unique feel about it, meshed against the song." Duchess Nell Catchpole was brought in to play violin and viola for the song. The strings were arranged by The Edge and producer Brian Eno. Clayton explained that while the original acoustic version "wasn't something one could imagine being on the record", it "was lifted up by studio trickery." Flood believes that the use of technology was crucial in making the final mix. An early version of the track was later released on some versions of the 20th anniversary reissue of Achtung Baby.