A live version of “A Day Without Me,” recorded on Jin Werchter, was released as a b-side on some formats of the “ New Year’s Day“ single (and was later included on the bonus disc accompanying the remastered War deluxe edition). Remastered versions of both “A Day Without Me” and “Things to Make and Do” were released on the 2008 remaster of Boy, with “Things to Make and Do” available only on the second disc of b-sides and rarities included with the deluxe edition. Demand for these early singles was high, and so “A Day Without Me” was included in a second set of singles dubbed “ U2 Pac II.” Unlike the first grouping of singles, which included pressings on different colours of vinyl, the second set was only available on black vinyl. They chose not to include “A Day Without Me” in the initial set, opting for “ I Will Follow“ instead. In the early 80s, CBS Ireland reissued a set of four of U2’s earliest 7-inch singles in the “ 4 U2 Play“ Pack. It was the only instrumental regularly played during U2 concert tours until “Return of the Stingray Guitar” on the U2360° Tour. “Things to Make and Do” was played throughout The Boy Tour, and just once on the tour promoting October, before disappearing from the live repertoire. He incorporated the opening line, “Started a landslide in my ego” into “The Unforgettable Fire” on that night, and again in Glasgow a few nights later. It made a surprise reappearance decades later during the U2360° Tour, when Bono sang a short snippet during the band’s performance on Augin London, England. It was performed throughout the early tours, and finally retired after the first twelve shows on The Unforgettable Fire Tour.

“A Day Without Me” was first played live in February, 1980 at the National Stadium show in Dublin, and quickly became a standard in the set list. The single was also important because it marked U2’s first collaboration with Steve Lillywhite, who would go on to produce the band’s first three albums and who continues to work with the band to this day. It was one of the earliest plays of U2 on American radio, and WBCN would continue to push U2 on future releases.

The release of “A Day Without Me” also played a key role in breaking the band in the US, when DJ Carter Alan, upon hearing it in a record store in Boston, MA, started playing it on his show on WBCN radio. In France, the 7-inch was released in a generic sleeve with the album version of “I Will Follow” on the flip side, instead of “Things to Make and Do.” “Things to Make and Do” was an instrumental track also recorded with Steve Lillywhite, which was the B-side in other regions.

In the Netherlands and Germany, a 7-inch was released, but instead of the image of the bridge featured on the sleeve for Ireland/UK, a variation on the Boy album cover, with slightly altered text, was used. It was also the first U2 single to be released beyond the UK and Ireland, as Island began testing the waters in other markets leading up to the release of Boy. It was released on black 7-inch vinyl in both Ireland and the UK in advance of the album. “A Day Without Me” was the first single released from the Boy album, U2’s fourth single overall, and the second single for Island Records in the UK.

'I Will Follow' (Studio Version) (03:37) - U2.

'Things to Make and Do' (Studio Version) - U2 (02:16).

'A Day Without Me' (Studio Version) - U2 (03:13).

'A Day Without Me' - U2 Single Track Listing:

U2 a day without me cbs