was one of the hardest for U2 to finish on All That You Can't Leave Behind. Co-producer Brian Eno contributed heavily to shaping the song but was absent at the end of the album's recording sessions, having become burned out by the creative process. As a result, the band employed producer Mike Hedges to assist with the song's completion. The vocals for "Peace on Earth" were the final ones recorded on the night before the band's deadline to deliver the album to the record company. Personnel Bono - vocals, acoustic guitar The Edge - guitar Adam Clayton - bass guitar Larry Mullen Jr. - drums, percussion Brian Eno - synthesizers Live performances The band performed the song most notably during the Elevation Tour in 2001, using it along with "Walk On" as an encore. On 21 September 2001 U2 performed a few verses of "Peace on Earth" along with "Walk On" in London, England, for the simulcast telethon America: A Tribute to Heroes. The telethon was produced to raise money for victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks. During that performance, Bono replaced the original "I'm sick of hearing again and again that there's gonna be peace on Earth" with "I'm sick of hearing again and again that there's never gonna be peace on Earth." Reception Irish journalist Niall Stokes calls "Peace on Earth" the band's most "agnostic song yet", saying that it "takes that sense of abandonment" felt in "Wake Up Dead Man" "a stage further". Bill Graham echoes this view asking if this is "'Wake Up Dead Man' part two?". Exclaiming that, "Bono does little to hide the bitterness as he spits out the words "peace on earth". Critics have also compared and contrasted the song with the band's earlier single "Sunday Bloody Sunday". Višnja Cogan writes the "two songs deal with the same subject: the conflict and violence in Northern Ireland, whichever side it comes from. However, 'Sunday Bloody Sunday' deals with an historical event and is approached in a particular way: the ideas of surrender, forgiveness and neutrality are very much present. "Peace on Earth" was written in the aftermath of Omagh and is much more emotional." Ryan Jones of the Bergen Record felt that "Peace on Earth" contained echoes of the band's 1987 song "Mothers of the Disappeared" in its lyrics and the tone of the instrumental prelude. After the September 11 attacks, "Peace on