Progarchives.com has always (since 2002) relied on banners ads to cover web hosting fees and all. Please consider supporting us by giving monthly PayPal donations and help keep PA fast-loading and ad-free forever.
Joined: February 13 2010
Location: St. Louis, USA
Status: Offline
Points: 159
Posted: March 12 2010 at 00:01
In an effort to keep this thread going , I would just like to point out how U2 is one of those rare bands that manages to have at least a couple of great songs on each and every record, even their least best ones. To wit:
Boy: "The Electric Co." and "I Will Follow" October: "Gloria" and "October" War: "Sunday Bloody Sunday," "New Year's Day," "Drowning Man," "Surrender" and "40" The Unforgettable Fire: "Bad," "Wire," "Pride (in the Name of Love)," "The Unforgettable Fire" and "A Sort of Homecoming The Joshua Tree: Pretty much every song is great, except for maybe "Trip Through Your Wires" and "Exit" Rattle and Hum: "All I Want Is You," "Hawkmoon 269," "Heartland" and "Van Diemen's Land" Achtung Baby: Like TJT, pretty much every song, except for "Mysterious Ways," which I have never been that fond of, although I like it more now than I used to Zooropa: "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)," "Zooropa" and "Dirty Day" Pop: "Staring at the Sun," "Gone," "Please" and "Mofo" All That You Can't Leave Behind: "Kite," "Walk On," "Beautiful Day" and "Elevation" How to Dismantle at Atomic Bomb: "City of Blinding Lights" and "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own" No Line on the Horizon: "Magnificent," "Unknown Caller," "Breathe" and "Fez-Being Born"
Never been a fanboy, but I always liked them, from the very beginning. When I was after their first album, Boy, they were not yet well-known around here, and there was no sign in those days (1980) that they were to become a supergroup a few years later. On the contrary, the guys in the record shops threw up stupid remarks like "No, but we have UB40", which even manage to annoy me 30 years later. Not because I have anything against UB40, by the way...
Joined: February 13 2010
Location: St. Louis, USA
Status: Offline
Points: 159
Posted: March 09 2010 at 10:07
The Pessimist wrote:
On a serious note, they're OK I guess, they'd be better without an irritating frontman.
While Bono is definitely something of an egomaniac, I can't imagine any scenario where U2 would be better without him.
jampa17 wrote:
My God..!! we already have Marty McFly and now we have Biff Tannen
as well... who would knew my favorite movie characters were lovers of
prog rock... welcome dude... U2 is unlistenable for me... can't deal
with Bono's weak voice and his Christ pose, but I promised to listen to
Actchun Baby (mispelled, I know) to give them a second shot... not
still but soon...
Thanks for the welcome ...but weak vocals? Yeah, I definitely think you need to listen again.
jampa17 wrote:
mmm... Ok... "Boy" seems to be an easier album to borrow (steal) from my brother library... I'll check it out...
I actually disagree with that recommendation. Boy has a few really
good songs, but is really inconsistent. I don't think they really hit
their stride till War. The first two albums have their moments, but I would never recommend them to try to convert someone.
Joined: July 04 2009
Location: Guatemala
Status: Offline
Points: 6802
Posted: March 08 2010 at 19:31
WalterDigsTunes wrote:
jampa17 wrote:
Biff Tannen wrote:
One of my favorite bands, of any genre, for sure. I was big into them when I was a teenager, but they went by the wayside for a long, long time, but in the last few years, I have really gotten back into them in a big way, and I have been reminded why they were my favorite band for several years in the late 80s (before getting into Floyd, Rush, and then tons of other great music).
I'll save the favorite songs and albums talk for now, as we don't want to give it all away at once, right?
Anyway, all U2 fans are welcome in this thread!
My God..!! we already have Marty McFly and now we have Biff Tannen as well... who would knew my favorite movie characters were lovers of prog rock... welcome dude... U2 is unlistenable for me... can't deal with Bono's weak voice and his Christ pose, but I promised to listen to Actchun Baby (mispelled, I know) to give them a second shot... not still but soon...
Try "Boy" or "The Unforgettable Fire." In fact, try to find the double disc edition of the debut in order to hear Bono circa 1979 (back when he's just a goofy kid that's just glad to be rocking out).
mmm... Ok... "Boy" seems to be an easier album to borrow (steal) from my brother library... I'll check it out...
Change the program inside... Stay in silence is a crime.
Special Collaborator
Retired Admin and Amateur Layabout
Joined: May 13 2007
Location: Europe
Status: Offline
Points: 37575
Posted: March 08 2010 at 19:26
First saw them as a support act back before Boy was released (which was a great album) but my interest waned with October and War. Under a Blood Red Sky is probably the album I've played the most since then.
Joined: September 11 2007
Location: SanDiegoTijuana
Status: Offline
Points: 4373
Posted: March 08 2010 at 18:14
jampa17 wrote:
Biff Tannen wrote:
One of my favorite bands, of any genre, for sure. I was big into them when I was a teenager, but they went by the wayside for a long, long time, but in the last few years, I have really gotten back into them in a big way, and I have been reminded why they were my favorite band for several years in the late 80s (before getting into Floyd, Rush, and then tons of other great music).
I'll save the favorite songs and albums talk for now, as we don't want to give it all away at once, right?
Anyway, all U2 fans are welcome in this thread!
My God..!! we already have Marty McFly and now we have Biff Tannen as well... who would knew my favorite movie characters were lovers of prog rock... welcome dude... U2 is unlistenable for me... can't deal with Bono's weak voice and his Christ pose, but I promised to listen to Actchun Baby (mispelled, I know) to give them a second shot... not still but soon...
Try "Boy" or "The Unforgettable Fire." In fact, try to find the double disc edition of the debut in order to hear Bono circa 1979 (back when he's just a goofy kid that's just glad to be rocking out).
Joined: August 18 2008
Location: Anna Calvi
Status: Offline
Points: 22989
Posted: March 08 2010 at 16:57
I love everything up to POP (included). I think Achtung Baby is one of the greatest masterpieces of its era, but in recent years I found myself listening almost completely only to their first three albums.
Joined: May 19 2005
Location: Mexico City
Status: Offline
Points: 13032
Posted: March 08 2010 at 16:48
One of the first bands I listened (and liked) whose language was not Spanish, was U2, so since I was a teenager I used to listen to some of their albums. Then, lost interest for several years, but now that old love has returned. Got a copy of "The Unforgettable Fire" recently and I've been playing it over and over for the last month, it is a fantastic album.
Attended to a show within the Vertigo tour some years ago and despite there was some material I do not like, the concert was first class. An spectacular performance!
Joined: July 04 2009
Location: Guatemala
Status: Offline
Points: 6802
Posted: March 08 2010 at 16:12
Biff Tannen wrote:
One of my favorite bands, of any genre, for sure. I was big into them when I was a teenager, but they went by the wayside for a long, long time, but in the last few years, I have really gotten back into them in a big way, and I have been reminded why they were my favorite band for several years in the late 80s (before getting into Floyd, Rush, and then tons of other great music).
I'll save the favorite songs and albums talk for now, as we don't want to give it all away at once, right?
Anyway, all U2 fans are welcome in this thread!
My God..!! we already have Marty McFly and now we have Biff Tannen as well... who would knew my favorite movie characters were lovers of prog rock... welcome dude... U2 is unlistenable for me... can't deal with Bono's weak voice and his Christ pose, but I promised to listen to Actchun Baby (mispelled, I know) to give them a second shot... not still but soon...
Change the program inside... Stay in silence is a crime.
Joined: February 01 2007
Location: Australia
Status: Offline
Points: 5291
Posted: March 08 2010 at 14:44
Biff Tannen wrote:
They lost me a bit in the 90s with their sudden turn in style, so it wasn't all me getting into other music. I was so thrown by what they were doing, and when you combine that with all of the great music I was getting into back then, it was easy to kind of forget U2 and put them on the backburner. However, when looking at their whole career now, albums like Zooropa and Pop have a unique charm to them. No, they aren't as good as masterworks like Achtung Baby and The Joshua Tree, but they both have some great stuff on them. In fact, the five post-AB U2 records all seem to be similar in this respect: 2-3 great songs, a bunch of songs that range from good to really good, and a couple of throwaways.
I totally get why so many were put off by their sudden experimental turn in the 90s. I mean, U2 going electronic was unheard of, and is something no one ever thought they would do, but having gone back and listened to that material a lot, it is a lot better than I originally thought, and that era produced some great, great songs - "Gone," "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me," "Zooropa," "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)," "Staring at the Sun," "Mofo," "Gone," etc. Even a song like "Lemon," while not as great as some U2 fanatics would like us all to believe, is a good song. I think what hurt those albums right off the bat were the fact that neither lead singles were very good; "Numb" was a neat experiment and a great idea, but its execution was a little off, and "Discotheque" is pretty mediocre.
I also think a horrendous song like "Get On Your Boots" being the lead single from the last album was a huge mistake, too. "Magnificent" is an instant U2 classic, and should have been the first single.
Matthew T, I hear ya about The Edge. I absolutely love his playing and his signature sound. He isn't a great technical player, but who cares? He leaves his mark on every U2 song, and his sound and style are a big reason why U2 is one of the biggest, best, and most popular rock bands ever. That says it all.
Totally agree about the Edge. I mentioned the lack of solos because that is his style and I like it. He has his own distinct sound and I love it too Biff.
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot create polls in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
This page was generated in 0.123 seconds.
Donate monthly and keep PA fast-loading and ad-free forever.
/PAlogo_v2.gif "Progarchives.com Homepage")
U2 appreciation thread
Topic Options
, I would just like to point out how U2 is one of those rare bands that manages to have at least a couple of great songs on each and every record, even their least best ones. To wit: 
Atavachron wrote:
...but weak vocals? Yeah, I definitely think you need to listen again. 
I'll check it out... 
. I remember seeing the movie years ago (interesting, though rather uneven), and being very impressed by the song.
