Where The Streets Have No Name / The U2 Thread

[Rangi Guy]

Pop is a goddamn masterpiece.

[tragabigzanda]

[Kevin Davis]

This is my favorite U2 B-side, from the "Pop" era (it's on the "Staring at the Sun" single) but it sounds pretty separate from the material on the album. It might have been written for another artist? Can't remember, but it's great.

[dimejinky99]

If I remember correctly it was written by Christy Moore, an Irish folk singer. They covered it.

[Kevin Davis]

Looks like they co-wrote it, with his version being released first:
http://www.u2wanderer.org/disco/moore2.html

[LoathedVermin72]

Jesus Christ I love “New Year’s Day”. What a stellar piece of music. Wow. I wish they had used piano like this more.

[VinylGuy]

Jesus Christ I love “New Year’s Day”. What a stellar piece of music. Wow. I wish they had used piano like this more.

its one of my favs as well. Such a wonderful song.

[LoathedVermin72]

Fuck, “Like a Song...” is great too. War is pretty killer.

[LoathedVermin72]

Ahhhhhh I love “The Refugee” too! Bono sounds FURIOUS, and that drum sound is just insane.

[Stardog Champion]

Jesus Christ I love “New Year’s Day”. What a stellar piece of music. Wow. I wish they had used piano like this more.

Great song. The yell at the beginning is one of my favorite singular moments from them.

[tragabigzanda]

Top 10 maybe?
Hello Morning
Close Captioned
The Kill
Place/Position
Do You Like Me?
Latest Disgrace
Recap Modotti
Nightshop
Break
Life & Limb

I'd maybe bump Life & Limb for Epic Problem

[Kevin Davis]

I think my favorite song on "War" is "Seconds."

[epilogue]

War is easily the best U2 album that I've heard.

[LoathedVermin72]

A few early observations about Pop:

-Another album with pretty disastrous sequencing. Gonna make my own version.
-That version will not include “Discotheque”. Yeesh. “Lovey dovey stuff?” Really?
-Every song feels about 40-60 seconds too long.
-The production on this and AB does not do these songs any favors. It’s so spacey and reverby that it makes the songs feel swampy and bogged down, which makes them sort of bleed together since most are mid-tempo. A little more energy and immediacy would have been nice.

[Kevin Davis]

What's wrong with "lovey dovey stuff?" I like that line, I think it sneers at itself in the way that a lot of the lyrics from their '90's songs do.

[LoathedVermin72]

Part of it is the way it’s sung, with that embarrassing low part of the multi-tracked vocal, but it just makes me cringe.

“Mofo”, on the other hand, is fantastic. I love those lyrics.

[LoathedVermin72]

This’ll work:

1. Mofo
2. Gone
3. Do You Feel Loved
4. Last Night on Earth
5. Staring at the Sun
6. The Playboy Mansion
7. If God Will Send His Angels
8. Please
9. Pop Muzik
10. Wake Up Dead Man

I think this version has a nice thematic narrative to it as well.

[VinylGuy]

Mofo is fantastic yes, but damn Discotheque is fucking good. That riff, the music, Bono´s voice....damn i love it.

Pop is so fucking bold and good.

[Kevin Davis]

"Pop Muzik" is a cool track but it's a B-side, and isn't completely U2's song -- it's a remix of another artist's recording with some Bono vocals shoehorned in. They played it as entrance music during the PopMart tour.

Some cool B-sides from the "Pop" era are "Holy Joe" (two separate mixes, very different but both good), "Two Shots of Happy, One Shot of Sad" (torch song in the crooner mold, not at all "Pop"-like but a successful homage to that style), and "North and South of the River" (see my post above).

I even enjoy the remixes from this album. Not usually my thing but I just love how far they were willing to go into la-la land during this period. The whole thing is a mess of varying success, but the overall picture is compelling to me in a slapdash, montage-of-weirdness sort of way.

[LoathedVermin72]

I’m aware of PM’s origins but it’s essential to my invented narrative so IT’S STAYING