Lent Day 13 - U2SDAY - The Albums

Ranking U2’s albums is a dangerous endeavor. First, every U2 has their opinion and are usually passionate about it. I tried not to look at any other lists before doing this, because I didn’t want my opinion sullied. But I had to do some searching to grab pics, and I happened onto Esquire’s list. Let’s just say they don’t see eye to eye with me AT all. Second, the band has really never released a BAD album. There are “less good” albums, but there aren’t any stinkers. This can be easily noticed by listening to the U2 station on SiriusXM radio. There are multiple songs from every album in heavy rotation. I could sit down and listen to the entirety of any of their albums without getting irritated and throwing my can of Kickstart at the wall. Some bands can’t say that about their discography. Third, a person’s preference really depends on WHEN they joined the U2 fandom. The people who joined early on - like at the beginning - will defend the first four albums ferociously. For people like me who came in around the time of Joshua Tree, we will lean heavily towards the more-polished, less-punk sounding albums. Then there is the U2 resurgence of the 2000s with the older, more thoughtful albums. And there are also weirdos who like the zany Zooropa/Pop era. Fourth, you have define what exactly you mean by a U2 album. 

There are fourteen official U2 albums - thirteen studio albums and one live album. If you look in my Apple Library, though, you’ll see 52 different albums. There are 56 listed on Apple Music itself. But some of mine albums don’t overlap with Apple download central. Even the notorious Complete U2 that came pre-loaded on the black and red iPod didn’t have all of their songs. U2 has what I call the George Lucas Syndrome: they are never finished with their music. This is evidenced by their upcoming Songs of Surrender mega-set. They are revisiting 40 of their classic songs. That means they are messing with the big dogs, the sacred cows. The ones they have released so far are good; they have grown on me. I am so far into the “just trust them” phase that happens with artists. If I see something by U2 I don’t have, I usually just download it. They have released compilations, best-of albums, EPs, remixes, B-side collections, live show albums, subscriber exclusive albums, Record Store Day albums, Red Nose Day EPs. It is tough to even get an accurate count of different offerings. So to streamline this, I’m just talking about the fourteen official releases. This leaves out some tremendous albums like U2 Live at the Apollo and Hasta la Viva, Baby! It also leaves out the random singles that have popped up on some of those compilations and soundtracks. But this covers the bulk of their library of music. 

I am not a music expert, nor do I pretend to be. You aren’t going to read those highfalutin descriptions of Larry’s crashing drums and Edge’s guitar technique. I ranked things based on what I like listening to. The earlier albums are not treated as kindly because I don’t care for them as much. I know they are important and reveal the developing genius; I just don’t get into them. I pick on Zooropa and Pop a lot because it feels like a different band to me. I know it is the natural progression of Achtung Baby and blah blah blah. I just don’t like them as much because I didn’t like who the band (and Bono) was becoming. Since I’m not an official music expert person, I’m allowed to do that. And I’m not embarrassed to admit that I’m swayed by the number and quality of released singles from each album because that was how I listened to the band for years - until I was able to start buying and/or downloading albums. But the main rating is of the ALBUM. Can I sit down and listen to the whole thing? Does it work together? I’ve already said how much I love quality lyrics, so how are the words? Do they resonate? And can I sing along to the album? Most U2 stuff is great to singalong to, which is another thing I love about them.  Okay. Enough lallygagging. Let’s hit it.

14. Boy (1980) I already pissed somebody off. Look, it was their first album. The fact that a bunch of 18 and 19 year-olds created this is ridiculous. When I was 18 I was still just putting dumb lyrics into songs to try to crack up my friends.“Ooooh warm my fart, oh my warm and sticky fart.” Wait a minute, I still do that. U2 was putting out “Out of Control” and “11 O'clock Tick Tock.” They were still a gaggle of angry punk-influenced Irish boys putting their strong emotions into their music. And I love that part of their story. I just don’t love the album. This band was not one of those artists who put out an album with all of their great stuff and then put out a crap sophomore effort. They grew as lyricists, musicians, and performers. 

13. October (1981) See? I have their second album ranked higher than their first. Part of the reason this album is better to me is due to what Adam Clayton shared on the U2 channel. Bono was struggling with the newfound success and how it meshed with his Christian beliefs. Could you be a rock star and a Christian? You can feel that strain and battle in the songs. I relate to that internal debate - how to mesh Christian convictions with living in a world that doesn’t share those beliefs. The anger is still there. The punk edge is still there. But they are growing across the board. One source of bonus points - the song “October” is ridiculously beautiful, even though it is short and mostly bereft of lyrics. 

12. Zooropa (1993) Okay. Things are getting a little weird here. To me, the songs are not as powerful or catchy. There are some good songs like “Lemon” and “Stay.” My favorite song kind of reflects the problem. The bizarre “rap” by Edge of“Numb” is cool, but really weird. The band is experimenting. They are getting big and bombastic. They have everything ramped up to gigantic proportions. U2 is definitely built to perform in arenas and stadiums. The band itself has a huge personality. This album and its successor both are seeing just how much of that bigness the group can fill. You know how somebody can be a victim of their success? They buy into their hype. That is U2 for most of the 90s. 

11. Pop (1997) See above. You know that whole existential crisis Bono was having in October? He doesn’t seem to be having it any more. When you songs like “Mofo” and “The Playboy Mansion” on your album, you aren’t figuring out how to mesh religion and stardom. You have decided where you are going to hang out. Hey, they have the right to do that. I just don’t think that it suits them. The weird dichotomy of U2 has always been that they have the skills and personalities to play huge arenas, but they have the hearts to play community theaters. They are always at their best when they are poking at the establishment, causing trouble, fighting for the underserved. Their lyrics are some of the strongest in the business, and one of their biggest strengths. They are better when they play with their hearts. This album was them playing with … something else. Honestly, if they kept on this track, I don’t think the band sticks around. This look doesn’t look good on 60 year-olds. 

10. No Line on the Horizon (2009) I want to like this album more. This is the album that coincided with the 360 Tour, where I finally saw them live. But … The album just isn’t great. It still has some great songs. “Get On Your Boots” and“I’ll Go Crazy…” are fun songs. “Magnificent,” “Breathe,” and “Moment of Surrender” are deep songs. The album just felt uneven. Too many skippable songs. There is always the battle in the band between the grounded guys and the slighting unhinged superstars. It felt like the second one was pulling a little too much on this album. It still is a good album, but it is the only one from the second 20 years of their career that is in the bottom half of their compendium. 

9. The Unforgettable Fire (1984) See? I don’t dislike ALL of the older albums. The very fact that this album produced“Pride (in the Name of Love)” means that it is going to be ranked higher. It was the band’s first mega-hit, deservedly so. It is all that is awesome about U2. You’ve got religious imagery. You’ve got social activism. You’ve got big sounds. This album is where U2 fully emerged. This was where they started getting in trouble for all the right reasons. The album has some other great songs, too. “Pride” just overshadows everything else. “Bad” helped cement U2 on the map when they performed it at Live Aid - for a reeeaaaallly long time. “The Unforgettable Fire,” “Wire,” and “MLK” are also strong, popular songs. 

8. War (1983) See? I don’t hate all of the early albums. What sets this album ahead of the later Unforgettable Fire is the strength of its singles. While the latter album has “Pride,” there isn’t anything else on its level. This album has several huge hits. They may not have hit the level of “Pride,” but they still were very successful and stand the test of time.“Sunday Bloody Sunday” was another of the angry anthems against government oppression. So was “New Year’s Day,” hidden behind the normal longing on that holiday. “40” is basically Psalm 40 put to music - which assured that U2 would always have a place in every worship leader’s collection. 

There is a dividing line to me between #7 and #8. The top seven albums are all mammoth successes with multiple huge songs. The bottom seven are more uneven. You have the earlier albums, the experimental albums, and then whatever Horizon was. 

7. Songs of Innocence (2014) Even if they don’t have as many chart toppers, the dual Innocence/Experience albums have to be placed in the top half. First, the cohesiveness of the albums is impressive. Innocence was written from the point of view of the young 18 and 19 year old band mates. There is a lot of fire and hope and … well … innocence in the songs. The turmoil in Ireland weighs heavy on the lads, like it did in the early albums. There is rumination on new love and new journeys. And there are some epically great songs. “Every Breaking Wave” has become one of my Top Five U2 songs - especially when considering the acoustic version that the band has mostly moved to in performances. It is just a heartbreaking exploration of two people drifting apart even though neither one wants to. “Song for Someone” is about the beginning of Bono’s relationship with his wife - the fear, expectations, missteps. Really lovely. “Iris” is written about Bono’s late mother - another gut wrenching song when you think of the young Paul Hewson mourning his mom far too soon. There are some weird songs like “The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone),” but even it has meaning as it looks at one of the influences in the band even beginning. As a concept, it is brilliant. It isn’t executed as well as ….

6. Songs of Experience (2017) I would rank Experience higher than Innocence because I was 43 when it came out. I related more to it. My age is very similar to the length of U2’s career. So I had teenagers when the record hit; I’m just a few years behind the band members when it comes to children’s ages. What I was most pleasantly surprised by was that this album wasn't all Clint Eastwood crusty “get off my lawn” stuff. There is definitely experience at play, but there still is hope. In fact, one of U2’s best songs EVER is the triumphant hopeful “Love is Bigger Than Anything in Its Way.” The songs frequently have more of a “hey, I’ve been there before so let me tell you things get better” vibe. I adore “13,” which is the companion song to “Song for Someone” from Innocence. I felt that song so deeply when my oldest graduated from high school in the midst of the pandemic. “Lights of Home” is about Bono’s scary stroke. “You’re the Best Thing About Me” is the perfect song for anyone who recognizes they don’t deserve the person they are together with, but they are thankful to have them. “Get Out of Your Own Way” and “American Soul” are companion songs urging America to get its act together. The whole album is strong - beginning our streak of albums that don’t have many - if any - misfires. I really love this album and listen to it frequently. I could have ranked it higher, but it just needs to be together with its twin. 

5. Rattle and Hum (1988) That Esquire piece had this down at the bottom. That’s when I knew we couldn’t be friends. Yes, it is a live album, which traditionally doesn’t offer much to a band’s legacy. But this one does. First, for someone who wouldn’t get to see the band for another couple of decades, I got to see their live show energy. Second, the performance includes some of U2’s best covers. “Helter Skelter,” “All Along the Watchtower,” Third, the album actually provides NEW music. “Love Rescue Me” was co-penned with Bob Dylan and will be featured in my “most under-appreciated songs” post. “When Love Comes to Town” with BB King is so awesome. The fact that the four white boys from Dublin toured with the legendary Black bluesman is hilarious - and telling in that it shows that U2’s influences were not as cut and dry as everyone might have assumed. The troublemaking streak was on full display? “Am I bugging you? I didn’t mean to bug … you,” Bono snarked during the vicious indictment “Silver and Gold.” During “Bullet the Blue Sky,” he fired off the zinger “Well the God I serve isn’t short on cash, mister.” I love this album for so many reasons. If it wasn’t a live concert album, it would easily be in the Final Four.  

You could put the top four albums in any order and justify your decision. I shuffled them several times myself. I’m constantly amazed at the longevity of U2. This really demonstrates that. The four albums are spread across almost twenty years and come from all three major phases of the band’s career. All but a handful of musicians would kill for ONE album of the stature of this quartet. To have FOUR? Insane. 

4. Achtung Baby (1991) I’ve already stated how this was the album that truly introduced me to U2. This was a new U2. Some of the experimental weirdness had started to creep in, but it only elevated their game. This is U2 in full rockstar mode. The songs are incredible, but I think the album is uneven. The highs are so high, but there are definite lows. Like The Fly. I never liked that character that Bono created. I do punish the album for leading to the Zootopia/Pop era. The Fly’s dirty fingerprints are all over those albums. But the highs… Like with any good math lesson, we have to start with“One.” The best song on the album. It has been rated as the best song by U2. It has been rated as the best rock song ever.(I think that’s a bit much.) It is in my Top Five songs, for sure. It is a perfect little bite-sized sample of all that makes U2 great: social awareness, loss, love, rock, religious allusions, Bono’s voice, Edge’s understated brilliance. It is perfection“Mysterious Ways,” “Even Better Than the Real Thing,” “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses,” “UltraViolet,” “Love is Blindness.” All of them are in the top-rated songs in U2’s hefty catalog. And there are some hidden gems too. Personally, I have grown to love “So Cruel” with its bemoaning of shattered love and the painful repercussions. It is a zany album, and it is so good. 

3. How to Dismantle An Atomic Bomb (2004) I LOOOOOOOOOVE this album. Esquire did what I couldn’t bring myself to do, and they placed it first. If Achtung Baby was when I first truly discovered U2, HTDAAB (Can I just use that abbreviation? Cool? Cool.) HTDAAB was when I fell hopelessly in love. I listened to this record all the time. There isn’t a bad song on it. The first single will forever be linked with Apple and the iPod. And it will forever be the bane of Spanish teachers everywhere. “Uno dos tres catorce” One, two, three, fourteen. But if you put out an album like this, led off with a song like “Vertigo,” you can count however the hell you want. “Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own” is one of the most painful poignant songs ever recorded, let alone U2 songs. It was written about Bono’s strained relationship with his father. Bono’s mom died when he was young, so his dad had to carry on alone. They clashed, like fathers and sons do.“If we weren’t so alike, I’d like you a whole lot more.” STAB! What father hasn’t thought that before? “You’re the opera in me.” STAB! Bono’s dad was an opera singer; it was where Bono got his pipes. “A house doesn't mean a home. Don’t leave me here alone.” STAB STAB STAB! His dad died in 2001, so this was written by a son still grieving the father he never could completely reconcile with. “Yahweh” is so often overlooked, but it is a prayer I hear myself praying almost every single day. Begging God to take this damaged weak body and use it for SOMETHING useful. “Crumbs From Your Table” is another that will be on the under-appreciated list. It is a DEVASTATING song - damning first world countries, the church, anyone with means who doesn’t help the world around them. There isn’t a bad song on the album. It is eminently relistenable. Not a word? Still applies. And the name of the album is great. 

2. Joshua Tree (1987) If you don’t have Joshua Tree in your top four U2 albums, you aren’t allowed to join their fan club or go to their shows. That isn’t true, but it might as well be. This was their coming out party. The quality of this album is just stupid high. How good is it? They were able to run a tour 30 years later just performing the album. And it sold out. And people loved it. Some of the absolute biggest U2 songs ever come from Joshua Tree - the songs that you probably think of when you think of the group. Ironically, those ones are played SO much that I don’t listen to them when I’m dictating the music. “Where the Streets Have No Name,” “With or Without You,” and “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” are the holy triumvirate of U2 mega-hits. Just those three songs along would land this album in the top four. But it isn’t just those three songs. You have the angry lambasting of US foreign policy in “Bullet the Blue Sky.” There’s the hauntingly beautiful “Red Hill Mining Town” - which is definitely under-appreciated. “Running to Stand Still” and“One Tree Hill” are two other great offerings. This is one of those albums where you have to decide where it lands on your list and then add two spots due to its importance to U2. Like I would listen to the other three albums in the Final Four far more than Joshua Tree, but they would never exist without this album. This was where U2 pulled all the pieces together and became the superstar band that it was destined to be. That being said, you could definitely talk me into dropping it behind HTDAAB with minimal effort. 

1. All That You Can’t Leave Behind (2000) This is a perfect example of an album hitting at just the right time. I talked about this in my first U2SDAY piece, but it bears repeating. ATYCLB came out in 2000. The world went crazy on 9/11/01. This album became one of the cultural elements that helped Americans recover. U2 played the Super Bowl at the beginning of 2002, incorporating a scroll of the victims of the attacks. Their song “Walk On” seemed prescient in its release. But, even with how important the album was for that time, if it sucked, it wouldn’t be in this spot. Instead, this was U2 roaring back after the zany experimental albums. Back was the socially conscious, lyrically driven, meaningful U2. And the album is wall to wall bangers. There is literally not a single stinker. There isn’t even a single meh song. They all are great. Two of them won Record of the Year Grammys, and honestly a third could have. “Beautiful Day” joined the pantheon of amazing U2 hits. “Walk On” spoke to every person with an encouragement to keep moving forward even when everything falls apart. That same message was echoed in “Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of.” It had the added gut punch of being written in honor of INXS’ Michael Hutchence - a close friend of the band who took his own life in 1997. “This too shall pass” ends that song, a reminder that things can get better. “Kite” is another under-appreciated classic. Listen to that when your child is about to graduate. “Elevation” is a mammoth anthem. One of the coolest experiences I have ever had was listening to thousands of U2 fans LEAVING the concert, walking down the spiral ramps at Raymond James Stadium singing that song. “New York” - like I said, it was kind of eerie how well this album was timed. “Grace” is a gorgeous meditation on something that everyone needs and many never find. While any of the Final Four albums could easily land in the top spot, ATYCLB has the thematic cohesion of the Innocence/Experience albums, the hits of the other top albums, the social elements of the early albums, and a message of hope that our world needed when it came out … and still needs.