Music: Re: [Classic_Rock_Forever] Best Albums of the 80's Series

I never really jumped on the U2 bandwagon, although I will say some of the stuff I've listened to is pretty good.

I very much liked the Edge on that documentary This Might Get Loud. I found him the most interesting to listen to speak, of the 3 guitar players featured. Yes that includes Jimmy Page, who is great and all that, I just found Edge a more engaging personality.

Clint

----- Original Message -----

From: GPS2003

To: CRF

Sent: Sunday, February 20, 2011 2:17 AM

Subject: [Classic_Rock_Forever] Best Albums of the 80's Series - U2: War

1983

U2 - War

Said to be the band's first overtly political album and is often considered their first truly extraordinary one. Produced by Steve Lillywhite, the album opens with "Sunday Bloody Sunday", originally written about the 1972 Bloody Sunday incident in which 28 Irish protesters were shot and killed in Derry, Northern Ireland by British Armed Forces.

Other songs concern topics such as nuclear proliferation and prostitution. The mood grows progressively more bleak as the album continues—despite some balance provided by songs such as "Two Hearts Beat As One", a simple love song and "New Year's Day" (about the 1981 suppression of Solidarity in Poland), which works as both a political song and a love song—until climaxing with the coda of "Surrender" and finally ending with hushed hymn "40". This album became U2's first #1 album in the UK, supplanting Michael Jackson's Thriller off the top of the charts.

On "40", which takes its name from fortieth Psalm from the Bible, the Edge plays bass and Adam Clayton plays guitar. In 2003, the album was ranked number 221 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

The boy on the album cover is Peter Rowan (actor) (brother of Bono's friend, Guggi). He also appears on the covers of Boy, Three, The Best of 1980-1990, and Early Demos.

Track Listing:

Sunday Bloody Sunday
Seconds
New Year's Day
Like a Song
Drowning Man
The Refugee
Two Hearts Beat As One
Red Light
Surrender
"40"

Personnel:

Bono – lead vocals, guitar

The Edge – guitars, piano, lap steel, backup vocals,

Adam Clayton – bass, lead guitar on "40"

Larry Mullen Jr. – drums

Kenny Fradley - trumpet

Steve Wickham – electric violin on "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "Drowning Man"

Cheryl Poirier, Adriana Kaegi, Taryn Hagey, Jessica Felton – backing vocals on "Red Light" and "Surrender"

.

SmUrFy

"Rebel souls, deserters we are called.
Chose a gun and threw away the sun.
Now these towns, they all know our name.

6-gun sound is our claim to fame.
I can hear them say"