Music Comment: U2 "The Joshua Tree"

[Blue Meanie]

U2 has often been compared to the Beatles in regards to their expiramentation and song writing. JT was a landmark album for them and is definately one of the greatest albums of all time

I think the comparisons are due in part to the fact that each of their albums are progressions...just like the Beatles. You listen to "Boy" then "October" and so on and each album you can hear them getting better...lyrically and musically. The only thing that I can't understand is the fact that they HAVE progressed with a guitarist that has played the same types of riffs on almost every LP. If it wasn't for the delay/echo on his guitar, IMHO, Edge would not be considered that good of a guitarist. The shame of it all is that Edge is a really really good singer and the group has never really explored what he can do as a singer. "Van Diemans Land" (Sp?) on Rattle and Hum is one of my all-time favorites of the group.

[saildog]

I love about anything U2 has done over the years, but for me, this was and is the most meaningful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56mjwycKuXA

Just before they reaaalllyy became popular or "commercial".

I remember felling like I got them before they were popular because of Pride (In The Name of Love)...a song that to this day will make me break out in goosebumps.

Whatever you want to say is their signature song...well, by experience I will grant you whatever it is. For me, it is this song.

[EMCE Hammer]

Can't argue, I love JT but like Megosteve I'm partial to the earlier stuff. Post-JT they are hit or miss for me.

[generic]

I wouldn't try to say any album is their "best" album. I like U2 in general, but I do prefer some of their albums to others. I could listen to The Joshua Tree or Unforgettable Fire or October any time. Simply because of personal experiences in my own life, The Joshua Tree had a greater impact on me than any other album...or anything else in my life, actually. Nothing in my life would be the same if it weren't for that one album, so it will always have a very special place in my heart.

[david_b]

Always, yes, I know I'm ignorant because deep down, I'll always be a Beatles/Stones kind of guy.., but Joshua Tree was perhaps one of the most important albums to come out of the 80s..

Profound, moving, resonating, superbly lyrical, just outstanding..

david_b

[gootie29]

Joshua Tree is still one of my all time faves and will always have a place on my playlist.

[Hector]

I dig U2 and love the JT album as well.

Is it just me...or does Edge slightly resemble both Leonard Nimoy and Richard Gere?

[Sideshow Spock]

I was also a senior in HS when the album came out, and to say it had a huge impact on me is an understatement. Like others have said, it was a very transformative period of my life, and this album was the soundtrack to it.

Saw the JT tour in Buffalo in 1988, and that was the capper to the experience. I bought several of their subsequent albums, but didn't come close to connecting to them in the same way. I do love much of their early work, but again, it's all about context.

[SeattleEd]

JP,
We must if you do. Hang out at some local old school grunge holes, some local brew and chat. Soak up the music vibe of this town.
LMK!

E

The Joshua tree...........
Inspired a major part of my life.
One of my all time favorite albums.
We seem to share some musical tastes Ed.
Would be cool to have a few brews sometime ,if ever I cross the border.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ8YV6Xk3jE

[fallensaviour]

I am probably in the minority here as I never jumped on the U2 band wagon?
I don't know what it was but I just never really cared for them.
I was trying to remember why and realised that's the same year appetite for destruction(GNR) came out as well as Hysteria(def leopard),Girls,girls,girls(Motely crue),Pride(white lion),Heaven on earth(belinda Carlisle,tom Petty and the heartbreakers And the Tiffany album I had no money or time for U2...LOL
I remember an iron maiden came out the same time as well but can't remember which one.

[English Paul]

Try get hold of the boxset that came out about three years ago. The DVD of the concert flimed in Paris is fabulous.
I had permission to have the afternoon off school just before my sixteenth birthday to go watch them on the Joshua tree tour at Elland Road football stadium in Leeds.
The Joshua Tree is one of those albums that can still bring a tear to my eye, just because it's so bloody good.

[generic]

...I was trying to remember why and realised that's the same year appetite for destruction(GNR) came out as well as Hysteria(def leopard),Girls,girls,girls(Motely crue),Pride(white lion),Heaven on earth(belinda Carlisle,tom Petty and the heartbreakers And the Tiffany album I had no money or time for U2...LOL

Actually, this brings up an interesting fact:

The Joshua Tree was released on March 9, 1987 with one of the biggest marketing campaigns in history and was at the top of the USA charts within a month of its release, so by early April of 1987 most pop and rock fans knew about this album.

Appetite for Destruction, Girls x3, and Pride weren't released until the Summer of 1987 and Hysteria wasn't released until the fall, but regardless of their release dates, none of those albums (with the possible exception of Girls x3) were getting any radio play, MTV play or chart success until mid-1988. The first time MTV played "Welcome to the Jungle" was about a year after its release (at something like 4:00 am), but it had such a huge response that it ended up in rotation. Hysteria was just about dead in the USA and it looks like the album was going to be a flop here until "Pour Some Sugar On Me" started getting heavy rotation in the Strip Clubs. It became so popular in the Strip Clubs that the record company filmed a new video for the song for MTV and released it as a single. By the time these albums had hit the public consciousness, The Joshua Tree had been on the top of the carts for somewhere around 15 months.

I remember an iron maiden came out the same time as well but can't remember which one.

"Somewhere in Time" came out in 1986 and "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son" came out in 1988.

[Adam West]

U2 is one of my favorite bands of all time and Joshua Tree is a classic.

It's strange how bands that are really great like U2 become so popular that it almost seems like it's not cool to like them too much....but, I have always really loved their music.

[fallensaviour]

Actually, this brings up an interesting fact:

The Joshua Tree was released on March 9, 1987 with one of the biggest marketing campaigns in history and was at the top of the USA charts within a month of its release, so by early April of 1987 most pop and rock fans knew about this album.

Appetite for Destruction, Girls x3, and Pride weren't released until the Summer of 1987 and Hysteria wasn't released until the fall, but regardless of their release dates, none of those albums (with the possible exception of Girls x3) were getting any radio play, MTV play or chart success until mid-1988. The first time MTV played "Welcome to the Jungle" was about a year after its release (at something like 4:00 am), but it had such a huge response that it ended up in rotation. Hysteria was just about dead in the USA and it looks like the album was going to be a flop here until "Pour Some Sugar On Me" started getting heavy rotation in the Strip Clubs. It became so popular in the Strip Clubs that the record company filmed a new video for the song for MTV and released it as a single. By the time these albums had hit the public consciousness, The Joshua Tree had been on the top of the carts for somewhere around 15 months.


"Somewhere in Time" came out in 1986 and "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son" came out in 1988.

I also seem to remember heavy bootlegs of GNR before the appetite album as well,also some motley crue tapes.
I knew a few friends that liked U2 it just wasn't popular in my circles?
I just never got into them,sorry.

[Goblin19]

Love Joshua Tree, but Achtung Baby is my favorite.