"It's a musical journey" - U2 POLL RESULTS

if only we could back to the innocence of childhood and its intuitive love for u2 and nosepicking

Not so much innocence as a sort of purer receptivity, less "shoulds", less awareness of perceptions and the politics of aesthetics. The whole idea of listening to something because I thought that's what serious music people did wasn't part of my engagement with music until much later than 12, that's for sure... And sometimes it feels like something I'm still trying to shed completely!

much later than 12, that's for sure

Yeah, where does this idea come from? I was at the earliest 15. In the disco book I was reading last, some guy was claiming to have been down Studio 54 every night as an eleven-year-old!

The whole idea of listening to something because I thought that's what serious music people did wasn't part of my engagement with music until much later than 12, that's for sure

yeah well um you didn't have my family

12 year old me was down with Weird Al & my mom's 60s girl group 45s. good times!

True, Shakey (I think)... Although I do remember REJECTING stuff at that age because my mom and dad were really into it...

when I was twelve I liked "Living in a Box" and "Shattered Dreams"

I bought both those singles (aged 13)

I just can't accept U2 on the basis of pure pop thrills or something, it seems like that isn't really what they do...? that isn't what I get from listening to them anyway. it all seems so clumsy/stilted. very mannered and self-serious, even when they're trying to be "fun". Bono's earnestness in particular comes across as almost pathological, I feel like there's nothing to relate to there, it's all sweepingly empty gestures.

xp

True, Shakey (I think)... Although I do remember REJECTING stuff at that age because my mom and dad were really into it...

my parents by and large didn't care about music. my older brother, on the other hand, was an entirely different story.

I can't believe you guys are shitting on U2 when there was talk of how spectacular PWEI and Jesus Jones were itt. Honestly.

Real real real
Do you feel real?

Bono's earnestness in particular comes across as almost pathological, I feel like there's nothing to relate to there, it's all sweepingly empty gestures.

I don't dislike U2, but Shakey OTM.

Examples, please, of acts you wouldn't describe as packing earnest, empty gestures.

dnftt

this one will blow away all talk of earnestness and sweeping gestures...

c'mon now I'm not trolling

xp

I can't believe you guys are shitting on U2 when there was talk of how spectacular PWEI and Jesus Jones were itt. Honestly.

uh that wasn't me

http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/4052/013pride.jpg

13 Pride (In The Name Of Love)
422 points, twenty votes
The Unforgettable Fire (1984)

Examples, please, of acts you wouldn't describe as packing earnest, empty gestures.

oh I dunno how about Parliament

this is really going to be a wonderfully fulfilling conversation

I unashamedly love "Pride", although for me it's really all about Edge...

I can get caught up in the moment with "Pride" but I can't really abide the conjugations of the present tense in the verses; what's the story there?

that pic is totally short face long face short face big face

hahaha

That's the name of their chillwave side-project

"Daylight come and me want to go home"? At least he's been correcting the time of MLK's death for the past few years!

My age curve with U2 is fan at 13, falling out at 18, getting back into and falling out over and over again from 23 on, then seeing 'em live at 35 at which point, screw it, the 13-year-old was right.

I unashamedly love "Pride", although for me it's really all about Edge...
--Clarke B.

I'm with this. Love would be strong, only bc my enjoyment is based on p much tuning Bono out entirely.

http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/1787/scountry.jpg

12 In God’s Country
423 points, twenty votes, one first place
The Joshua Tree (1987)

Damn it! That was my #1. Too low!

roffle - this one is like 19 on my ballot and I have no idea why. I think it was a copy/paste error.

honestly sort of surprised it charted at all, let alone nearly cracking the top 10

I'd always taken this for an aggressively okay U2 song, what are we missing?

That song will always remind me of not winning the free ticket contest because of my goddamn pulse phone dialer. I had it in like 2 notes! I like it -- it's got that old fashioned U2 urgency (as opposed to "funky U2" or "grandstanding U2" or "costumed disco U2")

kind of can't believe this beat "Pride", SBS and UTEOTW

I thought I was the only person in the world who loved "In God's Country"--#1 on my ballot of 5 songs.

I like it fine, but it didn't even get in close proximity to my own top 20.

I'd always taken this for an aggressively okay U2 song, what are we missing?
--Pete Scholtes

Wish I could help you! I'm in the "I like it fine but..." camp. Really have no idea how it ended up on my ballot. Think that slot should have been "new year's day" but c'est la vie.

http://img683.imageshack.us/img683/8374/011stay.jpg

11 Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
434 points, nineteen votes, one first place
Zooropa (1993)

I know we all voted and stuff, but in my mind these results all seem pretty arbitrarily ordered.

I will admit that I did not rank my ballot because I didn't really want to fill one out, but then I became irrationally invested in what happened.

That song's grown a lot in my estimation since the album came out (my #6). I love the dry beat with the guitar riff as it opens, probably my favorite (extended) moment/aspect of Zooropa.

mine are kinda "four groups of five". I'll defend the heck out of my #1 tho. think 4 of my top 5 are still alive here...

I don't really like 20 u2 songs but if I had voted that woulda been my #1

Yeah, I didn't vote for it but this one's pretty charming.

pretty psyched for "Stay"'s placing! agree that the dryness of the production really makes it, feels like such a contrast to the big big sound of other U2 ballads. and the acoustic arrangement on the last tour was lovely.

I'm pleased that my most hated hasn't shown up yet

I'm just uploading the last batch of jpgs - it's taking a while, but will get cracking with the top ten when I'm done.

Didn't vote b/c I enjoy U2 casually but have seldom connected with them on a deeper level (which with U2 counts for more than with most bands - a true fan of this band is a believer), but crossing my fingers for "Kite" in the top 10.

huh. i liked Zooropa alot when it came out - but never really liked Stay.

wait, did this song chart?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmPCkPg8g0g

what's with U2 and the word "all"? they have so many song titles that include "all"

Pretty surprised In God's Country placed so high - after #20 or so, I figured it was not in at all. I had it near the bottom of my ballot and didn't realize it was a favorite for anyone. It's not an attention-grabbing song, but it has a lot of details that I like: great guitar work (especially the solo), good match between the lyrics and music, and the same driving-song feel as Zoo Station. It's grown on me a lot over the years.