Best U2 al***?

Ahhh... U2. One of those bands, that are a guilty pleasure, and that nobody wants to admit they like..

Yeah...I think it's Joshua Tree.


BB

War.

Steve

Blood Red Sky

Pete

Its gotta be war...a classic. they have disappeared up their own butts lately though, but no denying they have written some magical songs!!

Ryan

C'mon guys







and then;







SJB

It's tempting to say "No such Thing", but then there's no accounting for taste.

Jono

I only listen to U2 in the car.
Can't take the awful recordings on the naim system.

quote:

Originally posted by Sandy8:
I only listen to U2 in the car.
Can't take the awful recordings on the Naim system.

Hi Sandy,

I'm interested in this . it's a comment that's often made about U2 and while I would never use a U2 album to "show off" my Naim gear I don't think it sounds as abysmal as a lot of forum members think. They boast some of the more famous producers around, Eno, Lillywhite, Lanois.

How exactly do they sound lousy on your Naim system?


Regards
SJB

Hi Sloop
I like U2, and in the car they sound as good as most of my discs, but on the naim system they just sound kinda thin with no dynamics to me.
Not much bass,too much in the middle, and not very good in the treble....Coldplay also kinda dissapoints me in the same way.

Sandy

I'm with Sloop John on this one......then The Joshua Tree

The Joshua Tree. Some absolutely cracking songs.

Just listening to Achtung Baby now as I write my handover.......happy days!!

A monumental album after three years off, and a totally new direction from Joshua Tree/Rattle and Hum, which some may say led them down a dodgy road going by the follow up albums of Zooropa/Pop but I wouldn't agree....

Achtung Baby though, just reminds me of my careless days of finishing school on a friday and looking forward to seeing everybody again at Chevies in Dundee (remember when it was a great pub and before they turned it into the Manky Bra) and then finding out who was having the open house party on the Saturday night......not a care in the world........those were the days!!

(1) Boy

(2) Under a Blood Red Sky.

quote:

Originally posted by Sloop John B:

quote:

Originally posted by Sandy8:
I only listen to U2 in the car.
Can't take the awful recordings on the Naim system.

Hi Sandy,

I'm interested in this . it's a comment that's often made about U2 and while I would never use a U2 album to "show off" my Naim gear I don't think it sounds as abysmal as a lot of forum members think. They boast some of the more famous producers around, Eno, Lillywhite, Lanois.

How exactly do they sound lousy on your Naim system?


Regards
SJB

The recordings themselves are probably of very good recording quality & high standards. The mastering step is probably the main culprit here, and most likely the reason why the album sounds better in the car, then on a decent home hi-fi.

The mastering process is a compromise at best, and a necessary evil for pop bands, such as U2, Cold Play, etc. that receive a lot of air play. It's sort of a common denominator principal. The sound as a consequence will have some of the life squeezed out of it from the compression that is added to songs so that they may be played at, and compete with the other material that is played over the radio.

That's why you'll generally hear a superior recording of a jazz, or even alternate rock artists release - past or present.

Anyone here have a Beatles lp taken from the master tapes?

Regards
Max

i agree with sandy on this one the production on u2 albums leaves a lot to be desired IMHO.
but if i had to choose a best one it would be joshua tree.

It sounds like the Joshua Tree ill buy

Thanks for all your inputs

regards

If you are going to buy just one U2 album - why not the new one ? U218

Currently available in a book form with live DVD for around £13

Achtung Baby gets my vote.

The Joshua Tree represents U2 at their polished most commercial best. War shows them closer to their roots and gets my vote as their best achievement.

Peter

Achtung!

T.C

quote:

Originally posted by The Chap:
Achtung!

T.C

Bless you. My vote goes for The Joshua Tree.

I only really like the 80s trio of War, the Unforgettable Fire and the Joshua Tree. Like Peter, I think War's got a more visceral edge [really didn’t intend that one] that just shades the other two.

With the exception of the Joshua Tree, I’ve only gbot the other two on vinyl, but my turntable’s not been set up for a few years now and there’s been a bit of criticism of the CDs in this thread. Are they worth getting? Are there re-masters? I haven’t seen any on Amazon, etc. Thanks.

Dave

Funnily enough I listened to mot of these last night, Joshua tree has the most tracks on that you wouldn't skip past if time were tight, (which it was!) so get's my vote.

Difficult since I'm a huge fan starting in 1983 and have everything that was released on vinyl or CD. I don't like Bono that much, but the Edge. Maybe he is not the best guitar player in the world (though I like his guitar style very much) but he's the best music writer.

Think Achtung Baby gets my vote as best long play record. Contains one of the three best songs mankind has written so far: "Until the end of the world"

Miow,

The Fat Cat

We're huge fans in our house with the whole of the bands output tucked in the rack, my favourite is Actung Baby and the enemy likes the Joshua Tree.

As for sounding iffy on Naim kit, well all I can say is it sounds bloody good in my living room! They're worth the money live as well.

Beano even better than the real thing.