So with the 35th Anniversary of the release of the War album, let's reflect on what this album meant to U2...
1. U2 scored a worldwide hit album
2. 2 all-time classic rock tunes ever
3. Took their concerts to Must See status
4. Made them socially relevant
War catapulted U2 into the Rock\Pop stratosphere, and allowed them some breathing room for the next chapter in their history.
The songs are solid, with some obvious flubs...but even the songs I despised when I was younger I now have in my casual playlists (Red Light anyone???)...
Great album, great time period to discover and be a U2 fan...
Perfectly summed up why this is the 3rd U2 classic and to me and many others, the 3rd masterpiece. TUF and Boy, in my mind, both come close. Even SOI and SOE knock at the door on their best days. All my opinion. But WAR is what I always come back to.
I am one of those newer U2 fans. I was always aware of them- my aunt and Mom were big fans and I remember growing up in the 1990s and hanging with my Dad while Mom and aunt were off at Zoo TV and Popmart. I didn't become a fan until the super bowl halftime show caught my attention. Gave me an appreciation for ATYCLB and for U2 as a whole beyond just the album/band that had all those songs on the radio. HTDAAB made me a die hard upon release and my first show on the Vertigo ensured I would be a fanatic for life.
After the show in October 2005, I started through the back catalog. I remember being shocked that songs I'd heard live, An cat dubh, electric co and the ocean, were released all the way back in 1980! That blew my mind. Then I went through R&H, AB and JT very heavily the rest of that year.
It wasn't until fall 2006 that I got to WAR and when I did, it was the same experience so many here describe having in 1983. I'd never heard anything like this before. SBS and NYD at Red Rocks in that light, rain and fog took on their original, raw meaning for the first time that I'd seen. I saw what they were, not the classic rock staples they became. Then the rest of the album hit me the same way. Passionate in the most urgent way I'd ever heard music be passionate. Energetic. Visceral. I was blown away discovering live performances of these tunes on the WAR tour. It was the band I'd come to know and love, sure. It's not like they are all that different today- but it was almost like discovering a completely new band. I'd never heard anything that sounded like Two hearts, Seconds, Surrender or Drowning man.
I know many take a different view, but to me, there's not anything approaching a clunker on this album. In fact, Refugee and Red light, the two most commonly cited weak spots, stood out to me on first listen.
How relevant have these songs remained? Like
Mac-Fly said, a WAR 35 tour would be as fitting to these times (or more) than JT 30 was.
Even taking the SOE angle, there's sonic and thematic relevance:
Refugee would be right at home with the sonic and political themes of Red flag day. Summer of love addresses the same subject. Drowning man.
You could make a connection between Two hearts and The Best thing. Defiant joy in a troubled world.
I think E&I has some room for WAR. I'd love to see Two Hearts get more of a chance than it got on I&E. Play it right up front and really give it their all. Drowning man is primed to get a few spins as well. Seconds is so relevant to our world today. 40 as well.
this album
