U2 Reflect on Troubled 'Innocence' Release: 'These Songs Have Staying Power''

[womanfish]

81

Gah! thank you. i was thinking 64 in my head as the year of their first album

But pretty crazy to think about it now. That people were making fun of The Stones when I was in Junior High school in the late 80's as being over the hill and washed up. They were not even 25 years into their career. Now U2, 35 years in, have done pretty well for themselves. I really don't think there is any band (not solo artist) that can even come close to the sustained popularity they have achieved.

 

[ozeeko]

Here's the thing: "These songs have staying power" is a bullshit quote. It's not up to the writer to decide. The public decides. Case Closed.

And WOWY was not even being considered as a single by U2 at the time. They thought it sounded out of place and wouldn't work on 80's radio. In theory, they were right. In practice, they were wrong. It's their biggest hit of all time. In the end, who the hell knows what will happen? All you can do is release a song and see.

 

[thavidesco]

Why do you consider BD as strange?


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It is strange from its origin. It was born from 3 ideas and it shows. It is like different parts connected somehow together, it is a bit weird for a pop song. Even the chorus doesn´t sound like a proper chorus, it´s more like some power riffs with just a slogan and then there is the after chorus "Touch me"... Then it switches to middle 8 and at the end the outro "What you don´t have" instead of repeated choruses. Ok, why not. At least it has variety.

I wouldn´t guess it would be succesful in charts at all. I wonder how it would rank now.

 

[BVS]

Interesting... everyone has their opinion


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[Scorpionac]

Every Breaking Wave is every bit as good as WOWY, BD, or One.

Lol

 

[Cancer45]

It is strange from its origin. It was born from 3 ideas and it shows. It is like different parts connected somehow together, it is a bit weird for a pop song. Even the chorus doesn´t sound like a proper chorus, it´s more like some power riffs with just a slogan and then there is the after chorus "Touch me"... Then it switches to middle 8 and at the end the outro "What you don´t have" instead of repeated choruses. Ok, why not. At least it has variety.

I wouldn´t guess it would be succesful in charts at all. I wonder how it would rank now.

So, how do you feel about the origins of lady with the spinning head? And wouldn't say that beautiful day is u2 chasing that "magic"?

 

[shaun vox]

Lol

lol indeed ! there is not one song on the album that will be remembered or played (on the radio) like wowy and one .. ebv is a good song..prolly the best on soi..but not a classic..and the last classic song they had was beautiful day..so its been awhile ya all..

 

[ozeeko]

only time will tell what will become a classic. that said, I highly doubt any of these recent songs will be as highly regarded in future years as their biggest hits.

 

[DevilsShoes]

You're laying out a formula for a "timeless song". Doesn't this kind of go against your earlier comments about not being able to calculate what makes a hit?



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Undeniably, loads of songs try and replicate this formula, most of U2's actually, I guess its all about execution at the end of the day. Theoretically All I Want Is You should have been a huge hit but wasn't.

There's no real formula, but maybe you can reduce your chances of having a flop if you stick closer to something that's worked countless times before.

I understand why U2 are trying to do it but for whatever reason, in their case it doesn't really work, their greatest songs feel like a genuinely organic mood or moment and when they try and create that moment it sounds a bit contrived.

Most of their hits from the 80's and early 90's, whatever their failings may be, never for a second sound anything less than authentic and deeply felt. Maybe that's why they've lasted for so long, you can tell the band really means them.

Since 2000 its been a different matter.

Lets not forget U2 have tried to rewrite WOWY numerous times, in style if not necessarily content.

 

[BVS]

Lets not forget U2 have tried to rewrite WOWY numerous times, in style if not necessarily content.

They have?



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[Catman]

Here's the thing: "These songs have staying power" is a bullshit quote. It's not up to the writer to decide. The public decides. Case Closed.

While I find the merits of the survey to be somewhat dubious, I certainly wouldn't infer from this quote that Bono, personally, was deciding that the songs have staying power--his quote was in response to a surprisingly large percent of people surveyed still listening to their latest record.

 

[thavidesco]

They have?



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One of the attempts was Miracle Drug. They failed badly.

 

[thavidesco]

So, how do you feel about the origins of lady with the spinning head? And wouldn't say that beautiful day is u2 chasing that "magic"?

Yep, they did and they found it in this song. Nevertheless, I wouldn´t exúect it to be a radio hit. But that is unpredictable I guess. Only complaint about BD is that awful mild production that spoils the whole ATYCLB record and the obvious Bono´s voice struggling at that period.

 

[Mrs. Garrison]

Trollin', Trollin', Trollin'
Trollin', Trollin', Trollin'

TROLLHIDE!
Don't try to understand 'em
Just rope and throw and brand 'em
Soon we'll be living high and wide.
My heart's calculatin'
My true love will be waitin'
Be waiting at the end of my ride.

Move 'em on, head 'em up
Head 'em up, move 'em on
Move 'em on, head 'em up

TROLLHIDE!

Cut 'em out, ride 'em in
Ride 'em in, let 'em out
Cut 'em out, ride 'em in

TROLLHIDE!

 

[BVS]

One of the attempts was Miracle Drug. They failed badly.

:facepalm: you should know a little about music before saying some of the things you do. WOWY is a basic 4 chord song with no chorus or bridge, MD actually has a pre-chorus, chorus, structurally they aren't even close.


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[ozeeko]

While I find the merits of the survey to be somewhat dubious, I certainly wouldn't infer from this quote that Bono, personally, was deciding that the songs have staying power--his quote was in response to a surprisingly large percent of people surveyed still listening to their latest record.

How can you at all even infer how these people are listening to their latest record? I could be just ignorant of this, but honestly, how do they know how in depth people are listening? Do their songs come up on random playlists? Maybe by accident? Maybe they meant to play Zoo Station and accidentally cued up The Miracle? Whatever the case is, the album's still less than a year young. I'd give it a few years before declaring that any song off this album has staying power.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Trollin', Trollin', Trollin'
Trollin', Trollin', Trollin'

TROLLHIDE!
Don't try to understand 'em
Just rope and throw and brand 'em
Soon we'll be living high and wide.
My heart's calculatin'
My true love will be waitin'
Be waiting at the end of my ride.

Move 'em on, head 'em up
Head 'em up, move 'em on
Move 'em on, head 'em up

TROLLHIDE!

Cut 'em out, ride 'em in
Ride 'em in, let 'em out
Cut 'em out, ride 'em in

TROLLHIDE!

Pssst... This is an Adele rewrite #dadrock

 

[gvox]

Trollin', Trollin', Trollin'

Trollin', Trollin', Trollin'



TROLLHIDE!

Don't try to understand 'em

Just rope and throw and brand 'em

Soon we'll be living high and wide.

My heart's calculatin'

My true love will be waitin'

Be waiting at the end of my ride.



Move 'em on, head 'em up

Head 'em up, move 'em on

Move 'em on, head 'em up



TROLLHIDE!



Cut 'em out, ride 'em in

Ride 'em in, let 'em out

Cut 'em out, ride 'em in



TROLLHIDE!

Sent from my ass crack

 

[gvox]

WOWY is a basic 4 chord song with no chorus

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I agree with the context within which you are arguing but for the love of Pete this is so so utterly wrong. WOWY has a chorus. The end.

(And now we'll hear from you-know-who...lmfao)


Sent from my ass crack

 

[BVS]

I agree with the context within which you are arguing but for the love of Pete this is so so utterly wrong. WOWY has a chorus. The end.

(And now we'll hear from you-know-who...lmfao)


Sent from my ass crack

I mean that the chord structure of the song doesn't change for the chorus.

 

[gvox]

I mean that the chord structure of the song doesn't change for the chorus.

Oh. Well that doesn't really mean much, the chord structure doesn't change in the chorus for EBW and about a million other pop songs, either.

 

[BVS]

Oh. Well that doesn't really mean much, the chord structure doesn't change in the chorus for EBW and about a million other pop songs, either.

Correct, but it does in MD, so his example was a bad one.


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[LemonMelon]

Vertigo not a classic? Come on...

Well, it was popular for a while. Is that enough to make something a classic? Isn't there a certain level of quality expected from something that transcends time to become "classic?"

Not that I dislike Vertigo, it's dumb fun, but the bar is being set pretty low here. When listing U2 classics, it wouldn't be my first or twentieth choice.

 

[BVS]

Well, it was popular for a while. Is that enough to make something a classic? Isn't there a certain level of quality expected from something that transcends time to become "classic?"

Not that I dislike Vertigo, it's dumb fun, but the bar is being set pretty low here. When listing U2 classics, it wouldn't be my first or twentieth choice.

Quality is subjective, if by this standard AC/DC have no classics.

I think U2 is allowed a dumb fun song. Personally I don't like Vertigo, I'd prefer Miracle in this category, but Vertigo is hugely popular in the live setting, still gets play in certain formats and will define a particular time in their career.


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[Yahweh]

They could write the best song ever written at this point in their career it wouldn't be a classic - they are too old and the majority of people have written them off as "selling out" long ago. Whether people here want to admit that or not is a different story.

Pretty much any band that has ever been in music the classics come within the first 4 albums of their career. U2 was even quite lucky to get a classic with Beautiful Day at 40, not 55 as they are today.

 

[LemonMelon]

Quality is subjective, if by this standard AC/DC have no classics.

I think U2 is allowed a dumb fun song. Personally I don't like Vertigo, I'd prefer Miracle in this category, but Vertigo is hugely popular in the live setting, still gets play in certain formats and will define a particular time in their career.


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"It sometimes plays on certain formats still" and "it survived one tour" is a pretty weak case for the song being a classic at this stage. I do think "quality is subjective" has its limits as well. Is Bang the Drum All Day a Todd Rundgren classic? Yeah it's played by the organist in hockey arenas, but we all know he's capable of better. Not all popular songs can be classics.

IMO the last classic U2 song is Beautiful Day and Moment of Surrender is the last capital-G GREAT song they've put. Vertigo is their last hit.

 

[ozeeko]

The last U2 classic is Grace.

 

[LemonMelon]

If we're counting reissue material, it's got to be Drunk Chicken.

 

[gvox]

The last U2 classic is Grace.

And this is a troll cry for help.

Spoiler

And I actually like Grace

 

[ozeeko]

I'm actually not too far from being sincere. I love the production on that song.