City Of Blinding Lights depriciation thread

[onyourkneesboy]

The good part:
..”and I miss you when your not around” I like very much. The verses and bridges are O.K. But that’s about it.

The bad part:
As Eno would put it: “this song has quite a few problems”. Well, to my opinion the whole song is a problem! I know I’m offending a lot of people now and that’s not my intention, but as a longtime fan, it’s just how I hear the song.

First of: The piano intro. I understand U2 decided they wanted a simple piano riff. But this riff is so slow, predictable that a little child would come up with something more original. But one of the biggest problems is about to come: The “slaaiiiide-guitaaahhr!!!” Yugh!!
This is the most WHINING, ANNOYING, MOANING guitar slide-riff Edge ever produced!! He must have had a very uninspired, bad day otherwise he would never come up with such a boring, whining slide-riff. He seeks a certain emotion, I hear that, but instead he takes a wrong turn and it gets enormously cheesy, I’m sorry.. I can’t believe, he himself, and the other members of the band let him get away with it.

Then you get the high ooooh, ooooh’s together with Adam’s pumping bass which sounded pretty good to me on first listen. I remember getting a little pumped up the first time I heard this part. This sounded very promising for the BIG chorus to come…
So I held on tight and then…: “oh…you…look…so…..biejooedifohohol…tonaaaiit………..” What??????? That’s it? Just a stupid yell over the same chord-sequence as the “ooooh, oooooh’s?? I couldn’t believe my ears!! And like it still wasn’t enough, that annoying “slaaaaiide-guitar” again. And although I heard the song for the first time I knew Bono was about to sing:…”in the city of blinding lahaits..” And he did!! How predictable…

Man, I could not believe how much of a caricature U2 themselves were making of this song. The chorus should have gone in a whole new direction so that one really could go: WOW!!! What a great surprising chorus!!! That would have saved the song (from mainly the intro!)
O.K. back to the song: Then you get a bridge and Bono start whining like he wants ice-cream: ..”tssaaahm, tssaaahm, tssaaahm, won’t leave me as I am” to wreck again my nerves with: “oh…you…look…so…biejooedifohohol…tonaaaiit………..” on repeat. And this supposed to be the climax!! Truly this is the worst chorus I have heard from this band in 20 years. Then it fades with the same dull piano…

I can’t believe they want to display so much recklessness and laziness regarding the chorus of this song and the cheesiness of Edge’s guitar. I can’t believe they skipped a song like “Mercy” for this track. Already in demo-form this song grabs your hand and flies off with you. Much more passion and drive!

Conclusion: They should have left City Of…on the shelves and rework it later to a really good song with more inspiration. And give more effort to get the cheesiness out. In this form it’s U2 unworthy. U2 are know for their superb intro’s but this one is so thin, vague, whiney. Like I said: The song is a caricature. Live it sounds a little better though. I’m sorry if I hurt somebody’s feelings about this song.

 

[Axver]

As far as I'm concerned, not only is this the best song on HTDAAB, but one of U2's best songs, full stop. Classic but fresh U2, and it sounds amazing live (though the studio mixing certainly doesn't do the song any favours).

First of: The piano intro. I understand U2 decided they wanted a simple piano riff. But this riff is so slow, predictable that a little child would come up with something more original.

It's not as if any piano in any U2 song is exactly complex. A little child probably could've come up with October too.

I can’t believe they skipped a song like “Mercy” for this track. Already in demo-form this song grabs your hand and flies off with you. Much more passion and drive!

Yawn. Mercy isn't the best thing since sliced bread. I've long since tired of Interference's vocal minority who can't comprehend how this song missed being put on HTDAAB - we get the hint already.

 

[An Cat Gav]

I love this song too and is easily the best thing on "Bomb". I appreciate your comments and can see where youre coming from, but this song has all the elements of why I Love U2's music so much.
I absolutely love the whoo oohh woos!!! Especially just before the first chorus.

 

[AussieU2fanman]

I agree to an extent that the chorus should have been reworked, it doesn't carry the awsome bridge like it should. (The bridge is fkn brilliant with the ooohohhhohohss). If they nailed the chorus, it woulda been an absolutely brilliant song, in my top 5 of all time, everything else about the song is almost perfect.

 

[WalkOn21]

What is "depriciation"? The Oxford English Dictionary doesn't know it.

 

[phillyfan26]

Simplicity can make for good music. The piano and guitar parts are relatively simple but they work. The "Oh you look so beautiful tonight" works too, and is awesome live. It's one of the top three songs on a good album.

 

[vaz02]

I get as much energy from this track as i do with led zeppelin songs. Love the bridges and the chrous , sooo much energy.

 

[Tiger Edge]

You weren't allowed to pick the next one.

It's an all right song. I don't depreciate it, but I don't exactly see how anyone can rave about it like it's the second coming of Jesus.

 

[Tyagu_Anaykus]

I don't like it either... but everyone has the right to have their tastes and opinions.

 

[shaun vox]

worst song on the album(for me)
hate that song !! die die!!

 

[Aygo]

Naturally, I disagree with everything. COBL is one of the best tunes U2 released in this decade.
I just wonder how the song would sound like in its very remote form (in the Pop era) and how it would sound when Chris Thomas produced those 2003 versions.

I think that the live version is quite superior, but the studio version works very well, it's even very pleasant when listened on the radio and it's the perfect opener for a stadium concert. That's why elements like that (boring?) slide guitar and the (yucky?) oooh's work so well.

Then, I don't think that the song is predictable. It's far from it, only because it has many structures in the song (more than the "normal") and the chords and bassline progresions are always changing.

 

[onyourkneesboy]

Hmm...

Most comments in this thread so far, are from people who feel they have to stand up for this song.
I already know that a lot of people love it and probably the majority of the (classic) U2-fans do....

I started this thread because I was curious if there were any people with me who also think COBL is a rather forced, but empty song about a city, wrapped with as much glossy, shiny, and overall cliché-ed U2-wrappingpaper as the boys could find!

(I agree: live it has a little more balls...)

If this song is so great than it stands up for itself I think. You don't have to defend or praise it...

 

[Sken]

I just wish it has a better chorus. Thats probably the weakest part of the song.

 

[WalkOnTheEdge]

No way COBL deserves a depreciation thread. Other than the Dennis DeYoung/Styx sounding intro I think it is easily one of U2's best songs, past and present. I think the song rocks.

 

[phillyfan26]

If this song is so great than it stands up for itself I think. You don't have to defend or praise it...

If no one defended it, you'd probably say, "If the song's so good, why aren't people praising it?"

 

[Rafiennes]

I can't say I hate the song, but I don't feel the massive amounts of wacky love for it that a lot of people do.

Something about it seems dirivitive (sp) of other U2 songs, almost like a cut and paste of several of their songs to make COBL. I won't shut it off if it's on and I certainly think it's a great opener for their concert, but putting itup there with WTSHNN is kinda silly to me.

I had the same reaction to WILATW. People thought that song was the second coming. I thought it would have made a brilliant b-side.

Eh. Different strokes...

 

[amerrydeath]

The first time I heard it on CD:UK or wherever, I thought it was the second coming of Jesus too... and now it just bores me. Even on my beloved bootlegs, it's one of those songs (along with Sometimes) that I always skip because it's just not that interesting to listen to. That chorus might be the worst thing U2 has come up with since Red Light.

Also, Bono's voice sounds so nasally and just... bad during "beauuuuutiful" that it really doesn't do the song any favors there.

 

[ntalwar]

I started this thread because I was curious if there were any people with me who also think COBL is a rather forced, but empty song about a city...

I never thought of it as a song only about a city, but rather experiences.
My favorite song on HTDAAB.

 

[xaviMF22]

awful song.....this song will forever be streets weaker brother............

awful chorus

oh you look so beautiful...


oh and this song is better live...but the production is awful

 

[LMP]

COBL's production is not that good, but it's still a fine song and its live counterpart is amazing.

I guess I'll make the next "rahhh, let's gang on this song" thread soon

 

[Zoots]

Re: Re: City Of Blinding Lights depriciation thread

It's not as if any piano in any U2 song is exactly complex. A little child probably could've come up with October too.

I disagree. As simple as it sounds, the piano on October definitely sounds more complicated compared to the ridiculously elementary notes that get repeated over and over again on City Of Blinding Lights. Overall, I do like the song but that piano... sheesh! Horrible. But I do like the slide guitar here even though it's not as good as say, on Even Better Than The Real Thing. And another thing, just after the intro when Larry's beat slowly kicks in, I could do without the christmasy twinkling chiming which actually wisely gets replaced by slide guitar on the live versions. I do like the ooh oohs, the wall of sound leading up to the chorus and the 'getting ready to leave the ground part'. But the 'beautiful tonight' chorus kinda falls flat. A slow build-up like RHCP's Wet Sand may have worked better.

So meh... I don't love it, I don't hate it. It's a mixed bag IMO.

 

[J_NP]

I will only quote myself on this :

Streets is the Streets of the 80's for me , Don't care if it's a song about NY , about US for that matter ...... and While it doesnt exactly have the best written chorus , the energy is phenomenal , it's the classic feel of what only U2's best nights can give ...... Besides the instrumental

Adam rhythm
Larry beating
Edge's box of tricks

And those moments ......

 

[RademR]

incredible song....

the only thing bad is the production on the record...but live it's great. Edge's guitar

 

[U2Man]

The only song (besides Vertigo that I'm a bit tired of) that I usually skipped when I was playing HTDAAB.

I agree with Xavi and a few others. Much, much better live, and

1) It lacks a good melody (probably the weakest song melody-wise on the album).

2) The chorus is flat and a bit lame.

 

[AtomicBono]

COBL's production is not that good, but it's still a fine song and its live counterpart is amazing.

mainly I don't like the way COBL was recorded and produced. I'm not too fond of the little piano part and I don't like the effect on Edge's guitar or whatever, and like all of HTDAAB the production is a bit flat and loud. Live though, it is an amazing song. The chorus - yeah, maybe slightly cheesy, but I guess it never came across that way to me. I've always loved it. I love most of the lyrics, actually.

I wouldn't put City as one of U2's best songs ever, but it's certainly not one of their worst! I don't want to depreciate it

Zootlesque - where have you been? I haven't seen you post in awhile...have just missed you?

 

[LemonMelon]

Amazing song. I agree with Axver. It's in my top 5 favorite U2 songs, and really, it's classic U2. Or at least, it will be a classic.

 

[shart1780]

The only thing I think is keeping it from being a classic is the production. It's not very good. I was hoping that they'd change it up for the single version but they didn't.

 

[LemonMelon]

The only thing I think is keeping it from being a classic is the production. It's not very good. I was hoping that they'd change it up for the single version but they didn't.

U2's production is hardly ever good. I think that's one reason why bootlegs and live versions are so alluring.

Besides, I like COBL's production.

 

[DreamOutLoud13]

You know, I still don't know why I don't like COBL as much as a lot of other people seem to. It just doesn't move me. It's not necessarily a bad song, I just can't seem to get into it.

 

[J_NP]

You know, I still don't know why I don't like COBL as much as a lot of other people seem to. It just doesn't move me. It's not necessarily a bad song, I just can't seem to get into it.

Start playin guitar and sure you'll get into