I finally realized the greatness of U2's "Pop" album

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scarlet october

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I often overlooked this album , because of what others said about it. But I decided to try it out. I got it off ebay for $6.00 new. I own every U2 CD except "Zooropa" and I just got "Pop".

I must say this album has totally blown me away. :shocked: This is going to be in my stereo for awhile. I'm really digging "Last Night On Earth".:drool: Sorry for my rambling ... I'm just really excited.:D

"Zooropa" is next.:wink:
 
Honestly,
I'm a fairly new U2 fan. I mean, I liked there stuff growing up, but now I own almost every cd and even buying books.

But I have to say Pop is one of my favorites as well. I guess I can understand when people say they don't like it b/c it's so different from their original music, but I love it.
 
#2 on my album rankings, the top 4 of which are static and non-changing...second only to the mighty AB.

Please is the best song. Please is, imo, is one of the top 10 songs U2 have ever recorded, and live(on the live recordings I've heard at least, didn't get to go to a Popmart show), it was mindblowing.
 
Only Playboy Mansion and If God Will Send His Angels are less than average U2 songs, and listen to the guitar in IGWSHA and you will realise how great this song could have and should have been
 
intedomine said:
Only Playboy Mansion and If God Will Send His Angels are less than average U2 songs, and listen to the guitar in IGWSHA and you will realise how great this song could have and should have been
My two favorite songs on the album...
 
typhoon said:

My two favorite songs on the album...

....and such differences of opinion shows why PoP is such a wonderfully diverse and unique album...

My 5th fave album

My rankings

1. discotheque
2. please
3. last night on earth
4. mofo
5. do you feel loved
6. if you wear that velvet dress
7. staring at the sun
8. miami
9. wake up dead man
10. gone
11. playboy mansion
12. if god will send his angels
 
Please and Gone are two of U2's best ever. Do You Feel Loved is so severely underrated. that bass line.. :drool:. Staring At The Sun is good, I feel it should be great, but something's missing. And Discotheque is just fun. And lyrically especially, it's one of the best U2 records hands down.
 
edge_2125 said:
... I feel it should be great, but something's missing....

Did they leave it in the duty free? :wink:

Pop is a good album, very underated in many ways. They didn't quite pull everything off IMO, but I still think it's really good.

Please is an amazing song, and whoever said it, the live versions I've heard are great too. Gone and Last Night on Earth are easily amongst the best songs on there, and their performance of Last Night On Earth from Mexico City is unbelievably good - get hold of it now!!

IGWSHA is a beautiful song and quite underated (like much of the album). I better stop or I'll just end up bigging up the whole album. Not their best work, but I still love it.
 
I like the first seven tracks a lot now, but they totally lose me after that. "Miami" and "The Playboy Mansion" are plodding, "If You Wear That Dress" is a horrid Chris Izaak sort of thing, and "Please" and "Wake Up Dead Man" are incredibly earnest tunes that lack a melody......

So yeah, after "Gone", take it out of your CD player and listen to ATYCLB. :drool:
 
I can't say if PoP is my 1st or 10th album but one thing I know: I hate it the first time but now it's the album I more listen to. Why? I don't know. But I like it :drool:

Discothèque: cool song, excellent for an opening and 1st single like Vertigo on HTDAAB. Great guitar riff. The new mix for the best off is awesome.

Do You Feel Loved: not all that great but surely underrated
Mofo: the most dancing U2 song, I hate it the 2 ou 3 first listenings but it's probably the song in which I changed more my opinion. Great sound :drool:
If God Will Send His Angels I think it's a good song but it could be better. the video don't help
Staring at The Sun: a normal song
Last Night on Earth: I think it's the only song in POP that I liked the first time I listened. Great great song :drool:
Gone: the best song of the album
Miami: after the best... IMO it's the weaker song that U2 ever made. embarassing and ridiculous
The Playboy Mansion: a normal song
If You Wear That Velvet Dress: I can't qualify this song... delicious? :drool: :drool:
Please: a bit overrated IMO but it's a good song
Wake Up Dead Man: IMO not a high point but cool for album closing
 
scarlet october said:
I often overlooked this album , because of what others said about it. But I decided to try it out. I got it off ebay for $6.00 new. I own every U2 CD except "Zooropa" and I just got "Pop".

I must say this album has totally blown me away. :shocked: This is going to be in my stereo for awhile. I'm really digging "Last Night On Earth".:drool: Sorry for my rambling ... I'm just really excited.:D

"Zooropa" is next.:wink:
I feel the same way about several albums I heard bad things about--only to get them much later and find I didn't agree with the bad reviews, afterall. I wish I'd not listened from the start. I'll never listen to reviews again. I'll decide for myself. :wink:
 
I can't believe how many people like Staring at the Sun more than IGWSHA. The latter is a really good song and is criminally underrated.

I also don't think Gone is anything too special. It's a good song, but nothing spectacular. :shrug:

In my opinion, the rankings should look something like this:

1. If God Will Send His Angels
2. Please
3. Mofo
4. Last Night on Earth
5. Discotheque
6. Gone
7. Wake Up Dead Man
8. Staring at the Sun
9. Do You Feel Loved
10. If You Wear that Velvet Dress
11. The Playboy Mansion
12. Miami

I don't especially care for the last three songs listed. They're alright, but nothing special. The rest of the album's class, though. :up:
 
POP is the second album that I heard from U2,the first being HTDAAB(I am a new fan).After listening to HTDAAB I started to exploreU2 went to google and found interference.com.At first I was only reading posts without registering looking for recommendation for my next step.I decided to take POP because there were so many threads about it and very different opinions.And at first I didn't like it for it was not HTDAAB style.But after a while and more listens I realised how deep,dark and complex it was.The first three songs as agreat intro,beautiful ballad IGWSHA and then a real storm and a centerpiece of the record:SATS,Last Night On Earth and the perfection named GONE.And rarely any band saves the best for last which IS the case here.GRANDE FINALE with PLEASE and Wake up dead man is the main reason why I will buy and listen everything fromU2.If all other records are nearly as good as POP I will become the biggest U2 fan.
 
Ok, here's my thumbnail take on Pop. Most artists set the bar at 10 ft. for a new album. U2 usually sets the bar at 15 ft. for a new album. With Pop, they set the bar at 20ft. They cleared about 15-17 ft. on the album, which fills it with as much greatness as any U2 album, but the few feet they didn't clear here are also evident. People have tended to focus on those flaws over the years instead of the greatness.
 
It's pretty impossible for me to rank the songs on Pop, because I love every bloody one so much! But I guess I'll try...

1. Discotheque (the song that got me into U2 in the first place)
2. Gone
3. Do You Feel Loved
4. Mofo
5. Last Night on Earth
6. Please (live I'd probably rate this higher, the live version is infuckincredible)
7. Wake Up Dead Man
8. If God Will Send His Angels
9. Staring at the Sun
10. If You Wear That Velvet Dress
11. Miami
12. The Playboy Mansion

Even though I ranked them in my second half, #7-12 are still criminally underrated. I'd take those songs over half of U2's entire catalouge.
 
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