I was 15 years old - and waited eagerly to listen to the new tunes, after having fallen in love with the album before. Thinking about this, not so much has changed since then ecpecting a new U2 album.
But in 1987 this was THE album - I played the vinyl record over and over. Years later, when I bought the CD, I really missed the scratches a bit, especially during "With Or Without You" or "Running To Stand Still".
Now, 20 years, THE JOSHUA TREE still is one of THE albums of all time. All the songs still sound brilliant: the studio versions as when they are played live. U2 proved it once more in 2005/06, not only with the (more famous) A-side, but also the B-side with excellent tunes like "One Tree Hill" or "Mothers Of the Disppeared". Guess, next time "Exit" should be rediscovered live, shouldn't it?
P.S.: Those were the times, when also the singles' B-sides might have given a good album tune. Just think about "Hold On To Love", "The Sweetest Thing", "Silver And Gold" - and, of course, "Spanish Eyes" ...