The Wanderer said:
no, I think this aspect of the U2 show has long been overrated by fans here, the live version isn't even as good as the album version
Suuuure!
Now what makes the live version so great is the transitions with the other songs... Please, Running To Stand Still, or Bad. When that tangle of noise after RTSS on ZooTV gives way to the beauty of Streets, it's fuckin beautiful!
If you wanna enjoy the studio version more, that's your perogative. But to me, Streets live at any show is one of those moments that defines what U2 can do, and what they're all about. Euphoria is a good word for it. Last night I was studying for math
barf
while listening to Zoo Europa, and when the beginning of streets came on, I actually stood up and raised my arms in the air. I felt a bit goofy, but I just couldn't help it.
I also like the songs they always play before it... note, what do Please, Bad, and Running to Stand Still have in common? They are all kinda sad songs about drugs/depression/hopelessness... and when u2 brings in those crystalline strings and the red screen, it just lifts you up out of that, it's incredibly healing.
I remember a really interesting thread from a while ago (last october or something?) about the meaning of WTSHNN, and how the streets with no name possibly don't have anything at all to do with the song. Wish I could dig that up.
So yeah. I think Streets is pretty damn amazing. It's not always the high point of every concert, and sometimes we might get a little sick of it or bored with it, but it has a peculiar magic to it that's just undeniable. It transcends. It goes beyond.
I truly think it is one of the defining moments in music (and especially live music), not to mention U2.