What if......

The friendliest place on the web for anyone that follows U2.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

STING2

Rock n' Roll Doggie FOB
Joined
Oct 22, 2001
Messages
8,876
....U2 had broken up in March of 1988 right after winning the Grammy award for Album of the year for Joshua Tree. It would have been a full year after the release of the album. I imagine if the band had done this, they would have done a tour of Australia, New Zealand and Japan in January and February. This part of the tour had been postponed and later became the Lovetown tour in 89' but if the band were planning to break up soon, I believe they would have finished it in Australia or Japan. After this the band would have picked up the Grammy at the end of February 1988 and then disbanded. No Rattle and Hum album, no Rattle and Hum movie, no more albums or tours, or any re-union tours.

If the band had done this back in March of 1988, how do you think people in 2003, the industry, fans, general population, would look on the band and their legacy in 2003.
 
That's a good question because if it was any other band I would have said something different but in U2's case no one predicted such a radical change in their music with Achtung Baby. The sound had completely changed with all sorts of gizmos like distortion on the guitar and even some on the vocals. I would have hated to not have AB, Pop and Zooropa. As much as I like ATYCLB I could still do without it. People would never have predicted this music from them so I think if they had disbanded they would have been considered as a great band but not one of the all time best. They have done so much since then that to deny them a top ten list would be not right.

On the other hand legends are sometimes are born from the imagination. People talk about what Hendrix would have done or even Cobain. But i still don't think anyone could forsee U2's muisical change.
 
Well the legacy of U2 would have been one of a band that broke up too soon and "what could have been". I was trying to think of another band that truly left at such a high but couldn't think of any.

But the bigger question whould be where would music be today. I dare say without AB and Zoo TV the climate of rock music would be very different. I've heard many artist state that AB was their musical "Bible" or that Zoo TV changed the live rock experience forever. Who knows? I'm glad it didn't happen.
 
i think if u2 would have broken up pre-Achtung Baby, they would have been considered along the same lines of The Police. Great band, but not around long enough to be considered amongst the elite of the elite. The real question is... would Bono go on to have a career post-U2 that sting did post-Police?
 
I think the reaction would have been that they were just another 80's band that had some good songs, that would have gotten low radio airplay on classic rock and 80's stations. They would be in a similar league to The Cars, I think.
 
The Cars did have some pretty big hits... so did U2 in the 80's, probably about the same amount I'd say.

I think it's a fair comparison.
 
DaveC said:
The Cars did have some pretty big hits... so did U2 in the 80's, probably about the same amount I'd say.

I think it's a fair comparison.

I don't think so. The Cars never made the cover of Time magazine, and I can't remember anyone calling them the biggest band of the '80s - they were just another band with a lot of hit records.
 
well yeah but we're talking about them breaking up after they did the joshua tree. some still consider that their greatest album. i don't think they would've been heralded as much as they are now, for example when they're eligible they're pretty much a shoo-in for the rock and roll hall of fame. i think they would've been considered...yeah, like the police. a band that broke up in their prime and could've gone on to do some fantastic albums.
 
i'd kind of hope bono wouldn't have gone down the solo career path

and i certainly would still think u2 was a bad 80s synth pop band, because certainly no guitar makes that kind of sound.



i can't name anything the cars did. withouth being a u2 fan, i knew WOWY and streets and ISHFWILF. i got them all mixed up, but i knew they were the same band. and technically i knew SBS, but i was busy thinking it was ozzy osbourne :huh:
 
Last edited:
i agree with the comparsions to the police. Bono or edge might have tried solo gigs.........
 
The Police are precisely the band I had in mind when I wrote that. U2 in March 1988 were at about the same place the Police were when they broke up after the end of the Synchronicity tour in March 1984. Synchronicity sold over 11 million copies that year making it the biggest selling album by a band worldwide in 1983-1984. The Synchronicity Tour also set attendence records, Gross Records, and fastest sellout records around the world. The Police were nominated for 5 grammy awards for Synchronicity and won 3 losing out to Michael Jackson for Album of the year and Record of the Year, but picking up Song of the Year, Best Pop song by a group and Best Rock Album by a group. U2 in March 1988 had sold 14 million copies of Joshua Tree Worldwide and won one of its two Grammy nominations, the one being for Album of the year. The Joshua Tree tour was huge and broke new records.

Although musically different in many ways, both bands had just completed their 5th album at these respective points. Both albums Joshua Tree and Synchronicity were big evolutions from the style and sound from the first albums Boy and Outlandos D'Amour. The first and 5th albums sound like two different bands.

One difference is in the amount of time between the release of the first album and the real and hypothisized break up points. For the Police the first album was released in November 1978 and their break up occured in March 1984. For U2, Boy was released in October 1980 and the hypothetical break up occuring in March 1988.

The Police were just inducted into the Rockin Roll Hall of Fame and I am confident that U2 would still be inducted into the Hall of Fame at their first chance even if they had broken up in March 1988.

As far as what Bono and the Edge would have done, if they had broken up in March 1988, I am not sure. Even more interesting would be what Larry and Adam would do.

As it stands, the Police are the only band that the above senerio has happened to that I can think of. Their last album and tour were their biggest and most critically praised and barring a few live appearences they have never gone back and done another album or tour, yet.

It is strange to think of U2 without all the albums and things that have happened since Joshua Tree. Despite the Criticisms of Rattle And Hum, that movie brought a lot of young fans in who were to young at that time to go see them in concert, but were able to get to the local movie theater.

I'm thinking if U2 had broken up in March 1988 they would have still put out a concert show from the Joshua Tree tour, just as the Police did for Synchronicity. Rattle and Hum was a documentary though that had new songs, so it would not be the same.
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:
Well the legacy of U2 would have been one of a band that broke up too soon and "what could have been". I was trying to think of another band that truly left at such a high but couldn't think of any.



The Smiths (most incredible bands rock)?:sexywink:
The Police? (still had many albums in them, what a shame:( )

Who else.........?
 
All I can say is ... I'm glad they didn't!

I don't think I would be a U2 fan if they had only been around during the 80s ... because I really dislike all 80s music (except for U2 of course). If it hadn't been for their more recent work (Miss Sarajevo, or Sweetest Thing, for example) they would just be to me a throwaway 80s band - stuck in the mould of their early crusading zeal and probably remembered for that.
 
Back
Top Bottom