Top 5 Awful Moments in U2's 'Rattle & Hum'

[The Panther]

As for the vid, I wouldn't waste my time on it but having read Galeongirl's account, you gotta feel sorry for morons who waste their lives on hate.

I'm not sure where "having-a-critical-(not to mention funny)-perspective" becomes "wasting-your-life-on-hate". It is indeed possible to criticize U2 while still enjoying them. If you actually watched the video, you'd see that the guy who made it is quite a big U2 fan.

I'm not saying you have to watch it (you don't), but it might be better to watch it before passing judgment on it. It's rather well done.

 

[An Cat Gav]

This. They were at an apex in their live performances then that would carry on through 93. They went from being an excellent live band on the TUF tour to being the greatest around, with swagger to match, and that is documented with beautiful sound and cinematography on Rattle And Hum.

I get a hard laugh out of the rest, which is objectively crap.

Yeah I agree, though not quite as harsh.

I was old enough to see it when it came out as well, I was 14 and went to see it about 3 times i think(not enough pocket money to go more!). I worshipped it at the time though, all of it, even the talking!
the lovetown show which came out the following year, showed them in a far more relaxed mood, shame they couldn't have been more like that in rattle and hum.
I still don't think rattle and hum is quite as awful as people think, though bits are fairly cringe worthy eg silver and gold.

 

[No spoken words]

I'm not saying you have to watch it (you don't)

Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[mad1]

I wish they kept in the shot of Bono throwing the towel in a rage and spitting beer out!

 

[Galeongirl]

I'm not sure where "having-a-critical-(not to mention funny)-perspective" becomes "wasting-your-life-on-hate". It is indeed possible to criticize U2 while still enjoying them. If you actually watched the video, you'd see that the guy who made it is quite a big U2 fan.

I'm not saying you have to watch it (you don't), but it might be better to watch it before passing judgment on it. It's rather well done.

Funny? On what part did that become funny?

I have plenty of critical opinions on the band, and don't think it's healthy to love every little thing about them, but this? The criticism was a lot of bullshit that apparently nobody else on here agrees with. We are acknowledging that there's plenty wrong with R&H, but the points the guy talks about are not in there, or at least not in the same form as he's counting them.

He may be a fan or not, and he'd be welcome to come on here and share his view, but I don't get why a video should've been made of his opinion and posted and viewed on the web. What makes his opinion so fucking special that we all should watch and acknowledge it?

 

[cobl04]

I agree with every word. The album and movie came from a more sincere and bombastic era. I find it very hard to believe that a young person today could understand what we felt. Can they understand how alone U2 was? How different what they were doing was from the rest of the industry? I don't think many people in the late 80s saw Edge looking into the distance and didn't feel a sense of weight - which the kid who made the video just couldn't grasp.

If someone much younger can enjoy R&H - bully. But I won't ever imagine I understand Woodstock and I don't think it's likely many kids today could ever understand what Rattle and Hum was like when it was new and I was 15.The example of the silent film is a good analogy. I've been watching some old Pink Panther films lately, and I enjoy them, but I'm under no illusion that I am experiencing them in the way that an audience in the 1960s would have.

Heck, half the kids today believe the propaganda that R&H was somehow unsuccessful! It sold gobs of copies, had 4 massively-successful singles and launched the tour with some of U2's best performances ever. Vocally, Bono will never be able to do again what he did on that album.

You are a bit pretentious.

 

[Jive Turkey]

He would deserve a kick in the balls if he showed off his lyrics AND was crap at it. The fact he's one of the greatest lyricists ever means he can do whatever the fork he wants with it. Besides, haven't you heard of the exuberance of youth? EVERYONE is dumber in their 20s (Oh shit, when I think of my 20s and some of the dumbass things I did..)

You really think the lyrics to When Love Comes to Town are some of the greatest ever???

 

[zwervers2]

BB KING in 1988: "You're awful young to be writing such heavy lyrics."

BB KING in 2011: "You're awful old to be writing such shallow lyrics."

Can you imagine Bono reading new lyrics with the same sense of grandeur???

"A mole
Digging in
a
Hole.
Digging up my
soul." (smirk and raise eyebrow)

Thank you for putting a smile upon my face. eventhough you are clearly not God. Hey, I think there is a songtitle in this..

 

[Jive Turkey]

You are a bit pretentious.

You just wouldn't understand, Cobbler.

/kidsthesedays

 

[mikal]

i wish they would have taken the "Linear" route. there's nothing better than some actor eating a sandwich during a song. it really fits the mood.

imagine a young Patrick Swayze devouring a pizza while Desire plays in the background!

 

[gvox]

There were some cool speaking parts..like where Adam talks about religion and politics..the band fumbling nervously over the "what has happened between
.."...Edge is on a completely different timing as usual...Dont know about anyone else but these are quotes you say at band practice and guys crack up

 

[bono_212]

I don't think any man has ever earned himself a punch in the dick more than Bono did from 2:06-2:12.

:reads own lyrics as if they were Frost:

:gives facial expression that screams "HOLY FUCKING SHIT GUYS I'M GOOD AT THIS WRITING THING AREN'T I OH YES I AM":

As much as you tried to describe this moment to me the other day, I still had no fucking idea what you were talking about, because I didn't remember that moment at all. Because I find it incredibly insignificant. He's proud of his work, and B.B. King was praising it as well. Sure, it probably went to his head. Oh welllll.

None of the posters in this thread probably including the guy who made this video were even old enough to go see this when it first came out, so frankly I don't give a shit.

Back then it was amazing. I saw it like 5 times in the opening week. Couldn't get enough.

God, could you be any more condescending? All I have ever heard, from people who saw it when it came out and reviews as well was that the movie was fucking terrible and a huge bomb. And guess what. I don't need to have been there to know that. It's fucking terrible. It's awkward, it's poorly shot (the interviews), and the editing is just godawful.

That said, I've still seen it more than a lot of movies, which really is an unfortunate waste of my time, but the performances are amazing, and the rest is fun to laugh at.

this made me laugh

Add me to the list.

It's like silent movies (and almost every major innovation point in filmaking along the way) To us, they look positively goofy and almost unbearable to watch.

That's like, your opinion, man. I'm pretty profoundly fond of silent films, as I think are a lot of people on this message board. Go ahead and watch something like Metropolis and tell me it's goofy.

I wish they kept in the shot of Bono throwing the towel in a rage and spitting beer out!

Yes!

 

[The Panther]

That's great! Never seen it before. Why did Bono throw the towel?

 

[gvox]

God, could you be any more condescending?

God, could you be any more selective in what to jump on? I may have been condescending and pretentious on occasion on other topics, but if you had taken the time to read the entire convo btwn JT and I and a couple others I cant see how you could see anything other than someone who sincerely liked it when it came out, and the rather personal reasons why.

I even clarified that I didnt mean to say that a younger person couldnt have a legitimate opinion, if my standard green smiley wasnt enough. I could give you a pass if youd just jumped in, but you did multiquote respond to other posts later, so cmon now...

As it is, I never claimed that the world loved it. I will say that most hardcore and even casual fans of my generation that werent industry writers or critics ate it up and hold it pretty close in terms of their u2 history..the sample of people youve talked to notwithstanding..

 

[Jive Turkey]

I'm not sure where "having-a-critical-(not to mention funny)-perspective" becomes "wasting-your-life-on-hate". It is indeed possible to criticize U2 while still enjoying them. If you actually watched the video, you'd see that the guy who made it is quite a big U2 fan.

I'm not saying you have to watch it (you don't), but it might be better to watch it before passing judgment on it. It's rather well done.

Hey dude, for the record, I know people (maybe even me, even if it was just meant as a tease) have been a little harsh in this thread, but Interference really a good place to post in. Lots of good people here. I assume you've probably lurked for a while and know the deal anyway. Either way, welcome to the forum, man

 

[Galeongirl]

I'm pretty sure this guy knows us all too well Jive. Judging from his avatar, that is.

 

[Jive Turkey]

I didn't know what all the references meant at the start of the thread

 

[Galeongirl]

Ah, well there was this guy, let's call him numbers because his name is a random sequence of numbers that I don't recall. 598something. And he was a regular member here, and at some point his avatar became a picture of a dude showing a nipple. Hence the nipples nickname. He left a while ago for a reason I don't quite remember. The face he had on his avatar(before the nipples one) was pretty identical to this 'new' guy's face.

 

[mad1]

Edge slid down a hill.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

He left a while ago for a reason I don't quite remember.

I remember.

 

[BVS]

It's Michael Stipe's fault.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

I love when Larry gets all emotional about Elvis. It's very sweet.

 

[gvox]

was pretty identical

It's not just the subject, it's the composition, the angle of the shot, the blatant attempt to obfuscate with a watercolor effect...it's funny. But the real question is, if you wanted to reinvent yourself here, why use such an obviously similar avatar that gives it away?

 

[Jive Turkey]

Ah, well there was this guy, let's call him numbers because his name is a random sequence of numbers that I don't recall. 598something. And he was a regular member here, and at some point his avatar became a picture of a dude showing a nipple. Hence the nipples nickname. He left a while ago for a reason I don't quite remember. The face he had on his avatar(before the nipples one) was pretty identical to this 'new' guy's face.

Oh, ok. I don't think I have ever seen that guy's posts. I take back my 'welcome to the forum' then

 

[gvox]

Oh, ok. I don't think I have ever ...

 

[alive@33]

What makes his opinion so fucking special that we all should watch and acknowledge it?

Exactly. Why even bother?

You really think the lyrics to When Love Comes to Town are some of the greatest ever???

When Love Comes to Town the greatest ever? No. But I didn't say that. Someone majorly into gospel music might think differently. What I said was: "Bono is one of the greatest lyricists ever" and that's inarguable over 30+ years. It was also true by 1987 (One Tree Hill is his very finest hour imo).

Sure he can write throwaway stuff like about moles in holes - not everything must be deep and meaningful. If someone wants a counterpoint to Elevation's lyrics, try this: Bono ended the latest album with these 4 lines:

"Choose your enemies carefully cuz they will define you.
Make them interesting cuz in some ways they will mind you.
They're not there in the beginning but when your story ends,
Gonna last with you longer than your friends"

It took giant balls to end your latest album with those lyrics. I've said it before, I'll say it again: The man is a poet (who "can't sing, but has soul", according to himself)

The issue with reading the lyrics to BB is context. And the context was U2 wrote the song for BB and that's why he was reading him the lyrics. And Bono knew BB would've dug the heavy gospel nature of the lyrics.

So when BB says: "You're mighty young to write such heavy lyrics", he means "Youre mighty young to be writing such overtly religious lyrics". And the most overtly religious part is the part that BB sings instead of Bono.

Edge slid down a hill.

lmao

 

[corianderstem]

re Edge sliding down the hill -

It took me AGES to realize that Bono says "Go thumb a lift there, Edge."

....... that's what he says, right?

 

[alive@33]

....... that's what he says, right?

Yep

 

[Jive Turkey]

It took giant balls to end your latest album with those lyrics.

Why do you think this takes giant balls??? It's a cool lyric and a great way to end the album, but balls?

And my point from the last post to you was that you seem to place him on a giant pedestal. "Bono can do whatever he wants" or whatever it was you said. Sure he can, just as you or I can, but he can also rightfully have a new asshole ripped into him when he makes himself look like a complete jackass.

 

[intedomine]

I remember.

What was the reason?

Ah, Numbers. He personally attacked me for finding God Part || to be one of U2's worst songs (which I still do)... So I'm not his biggest fan.

It's a strange thing Rattle and Hum, the film. I rarely watch it ( I rarely watch any films), but it wasn't atrocious. Edge sliding down the hill to Heartland was definitely a highlight.

The album is a listening experience that I find utter bollocks, and still would be with the live performances removed.

But that said, critique it we may, I still like the fact that Rattle and Hum (film and CD) happened. That it is a part of U2 history we can reflect back on. It just adds more to the fascination of their career. There are very few moments in their career that I look back and think, "Why the fuck did U2 have to go and do that"? The only major instance of this was the Best Of 1990-2000. That's my biggest U2 regret.