because there's nothing interference does better than beating a dead horse...
i stumbled upon Rolling Stone's most recent update to their "Top 500 Albums" list, which apparently came out in the fall but i had no idea.
Alas... Rolling Stone being a fairly U2 friendly place, I wanted to check to see where they came in after a not so hot decade.
First time they show up on the list is at 124 with Achtung Baby. I thought they were in the top 50 the first time this list came out, so I went back and double checked. Here are the shifts on the three lists that Rolling Stone has put out...
2003
Joshua Tree - 26
Achtung Baby - 62
All That You Can't Leave Behind - 139
War - 221
Boy - 417
2012
Joshua Tree - 27
Achtung Baby - 63
All That You Can't Leave Behind - 280
War - 223
Boy - 417
2020
Joshua Tree - 135
Achtung Baby - 124
All That You Can't Leave Behind - n/a
War - n/a
Boy - n/a
now look - rolling stone's lists are dumb. all lists are dumb. they were dumb in 2003, they were dumb 2012, and they're dumb now. but it's still pretty eye opening to see how far U2's albums plummeted in the 8 years between lists - and the voters of this list in 2020 were a considerably more diverse group than the previous two times it was done. but still... 5 albums to 2. joshua tree dropping over 100 slots. pretty stark.
out of sheer curiosity (and boredom) - i wanted to see how a comparable artist did over the same 3 charts, so this is where springsteen rated.
2003
Born To Run - 18
Born in the USA - 85
The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle - 132
Darkness on the Edge of Town - 151
Nebraska - 224
The River - 250
Greetings From Asbury Park, NJ - 379
Tunnel of Love - 475
2012
Born To Run - 18
Born in the USA - 86
The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle - 133
Darkness on the Edge Of Town - 150
Nebraska - 226
The River - 253
The Rising - 424
Tunnel of Love - 467
2020
Born To Run - 21
Darkness on the Edge of Town - 91
Born in the USA - 142
Nebraska - 150
The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle - 345
So Bruce went from 8 albums in 2003 and 2012 to 5 in the 2020 list. OK. similar to U2 dropping a few albums at the back end. it's inevitable that some at the end fall off.
But when you look at the really great albums - the all timers - Born to Run only fell 3 spots. Darkness actually gained 60 spots. Born in the USA fell but Nebraska jumped up.
So, yea - U2's standing has absolutely taken a hit in the last decade - specifically with where younger generations hold them in comparison to other great acts.
i'll shut up and actually do some work now.