Rank Your Favorite Songs on the Album Part 8: War

[nielsgov]

3. Sunday Bloody Sunday - I prefer this version with Steve Wickham on fiddle to the live version.

The live version is epic. But the violin (or whatever it is) adds a lot to the song.

 

[Airseven]

1 - "40" 10/10
2 - Drowning Man 9/10
3 - Seconds 8/10
4 - Sunday Bloody Sunday 8/10
5 - Two Hearts Beat As One 7/10
6 - New Year's Day 7/10
7 - Red Light 6/10
8 - Like A Song... 5/10
9 - Surrender 5/10
10 - The Refugee 4/10

 

[intedomine]

Hmm, an awkward album... certainly one of my least favourite. Popularly referred to as U2's first classic, which is foolhardy and probably attributed to the fact that NYD and SBS are from this album.

1. New Years Day

2. Sunday Bloody Sunday
3. Seconds
4. Drowning Man

5. Like A Song
6. Two Hearts Beat As One
7. The Refugee

8. Surrender
9. 40

10. Red Light

 

[Katiesheb]

This was the first U2 album I purchased! Loved it then and still do today!!!

1. New Year's Day
2. Sunday Bloody Sunday
3. Two Hearts Beat as One
4. Seconds
5. Drowning Man
6. 40
7. Like a Song
8. Surrender
9. The Refugee
10. Red Light

Songs #3 though #8 are in no particular order. #9 and #10...what was U2 thinking???

 

[Acrobat51829]

I love this entire album, except for 40. I even love you, Refugee and Red Light, just not as much as the others.

1. New Year's Day (favorite U2 song of all time)

(2-7 are interchangeable)
2. Drowning Man
3. Sunday Bloody Sunday
4. Surrender
5. Two Hearts Beat As One
6. Seconds
7. Like A Song

8. Red Light
9. The Refugee

10. 40

 

[thelaj]

I'm never sure what to make of this album... I have the least feelings about it of any of their records - that still puts it above HTDAAB and R&H though

My iTunes tells me I have just one five star rated track here:

01. New Year's Day

02. Sunday Bloody Sunday
03. Drowning Man
04. Seconds
05. Red Light (yes, really! )

06. Surrender
07. Two Hearts Beat As One
08. The Refugee
09. '40'

10. Like A Song

 

[Axver]

Very Fine U2 Listening
1. New Year's Day
2. Like A Song

Fine U2 Listening
3. Drowning Man
4. Seconds
5. Surrender
6. Sunday Bloody Sunday

Decent U2 Listening
7. The Refugee
8. Two Hearts Beat As One
9. 40

Utter Bollocks
10. Red Light

 

[the tourist]

1. New Year's Day
2. Like A Song
3. Drowning Man
4. Sunday Bloody Sunday
5. Two Hearts Beat As One
6. The Refugee
7. Red Light
8. Surrender
9. 40*
10. Seconds


*live version would be higher.

 

[secretly alone]

1. Sunday Bloody Sunday
2. Surrender
3. Seconds
4. Like A Song
5. The Refugee
6. Two Hearts Beat As One
7. New Year's Day
8. Drowning Man
9. 40
10. Red Light

I really feel like Surrender and Red Light would have been much better without the Coconuts, or whatever. The live version of Surrender makes the song for me.

 

[Nate Dogg]

1.Sunday Bloody Sunday
2.Drowning Man
3.New Year's Day
4.Like A Song
5.Seconds
6.40
7.Two Hearts Beat As One
8.Surrender
9.The Refugee
10.Red Light

 

[Roland of Gilead]

1. New Year's Day


2. Sunday Bloody Sunday
3. Drowning Man
4. "40"
5. Two Hearts Beat As One


6. Surrender
7. Like a Song

8. Seconds


9. The Refugee
10. Red Light

 

[Simon_DK]

1. Drowning Man
2. Seconds
3. New Year's Day
4. Surrender
5. "40"
6. Sunday Bloody Sunday
7. Red Light
8. Like A Song...
9. Two Hearts Beat As One
10. The Refugee

 

[Loosen my lips]

I was in college and didn't even have TV when War came out. I'd barely heard of u2.

I was at a friend's house and NYD came on on MTV. I was captivated. The sound, the piano, the snow, Bono's voice. It was so beautiful- and so haunting.

I got the album a few months later and it hit me- this is better than anything else out there. SBS, NYD, Like A song, Two Hearts. Wow, wow, wow. It was like discovering Leo Dicaprio in a HS play. No one had u2 on their radar back then, they weren't in the top 40, but this album I just couldn't believe how great this group was.

And here we are still talking about them 28 years later. Time has proven me correct.

In my book- War is their best album if you take into account how unknown they were at that time. They could have played it safe, they could have gone punk or whatever the fashion was, and instead they put out something unique. Bravo u2. Beautiful work.

So my listing is
Best u2 song of all time (IMO best rock song of all time)
Sunday Bloody Sunday

top 10 songs by u2
NYD
Like a Song

best 15 u2 songs
Drowning Man


Great but not the best 15
40
Seconds
Surrender

Almost great
Two Hearts

very good
Refugee

just ok-Red Light.