Rank Your Favorite Songs on the Album Part 8: War

[TheEdge25]

Here we go with part 8 in the series!
---Ultimate U2----
1 - Sunday Bloody Sunday
2 - 40
3 - New Year's Day
---Awesome U2, should be brought back live---
4 - Two Hearts Beat As One
5 - Drowning Man
---Good, Not Great---
6 - Seconds
7 - Like A Song...
8 - Surrender
---Ehhhhh---
9 - The Refugee
----Dear god turn it off---
10 - Red Light

The first 4 in my list are absolutely correct, mainly because those are really the only songs I listen to a lot on the album.
Let's see what you guys have to say on this one!

 

[corianderstem]

War is so weird to me. A lot of great, classic songs, but the album as a whole feels dated and .... I don't know. It's just weird, and I can't even tell you why I think so.

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

 

[TheEdge25]

I'd like to note that my list has "40" ranked number two and this is correct, but only because of the powerfully emotional live performances of the song, not because I necessarily like the studio version a lot.

 

[nielsgov]

My least favourite U2 album. The first half is very good. But the second one is just horrible. I don't enjoy one of the last five songs.

Classic
1. New Year's Day
2. Sunday Bloody Sunday
3. Drowning Man
Great
4. Like A Song
Good
5. Seconds
Bad, boring, never listen to it...
The rest.

 

[MrPryck2U]

1- New Year's
2- Sunday
3- Two Hearts
4- 40
5- Refugee
6- Seconds
7- Like
8- Surrender
9- Red Light
10- Drowning

 

[prbiker15]

War isn't that bad, I sort of like it. Not as great as the other early ones, but I like it

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

 

[Salome]

Classic
1. New Year's Day
2. Sunday Bloody Sunday

Great
3. Surrender
4. Two Hearts Beat As One
5. 40

Good
6. Drowning Man
7. Red Light
8. Like A Song

OK
9. Seconds
10. The Refugee

 

[Catman]

lol, I had actually forgotten what "Red Light" sounded like Clearly I listen to this album regularly.

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


Really, I find there are only 2 songs that take away from the overall quality of the record. And only 1 is a real stinker

 

[lauramullen]

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

 

[INDY500]

Epic
Sunday Bloody Sunday
40
New Year's Day

Personal favorite
Two Hearts Beat As One

Good for one tour
Seconds
Surrender

Filler
The Refugee
Red Light
Drowning Man
Like A Song

 

[theedgeu2]

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

 

[65980]

I love this album, and I still think it holds up as the third or fourth best they've ever done.

I guess this is the album that shows U2's huge influence from the policitized indie-rock of Britain and N.Ireland in the late 70s/early 80s. Unlike all those kinds of groups though, U2 had the ability and live presence to bring this kind of intelligent, post-punk rock to a massive international audience.

Two other interesting things about this record are 1) the violins on a few tracks, which lend themselves to the atmosphere of a song like 'Drowning Man', but also add a lot to 'Sunday Bloody Sunday', and 2) the female backing vocals by King Creole's Coconuts (also on Island Records), which I think were very effective.

Outstanding:
1. Sunday Bloody Sunday
2. Drowning Man (What the hell ever happened to this one? It's brilliant)
3. New Years Day

Excellent:
4. Two Hearts Beat As One (kind of like 'Drowning Man' -- it's been forgotten but it was a hit single at a time when they struggled to have them)
5. "40"
6. Seconds

Very Good:
7. Like A Song
8. Surrender
9. The Refugee

Good:
(none)

Mediocre:
10. Red Light

Poor:
(none)

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

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

Classic album.

Overplayed, overexposed, whatever, I don't care - SBS and NYD are two monsters, absolute classic and timeless rock and roll tunes and two of the best and most vital this band has ever written.

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

this album is so uneven for me.

1. seconds
2. drowning man
3. new year's day
4. surrender
5. like a song...
6. 40
7. sunday bloody sunday
8. the refugee
9. red light
10. two hearts beat as one

 

[cobl04]

1. New Year's Day
2. Sunday Bloody Sunday
~
3. Drowning Man
~
4. Like a Song...
~
5. Surrender
6. Two Hearts Beat As One
7. Seconds
~
8. Red Light
9. "40" - does the studio version even exist? really, it's all about the live rendition.
~
~
~
~
~
10. The Refugee

another album i haven't listened to in forever and i don't see the next time. there's a number of great songs, but i just don't enjoy listening to it at all.

 

[Purplereign]

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

Can't really decide between 1 & 2 . . . and whilst they are war horses I still bounce with the best of them when they are played live (set list bitching not withstanding ) and for nostalgia's sake they can't be faulted . . . still remember hearing this album for the first time; goosebumps from head to toe and that stupid, slightly delirious, goofy girl grin plastered all over my 15 year old face

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

 

[kabigon]

This has always sounded pretty dated to me. NYD is probably the only track that I really like studio-wise. 40 and SBS are still pretty good live and the rest probably need to be played live in some form for me to appreciate the studio versions more.

1. New Year's Day - Timeless
2. 40
3. Sunday Bloody Sunday - Timeless, but replace with UABRS version like radio seems to do
4. Like A Song...
5. Drowning Man
6. Seconds
7. Refugee
8. Two Hearts Beat As One
9. Surrender
10. Red Light

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

3. Sunday Bloody Sunday - Timeless, but replace with UABRS version like radio seems to do

back in the day when everyone used cassettes, that's what i did too. i would've ranked sbs higher on my list but i'm just going by studio versions and it's just lacking.

 

[hillers]

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


I really don't understand the hate for Red Light and The Refugee. This is my third favorite album by them.

 

[Moonlit_Angel]

Love your story, Purplereign. I can only imagine what it was like to experience this music when it came out. Must've been an awesome moment.

I really don't understand the hate for Red Light and The Refugee.

Nor do I. Yeah, they're goofy songs, but they're fun! Let U2 be goofy once in a while.

This is my third favorite album by them.

Same here .

1. Sunday Bloody Sunday (Killer drumming from Larry, excellent, angry lyrics, every live clip I've seen of this song has been strong and intense. A classic. Oddly enough, though, my mom's not keen on this song. She says it's too depressing)
2. 40 (I'm not the world's most religious person, but this is an absolutely lovely piece. I can do some spiritual searching to this. Yes)
3. Seconds (Strange little number. Like the jumpy, back and forth beat, like the lyrics, sorta ominous, kinda like early Talking Heads or something)
4. New Year's Day
5. Drowning Man
6. Like A Song
7. Two Hearts Beat As One
8. The Refugee
9. Red Light
10. Surrender

"Surrender" is the only song on here that I'm not as big on-it's good, but it's not an absolute favorite. The rest of the album? Excellent. I enjoy all the songs in some form or another.

Angela

 

[No spoken words]

The first U2 album that I listened to upon its release. Holds a lot of fond memories for me. Very hit/miss album, though. Some iconic tracks, some stuff that is wretched...and a few in the middle.

1. New Years Day (My favorite "war horse", song feels epic to me every time its played)
2. Surrender (God I love this tune)
3. Like A Song
4. Sunday Bloody Sunday
5. Two Hearts Beat As One
6. Drowning Man (really lovely song that maybe I ought to have even higher)
7. 40
8. Seconds
9. The Refugee (not good)
10. Red Light (so bad, just, wow)

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

yes you should, mike.

 

[coolian2]

1. new year's day
2. like a song...
3. drowning man
4. surrender
5. seconds
6. two hearts beat as one
7. sunday bloody sunday
8. the refugee
9. red light
10. 40

can barely split 2-5, all some absolutely fantastic tracks. sunday bloody sunday is good, but my opinion is a bit spoiled by the fantastic live versions they've played. i like the refugee and red light as well, probably because they're so goofy. 40 is the only song that falls flat to me. live again, it's aight.

 

[LemonMelon]

1. New Year's Day - 9/10
2. Sunday Bloody Sunday - 8.5/10
3. Surrender - 8/10
4. Like A Song - 8/10
5. Seconds - 7.5/10
6. Red Light - 7.5/10
7. Drowning Man - 7/10
8. "40" - 7/10
9. The Refugee - 6/10
10. Two Hearts Beat As One - 6/10

Not a lot of weak material; I enjoy most of it. Low peaks here though...I don't return to it much these days.

 

[dyami]

as beiing a u2 fan for over 25 years i love this album

1. new years day
2.sunday bloody sunday
3. 40
4. seconds
5. two hearts beats as one
6. surrender
7. like a song
8. drwoning man
9. the refugee
10. red light

 

[An Cat Gav]

I used to really love this album, but time hasn't been as kind to it as it has to others, at least to my ears. But it's still a top album and the raw energy is still there intact, as are some great tunes.

1. New Years Day - still one of their greatest ever singles.

2. Drowning Man - wish this had got played on 360.

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

4. seconds.

5. The Refugee - so, so underrated. like seconds, a big change in style.

6. Surrender

7. Two Hearts Beat As one

8. 40

9. Like A Song

10. Red Light.

The only weak song on here is Red Light, and even that isn't THAT terrible.

 

[U2girl]

1. NYD
2. 40
3. SBS

4. Surrender
5. Seconds
6. Drowning man

7. -11. everything else tied together.

 

[alanah]

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

 

[theedgeu2]

Just want to poke in here and say this, I've heard people go on and on about how much of an atrocity Red Light is. Sure it doesn't blow my mind like something like Stay or *insert favorite U2 song here*, but it's not bad at all. In fact I am listening to Red Light right now!

Also I think Surrender is amazing! I may have it ranked low here but I still come back and listen to it. And yes to whoever said that Creole's Coconuts did a lot for this song, it adds a lot to the song. Everything on this album is listenable for me.