Top 15 U2 songs of all time

[BigMacPhisto]

More like Prattle & Dumb.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

I thought people would call out me picking SYCMIOYO and SIAYCGOO. Oh well, I guess I'm not a true fan™

Yeah, those two you mention are underrated around these parts which would therefore make you a true fan despite your true transgressions (praising the aforementioned Shit Era).

I anoint thee with the pin of true fanship (one of those atomic bomb pins they sold on the Vertigo Tour for like $3) along with a tattered copy of PopMart on VHS.

 

[The Panther]

Huh. 15 songs? That's rough. So, based on studio recordings, I guess it'll be:

Gloria
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Drowning Man
Pride
A Sort of Homecoming
Bad
Where The Streets Have No Name
With or Without You
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
All I Want Is You
The Fly
One
Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
Please [the single]
Cedars of Lebanon


Wow, what a band they were.

 

[nielsgov]

Tomorrow
Drowning Man
New Year's Day
The Unforgettable Fire
A Sort of Homecoming
Running to Stand Still
Until the End of the World
Acrobat
Love is Blindness
Your Blue Room
Zooropa
Please
Gone
Kite
The Ground Beneath Her Feet

These were the ones I'd also written down in my first draft:
Ultraviolet
Wake Up Dead Man
FEZ-Being Born
Lemon
The Fly
Bad

 

[Irvine511]

Album Only:

Stories for Boys
Out of Control
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Drowning Man
Bad (WAIA version)
Streets
Still Haven't Found
WOWY
AIWIY
One
Stay
Gone
Beautiful Day
Stuck
COBL
MoS
The Troubles

Live Only:

Electric Co
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Bad
ASOH
Streets
Still Haven't Found
One Tree Hill
BTBS
One
The Fly
Ultraviolet
UTEOTW
Please
Beautiful Day
Kite





Sent from

 

[Yahweh]

Narrowing it down to 15 is pretty tough however here is my list:

1. Where The Streets Have No Name
2. One
3. With Or Without You
4. Beautiful Day
5. Sunday Bloody Sunday
6. Pride
7. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
8. New Years Day
9. All I Want Is You
10. Until The End Of The World
11. Please
12. Stay (Faraway So Close)
13. Running To Stand Still
14. Kite
15. Every Breaking Wave


Wow that was tough....it would still be tough to narrow it down to 30.

 

[jimmmm]

This would probably change on a regular basis, but for today,
1. With Or Without You
2. Magnificent
3. 1 Shot Of Happy.....
4. One
5. Walk On
6. The Troubles
7. Zoo Station
8. WTSHNN
9. Every Breaking Wave
10.Zooropa
11.Kite
12.Moment Of Surrender
13.Pride
14.New Years Day
15.Heartland

Imagine that as an album you'd never heard before!

 

[djerdap]

The Fly
Acrobat
Lemon
Love is Blindness
Bullet the Blue Sky
With or Without You
Ultra Violet (Light My Way)
Running to Stand Still
Mysterious Ways
New Year's Day
11 O'Clock Tick Tock
Tomorrow
One
Bad
Exit

 

[Ifeelnumb84]

I Will Follow
New Year's Day
A Sort of Homecoming
Bad
Where The Streets Have No Name
One Tree Hill
Exit
Heartland
Zoo Station
Until the End of the World
Zooropa
Lemon
Please
Breathe
Raised by Wolves

 

[intedomine]

always a tough ask

1. Gloria
2. The Unforgettable Fire
3. New Years Day
4. Your Blue Room
5. Zoo Station
6. Zooropa
7. Beautiful Day
8. Where the Streets Have No Name
9. Discotheque
10. Moment of Surrender
11. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
12. An Cat Dubh
13. Please
14. In God's Country
15. A Celebration


Sent from a barge floating through the docks of Dublin

 

[Yahweh_OMG]

a celebration???

original top 15.....

 

[drt4]

Huh. 15 songs? That's rough. So, based on studio recordings, I guess it'll be:

Gloria
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Drowning Man
Pride
A Sort of Homecoming
Bad
Where The Streets Have No Name
With or Without You
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
All I Want Is You
The Fly
One
Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
Please [the single]
Cedars of Lebanon


Wow, what a band they were.

Wow, Cedars as a top 15 song! That's rare. I definitely like that song - though it's not near my top 15, but i know that many dislike it, so I'm surprised to see someone love it so much.

It's definitely interesting to see what songs are some people's favorites. Raised by Wolves definitely surprised me. Heck, I'm surprised someone thinks EBW is a top 15 U2 song.

 

[drt4]

I'll give it a go:

Streets
ISHFWILF
BTBS
RTSS
Mothers
Heartland
One
UTEOTW
Horses
The Fly
Acrobat
Love is Blindness
Zooropa
Lemon
Stay

I decided that although it's more satisfying to go through and pick the best song or two from each album - all my absolute favorites span JT-Zooropa. U2 were on another level for that span of their career. I did hate to exclude Pop.

Some of these would change of course. I'd include Bad if I counted Wide awake in America, but I decided that didn't count - studio versions only!

 

[PennyLanePHINS]

Vote some U2 songs on this Thanksgiving countdown: Q104.3's Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs

I think mine would be:
1, Beautiful Day
2. Zooropa
3. Where The Streets Have No Name
4. The Fly
5. Kite
6. A Sort of Homecoming
7. Vertigo
8. Gone
9. New Year's Day
10. Every Breaking Wave
11. One Tree Hill
12. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
13. When I Look At The World
14. City of Blinding Lights
15. Stay (Faraway, Ao Close!)

 

[Musikwala]

Okay I feel like contributing to this thread after all. But it is extremely hard to list an actual Top favourite 15. So I'm just gonna post a list of songs that I really really admire.

Starting from the top...

1. An Cat Dubh/Into The Heart
2. October
3. New Year's Day
4. Promenade
5. In God's Country
6. One Tree Hill
7. Hawkmoon 269
8. Until The End Of The World
9. The Fly
10. Acrobat
11. Zooropa
12. Lemon
13. Mofo
14. If You Wear That Velvet Dress
15. Miami

 

[bobsaget77]

15. Miami

Miami?!?? Seriously?!!?

Cause that's an awesome choice! #miamiforlife
I also love your choices of Lemon, Hawkmoon, and One Tree Hill. All great songs, especially One Tree Hill, best U2 song lyrically imo.


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference

 

[Musikwala]

Miami?!?? Seriously?!!?

Cause that's an awesome choice! #miamiforlife
I also love your choices of Lemon, Hawkmoon, and One Tree Hill. All great songs, especially One Tree Hill, best U2 song lyrically imo.


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference

I fucking love Miami! Always have.

 

[LemonMelon]

I love every song on that list except for Miami, but I give you credit for mixing it up there. Make it Miami from Leeds and I'm on board.

 

[lazarus]

1. Bad (WAIA or any other live version only)
2. Lemon
3. Running To Stand Still
4. Acrobat
5. Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
6. Zooropa
7. A Sort Of Homecoming
8. Streets
9. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses?
10. Mercy (original)
11. Wake Up Dead Man
12. All I Want Is You
13. The Fly
14. New Year's Day
15. Moment Of Surrender

 

[Musikwala]

3. Running To Stand Still
5. Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
7. A Sort Of Homecoming
9. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses?
11. Wake Up Dead Man

Great picks! Wish I had included those as well. But a Top 15 is... well, impossible.

 

[Scorpionac]

Honorable Mention: Walk to the Water

Nice.

In chronological order:

A Sort of Homecoming
Where the Streets Have No Name
With or Without You
Mysterious Ways
Zooropa
Lemon
Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me
Your Blue Room
Please
Beautiful Day
Electrical Storm
Window in the Skies
Moment of Surrender
Fez-Being Born

 

[Bad Exit]

1. Bad (WAIA or any other live version only)

I wouldn't mind if the only thing U2 did in the rest of history was to release a studio version worthy of that song.

Something like taking Bono's voice track in WAIA/R&H and clean it.
Then re-record the instruments and then mix everything up in a nice, decent, glorious new version of that song.

Would that be too hard?
(I mean, seriously, I don't have a clue if that's too hard or not)

 

[Vlaco]

^^ I know I'm in the minority, but the studio version of Bad is perfect as it is.

 

[bobsaget77]

^^ I know I'm in the minority, but the studio version of Bad is perfect as it is.

I totally agree! I think the studio version is freakin amazing!


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference

 

[Bad Exit]

I totally agree! I think the studio version is freakin amazing!

I think the studio version is a freaking amazing demo of the song.

(Which means that I really love it... but also that I know that there should be a whole upgraded version of it somewhere)

 

[djerdap]

^^ I know I'm in the minority, but the studio version of Bad is perfect as it is.

Yes.

Lots of studio versions of U2 songs are basically demos, in terms of how obviously inferior they are to their respective live versions.

 

[Kieran McConville]

Yahweh
When I Look At The World
Elevation
All Because of You
Get On Your Boots
I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight
The Miracle of Joey Ramone
A Man And A Woman
Vertigo
Volcano
Wild Honey
Miracle Drug
City of Blinding Lights
Stand Up Comedy
Ordinary Love

 

[Musikwala]

Kieran!! Good one.

Sent from my GT-I9060 using U2 Interference mobile app

 

[Kieran McConville]

Yeah, I was taking the piss. Actual list? Can't do it. Not possible.

 

[Musikwala]

Out of that list, these are actually good... especially the first 2.

When I Look At The World
The Miracle of Joey Ramone
City of Blinding Lights

The Miracle is a solid opener for the new album, albeit a bit generic 70s rock-ish. But at least it has no cringeworthy lyric.