My Picks for the Hall of Shame
U2's lyrics are so much better than the average rock band that I almost feel guilty about critiquing them.... but with that in mind, here we go:
1) "October" is a nice song for sure, but frankly "the leaves are stripped bare / of all their ware" is a bit high on the cheese-ometer.
2) "Early morning, April 4" -- Bono, that should be "early EVENING, April 4." Well, maybe it was early morning (5th) in Dublin. Either way a bad blunder.
3) 'Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses' is a great song, but has a couple of clunkers lyrically: (a) "Well, you left my heart / Empty as a vacant lot / For any spirit to haunt." Yuck. (b) "Baby... Can we still be friends?" No comment needed.
4) "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" 's metaphor of "Your love was a light bulb hanging over my bed" has always struck me as ... bad. Metaphorical conceit with emphasis on "conceit."
5) "Some days are dry, some days are leaky" is a bit much to start the song with. ("Some Days Are Better Than Others")
6) There's a special place in lyrical hell reserved for: "I said you looked like a madonna / You said... maybe... said I want to have your baby... BABY / WE COULD MAKE something beautiful / something that wouldn't be a problem / at least not in... Miami / Some places are like your auntie / but there's no place like / MIAMI MY MAMMY." Were Larry, Adam, and Edge not looking when Bono snuck this stinker onto the tapes???
7) "I've lost all self-control / Been living like a mole / Now going down, excavation". Bleagh!!
8) All of "Love And Peace Or Else" (musically as well as lyrically) is sort-of a nice try that never quite makes it.
9) I don't know why, but I hate "You had so much to offer / Why did you offer your soul?" It just sounds like junior high poetry.
Okay, that's it. Sorry Bono (or Edge). On a more positive note, my choices for best lyrics are:
-- "A Sort Of Homecoming"
-- "One Tree Hill"
-- "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"
-- "Until The End Of The World"
-- "Stay (Faraway! So Close)"
-- "Please"
-- "Beautiful Day"
-- "City Of Blinding Lights"
And I thought that "Cool down, mama" from Crumbs From Your Table was really weird, but perhaps there's something I'm missing...
