AB overrated?

[what a bomb!]

AB overrated????

If you listen to it in the dark with headphones (hey, its even good in daylight too!) you will find U2 at their most

haunting,beautiful,aching,heart wrenching,emotive,dark,mysterious best!

As Bono said, their least serious album title with their most serious work (at the time!)

Can I be executioner???

 

[Wowy23]

In my opinion, AB is the best album ever recorded.

 

[wertsie]

AB overrated????

If you listen to it in the dark with headphones (hey, its even good in daylight too!) you will find U2 at their most

haunting,beautiful,aching,heart wrenching,emotive,dark,mysterious best!

As Bono said, their least serious album title with their most serious work (at the time!)

Can I be executioner???

I like to lie on my bed with the lights off and the shades drawn and close my eyes...just sort of get lost in the album. It's the best feeling!

 

[Michael Griffiths]

In my opinion, AB is the best album ever recorded.

And people wonder how it could be called over-rated.

 

[wertsie]

And people wonder how it could be called over-rated.

Okay....Whatever...

AB didn't even win any Grammys...what's up with that?

 

[Michael Griffiths]

Okay....Whatever...

AB didn't even win any Grammys...what's up with that?

Wertise!! I was being more than slightly facetious. Even if I say so myself, it was very clever, don't you think?

In all seriousness, I am still in shock that Achtung Baby didn't win album of the year. It had something to do with Eric Clapton releasing an acoustic album with a song called 'Tears in Heaven' (after his son died). And with ATYCLB not winning, that's twice they were robbed of that award. Can you imagine if they had won those? They would have won album of the year THREE times!!

As for Achtung Baby being overrated, I think it is glorified to some extent. It deserves all the praise it gets, but by no means is it the *perfect* album that everyone on this board insists. There are many great songs, great lyrics, some fabulous production - even one song that just happens to be the best U2 have ever written, but that's about it. It is a great album, just not the best of all time in my opinion.

 

[wertsie]

In all seriousness, I am still in shock that Achtung Baby didn't win album of the year. It had something to do with Eric Clapton releasing an acoustic album with a song called 'Tears in Heaven' (after his son died). And with ATYCLB not winning, that's twice they were robbed of that award. Can you imagine if they had won those? They would have won album of the year THREE times!!

I forgot all about Eric Clapton's album...My parents have it.

I don't really think there's any U2 album I'd call "over-rated." It goes back to that old saying, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder." There are some albums that I like better than others, but that's just my personal preference.

 

[Bono's shades]

I wouldn't think AB was overrated even if it HAD won album of the year. How many bands besides U2 have ever conquered the world sounding one way and then conquered it all over again with a completely new sound and attitude?

OK, I thought of one other band that would meet that description - The Beatles. Not bad company to be in, I'd say.

 

[wertsie]

OK, I thought of one other band that would meet that description - The Beatles. Not bad company to be in, I'd say.

I agree!

 

[tinker]

Nope.

 

[bullet the blue sky]

Very quickly... in the eyes of Mr/Mrs Average

Boy - under-rated
October - fair
War - fair
Unforgettable Fire - under-rated
Joshua Tree - fair
Rattle and Hum - over-rated
Achtung Baby - under-rated
Zooropa - fair
Passengers - under-rated
Pop - under-rated
ATYCLB - over-rated

 

[wertsie]

Very quickly... in the eyes of Mr/Mrs Average

Boy - under-rated
October - fair
War - fair
Unforgettable Fire - under-rated
Joshua Tree - fair
Rattle and Hum - over-rated
Achtung Baby - under-rated
Zooropa - fair
Passengers - under-rated
Pop - under-rated
ATYCLB - over-rated

Do you mean "fair" as in "okay" or fair as in their perception being fair? (if that makes sense... )

 

[joyfulgirl]

For me, AB is a perfect listening experience, beginning to end. I bought it the day it was released and I was up all night listening to it again and again and again. It rocked my world then and I STILL love it more than I love any other record. To my ears it's a masterpiece and I would not change one thing.

 

[SkeeK]

Achtung Baby is a mind-numbingly brilliant album. Great flow, even greater atmosphere and some fantastic songs.

I usually like Joshua Tree better, and am sometimes surprised that so many more people love AB here than JT. So maybe in that sense it's a tad overrated. But I don't ever like to think of things so amazing as being overrated, if anything JT is a little underrated here, but that's probably a reaction to it being so highly rated everywhere else. There are many days when I like AB better than JT though as well.

And bullet the blue sky... you think Rattle and Hum overrated? really? It's one of the most-trashed, least-liked albums as far as I can tell. You must reaaally not like it

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

Do you mean "fair" as in "okay" or fair as in their perception being fair? (if that makes sense... )

imo, i think fair is meant as, neither under- nor over-rated.

and i pretty much agree with all the ratings btbs gave.

 

[Wowy23]

And people wonder how it could be called over-rated.

I think you may have missed the double meaning

 

[wertsie]

Very quickly... in the eyes of Mr/Mrs Average

Boy - under-rated
October - fair
War - fair
Unforgettable Fire - under-rated
Joshua Tree - fair
Rattle and Hum - over-rated
Achtung Baby - under-rated
Zooropa - fair
Passengers - under-rated
Pop - under-rated
ATYCLB - over-rated

Yeah, I think you're right Khanada...I think this is fairly accurate...This is how I perceive the average Joe's reactions to each album...

Boy- underrated
October-underrated as well (Sheesh! It wasn't even MENTIONED on the Legends show on VH1!!!)
War-fair
The Unforgettable Fire-underrated
The Joshua Tree-slightly overrated
Rattle and Hum-hmmm...This is a tough one...but I guess I'll agree with overrated here.
Achtung Baby-underrated
Zooropa-fair
Passengers-underrated
POP-underrated
ATYCLB-overrated

So it looks like we agree on most except October and JT.

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

Boy- underrated
October-underrated as well (Sheesh! It wasn't even MENTIONED on the Legends show on VH1!!!)
War-fair
The Unforgettable Fire-underrated
The Joshua Tree-slightly overrated
Rattle and Hum-hmmm...This is a tough one...but I guess I'll agree with overrated here.
Achtung Baby-underrated
Zooropa-fair
Passengers-underrated
POP-underrated
ATYCLB-overrated

i agree with yours even more, since you said october was underrated and joshua tree was slightly overrated.

 

[Michael Griffiths]

I think you may have missed the double meaning

What? There were only two meanings?

 

[One Tree Still]

Sorry, AB came out in the middle of the grunge era and sounded totally different than anything else at that time.

Well actually, the popular Grunge era started in the summer of '91 - when Nevermind broke and didn't really end until mid-to-late 1995.

AB was released in the late Fall of '91 - so it was really on the leading edge of the popular Grunge era.

I agree with your other comments though! Nothing else out there sounded like AB - and I have to say, I was pissed at my first listen. Didn't take long to love it though.

 

[Blue Room]

What you have to remember for those dissing JT. When it came out in 1987 IT sounded like NOTHING else out at the time as well.

I think the reason AB is so highly rated on this board is because it seems to be the album that introduced alot of the fans here to the band. So it is always going to have that effect on them.

JT didnt introduce me to U2 (Under A Blood Red Sky did) but JT converted me into a huge fan. So it is and probebly always will be my favorite for that reason.

I think AB is a great album also. I think as far as a complete album it is a tie between it and JT. JT is my favorite though for the reason I mentioned above. Really, I find it difficult to compare the two. They are completely different. Isnt that one of the reasons most of us love U2? Because they can make such vastly different albums and it is still great either way? I know that is one reason I'am into this band so much.