Hello,
I found this magazine a few weeks ago and of course bought it. Only yesterday did I read the last few articles (hey, don't read too many U2 interviews from too many periods too fast or it wil mess with your head). Like they said in the introduction, it is a very honest collection of NME articles. With honest I mean that they published all (?) articles they had about U2, both the praising ones as the flaming ones (anyone read their opinion about the Zoo TV/Zooropa Tour yet?). After reading through all this, I have a few observations.
- In their War interview U2 said they wanted to have their album (War, that is) remixed by Francois Kevorkian (sp?). That should have sounded interesting, especially with regard to the remixes of the Achtung Baby/Zooropa/Pop period (Kevorkian did remix Two Hearts Beat As One and New Year's Day, BTW).
- In the same interview (I think) U2 said they were working on a ballet score for a stage performance later that year. Does anyone know if it was ever realised?
- In an October 1987 article NME writes that Island Records say that a proposed live double album will not be released before Christmas. OK, a year later Rattle And Hum was released and that double album was half live. But still... Is there a double live album of the Joshua Tree Tour lying somewhere in Island's vaults.
- Steven Wells' blasting of Zoo TV/Zooropa really deserved the axe Bono send to the offices of NME. I haven't seen many articles that are as poorly written and as poorly documented as that one. A definite lowpoint.
- On the other hand, the report by NME of the Sarajevo concert is a high. Even reading it made me emotional (I think I'm going to play that concert again soon. Don't know if I can keep my eyes dry then). Interestingly, they say that for that concert alone U2 did accept corporate sponsorship (by Coca Cola and a local GSM company), but for Sarajevo they are forgiven.
- I became a fan in 1991, just before Achtung Baby. I grew up in the 'ironic U2' era. But reading the early interviews (up to The Unforgettable Fire) I now know where that opinion of U2 as humourless rockers comes from. Because, while you can read the passion in the early interviews, they are often also so much devoid of relativation (and yes, humour) that the strong focus of the members becomes a negative aspect. I don't think it's just the attitude of the interviewer (as most of the early interviews were made by people who seemed to be supportive of U2), but I think U2 also did not realise enough how they would come over in the media (as Bono said later, their image was not having an image).
In short, I find this collection very interesting and a very nice read (not everything, but I think you guessed that by now). Highly recommended!
C ya!
Marty
Who is that? 
so anyways, I will definitely buy it there if I don't find it soon!
You could be a model. 
