Top 15 U2 songs of all time

[bobsaget77]

As we hypothesize the next tour and let SOI settle in a bit, I think it may be a good time to revisit this topic since many of us have gone back through the catalog due to all the recent relevance.
My list as follows.....
1 Streets
2 Bad
3 Running To Stand Still
4 Sunday Bloody Sunday
5 Stay
6 Kite
7 With Or Without You
8 A Sort Of Homecoming
9 Tomorrow
10 The Fly
11 New Years Day
12 Wire
13 One Tree Hill
14 Please
15 North and South Of The River
Honorable Mentions: Hawkmoon 269, Twilight, Discotheque, Lemon, Ultraviolet, All I Want Is You.




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[LemonMelon]

1. Zooropa
2. All I Want Is You
3. Stay
4. A Sort of Homecoming
5. Lemon
6. Wake Up Dead Man
7. An Cat Dubh/Into the Heart
8. Running to Stand Still
9. Hawkmoon 269
10. Mysterious Ways
11. Gloria
12. One Tree Hill
13. Until the End of the World
14. The Unforgettable Fire
15. The Fly

 

[2861U2]

Every time these threads are created, I'm never sure if we're being asked to rank our 15 favorite songs, or if we're being asked to rank (as objectively as possible) what we think are their 15 greatest songs.

So... here's both.

Favorite 15:
1) Beautiful Day
2) Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of
3) Your Blue Room
4) If God Will Send His Angels
5) With Or Without You
6) One
7) Love Is Blindness
8) I Will Follow
9) Staring At The Sun
10) Kite
11) The Playboy Mansion
12) Desire
13) When I Look At The World
14) Mysterious Ways
15) Elevation

Greatest 15:
1) One
2) With Or Without You
3) Bad
4) Beautiful Day
5) Kite
6) Running To Stand Still
7) The Fly
8) Where The Streets Have No Name
9) Until The End Of The World
10) Gone
11) I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
12) Walk On
13) Magnificent
14) Love Is Blindness
15) Out Of Control

 

[gareth brown]

Sod the "honourable mentions" cop out. Be brutal and kick the songs that just aren't good enough to the curb!

 

[thefly418]

1. With Or Without You
2. Where The Streets Have No Name
3. Bad
4. One
5. Running To Stand Still
6. Stay
7. Moment Of Surrender
8. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
9. The Troubles
10. New Years Day
11. All I Want Is You
12. Zooropa
13. Please
14. Walk On
15. Until The End Of The World

Honorable Mentions (more because I just don't want to leave these songs off the list): One Tree Hill, Sunday Bloody Sunday, Gloria, A Sort Of Homecoming, The Fly

 

[mikal]

1. Zooropa

2. Until The End Of World

3. Lemon

4. Mofo

5. New Years Day

6. Where The Streets Have No Name

7. The Fly

8. The Unforgettable Fire

9. Bad

10. An Cat Dubh/Into The Heart

11. This Is Where You Can Reach Around

12. Hawkmoon 269

13. Please

14. City Of Blinding Lights

15. Always Forever Now


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[Hewson]

Something along the lines of:

1. Acrobat
2. Out of Control
3. New Year's Day (Kevorkian remix)
4. Exit
5. Wire
6. Until the End of the World
7. Two Hearts Beat as One
8. The Unforgettable Fire
9. Zooropa
10. Mofo
11. New York
12. Electric Co. (live version)
13. Rejoice
14. Surrender
15. One Tree Hill

 

[LemonMelon]

1. Zooropa

2. Until The End Of World

3. Lemon

4. Mofo

5. New Years Day

6. Where The Streets Have No Name

7. The Fly

8. The Unforgettable Fire

9. Bad

10. An Cat Dubh/Into The Heart

11. This Is Where You Can Reach Around

12. Hawkmoon 269

13. Please

14. City Of Blinding Lights

15. Always Forever Now


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seven of the same tracks.

 

[mikal]

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[Nick66]

1. ASOH
2. Streets
3. MOS
4. TUF
5. OTH
6. NYD
7. Zoo Station

The rest, in no particular order: Promenade, SATS, NLOTH1, Indian Summer Sky, Red Hill Town, Wire, Kite, Beautiful Day.

 

[CosmoKramer]

As we hypothesize the next tour and let SOI settle in a bit, I think it may be a good time to revisit this topic since many of us have gone back through the catalog due to all the recent relevance.
My list as follows.....
1 Streets
2 Bad
3 Running To Stand Still
4 Sunday Bloody Sunday
5 Stay
6 Kite
7 With Or Without You
8 A Sort Of Homecoming
9 Tomorrow
10 The Fly
11 New Years Day
12 Wire
13 One Tree Hill
14 Please
15 North and South Of The River
Honorable Mentions: Hawkmoon 269, Twilight, Discotheque, Lemon, Ultraviolet, All I Want Is You.




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You have been talking non-stop about how Invisible is one of the most amazing songs and it doesn't make your top 21???


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[Hewson]

You have been talking non-stop about how Invisible is one of the most amazing songs and it doesn't make your top 21???

Maybe it made the list and you just can't see it.

 

[CosmoKramer]

1-With or Without You
2-Still Haven't Found

The rest fluctuate so in no particular order:

Sunday Bloody Sunday
New Years Day
Desire
Angel of Harlem
All I Want is You
Streets Have no Name
Even Better than The Real Thing
Mysterious Ways
One
Beautiful Day
Elevation
Walk On
Vertigo





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[CosmoKramer]

Maybe it made the list and you just can't see it.

Actually, that would have been brilliant if he left #4 blank because it was "Invisible"


Missed opportunity Bob!


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[bobsaget77]

You have been talking non-stop about how Invisible is one of the most amazing songs and it doesn't make your top 21???


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It was too good to include. I love it so much that I respect its title and left it invisible. It's actually right in between Streets and Bad.
Edit: Just because they're honorable mentions doesn't make them my next top 6, just wanted to mention them.

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[bobsaget77]

1-With or Without You
2-Still Haven't Found

The rest fluctuate so in no particular order:

Sunday Bloody Sunday
New Years Day
Desire
Angel of Harlem
All I Want is You
Streets Have no Name
Even Better than The Real Thing
Mysterious Ways
One
Beautiful Day
Elevation
Walk On
Vertigo





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How dare you not include Bad!!!!!!!! You really think Elevation is better than Bad?!??!??!?!? In the words of Nacho Libre, "you crazy".


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[CosmoKramer]

How dare you not include Bad!!!!!!!! You really think Elevation is better than Bad?!??!??!?!? In the words of Nacho Libre, "you crazy".


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Bad is a very good song but the studio version just lacks something. The live version is my second favorite song behind Streets.


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[Aygo]

The Fly
I Will Follow
Zooropa
Even Better Than The Real Thing
Where The Streets Have No Name
Lemon
White As Snow
One
Bad
October
Mofo
Mothers Of The Disappeared
The Unforgettable Fire
Zoo Station
Iris

 

[cobl04]

Favorite 15:
1) Beautiful Day
2) Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of
3) Your Blue Room
4) If God Will Send His Angels
5) With Or Without You
6) One
7) Love Is Blindness
8) I Will Follow
9) Staring At The Sun
10) Kite
11) The Playboy Mansion
12) Desire
13) When I Look At The World
14) Mysterious Ways
15) Elevation

 

[Irvine511]

Bad, One, Streets, and WOWY seem to be their consensus "best" songs.

Hard to argue.


Sent from

 

[DomCobb]

15 is a good number for this ranking. These are possibly the only U2 songs I'd give a 10/10 to.

1. Where the Streets Have No Name
2. Bad
3. Pride (In the Name of Love)
4. New Years Day
5. With or Without You
6. One
7. Sunday Bloody Sunday
8. I Will Follow
9. A Sort of Homecoming
10. Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
11. The Unforgettable Fire
12. All I Want Is You
13. Gloria
14. One Tree Hill
15. Miss Sarajevo

The Electric Co. is a very close 16th place. I'd give that a 10/10 too.

 

[Chief43]

1. Please
2. Bad
3. Walk On
4. Miracle Drug
5. Running to Stand Still
6. Breathe
7. Ultraviolet
8. The Troubles
9. New Years Day
10. Promenade
11. In A Little While
12. Love Is Blindness
13. Red Hill Mining Town
14. Hold Me Thrill Me
15. Stay

Sent from down the rabbit hole

 

[Nick66]

1. Zooropa

2. Until The End Of World

3. Lemon

4. Mofo

5. New Years Day

6. Where The Streets Have No Name

7. The Fly

8. The Unforgettable Fire

9. Bad

10. An Cat Dubh/Into The Heart

11. This Is Where You Can Reach Around

12. Hawkmoon 269

13. Please

14. City Of Blinding Lights

15. Always Forever Now


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What happened to Iris? (the song I mean, not Bono's mother).

 

[mikal]

What happened to Iris? (the song I mean, not Bono's mother).

This afternoon, it would still have a place in my elite 25.


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[popacrobat]

Chronological order:

New Year's Day
Bad
Streets
With or Without You
All I want is You
Until the End of the World
Even Better than the Real Thing
Stay
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me
Discotheque
Mofo
Stuck in a Moment
City of Blinding Lights
Breathe
The Troubles

 

[Axver]

Studio versions only:

1. A Sort of Homecoming
2. One Tree Hill
3. Heartland
4. New Year's Day
5. Bad
6. The Unforgettable Fire
7. Gone
8. Gloria
9. Zooropa
10. Acrobat
11. The Electric Co.
12. Twilight
13. Where the Streets Have No Name
14. Wild Irish Rose
15. Treasure (Whatever Happened to Pete the Chop?)

Live versions taken into account (by which I mean I'm considering the merits of live performances in addition to studio versions, so songs with no live performances or comparatively weak ones still count on the basis of studio glory):

1. One Tree Hill
2. A Sort of Homecoming
3. 11 O'clock Tick Tock
4. Bad
5. Heartland
6. Where the Streets Have No Name
7. Hawkmoon 269
8. New Year's Day
9. The Unforgettable Fire
10. Gone
11. The Electric Co.
12. Love Is Blindness
13. Twilight
14. The Fly
15. Gloria

Something like that anyway. I know I used to squeeze Spanish Eyes in somewhere to my top fifteen...

 

[Hewson]

Something like that anyway. I know I used to squeeze Spanish Eyes in somewhere to my top fifteen...

Spanish Eyes came close for me (as did Treasure), on another day I'd likely have it in there.

on your list(s).

 

[Axver]

Now that I think about it, Mofo or Please should've taken spot fifteen from Gloria on my including-live list. I adore studio Gloria, and it's great live too, but Mofo and Please are something else live.

 

[bobsaget77]

Axver inspired me to make this list.
Top 15 live songs

1 Bad
2 Streets
3 One (Orchestra Version)
4 11 O Clock Tick Tock
5 Please
6 Love Is Blindness
7 New Year's Day
8 One Tree Hill
9 The Fly
10 Mofo
11 Bullet The Blue Sky
12 Sunday Bloody Sunday
13 A Sort Of Homecoming
14 Running To Stand Still
15 Even Better Than The Real Thing
Honorable Mentions: With Or Without You, All I Want Is You, Hawkmoon, Electric Co., Mysterious Ways, Vertigo
Random Invisible Mention: Invisible
Edit: Forgot 11 Clock the first time. Whoops.

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[Bad Exit]

I'll go with my own version of it, hope that you don't mind.

a) I agree there's a huge difference sometimes between studio and live. I'll just judge the songs for my "perception" of it. I.e. Exit, I love that song. Obviously the R&H version is way better than the studio one, but I won't specify which one I'm talking about, it's just a great song, period.

b) I haven't included any SOI songs... I don't think it's fair to include them. To make it to this list, time should be a key ingredient, and for better or worse, SOI lacks that.

c) Instead of 15, I'll go with 9 songs. My top 9 songs...

d) ...but then I'll cheat and include different sets of 6 songs to complete my top 15 list.

So here they are, my top 9 U2 songs:

1. Bad
2. The Unforgettable Fire
3. Zooropa
4. Elvis Presley and America
5. Staring at the Sun
6. Exit
7. No Line on the Horizon
8. FEZ-Being Born
9. The Fly

Now depending on my mood, I'd complete my list with the next 6 songs:

Reflexive/Quiet/romantic
10. So Cruel
11. Running to Stand Still
12. All I Want is You
13. Kite
14. Promenade
15. An Cat Dubh / Into the Heart

Relax/Happy
10. Lemon
11. Red Hill Mining Town
12. Where the Streets Have no Name
13. Beautiful Day
14. City of Blinding Lights
15. Even Better Than the Real Thing

Serious
10. Please
11. Gloria
12. Twilight
13. Sunday Bloody Sunday
14. Bullet the Blue Sky
15. Hawkmoon 269

Bsides/rarities/covers (Probably I'm missing some of these, I didn't checked, I'm going just out of the top of my head)
10. Paint it Black (Originally I had this one on my top 10 list but I downgraded it because it was a cover so I created this additional "set" and added one more song to the different sets to make them 6 songs instead of 5)
11. I'm Not Your Baby
12. Happiness is a Warm Gun
13. In the Name of the Father
14. Always
15. Satellite of Love