What is U2's most popular song ever?

[kiwilad]

I recommend turning off the computer and walking around any major metropolis at about 12:01am on 1 January.

Or just tune into a TV broadcast of midnight fireworks. It'll be playing.

Do people still do that? The last NYE party I went to I ate fairy bread while listening to the Wiggles

New Years Day is also a stapleon NZ rock radio. So is Sunday Bloody Sunday for that matter. It's like they're old enough and raw enough to still be cool, and not tainted by everything Bono became from 1988 onwards.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

Ahem:

It's 22 on Headache's YouTube list below. But you can eliminate from this list Saints Are Coming, Every Breaking Wave, Song for Someone, Invisible, Magnificent, and COBL straight off the bat because they were released in the YouTube era and inherently have higher play counts than something from over two decades before the platform existed.

This absolutely isn't valid - you're just showing how the YouTube ranking is inherently flawed. And as for last.fm, it's going to be populated by a disproportionate amount of U2 fans. For example: Elvis Presley and America is one of my most scrobbled U2 songs. Since it's purely elective listening with a niche crowd, you'll get more folks like me or you, and less like average Joe or plane Jane. NYD is one of my favorite songs from U2... sure, it could be top 10, but it's fringe #9 or #10 at absolute best.

I'd also argue some others are indisputably less popular but benefit from various recent boosts (yes, Ordinary Love is one, also who thinks Walk On is more popular than NYD?!). So yeah, NYD's getting pretty close to the YouTube U2 top ten too, despite YouTube privileging recent stuff to a greater extent than the last.fm stats.

YouTube has audiences identified for advertising and promotion of material. To measure popularity is difficult, and for the sake of this discussion, requires a mixture of approaches and plenty of qualitative discussion. At the end of the day, the very basis of a ranking of popularity is an attempt to put something that's qualitative into a quantitative box. It doesn't really work, so, arbitrarily, sure, we can agree that NYD could be up there for the upper top 10. I would argue not. It shouldn't sniff this thread, though.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

That doesn't really bother me any, I'm fine that one of their more lighthearted songs is among the most popular.

Try being a James fan in the US where Laid is the only song they're known for.

I heard We're Going to Miss You for the first time like... a few days ago. It was magic.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

I recommend turning off the computer and walking around any major metropolis at about 12:01am on 1 January.

Or just tune into a TV broadcast of midnight fireworks. It'll be playing.

Wowwww, right, because I spend my whole life behind my computer in the hometown I never left in the basement my parents never had. [emoji1362]

 

[CosmoKramer]

I can’t speak for other countries but in the US, Pride is very well known. It’s also very well liked. It’s a song that may best define a signature U2 song from the classic Edge guitar sound, amazing Edge solo to the soaring chorus....it’s U2 doing U2 at their best. I would think it’s just as well known as any U2 song but just not as popular as WOWY or ISHF.

 

[CosmoKramer]

If I hadn't looked at any stats (or basically, when I first started the thread), my 'shortlist' of predictions was:

1 - WOWY
2 - One
3 - Beautiful Day
4 - Pride
5 - ISHFWILF
6 - Streets
7 - Vertigo (but for the wrong reasons)

Then some others circled round my head, such as SBS, Elevation, Desire, NYD, and even HMTMKMKM (am I crazy with that one?)

I wouldn’t say HMKMKMTM but wouldn’t argue with SBS, Desire or NYD. I also wouldn’t say Elevation although it is one of their biggest crowd pleasers and I really like the song.

 

[BVS]

I heard We're Going to Miss You for the first time like... a few days ago. It was magic.

I recommend that album as a whole, you should check it out.

 

[Axver]

Do people still do that? The last NYE party I went to I ate fairy bread while listening to the Wiggles

I have a tradition of fairy bread at my AFL Grand Final parties, but I'd draw the line at the fucking Wiggles.

New Years Day is also a stapleon NZ rock radio. So is Sunday Bloody Sunday for that matter. It's like they're old enough and raw enough to still be cool, and not tainted by everything Bono became from 1988 onwards.

Yep, this.

This absolutely isn't valid - you're just showing how the YouTube ranking is inherently flawed. And as for last.fm, it's going to be populated by a disproportionate amount of U2 fans. For example: Elvis Presley and America is one of my most scrobbled U2 songs. Since it's purely elective listening with a niche crowd, you'll get more folks like me or you, and less like average Joe or plane Jane. NYD is one of my favorite songs from U2... sure, it could be top 10, but it's fringe #9 or #10 at absolute best.

Not pointing how it's inherently flawed, just how it skews. We're never going to get anything that reflects stats for all of U2's career so we have to account for certain factors.

I can't find actual user numbers for last.fm, just vague comments at various times of over 40 million or 60 million. In any case, U2 don't have even 3 million listeners from 15 years of scrobbles, so disproportionate my arse. Don't give us that. (There's a better argument for disproportionate Coldplay or Radiohead scrobbles, but I wouldn't pay that either.) And the overall song ranking is about what you'd expect intuitively, once you account for albums from HTDAAB onwards getting a boost simply because anything since the site began benefits from the new album spins that the older stuff doesn't, and also for the occasional rarity doing fairly well because of diehard fans, but they're kicking along Love Comes Tumbling, not NYD.

Wowwww, right, because I spend my whole life behind my computer in the hometown I never left in the basement my parents never had. [emoji1362]

Well some of your quirky perspectives and your habit of arguing a minor point to death and getting the last word with people who otherwise largely agree with you would suggest this is the case, yeah.

(Yes I have read your posts about your actual background.)

 

[LuckyNumber7]

I can't find actual user numbers for last.fm, just vague comments at various times of over 40 million or 60 million. In any case, U2 don't have even 3 million listeners from 15 years of scrobbles, so disproportionate my arse.

And I'm sure each of those three million listeners has played a perfect average of U2 songs? Do you know how many listeners have 1 or 2 scrobbles and are considered a "U2 listener"? The reality is that that number is largely dominated by a much much smaller number than 3 million.

Don't give us that. (There's a better argument for disproportionate Coldplay or Radiohead scrobbles, but I wouldn't pay that either.) And the overall song ranking is about what you'd expect intuitively, once you account for albums from HTDAAB onwards getting a boost simply because anything since the site began benefits from the new album spins that the older stuff doesn't, and also for the occasional rarity doing fairly well because of diehard fans, but they're kicking along Love Comes Tumbling, not NYD.

Who is "us?" Sorry I'm not part of the party. Busy living in the basement.

Define popularity to me.

Well some of your quirky perspectives and your habit of arguing a minor point to death and getting the last word with people who otherwise largely agree with you would suggest this is the case, yeah.

How many thousand more posts do you have than I do? And no, that's not me suggesting there's anything wrong with that. But I find it damn awkward that you're criticizing me for it.

My habit to "argue a minor point to death" was me making discussion out of an otherwise dull topic that's been done probably 1000 times on this forum and debated endlessly, over and over. You responded to my post with your "ehm" emoji and slapped a bunch of numbers like "look dumbass" and then proceeded to call me some sort of desktop junkie. Of course I'm going to respond. Maybe everyone can go run off with their favorite "har har, triggered!11!" responses following that, and pretend that behavior any different from the people you'd criticize for doing that.

 

[kiwilad]

Someone who knows how should start those best album openers/closers polls we talked about some time ago...

 

[Axver]

And I'm sure each of those three million listeners has played a perfect average of U2 songs? Do you know how many listeners have 1 or 2 scrobbles and are considered a "U2 listener"? The reality is that that number is largely dominated by a much much smaller number than 3 million.

Well that's pretty much the point isn't it? Somebody who's going to listen to just a few random U2 tracks is probably going to pick WOWY or Pride or Beautiful Day, not ASOH or In God's Country or Lemon, because they're the big popular tracks that everybody knows.

Define popularity to me.

Oh for god's sake.

How many thousand more posts do you have than I do? And no, that's not me suggesting there's anything wrong with that. But I find it damn awkward that you're criticizing me for it.

A sizeable majority of my posts are from 2008-09 when I had severe undiagnosed depression and this forum was my human contact and support. Do you really want to go there?

My habit to "argue a minor point to death" was me making discussion out of an otherwise dull topic that's been done probably 1000 times on this forum and debated endlessly, over and over. You responded to my post with your "ehm" emoji and slapped a bunch of numbers like "look dumbass" and then proceeded to call me some sort of desktop junkie. Of course I'm going to respond. Maybe everyone can go run off with their favorite "har har, triggered!11!" responses following that, and pretend that behavior any different from the people you'd criticize for doing that.

Mate I'm not just talking about this thread. I think you're a good guy, but sometimes I just let a topic lie because I know you'll keep a minor point going. And I'm thinking that's what I should do with at least some of this discussion right now.

 

[Jarvio]

Which U2 single from post-boy (but pre NLOTH) had the LEAST impact?

I've narrowed it down to THBAO, WGRYWH, LNOE, and IGWSHA.

I think it's IGWSHA, but LNOE in at second.

 

[Nick66]

Which U2 single from post-boy (but pre NLOTH) had the LEAST impact?

I've narrowed it down to THBAO, WGRYWH, LNOE, and IGWSHA.

I think it's IGWSHA, but LNOE in at second.

These acronyms are getting OOC.

 

[Axver]

Which U2 single from post-boy (but pre NLOTH) had the LEAST impact?

I've narrowed it down to THBAO, WGRYWH, LNOE, and IGWSHA.

I think it's IGWSHA, but LNOE in at second.

I'd say THBAO didn't do too shabbily. When I became a fan it was a song name of which I was loosely aware, unlike those other three.

And surely we should go from post-October, because Fire and A Celebration are the answers otherwise.

It's amazing to think that Pop had six singles. Discotheque and SATS left minor dents, but LNOE, IGWSHA, Mofo, and Please were non-starters.

And has everybody already forgotten that OOTS, ABOY, and Crazy Tonight were singles?

 

[iron yuppie]

I cannot for the life of me figure out what THBAO is.

 

[Diemen]

Two Hearts Beat As One.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

International Association of Approved Basketball Officials

 

[Jarvio]

I'd say THBAO didn't do too shabbily. When I became a fan it was a song name of which I was loosely aware, unlike those other three.

And surely we should go from post-October, because Fire and A Celebration are the answers otherwise.

It's amazing to think that Pop had six singles. Discotheque and SATS left minor dents, but LNOE, IGWSHA, Mofo, and Please were non-starters.

And has everybody already forgotten that OOTS, ABOY, and Crazy Tonight were singles?

Oops I meant to say post-october, but looks like I said post-boy, my mistake.

Hmm, I never saw "Mofo" as a proper single, I mean, wasn't it only a "remix" single?

I also never thought OOTS was a "proper" single, it wasn't available to buy, or was it? There are no chart positions for it anywhere on the net that I can find.

As for Crazy Tonight, I mentioned it when I said the NLOTH singles.

From a US hot 100 perspective, Wild Horses did pretty well at #35, which is the best position in the US out of all those tracks I listed. Shame U2 don't seem to give it the attention it deserves.

 

[popacrobat]

Why would you go to 18 shows?!

because i wanted to?

 

[Axver]

Oops I meant to say post-october, but looks like I said post-boy, my mistake.

Hmm, I never saw "Mofo" as a proper single, I mean, wasn't it only a "remix" single?

I also never thought OOTS was a "proper" single, it wasn't available to buy, or was it? There are no chart positions for it anywhere on the net that I can find.

As for Crazy Tonight, I mentioned it when I said the NLOTH singles.

From a US hot 100 perspective, Wild Horses did pretty well at #35, which is the best position in the US out of all those tracks I listed. Shame U2 don't seem to give it the attention it deserves.

Hah, and I overlooked your pre-NLOTH comment, so disregard Crazy Tonight. And I suppose it depends what we count as a single, because 40(!) was a single in Germany in 1983. Now there's one that sank without a trace. Can't fathom what they were thinking.

I always got the impression Electrical Storm didn't do tremendously well, despite its placement on the Best Of. I listened to heaps of the radio back in 2002 and heard Electrical Storm probably twice. The first three singles from ATYCLB were in way more regular rotation.

 

[Yahweh_OMG]

Pride or WOWY

ONE is also known by anyone listening to any music at all....

 

[CosmoKramer]

The question isn’t “what is U2’s most popular song ever”..... it should be “What is U2’s second most popular song?” as we seem to all agree WOWY is #1 but after that is where we get differing opinions.

 

[kabigon]

I'd go for what is U2's least popular song according to Interference

The Refugee
Red Light
Grace
The Hands That Built America
Boots
Stand Up Comedy
Ordinary Love
The Miracle
Song For Someone
The Best Thing

 

[Axver]

We once voted Viva Davidoff as U2's worst.

 

[kabigon]

It's like the blandest background music you could find to put to a sewer level in an awful video game.

 

[Mac_Fly]

I'd go for what is U2's least popular song according to Interference

The Refugee
Red Light
Grace
The Hands That Built America
Boots
Stand Up Comedy
Ordinary Love
The Miracle
Song For Someone
The Best Thing

The least popular with me from that list is a toss-up between Hands and Stand Up Comedy.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

U2 wrote Miami

 

[rennowba]

Do chart placings really mean that much ? Just going off the U.K. Charts , pride, streets, with or without you, still haven't found, one, mysterious ways didn't get to number 1 but sometimes you can't make it on your own and discotheque did.

Sweetest thing is also a huge song here, gets played a lot on radio

 

[Mac_Fly]

U2 wrote Miami

And the bass line from Miami single-handedly whips most everything on that list.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

And the bass line from Miami single-handedly whips most everything on that list.

(It's a joke)