U2

Pop

Worst of U2's catalog. Without exception.

Review Score:

(2/10)
As a hard-bitten fan of the band since "Boy" was a new release, veteran of nearly 20 U2 concerts dating back to the "War" tour, owner of over 60 U2 CD's (original releases, singles, remixes, alternate packaging of original releases), 80 vinyl records, all the released DVD's and VHS tapes, and over two-dozen cassettes and singles just for good measure... I've purchased every single one of U2's albums/CD's from "The Unforgettable Fire" onward on the very first day of their release, and only once did I feel like I wasted my morning racing to the local music merchant. Guess when?

ACK!

This is the only U2 album I refuse to listen to ever again... The only tour I've missed in 20 years... The only time I think U2 ever had a serious misstep, and yes, that includes the much-maligned "Rattle and Hum" phase (editorial note: as a pure concert film, primarily from the middle of the DVD onwards, "R&H" has some of the most stirring concert footage ever committed to film, beating "U2 Live in Boston" and even "Under a Blood Red Sky", the latter STILL not on DVD, by a fair margin).

This CD/album is an utter disaster, with only a handful of songs redeeming it from chuck-it-in-the-trash status. "Discotheque" reminds me of nothing more than a sack full of displeased ferrets fighting for a scrap of food!

A general decline of form through the 90's that started with "Zooropa" achieved its' zenith with "Pop", which is practically unlistenable to these ears. Thankfully "ATYCLB" returned the band to a place of prominence, and begat a truly stirring string of live shows that are forever etched into my memory. I travelled across the breadth of this land to see them live on the west coast (in addition to two shows on the right coast), yet wouldn't and didn't travel two dozen miles to see the "Pop Mart" tour out of purest contempt for what they'd perpetrated on the unsuspecting public in the form of their "Pop" CD.

If you really want to start a U2 collection, start anywhere, and I do mean ANYWHERE else. Many regard "October" as U2's poorest effort, but really, it's a true masterpiece in comparison to this horrid collection of mind-numbing nonsensicle overproduction. If only I could erase this travesty from my memory, I would be a much happier man.

But that's just MY opinion. Inexplicably, this CD has achieved an average of four stars (!!!!). I can only suspect mass psychosis on the part of professed U2 "fans". :)

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