All U2 Songs Ranked 240-141
Ranked based on the primary studio version, not my preferred version of the songs. Only originals are included, but that does also include songs they wrote for other people. I did not include alternate early versions of tracks however, so no "Native Son", "Down All the Days", etc. |
| 100 |  | U2
No Line on the Horizon
240. Get On Your Boots (1/5)
Of the 4+ decades this band has spent together, this is pretty widely considered to be the nadir. All the more unfortunate coming right smack in the middle of what otherwise is their most accomplished late career record, "Get On Your Boots" mangles the "Vertigo" formula into one of the stupidest songs I have ever heard, in a way that is zero fun to listen to. |
| 99 |  | U2
Original Soundtracks 1 (As Passengers)
239. Elvis Ate America (1/5)
Bono taking liberties with a word he as a white man is not allowed to say aside, this just sounds bad and has nothing going on musically for it anyway, while also majorly kneecapping the vibe of everything around it. Fuck this song. |
| 98 |  | U2
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
238. A Man and a Woman (1.5/5)
In case you're somehow not aware of the tragedy of this band, after consistently and creatively pushing their sound forward for two decades they frustratingly deemed 5 million copies upon release a low enough amount of sales for their 1997 album Pop to warrant flipping the script to making the safest, most department store adult alternative material possible. While it's not as binary as that suggests and there's still a good handful of worthwhile riches past this point, most of them don't show up on the band's first two turn of the century records. This is the worst track off of either, a sickeningly saccharine acoustic ballad that even back as a standardless 12 year old I couldn't get behind. |
| 97 |  | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
237. Grace (1.5/5)
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzoh what was that oh yeah this is a song I guess. A really fuckin boring one though! Easily their worst closing track, which is fitting for their worst album. |
| 96 |  | U2
Songs of Experience
236. Landlady (1.5/5)
Another song that's so bland it's thin as air. Songs of Experience mostly chills out in this general territory of being "pretty good but nothing amazing", but it's got two big exceptions in the one two combo of this and "The Blackout". This one ranks lower because it might be the most faceless song I've ever heard this band make. |
| 95 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
235. In a Little While (1.5/5)
The riff of this song is kinda nice but otherwise I can't with this track. Think Bono's vocal performance here badly gels alongside the vibe of the track. It almost sounds like he's yelling everything and it undermines any attempt at tenderness the song tries to achieve. Nor are his melodies any good. |
| 94 | | U2
No Line on the Horizon
234. Stand Up Comedy (1.5/5)
The flange sweep transition during the bridge is pretty dope but otherwise this is right down with "Get On Your Boots". The consensus sometimes extends the disastrous mid stretch to either include the track before or the track after these two, but I think they both rip. It's really just these two that sink the album but my fucking god. |
| 93 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
233. Big Girls Are Best (1.5/5)
This song is bad and ridiculously stupid but at least it's catchier than some of the other dirges in this portion of the list. Gotta ranking the bottom of the barrel. |
| 92 | | U2
Songs of Experience
232. The Blackout (2/5)
Instrumentally this song has a few salvageable ideas, which almost makes it's failures more bothersome because a rewrite could have turned it into something alright, but Bono phones it in so hard here with one and the "jack / zach" rhyme scheme knocks it hard down to skip territory |
| 91 | | U2
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
231. Love and Peace or Else (2/5)
That filthy bass shit happening at the start of this song is sick and it would have been so cool if they didn't build that into one of their absolute most obnoxious rockers either smh. Terrible song. |
| 90 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
230. Peace on Earth (2/5)
Worth noting here that I'm ranking these songs based on their main studio versions, since U2 have tried these songs out in so many different shades at this point (for better or worse). This is directly relevant to this track because it's studio version is an absolute slog, but the Edge fronted take that appears on Songs of Surrender is actually quite lovely and a substantial improvement. It made me like the song. |
| 89 | | U2
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
229. Original of the Species (2/5)
I feel like they don't usually try and write songs that are this flexible with their key regions, so I appreciate them trying to write something that's a little more ambiguous in that regard. Shame it's clunky as hell and sounds bad! |
| 88 | | U2
Songs of Experience
228. Ahimsa (2/5)
This was a loosey collab single that dropped in 2019 that I didn't even realize existed until research for this.
Definitely not the most inspired sounding protest song this band has ever made. This track is generally fine until it's absolute whimper of a chorus lets it down pretty hard. |
| 87 |  | U2
Boy
227. Boy/Girl (2/5)
I love early, wide-eyed earnest U2. I'm talking before War even came out when they had no idea if they even wanted to be a career band or not. It's so fascinating hearing this band before they took over the world, and their uptempo, slightly higher gain take on the Cure's Three Imaginary Boys sound had not only a lot of charm to it, but pretty sharp songs out of the gate to sell them. They were not on fire all the time however, and this definitely did not make an album proper for a reason. |
| 86 | | U2
Songs of Experience
226. American Soul (2/5)
The existence of this song is hilarious. From utilizing their feature on Kendrick Lamar's "XXX" as the basis of these song's verses, to copy pasting the bridge from "Volcano" as the chorus, and then later dropping all timer bad Bono lyric contender "refu-jesus" in the bridge, this on paper should probably be in the bottom 5. Yet miraculously it's somehow slightly more listenable than everything below it. Praise be the power of big guitars I guess. |
| 85 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
225. Wild Honey (2.5/5)
This song feels kinda like the precursor to whatever the fuck "A Man and a Woman" was and it wears that "made for Walmart radio" vibes a bit more comfortably in the sense that it just sounds like stock background music, but stock background music has never been what I want out of U2. |
| 84 |  | U2
Songs of Innocence
224. Iris (Hold Me Close (2.5/5)
This is the only song I outright dislike off their much maligned Songs of Innocence. When it came out I didn't like any of it but that's because literally the entire world was yelling in my ear about how much it sucked, but with the passage of time I've come around on the album a good bit, particularly the back half. Side A is generally loaded with the more commercial leaning material, and I think those songs are all too polished to have made the most out of their full potential, but for the most part I think the opening four song run is still reasonably solid for what they were going for. This one kind of breaks me though, especially sitting in a canon of all the otherworldly breathtaking songs Bono has written on the same subject matter (the death of his mother). The emotional impact this song needs to convey is pretty badly kneecapped by how generic the arrangement is. |
| 83 |  | U2
Pop
223. MOFO (2.5/5)
I did not intentionally place this and "Iris" next to each other but they arguably have the exact opposite problem because this is also about Bono's mother but will prompt the listener to think "what the actual fuck am I listening to" as it unfolds. I love most everything else on Pop but I kind of imagine this track is probably what this whole album sounds like to the people who don't like it |
| 82 |  | U2
The Joshua Tree
222. Red Hill Mining Town (2.5/5)
I know this has it's fans but it is crazy generic to me. Major momentum killer after Joshua's remarkable (but way too single heavy) Side A and isn't nearly strong enough to set up the back half properly. Given the massive wealth of material in the vault from these sessions, there's no way it should have made the final cut. To give the band credit however they majorly improved upon this with the Songs of Surrender version which flipped the vibe wonderfully with marching snares and trumpets. Another wild example of them taking a song I've never fucked with and entirely changing how I felt about it. |
| 81 |  | U2
October
221. With a Shout (Jerusalem) (2.5/5)
When I was younger, October was my least favorite U2 album. Granted that was when there were two less U2 albums than their used to be (although only Songs of Experience ranks lower for myself), but despite stylistically resembling albums I loved like Boy and War I found myself pretty disengaged by much of this album, which was confusing for me since I didn't have the nuance yet as a child to realize that style didn't dictate quality and doesn't matter as much to me as how good the songs themselves are. Although I've softened on the first half of October overtime due to a few really strong cuts, I largely maintain that the album is still pretty useless after the title track, as this song generally does nothing and goes nowhere save some cool jammy bits here and there. |
| 80 |  | U2
Rattle and Hum
220. God Part II (2.5/5)
Never really been a big fan of this song. I kinda appreciate it more than I used to since it's got a cool proto Achtung Baby vibe to it but that vibe is really misplaced within the context of Rattle and Hum, and the blues melody is pretty misplaced over the beat too. Not big on it's lyrics either and the idea that it's supposed to be a sequel to Lennon's "God" track make those a harder sell too. Bono sounds incredible though. Dude's voice around this time was unfuckwithable. |
| 79 | | U2
Songs of Experience
219. Lights of Home (2.5/5)
This song is one of the best examples in their catalog of how how misaligned their execution on this album was with their songwriting. Literally every other version of this song I have heard, be it the grandiose strings remix to the stripped back Songs of Surrender version, is miles better than this car commercial ass arrangement they went with on the album proper. |
| 78 | | U2
Boy
218. Touch (2.5/5)
Pretty unremarkable by their early standards but it's fine. It's cool how the key ambiguity in the chorus lead by The Edge allows his harmonics to lead back into the verse progression pretty smoothly, but it is far from Bono's best performance. He sounds kind of awful on here. |
| 77 | | U2
Songs of Experience
217. Your Song Saved My Life (2.5/5)
I would probably never have listened to this if I weren't making this list, and I'll probably never listen to it again, but it's fine. It's about as bland as I expected it would be given it's a soundtrack cut in a kids movie but at least I wasn't particularly bothered by it at any point. |
| 76 |  | U2
The Best Of 1990-2000
216. The Hands That Built America (3/5)
The bridge of this song is pretty cool and otherwise it would be a lot lower. One of the dirgiest dirges in their whole discog. |
| 75 | | U2
October
215. Is That All? (3/5)
It's fitting the band went with a song called "Is That All?" to wrap up a run as unremarkable as the last four tracks on this album. |
| 74 | | U2
Original Soundtracks 1 (As Passengers)
214. A Different Kind of Blue (3/5)
This is cool and I like the bending of the wind chime sounds that are going on throughout the track but it's a little too sparse for it's own good. Definitely feels more like a solo Eno track than something the U2 guys took any hand in. |
| 73 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
213. Love You Like Mad (3/5)
This isn't on the album proper, and I'm not really sure how much I miss it. The Edge is the key ingredient here. His little lead line in the chorus is so satisfying and brings some nice little Achtung Baby flavorings into the mix. Wish Bono had more to contribute though since he's definitely the weak link of this track. The bridge is kinda cool because it's pretty left field but it's not the smoothest deviation they've ever pulled, although it could have been refreshing on an album as calculated as this one. |
| 72 | | U2
Songs of Innocence
212. Ordinary Love (3/5)
I got into U2 around 2012 so this was the first song they had ever put out while I was a fan of them and that seems fitting in retrospect because it really signaled the biggest issue with the band's 2010s output in that the arrangements recently have been working against the songs themselves to a degree. The tune at the core of this song is pretty solid, but I have no idea why Bono insists on singing it that high because it doesn't really work. It's not to the point that the original version is unlistenable though by any means, it's still fine, but this is another song that greatly benefitted from the Songs of Surrender treatment. |
| 71 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
211. Summer Rain (3/5)
Generally I'm not sold on the more acoustic based material the band was toying with during the ATYCLB sessions. To me it's some of the most regressive feeling material musically across the whole project, and "regressive feeling" is the reason ATYCLB is my least favorite U2 anyway. This song is alright though and definitely a better iteration of that template, with The Edge coming in with some filthy distortion in the background to give it a little tension, although that does me no good evaluating the album when it's an outtake. Wouldn't personally make my own tracklist of the album but it's better than most of the actual back half of this record. |
| 70 | | U2
Songs of Innocence
210. Invisible (3/5)
This and Ordinary Love were the two singles that preceded (but did not appear on) Songs of Innocence and generally I feel like the same thing I said about the other can be applied to this, but at least Bono is more comfortably within his bounds as a vocalist here. The Songs of Surrender version of this is a bigger upgrade than the Ordinary Love version is though, opening up the beauty of this song a lot more which is pretty hampered by the overproduction on the studio version. Really in execution this song is just way too glossy and sqeaky clean to land much impact. |
| 69 | | U2
October
209. Stranger in a Strange Land (3/5)
I like the instrumental of this song a decent bit but Bono is meandering over this like he hasn't a clue in the world what to do. Better than the surrounding full tracks towards the back half of October but not enough to challenge the narrative that this album is generally useless after track 7. |
| 68 |  | U2
U218 Singles
208. Window in the Skies (3/5)
I used to love this song when I was a kid but honestly the better of the two new songs on the comp was the Green Day collab. This is one of the first songs of theirs I ever heard though so maybe that did it, that and it's their most Beatles-y song and they were the only other band I jammed as a kid. Nowadays it makes me kinda glad they didn't go to that well too often but it's fine. |
| 67 | | U2
October
207. Trash, Trampoline, and the Party Girl (3/5)
Pretty sure this is a fan favorite but it's always kinda annoyed me and I never really softened on it. I guess it's cool in the sense that it feels pretty singular in their discog though. Can't really think of other old school U2 songs with this almost playful acoustic vibe, just doesn't land for me. |
| 66 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
206. Flower Child (3/5)
Given my "Summer Rain" description, I'm a little surprised that I am a bigger fan of this song, albeit only slightly. This stays within the acoustic economy even more rigidly, but the little synth fall off that segues from the chorus to the verse is really dope and feels kinda unexpected within that space. I also just kinda think the melody on this song is better, so it makes better use of it's limitations. Still nothing crazy though. |
| 65 | | U2
Songs of Innocence
205. Song for Someone (3/5)
I think this song is alright outside of it's hilarious opening lyric, but mostly I'm thankful of the weight it gives the much better song that reprises it because it's very U2 on autopilot. |
| 64 |  | U2
The Unforgettable Fire
204. Boomerang/Boomerang II (3/5)
A lot of what makes U2 so remarkable in my eyes is how impressive their vault is. There are riches of incredible, forward thinking, and artistically challenging material that usually ends up just sitting on the shelves when it's tracklisting time given how sales driven a lot of their decisions have been. The Unforgettable Fire and Joshua Tree have equal claim for me on which sessions yielded my favorite unreleased material of theirs, with the former showcasing a wealth of dazzling instrumentals and soundscapes. This is the only track from those sessions that I'm generally indifferent on though, and the addition of vocals on Boomerang II if anything drag the track down more than they benefit it. |
| 63 | | U2
Pop
203. The Playboy Mansion (3/5)
The harmonies at the end of this song are so gorgeous that I cannot in good conscience rank this song any lower but the lyrics are so bad that I cannot in good conscience rank this song any higher. |
| 62 | | U2
Rattle and Hum
202. When Love Comes to Town (3/5)
U2's collaborations over the years have ranged dramatically in quality. This is probably the most well known of them and it's okay albeit a pretty unremarkable rocker, but god fucking damn does Bono just sound incredible on everything during this time period. |
| 61 | | U2
Songs of Innocence
201. The Miracle of Joey Ramone (3/5)
I like the tune at it's core and I actually dig the key flipping between the chorus and the rest of the song a lot now, which makes the chorus feel a lot bigger and more surprising, but boy this is a car commercial ass arrangement of this song. |
| 60 | | U2
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
200. Vertigo (CATORCE/5)
Native Son is just so so so so so much better than this that I kinda cannot really engage with this song again. Not only were pretty much no improvements made but they also stripped out all the best parts of that track, so I kinda hear this track as a glaring example of the consequences of "overworking a U2 track" rather than being it's own finished song. I guess it's fine. "Native Son" would probably be in the top 100. |
| 59 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
199. New York (3/5)
I've come around on this song a bit (not a lot) recently, if anything because it offers at least something different amidst the monochrome landscape that is ATYCLB. It's probably got the closest DNA makeup anything on the album has to gorgeous outtake "Levitate" (which will be represented very very very high), and finally utilizes some direly needed swings in dynamics at that point in the album. It's a shame it's about 2 minutes too long and kind of drags the goodwill it builds towards the start down by the end as a result. |
| 58 | | U2
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
198. One Step Closer (3/5)
I used to be really bothered by this track in the same way I am the "Grace" and "Peace on Earth" school of songs but the instrumental of it is kind of gorgeous. It's really just Bono who drops the ball here but this is kind of an "Iris" situation where his contributions don't really feel the weight of the subject matter, this time being about his father. This is a better song though, albeit just slightly so. |
| 57 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
197. Walk On (3/5)
Of the four mega smash hits from this record this is the one that's had the least staying power for me, although i wouldn't consider (two of) the others all that consequential songs in my life either. This song is very "U2 doing U2 at a big scale of bigness" in their usual 2000s fashion and I have definitely heard it more times than I need to. |
| 56 | | U2
Songs of Innocence
196. California (There is No End to Love (3/5)
The Beach Boys opening thing at the start is a weird ass choice that makes this song a little bit better because it's the only thing remotely close to a "weird ass choice" that happens here. Glad it happens on this one though because it's generally better by the standards of the opening stretch here I guess. |
| 55 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
195. When I Look at the World (3/5)
This song is pretty weightless but I'm a big fan of the guitar solo despite it literally being like four or five notes played total. Timbre of that shit just sounds so nice, like Edge is bending time itself for a few seconds. Dude just knows how to make perfect minimal use of his delay. Without that moment this song would probably be a good bit lower. |
| 54 | | U2
The Joshua Tree
194. Drunk Chicken (3/5)
Not really a song as much as a little minute long scrap of Bono reading Ginsberg over a weird lil instrumental but that instrumental is kinda cool. |
| 53 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
193. Beautiful Day (3/5)
This is my Mom's favorite U2 song which makes sense since this is probably the most Mom U2 song that ever was which means y'all already know it probably. It's fine. Bridge is probably the highlight. |
| 52 |  | U2
Achtung Baby
192. Blow Your House Down (3/5)
In a way, the lowest Achtung Baby era song being the only track they finished up in the early 2010s shows how unfuckwithable this band was in their prime, but also I sure do wish Bono finished these vocals back in the day because present day (or 15 years ago lmao) Bono can't really sell it. |
| 51 | | U2
Original Soundtracks 1 (As Passengers)
191. Beach Sequence (3.5/5)
This is really pretty, albeit a little weightless. Those shimmery waves of guitar feel liquid smooth alongside the shifting textures in the track, and the piano is timbrally distinct enough amongst this landscape that it's presence is really pronounced. Eventually the piano and guitar swells fully mesh with each other in one of the most stunning instances of textural unison in their catalogue, but it's a little too thin on the whole to be anything like crazy special. |
| 50 |  | U2
Zooropa
190. Babyface (3.5/5)
It's taken a while for anything from Zooropa to make the cut, and while this is easily my lowlight from the album, it's still generally pleasant enough that it doesn't usually have me reaching for the skip button. The bells are a stunning backdrop for this song and the washes of The Edge's distorted guitar go a long way elevating what is Bono's least compelling vocal writing on the album. Ultimately though better than a U2 song about porn probably should be. |
| 49 | | U2
October
189. Scarlet (3.5/5)
Not really a song, and I get why people don't like it, but I kinda like this as a little interlude. Very limited in it's economy but it's nice. I think everyone uses their little portion of the space nicely. |
| 48 | | U2
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
188. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own (3.5/5)
The better of the two songs where Bono's dad looms omnipresent, but one where I prefer the alternate version from Unreleased and Rare. The album version is a bit overcooked and adds a bit more to the choruses which I think benefit from the space. |
| 47 | | U2
Songs of Innocence
187. Every Breaking Wave (3.5/5)
Speaking of overcooked they fuckin murdered my boy. I still like the song enough at it's core that I can stomach the album version, in part because I don't think another version does justice to the harmonies in the chorus the way the album version does, but god fucking damn yet another example of the album version being so far from the ideal arrangement for the tune at the center. |
| 46 |  | U2
Songs of Surrender
186. Atomic City (3.5/5)
This song to me feels like a tighter rewrite of what they wanted to accomplish on "Miracle of Joey Ramone". I don't think it's anything amazing but I like it as a teaser for what's coming next, although I guess that could change if the next album ends up being bad lmao. The modulation in the bridge is pretty cool. |
| 45 | | U2
October
185. A Celebration (3.5/5)
I only heard this for the first time when putting this together and there kinda isn't much to say about it but it's a pretty fun shot of energy. While this wouldn't be a highlight on October it would have definitely been a welcome inclusion to help pad the runtime instead of pretty much anything in the back half. |
| 44 | | U2
Achtung Baby
184. Salome (3.5/5)
The b side status of this song always made sense to me since the hook is way too repetitive to max out it's potential, but the bass line is bouncy as fuck and the Zooromancer remix does go stupid hard, so credit where credit is due. |
| 43 | | U2
Songs of Experience
183. Love is All We Have Left (3.5/5)
Pretty cool if weightless intro track that teases exaggerated autotune for the first time on a U2 record to then never pop up again which honestly would have made this record more interesting probably. |
| 42 | | U2
October
182. J Swallo (3.5/5)
I like this weird ass little track. Feels almost like a glimpse into what the Eno days would be like. Bono's a non presence here but everyone else builds a pretty cool atmosphere. |
| 41 | | U2
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
181. She's a Mystery to Me (3.5/5)
I always get a kick hearing U2's own versions of the songs they write for other people, in this case for Roy Orbison. Bono of course boasts a wildly different timbre than Orbison, and one that is not nearly as beneficial to the song at hand, but he still does a pretty solid job and his lower register lends itself to the track much better than his high range. |
| 40 | | U2
Boy
180. The Fool (3.5/5)
Early demo from before the Boy days that shows a rawer, punkier, more carefree U2 than anything we ever got on record. This makes the shit ass demo quality endearing rather than limiting. |
| 39 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
179. Electrical Storm (3.5/5)
The William Orbit Mix is definitely my preferred version of this song. I like the band version but the vibe and atmosphere set by the synth bells are arguably the most integral ingredient to making this song work, outside of the high impact soaring bridge. |
| 38 | | U2
Achtung Baby
178. Heaven and Hell (3.5/5)
Despite absolutely rinsing the vault tracks from Joshua Tree and Unforgettable Fire when I was first getting into this band, a lot of the unreleased Achtung Baby stuff is fairly new to me, meaning the position of these songs are likely more flexible than a lot of my other U2 takes, which have been pretty firmly fixed by over a decade of jamming. I say this because this song completely flew off me my first listen, but has inched into my brain little by little each passing listen. Definitely would not have made sense on the album proper though. |
| 37 | | U2
Songs of Experience
177. Summer of Love (3.5/5)
Bold of them to try and name a song after the Beach Boys high 1992 artistic watermark "Summer of Love". This song is very pleasant, almost too much so since it kinda comes at odds with the subject matter about the Syrian refugee crisis. If that doesn't sum up the problems of late era U2 I don't know what does. |
| 36 | | U2
Achtung Baby
176. Oh, Berlin (3.5/5)
Going through the opposite experience with this song as I am "Heaven and Hell" where it's comeback quality has lessened with each jam, but Edge's playing is ultimately what keeps it ahead. His riff rules enough that it's even reasonably able to propel Bono's pseudo Lou Reed impression, but it probably was not Bono's best choice of vocal styling to pair with the track. |
| 35 | | U2
All That You Can't Leave Behind
175. Elevation (3.5/5)
The Tomb Raider mix with the giant guitars turns this song into a moderate banger, but it already gets points in comparison to most of ATYCLB by having a pulse to it at all. Some good ol mindless fun. |
| 34 | | U2
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
174. Yahweh (3.5/5)
This song on paper probably shouldn't work for me, pairing a fairly repetitive chorus with some of their most directly religious writing (neither really my thing particularly in the hands of this band), but something about the execution is so unavoidably grandiose that I can't help but surrender myself to their epic epicness. Helps that most of Bono's melodic runs on this song rule. |
| 33 | | U2
Boy
173. Cartoon World (3.5/5)
Very archaic old track that cracks me up since they precede the most widely distributed version (a live version) with "I think you know it". This is humorous to me in an age where a studio version of the track is absolutely nowhere to be found. I'm sure it was just a live staple back in the day or something but lmao. Anyways this was probably very fun to watch them play in all of it's scrappy and very rough around the edges (heh) glory. |
| 32 | | U2
Original Soundtracks 1 (As Passengers)
172. Ito Okashi (3.5/5)
Feel like of all the OS1 material this one really taps into the energy of the album cover well. Major desolate space station energy. Really nice textures on this track even if they don't really build to much. |
| 31 | | U2
Boy
171. 11 O'Clock Tick Tock (3.5/5)
Probably would have ranked this song higher in years prior but honestly the Songs of Surrender version blows it so far out of the water that I have a hard time listening to the original nowadays, which is not a problem I expected to have with a song that predates their debut. Seriously though that new version is incredible. |
| 30 | | U2
The Joshua Tree
170. Desert of Our Love (3.5/5)
The lesser of the two previously unreleased Joshua Tree demos that were first made available in the deluxe reissue, I'm pretty sure Bono improv'd all of this? Cool, albeit extremely unrefined stuff, but given the band we're dealing with here sometimes that's refreshing. |
| 29 | | U2
October
169. Gloria (3.5/5)
The fade in is weirdly the most successful moment of this track for me, with the rest mostly being early standards U2 fare, but it still lands with enough firepower to be a worthy opener. It's not like it's kicking off one of their most exciting LPs anyway. |
| 28 | | U2
Pop
168. Two Shots of Happy, One Shot of Sad
Not my favorite shade they've ever worn but it was supposed to be for Sinatra in the first place and they do sell the fuck out of it so I believe them and can settle into its groove. |
| 27 | | U2
Songs of Experience
167. The Showman (3.5/5)
Would probably sigh in exasperation if you went back in time before this album dropped and told me that one of the strongest choruses would have been built around the lyrics "you think you look so good / a little more better", and I would have had every right to, but god fuckin damn that shit is always stuck in my head. Fair play Bono, you still know your way around an earworm. |
| 26 | | U2
Original Soundtracks 1 (As Passengers)
166. Theme from Let's Go Native (3.5/5)
Not much to this song other than a filthy groove that repeats over and over and some light vocals from Bono but god that beat feels so good that it could ride itself out for another two or three minutes and I wouldn't mind. |
| 25 |  | U2
War
165. Endless Deep (3.5/5)
The first War era track to be lost in battle is a b-side whose only vocals come from esteemed bassist Adam Clayton, who makes a case for everyone as to why he should rarely if ever be behind the microphone. The piano riff in this song is lovely though and it plays off the bass line for a pretty engaging call and response. |
| 24 | | U2
Achtung Baby
164. Where Did It All Go Wrong? (3.5/5)
As it often goes for songs in the b-side tier that didn't get fully workshopped for the album stage, this has parts that really work for me and parts that do not. Think the verses feel a little placeholder on this one but it makes up for it with a killer bridge that gives Edge space for a catchy as hell power chord riff that constantly bounces around in my brain. |
| 23 | | U2
War
163. Treasure (Whatever Happened to Pete the Chop?) (3.5/5)
I'm surprised Edge thought the biggest reason this song stayed on the cutting room floor was it's lack of melody since Bono's got a bunch of killer runs on it, especially in the bridge. They made the right choice though since it would have been horrifically misplaced on War, but War doesn't need any work on it at all regardless. That album is air tight perfection as is. |
| 22 | | U2
Songs of Experience
162. You're the Best Thing About Me (3.5/5)
I used to be kind of annoyed about the key flipping that happens between the chorus and verses but ultimately it's one of the few things that keeps this song surprising in any way. Edge's vocals on this song are really lovely every time he comes in as well, from his stunning bridge to his call and response with Bono during the latter part of the chorus. Give the man more vocal parts Bono! He is arguably better than you at this point! |
| 21 | | U2
Boy
161. Another Time, Another Place (3.5/5)
The only weak link on their incredible debut album still has its moments that make it worth keeping. The Edge for one is riffing like a mf on this track and is absolutely the star of the show here. Can't really stand up to the bar by surrounding bangers like "A Day Without Me" and "Electric Co." but it's reasonably solid enough, especially for being the only lowlight on their first album back before they even knew they wanted to be a career band. Makes it kinda endearing. |
| 20 | | U2
Original Soundtracks 1 (As Passengers)
160. United Colours (3.5/5)
Wasn't sure whether to throw the Passengers material up or not since only two of those songs as far as I know were ever released under the U2 name explicitly and it's so different and out there for them, but I like the album and it bumps us up to a cleaner number of songs so I figured it was worth shouting out, also because a lot of the material rules. This track specifically caters much more to me than it used to, although it meanders a bit. I did not remember as a kid how filthy the guitars on this track were, and it's pretty rad that even in experimental ambient mode they're still able to work in that trademark buzz saw fuzz that's emblematic of this era of the band to add a little tension. |
| 19 | | U2
October
159. Rejoice (3.5/5)
Most of what puts this ahead of a lot of other October songs is simply that the riff absolutely fuckin whips. Shit is so dope. |
| 18 | | U2
Songs of Experience
158. Get Out of Your Own Way (3.5/5)
Title of this song doubles up as a mantra I so badly wish they would absorb. Even a genuinely horrific Songs of Surrender adaptation cannot derail my appreciation for the OG's take on "what if ultra motivational shimmery U2 in 2017", and it's probably the only U2 single I've ever gotten upon release that I have always liked (I was not hot on "You're the Best Thing About Me" the first few times I heard it even though I like the song now). |
| 17 | | U2
Zooropa
157. Numb (3.5/5)
A big part of the U2 experience for me over the last four or five years has come from restructuring (or jamming other people's restructured) tracklists of their albums that dig into the vault and uses that wealth of material to position them more so as an arty band rather than a major hitmaking band. A lot of the choices that go into that revolve around displacing the singles and positioning the less orthodox tracks up front. I do not need to do anything to Zooropa to make it more weird though considering its lead off single was this bizarro track fronted by Edge rapping. It's a song I respect more than I actually enjoy listening to it (mostly because as much as I love my mans The Edge he is dry as can be on this track), and the Bono sung counterpart "Down All the Days" gets much more rotation through my headphones, but it's a significant landmark as far as "U2 doing whatever the fuck they want" moments go all the same. |
| 16 | | U2
Boy
156. Speed of Life (4/5)
Fun little early instrumental that I almost kinda wish they developed into a more full song since that bass riff of Adam's is beyond addictive. Inject that shit in my veins. |
| 15 | | U2
Original Soundtracks 1 (As Passengers)
155. Plot 180 (4/5)
I love it when OS1 is able to fuse Edge's influence as a guitarist with Eno's influence as a producer, and this song is a really remarkable example of it as the synths weave alongside the waves of guitar swells and feedback. I'm also very receptive of the space put between the synth loop at points to prevent it from feeling too route, and it adds a vital amount of tension to help this track succeed. |
| 14 | | U2
Boy
154. Street Mission (4/5)
Now this one i wish existed in somewhat higher quality because it is a goddamn blast. The band's worship for the Cure's older music really bleeds through here before it hits a sick as hell slowdown that launches into a ripping second half that Edge solos over gloriously. The only thing holding this one back from being higher is that it has inarguably the worst sound quality of anything on the list and is genuinely kind of a headache to listen to in it's demo form unfortunately. |
| 13 | | U2
The Joshua Tree
153. Spanish Eyes (4/5)
Can't really compete with "Sweetest Thing" as far as songs about Ali from this era go but Bono makes up for it with one of his most dynamic and explosive vocal performances from these sessions. Intro riff is sick as hell too such a cool moody tone setter that is prime 80s Edge material. |
| 12 | | U2
Songs of Experience
152. Red Flag Day (4/5)
I really like the backing vocals in the chorus of this song. They go a long way. One thing I do really appreciate about this record is that Edge steps up his vocal presence a decent bit, and I'm always glad to hear him more. |
| 11 | | U2
No Line on the Horizon
151. Soon (4/5)
This track is very cool and makes me long for a timeline in which the band finished and put out Songs of Ascent. I'm sure at this point it's been overworked to the point of unrecognizability but the album they promised between No Line on the Horizon and Songs of Innocence sounded absolutely sublime. "Stained glass" is exactly the kind of descriptor I want to hear the band use when describing my U2 textures thank you give me the album NOW Bono I expect to see it in my iCloud in the next few days. |
| 10 | | U2
Songs of Experience
150. Book of Your Heart (4/5)
Shame U2 were too afraid to put their most electronic driven track in recent memory on the main album because it's better than a pretty substantial amount of Songs of Experience. Edge's playing even sounds like himself here! Would have been a refreshing addition to the tracklist and I have no idea how shit like "Landlady" made it to the final running over it. |
| 9 | | U2
Zooropa
149. Some Days Are Better Than Others (4/5)
Despite being the lyrical low point of Zooropa, Edge's harmonics are so satisfying and tasteful within this general exercise in not being tasteful in the slightest that it works more than it has any right to. His fuzzed out solo at the end is a wicked send off to the track as well. |
| 8 | | U2
Original Soundtracks 1 (As Passengers)
148. Theme from The Swan (4/5)
Arguably the most sparse album track in their entire discog, it's really interesting listening to this band utilizing space with this much liberty in between arguably their two densest albums. This track is very bare bones but all the more serene because of it. |
| 7 | | U2
Boy
147. The Ocean (4/5)
This is such a rad little instrumental that teases the Eno drenched atmospheric side of the band nicely before Eno ever had his hands on them. While they'd reach much higher textural heights from here, it highlights that they always had the range and scope to soar to those heights when they were ready. |
| 6 | | U2
The Joshua Tree
146. Beautiful Ghost (4/5)
The better of the two "what if Bono poetry'd over U2" exercises the band threw together during these sessions, if anything because the backdrop is far, far more unsettling than usual U2 fare is. The fact Bono elected to pair William Blake's "Introduction to the Songs of Experience" with this makes the sterilized nature of the album he titled after said poem all the more comedic, ironic, and tragic. |
| 5 | | U2
Rattle and Hum
145. Hallelujah Here She Comes (4/5)
There's a lot that makes Rattle and Hum frustrating, but arguably the biggest for me is that pretty much all the studio material they recorded is very strong and they could have built a fully studio album that continued their momentum and stood alongside their stronger albums. Ultimately I'm glad with how things turned out because without the backlash of this album they wouldn't have been pushed in the direction of their wildly creative and exciting 90s run, but it's hard not to be a little bewildered by the decision to leave a song that wears the Americana tinged acoustic side of the band as well as this one in the vault while pushing covers of "Helter Skelter" and "All Along the Watchtower" instead. |
| 4 | | U2
October
144. I Threw a Brick Through a Window (4/5)
Larry is the MVP of this song as the homie lays down the mf thunder with his drumming. The Edge's riff is the other major standout ingredient of the track for me. Bono makes good usage of his range here as well, flipping between falsetto and belting with an effortless level of control that does not goddamn sound like it's his only his second record behind the mic. |
| 3 | | U2
Songs of Innocence
143. Lucifer's Hands (4/5)
Part of me almost feels like this should have opened Innocence instead of Joey Ramone, but I'm always an advocate for Larry being the first member of the band that "greets us" so to speak when hitting play on a U2 album. This probably boasts the catchiest hook on the album which makes it's bonus track status a little maddening |
| 2 | | U2
Pop
142. Holy Joe (4/5)
I didn't even realize until after I had put this together that I paired up "Lucifer's Hands" and "Holy Joe" lmao. I give the Garage mix the slight edge over the Guilty Mix, if anything because I just fuckin love hearing Edge have an excuse to crank his drive all the way up. Totally should have been on the main album. |
| 1 | | U2
No Line on the Horizon
141. FEZ - Being Born (4/5)
I kinda wish they went with their initial plan to make this the album intro because I like it more as a cinematic, tone setting opening track than I do as a standalone song. It's much better suited for that than it is buried at track 8, unfolding after the worst combo pairing on any U2 album ever. At least it's the listener's reward for having survived the 7 worst consecutive minutes of their discography I guess. It also makes me all the more curious what some of the other weirder ideas that got shelved from NLOTH were before they got scared that they were going "too experimental" smfh guys what about what I want??? |
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