The Unforgettable Fire - U2

U2 are a band I have liked for many years since New Years Day first appeared in the singles chart in the early 80's, although the band actually formed back in 1976! The Band :- Bono - vocals Larry Mullen Jnr - Drums Adam Clayton - Bass The Edge - Guitar & vocals Over 30 years later, and while many people dislike Bono these days, there is no denying that U2 are still one of the top bands in the world today, currently on tour playing to sell-out stadiums worldwide. The Unforgettable Fire is my favourite album by U2, and was released in 1984. Over the following years I moved away a little from U2, returning ...  Read the complete review

1984, the Thatcher Government, the birth of Prince William, Torvill and Dean winning Gold at the Olympics, and most importantly -another U2 album. Unfortunately the whole is far from unforgettable. This is U2 at their most relaxed. In some instances this is a good thing, in others it isn’t. ‘Promenade’ lacks pace, and ‘Elvis Presley and America’ never really goes anywhere despite showcasing Bono’s superb vocal talent. The most effective tracks are those which raise the stakes, the ones that have a sark and energy like ‘Pride’ and ‘Bad’. This is a mid-tempo effort, that at times is equally ...  Read the complete review

(Review also published at my U2 forum.) Think back to 1984. No, not Orwell's "1984," when a government went to war with leaders it once supported, and Big Brother had broad power to spy on its own citizens. The real year, 1984. Apple had just introduced its first user friendly personal computer. The controversial writer Truman Capote, of "In Cold Blood" fame passed away, and Bob Geldof led Band Aid in the hit single "Do They Know It's Christmas," with proceeds helping famine-ravaged African nations, according to Infoplease. That was also the year U2 released "The Unforgettable Fire." After the heady ...  Read the complete review

The Unforgettable Fire is still one of my favourite U2 albums. THere are so many great songs on the album, many that have stood the test of time and would still be regarded as brilliant if released today. Although judging an album based purely on how many "classics" it produced is a kind of short sighted way of doing it, when it comes to U2 I think it can be appropriate to a certain extent. There is the obvious Pride (in the name of love), but Bad (When he wails "Walk on by / and don't look back" in the choruses, followed by The Edge's perfectly-placed notes and the solid rhythm section, your spine will tingle.) and A Sort of Homecoming ...  Read the complete review

With the buzz created by the release of their 'Best Of, The Early Years' it was quite evident that a lot of people had mistakenly forgotten about U2 pre 'Achtung Baby'. This is to do U2 a great disservice because U2's most fertile years spanned 1980 to 1987. 'The Unforgettable Fire' was released in 1984 and had 2 successful singles lifted from it, 'Pride' and 'The Unforgettable Fire'. I can remember buying 'Now that what I call music 5' (eek!!!) and 'The Unforgettable Fire' stood majestically above everything else on it. U2's fifth album was recorded in Slane Castle, which could explain the ...  Read the complete review