U2 - The Unforgettable Fire
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CD Details
Artist: U2Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 1990-06-15
Music Label: Island Records
Soundtracks:
- Sort of Homecoming
- Pride (In the Name of Love)
- Wire
- Unforgettable Fire
- Promenade
- 4th of July
- Bad
- Indian Summer Sky
- Elvis Presley and America
- MLK
Music reviews of The Unforgettable Fire
Music Review: Could've been 5 star with better song selection
Rating: 4 Stars
The Unforgettable Fire was perhaps U2's most important record, as it marked the band's first transition towards megastardom. After providing the world with 3 impressive records, and arguably 2 masterpieces in Boy and War, U2 did not rest on its laurels but embarked on an ambitious journey with producers Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois to create their first experimental record that opened the way to the Joshua Tree and everything else.
Eno and Lanois found The Edge to be the perfect outlet for their love of ambient experimentation. Edge developed an amazing wall of sound with the guitar, using lush texturing of guitar overdubs, drones, chorus effects, echo, suspended chords, added 7ths and 9ths, and fine tuning his melodic sense while Adam Clayton provided the critical backing (and chord changes, since Edge doesn't often play full chords). Bono found an outlet for his inner soul singer and Larry Mullen Jr. found that he could also play along with synthesizers, keyboards and electronic drum effects.
However, while Eno and Lanois stimulated U2's creativity, the downside is that the record sometimes frustrates the raw anthemic power of U2. In addition, though Eno/Lanois have helped U2 produce their best records, they always seem to leave great songs on the cutting room floor. The most egregious example was the band's decision to leave 'Sweetest Thing' off The Joshua Tree (which the band admits was a big mistake). On The Unforgettable Fire, the omissions were even more egregious.
The first 6 songs on this record rank with any 6 that U2 has ever done. Pride in the Name of Love is probably the best song U2 has ever written. A Sort of Homecoming, Wire, The Unforgettable Fire, Promenade, 4th of July, Bad, and MLK are also compelling tracks that have stood the test of time. However, the record falls apart somewhat on tracks like Indian Summer Sky and Elvis Presley and America. Furthermore, the true value of the songs was not realized until U2's amazing concert tour, in which they re-worked many of the layered tracks for the live stage, and came up with some incredible arrangements. The live versions of A Sort of Homecoming and Bad, in particular, trounce the versions on the original record. Those tracks were so good that the Wide Awake in America EP became a hot seller and helped people appreciate The Unforgettable Fire and widen the fan base.
There were also several great tracks that were left off the original record - The Three Sunrises, Love Comes Tumbling (both of which are on the Wide Awake in America EP), Boomerang, and Sixty Seconds to Kingdom Come. Each of these tracks is far superior to either Indian Summer Sky or Elvis Presley in America, and if they had been added to the original release, this record would have been regarded as a near masterpiece.
So if you are downloading a version of the record to your ipod, this is what it should look like (in my opinion):
A Sort of Homecoming (Live Version)
Pride (In the Name of Love)
Wire
The Unforgettable Fire
Promenade
4th of July
Bad (Live Version)
Love Comes Tumbling
The Three Sunrises
Boomerang
Sixty Seconds to Kingdom Come
MLK
A Sort of Homecoming (recorded version)
Bad (recorded version)
Description of The Unforgettable Fire
An appreciable leap forward in almost every fashion from the group's first trio of albums, The Unforgettable Fire is its first with the production team of Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois. And while they take a strong hand in wrestling U2's music out of the mainstream and into a more individualistic area, it's the songs themselves that demand a more subtle approach. Moody gems such as "A Sort of Homecoming" and the entrancing "Bad" set the table for more explosive fare such as "Pride," "Wire," and the title track. This is the album that made U2 a career act, showing that their music could grow by leaps and bounds, even at the hand of another, without sacrificing its soul. --Daniel DurchholzThe Unforgettable Fire finds U2 caught between the taut angry rock of War and the kinetic, spiritual energy of The Joshua Tree. That's not a bad place to be, but like any crossroads it has its moments of indecision. "Pride (In the Name of Love)," "Wire", and the heroic "Bad" rank with their finest work. "4th of July" and "Elvis Presley and America" do not; hence this album's unstable foothold in their canon. Its strengths make it a must for fans, but its weaknesses make War, Joshua Tree, or Achtung Baby a better place to start. --Michael Ruby
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