Lucky 13 days of waiting…

Day two of my countdown brings me to U2′s sophomore effort, October. To me October has one of U2′s best openings with Gloria, one of the most uplifting songs in their arsenal. This is the first of many songs with the band members searching… and with God at the center of the search. It is in this album where many of the Christian themes that people tie to U2 began, and it was written during a time when their searching was at its peak. I’ve read that it was during this time that they almost called it quits for a variety of reasons. It was also near the completion of this album that some of the lyrics and arrangements for this album were stolen, leaving the band members scrambling and improvising an album that they, from what I understand, were already struggling to finish. The result is interesting, and to me very easy to listen to, but it is definitely not among their best. Standouts in the album include Fire, Rejoice, and Tomorrow, all songs with religious undertones. I love the drums in I Threw a Brick Through a Window, as well as the lyrics. And the simplicity of the title track is something that they seem to try to recapture with at least one song on every album. It worked here, and it has continued to work on every ensuing album. The end of the album is week in my opinion with the last three tracks being less than motivating. Stranger in a Strange Land is boring. Scarlet is pleasant but repetitive, and Is That All? is just disposable. Having said that, I do like one part of Is That all? and that is the opening riff which became the opening to Electric Co. live in concert and susequently became known as The Cry. That riff is worth buying the entire CD for in my opinion. Must buy? Absolutely. But know that there are better… much better albums, from the boys from Dublin, starting with their next effort, War. I’ll be discussing it tomorrow. Hope you’re back to read about that one.