The Joshua Tree [Island; 1987]
And so we’ve reached what’s arguably the pinnacle fo U2’s 80s sound. Arguable because War was on its own a pinnacle of their mid-80s sound, but that’s just tedious to consider. I argue that The Joshua Tree is the pinnacle of U2s overall 80s output because many of the ideas expressed in their earlier material is revisited, albeit more personally.
An Allmusic journalist perfectly described The Joshua Tree as the aftermath of the ideas presented in War, and that’s probably due to what Bono sings about and what the songs actually sound like. Imagine War as U2 leading a marching band through the climax of a great battle. The battle ends, they’re surrounded by a destroyed land incapable of birthing life again. Uncertainty is in the horizon; that’s what the Joshua Tree sounds like. It’s a different kind of anthemic – the songs feel as if they are living, breathing entities – which his exactly why a song like Bullet The Blue Sky doesn’t work. It probably would have worked an album or two ago, but not in the Joshua Tree where everything else is much less aggressive. But that’s about the only weak link in the album. It may be tough to believe for people who have come to know U2 after they became so popular, but there are some incredibly powerful tracks in the album aside from the overplayed triumvirate of hits that open it. “Red Hill Mining Town” and “One Tree Hill” stand out as the two most unfairly overlooked highlights.
There’s nothing has hasn’t been said about The Joshua Tree by now. It’s an outstanding LP that’s high on hits but low on surprises, which is unfortunate because I like to think of a time when “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” resonated to a spine chilling degree before it was beaten to death by radio stations everywhere. Coincidentally, the amount of critical acclaim bestowed on The Joshua Tree is so overwhelming that the album transcends its creators, which is tragically more than what War, their bravest, boldest musical statement, can say about its own influence.
9.2/10