275. THE JOSHUA TREE by U2

Time for a classic album dissection. Ok, not really - there's no way I could live up to the standards of the Sound Opinions guys but since it's been awhile since I covered what is my favorite U2 record I wanted to go ahead and feature my second favorite - The Joshua Tree. Aside from the fact that there's been oodles and oodles of ink spilled about this landmark 1987 album it holds a special place in my heart since it came out during my impressionable teen years (I was 16 at the time). I can still visualize laying down the vinyl on my Sears double cassette record player and playing side A over and over again.

When discussing a different record I mentioned the 1-2-3-4 punch of The Joshua Tree's first four tracks. So instead of recommending the obvious, I'd rather pick a few of the "lesser known" songs (it's all relative as all the tracks on the record are very well known, in fact). So, start out with 'Trip Through Your Wires' - a pure romp before moving on to more serious matters, including 'One Tree Hill' (named after an area in Auckland, New Zealand and written in the memory of the band's friend / roadie who was killed in a motorcycle accident), 'Mothers Of The Disappeared' (about the missing children in Chile and Argentina) and then end with 'Running To Stand Still' (which deals with heroin addiction in the band's hometown of Dublin, Ireland). After you listen to 'Running...' watch / listen to this live take which, in my opinion, is the definitive version of the song.