Pop - U2 (CD 1997)

Until 1997, I didn't listen to "new music." My favorite bands were Elvis, The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, and Peter, Paul, and Mary. Then I started living life and cautiously trying new flavors of music, and ended up REALLY liking U2. Well, I started liking them just about a month before "Pop" came out. And because it was all new, and all U2, I ended up liking "Pop" more than I think your average U2 fan did. I also had the joy of seeing their Pop-Mart Tour, which came through Salt Lake City in 1997.

The album is a continuation of U2's evolution, which you can track from Joshua Tree and Rattle & Hum through Achtung Baby, and then into their two most heavily "techno" albums, Zooropa and Pop. I hated Zooropa. But I liked Pop.

Many Classic U2 fans don't like it because they feel like it was a sell-out, that Bono had abandoned his ideals, and has gone from a new-school hippie to an MTVite. These people aren't reading the lyrics. Despite the new sounds, there's still a lot of soul in "Pop," but you have to dig through the music to hear them.

Here are my favorite tracks:

1. Discotheque: Okay, this one is just for dancing, not much depth to it at all. But the beat is undeniably groovy, and makes left-footed people like me wanna dance. And then we look like idiots. By the end of the track, with the "boom-CHA!!! Discotheque!!!" the song is rocking, and the beats and bubble-gum (literally) lyrics go together rather well.

2. Do You Feel Loved: a very passionate, fast song that is basically about feeling LOVED. Like, you're getting LOVIN':

"You got my head filled with songs
You got my shoelaces undone
Take my shirt, go on take it off me
You can tear it up
If you can tie me down..."

etcetera. Mixed with a passionate chorus, it makes for a nice, hot song, that may not save your soul, but at least you'll have a good time.

4. If God Will Send His Angels: You may have heard this one on the "City of Angels" soundtrack. A slower song than the others preceding it, it's a song that both expects angels and fears they won't show up. A song about losing and finding faith, it's both cynical and sincere. A difficult combination, to be sure, but it's pulled off masterfully by Bono and the boys.

5. Staring At the Sun: Possibly my favorite song from the album, I had a big discussion about it with my friend Jeff once, and he eventually said, "dude, it's just a song." And I said, "grunt." It's the best music on the album, a simple tune with great vocals from Bono. Lyrics like "I'm not the only one staring at the sun--not the only one who's happy to go blind..." can be disturbing, but they're pretty when Bono sings them. An even better version is the accoustic version found on the single. Look for it. Could be another song about faith, could be about love, could be about facing your fears no matter what the price. Or it could just be a song.

9. The Playboy Mansion: It took a while for this song to grow on me, and the music still isn't as strong as the lyrics. Here are some of them:

"If Coke is a mystery,
Michael Jackson: History
If beauty is truth
And surgery the fountain of youth
What am I to do
Have I got the gift to get me through
The gates of that mansion?"

The rest of the verses are similar, bemoaning the idea that there really IS no faith in God anymore for most people--that we've made banks our cathedrals, worshipping money, beauty, fame instead of a God of love. And if we've done that, will there be any hope for any of us? Very good, very well laid-out song.

10. If You Wear That Velvet Dress: Another song that's good for lovin', but this is more gentle, sensuous, and slow than track number two. Just a slow, very nice song that's unemcumbered (?) by the electronica and "chick-a-bow" of some of the other tracks.

11. Please: A faster, passionate, pleading song that they've since used as a plea to stop fighting (in Sarajevo and elsewhere) and talk--you could use it in relationships, in wars, pretty much anywhere. (I have a meeting with my underlings later today I'm tempted to use it on) Starts out pretty quietly, but grows to a howl that is like the Bono we know and love--there's a single of this one that's really good, too. Check it out.

12. Wake Up Dead Man: Blasphemous as this may seem, it seems to be a sincere cry for help, kinda like the fourth track. One of the verses talks about "Jesus, you were just around the corner--did you think to try and warn her" and I'm wondering if that's about Bono's mother, who died in a car accident when he was in high school. Not sure. At its most basic, the song is saying, "if You're there, help us." A message that would fit into any of U2's "Classic Albums."

In all, "Pop" is a lot more solid than most people give it credit for. If you own it and it's been a while, put in the CD player and give it a new look. If you don't own it, at least check it out at the library and give it a spin--there are songs on there that are worth hearing, even for the non-fan.