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U2 - Community rankings - FIN - #4 Sunday Bloody Sunday, #3 - One, #2 - Bad, #1 - Where the Streets Have No Name -Spotify links, thanks to Krista4 (2 Viewers)

(144) - > #121 - Playboy Mansion

Vulture.com ranking and comment - 188/218 - “The original lyric was much more emotional. I am not sure the best version ended up on the album,” Bono said. You can see glimpses of what he’s talking about in the lyrics, but otherwise, it’s convoluted and ham-fisted, and the vocal delivery lacks emotion.

Comment - Following on from Miami this may be the worst 2 song stretch of any u2 album. Id rather listen to an uninspiring cover than this. We also get to the highest ranking to date, a #20. Really love to hear from that ranker.

Total Points - 151.54

Rankers - 9

Average Points per rank - 16.84 (Approximately a 66th rank). 

Ranks 134th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 20

Lowest Rank - 177

Previous Rank - 144 > 121

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - Two top 50 rankings, including a 20. Three others in the top 100. I guess this song is key to the Pop truthers. Good luck to them

 
The next 5 include 2 we have seen before. One is a cover. The other is one we sort have seen in this countdown already. We only have 6 songs left that didn’t make our initial list. We see 3 of them tomorrow. I have them ranked 71, 72 and 92. I am not the highest ranker on any of them. 

In the middle at 120, we see a song that takes a little bit of a tumble from our initial list. 

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(144) - > #121 - Playboy Mansion

Vulture.com ranking and comment - 188/218 - “The original lyric was much more emotional. I am not sure the best version ended up on the album,” Bono said. You can see glimpses of what he’s talking about in the lyrics, but otherwise, it’s convoluted and ham-fisted, and the vocal delivery lacks emotion.

Comment - Following on from Miami this may be the worst 2 song stretch of any u2 album. Id rather listen to an uninspiring cover than this. We also get to the highest ranking to date, a #20. Really love to hear from that ranker.

Total Points - 151.54

Rankers - 9

Average Points per rank - 16.84 (Approximately a 66th rank). 

Ranks 134th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 20

Lowest Rank - 177

Previous Rank - 144 > 121

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - Two top 50 rankings, including a 20. Three others in the top 100. I guess this song is key to the Pop truthers. Good luck to them
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Would love to hear from the top-50 rankers

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(144) - > #121 - Playboy Mansion

Vulture.com ranking and comment - 188/218 - “The original lyric was much more emotional. I am not sure the best version ended up on the album,” Bono said. You can see glimpses of what he’s talking about in the lyrics, but otherwise, it’s convoluted and ham-fisted, and the vocal delivery lacks emotion.

Comment - Following on from Miami this may be the worst 2 song stretch of any u2 album. Id rather listen to an uninspiring cover than this. We also get to the highest ranking to date, a #20. Really love to hear from that ranker.

Total Points - 151.54

Rankers - 9

Average Points per rank - 16.84 (Approximately a 66th rank). 

Ranks 134th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 20

Lowest Rank - 177

Previous Rank - 144 > 121

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - Two top 50 rankings, including a 20. Three others in the top 100. I guess this song is key to the Pop truthers. Good luck to them
Click to expand...
Meh. Obviously I didn’t rank it.

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
The 2 covers we see, plummet thanks to their most influential backer pulling support. Both fall well over 100 spots.
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I don’t think I would have predicted one would be Satellite of Love. (Which I saw performed on the Zoo TV tour with Lou Reed piped in — which was an example of how by the early 90s Lou wasn’t really bothering to actually sing anymore.)

Everlasting Love was not a surprise. One of many “it’s fine, but why does it need to exist?” covers from them.

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(194) > 189 - The Hands That Built America

Total Points - 39.37 - Rankers 6 - Ave points per ranker 6.56

Highest - 65 - Lowest 234
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Made my first cut because I looooove the verse, but didn't make my final list because I haaaaate the chorus.

John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(83) > 187 - Everlasting Love

Total Points - 41.13 - Rankers 5 - Ave points per ranker 8.23

Highest - 66 - Lowest 229
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This was a tough one for me.  It's a great song, and they do a very good job on it, but ultimately I didn't include it because they aren't doing anything new with it and I'm not sure it needed to exist.

None of the rest today made my initial cut, so it's a zero-hit day for me.

 
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John Maddens Lunchbox said:
We only have 6 songs left that didn’t make our initial list. We see 3 of them tomorrow. 
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Hmmm, I have three left in this category, at #105, #111, and #112.  Wouldn't be surprised to see all three tomorrow.

Listened to a U2 mix while making dinner last night.  Getting excited as we are close to the top 100!

 
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krista4 said:
Hmmm, I have three left in this category, at #105, #111, and #112.  Wouldn't be surprised to see all three tomorrow.

Listened to a U2 mix while making dinner last night.  Getting excited as we are close to the top 100!
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We will see 2 of those next. The other one will be the last one we see at #160

 
(Unranked) > 182 - Oh Berlin

Total Points - 46.09 - Rankers 4 - Ave points per ranker 11.52

Highest - 48 - Lowest 203

Comment - This missed the cut for Achtung Baby, but #### its not bad at all, especially the chorus. I enjoyed this a lot. Lyrically its garbage, but the music is fantastic. 

Anarchy99 comment - Another leftover AB sessions track from 1990-91. But this one was deemed good enough to merit getting tacked on many years later as a bonus track. It is believed that the backing track was completed in 1991 but vocals / backing vocals / and some keyboards added in prior to official release in 2011.

 
(Unranked) > 181 - This Is

Total Points - 46.75 - Rankers 3 - Ave points per ranker 15.80

Highest - 51 - Lowest 105

Comment - Takes awhile to get into this track. Its pleasant enough. Sounds like what others have said about the new U2 stuff. I disagree on several songs, but not this one. The band are in fine form however, Bono especially sounds great. 

Anarchy99 Comment - A one off live in studio performance in New York - 2013-06-21 of an Aslan tune, an Irish band. Apparently this was part of A Night For Christy, a good will performance that was held in Dublin to recognize Christy Dignam, lead singer of Aslan since 1982. I don't think it's been officially released.

 
(Unranked) > 180 - Ahimsa with A.R. Rahman

Total Points - 47.30 - Rankers 3 - Ave points per ranker 15.77

Highest - 47 - Lowest 159

Comment - Nice song. Gentle. Sweet. Gets better with more listens. Theres a lot of craft and love in this song

Anarchy99 Comment - Released as a single in 2019. Written and recorded with Rahman, an Indian recording artist. Ahimsa is the Sanskrit word for non-violence. The song was intended to celebrate the ethnical and spiritual diversity in India. Rahman stated that ahimsa requires courage and strength, and that the song is a celebration of non-violence and peace. Officially released.

 
(91) - > #120 - Yahweh

Vulture.com ranking and comment -213/218 - The title to this song is meant to be the unspoken name of God, so of course Bono wanted to write a song and have it in the chorus. The tune is vague and unsatisfying, and the lyrics are stuck in that no-man’s-land between Bongolese and the actual finished lyrics. It is a terrible way to end an album.

Comment - Another song on this album that could have been so much better with more direction. Frustrating ultimately. I remember really liking it and seeing single potential when I first heard it. The more I listened, the worse it got. Now, I just skip it. Still, the Vulture ranking and comment is over the top. No way is this song bottom 6, let alone bottom 50 in their catalog.

Total Points - 154.45

Rankers - 11

Average Points per rank - 14.04 (Approximately a 74th rank). 

Ranks 155th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 9

Lowest Rank - 213

Previous Rank - 91 > 120

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - We have a 9 ranking on this. Would love to hear from that ranker. Next highest is 61 and there are 3 other top 100 rankings. I understand why someone would like this one. It was one of my faves when this album came out, but i tired of it quickly. 

 
Next up we have a right mixed bag. 2 are from albums, including the biggest piece of excrement to ever grace a U2 setlist. I wonder which one that will be. We also have a b side, one we havent seen before and a real early track that was released but failed to make an album

Approaching 100 we have a B Side cover

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(144) - > #121 - Playboy Mansion

Vulture.com ranking and comment - 188/218 - “The original lyric was much more emotional. I am not sure the best version ended up on the album,” Bono said. You can see glimpses of what he’s talking about in the lyrics, but otherwise, it’s convoluted and ham-fisted, and the vocal delivery lacks emotion.

Comment - Following on from Miami this may be the worst 2 song stretch of any u2 album. Id rather listen to an uninspiring cover than this. We also get to the highest ranking to date, a #20. Really love to hear from that ranker.

Total Points - 151.54

Rankers - 9

Average Points per rank - 16.84 (Approximately a 66th rank). 

Ranks 134th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 20

Lowest Rank - 177

Previous Rank - 144 > 121

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - Two top 50 rankings, including a 20. Three others in the top 100. I guess this song is key to the Pop truthers. Good luck to them
Click to expand...
I'm at 98 on Playboy Mansion. I've been a pretty unabashed Pop supporter, I enjoy the album, it has a late night hazy vibe for me, and Playboy Mansion fits that vibe.

So, I expected to be perhaps the highest ranker on a song like Playboy Mansion. It's interesting to me when ranking U2 tunes to get to 20 and say "you know what, Playboy Mansion probably goes here". As a fellow fan of the song, I'd be interested to hear from the high ranker as well.

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(Unranked) > 182 - Oh Berlin

Total Points - 46.09 - Rankers 4 - Ave points per ranker 11.52

Highest - 48 - Lowest 203

Comment - This missed the cut for Achtung Baby, but #### its not bad at all, especially the chorus. I enjoyed this a lot. Lyrically its garbage, but the music is fantastic. 
Click to expand...


John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(Unranked) > 181 - This Is

Total Points - 46.75 - Rankers 3 - Ave points per ranker 15.80

Highest - 51 - Lowest 105
Click to expand...


There they are!  My #112 is "Oh Berlin," and I agree with everything JML posted in his comment.

"This Is" is my #105, though I had it 10 or so spots higher until a last-minute drop.  I'm happy to see that two people have it even higher than I did.  I was not familiar with the original until I heard the U2 version, and it's terrific as well - a little slower and lusher (with strings), with a vocal that's great but frankly not as good as Bono's.  Bono absolutely kills this one, and I like the way U2 punched up the song quite a bit from the original.  This is a nice example of taking a very good song and making it even better.

 
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John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(91) - > #120 - Yahweh

Vulture.com ranking and comment -213/218 - The title to this song is meant to be the unspoken name of God, so of course Bono wanted to write a song and have it in the chorus. The tune is vague and unsatisfying, and the lyrics are stuck in that no-man’s-land between Bongolese and the actual finished lyrics. It is a terrible way to end an album.

Comment - Another song on this album that could have been so much better with more direction. Frustrating ultimately. I remember really liking it and seeing single potential when I first heard it. The more I listened, the worse it got. Now, I just skip it. Still, the Vulture ranking and comment is over the top. No way is this song bottom 6, let alone bottom 50 in their catalog.

Total Points - 154.45

Rankers - 11

Average Points per rank - 14.04 (Approximately a 74th rank). 

Ranks 155th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 9

Lowest Rank - 213

Previous Rank - 91 > 120

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - We have a 9 ranking on this. Would love to hear from that ranker. Next highest is 61 and there are 3 other top 100 rankings. I understand why someone would like this one. It was one of my faves when this album came out, but i tired of it quickly. 
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I’m at 102 on Yahweh. It’s ok. I also liked it better upon release. 

 
(Unranked) > 177 - Mercy

Total Points - 52.55 - Rankers 5 - Ave points per ranker 10.51

Highest - 63 - Lowest 186

Comment - Theres a real good song here....somewhere. Unfortunately this is a mess, particularly lyrically. I am wondering if they pensioned this off into other songs or just couldnt get it right. It has its charm. 

Anarchy99 Comment - Mercy was a new song developed in 2004 for How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. The song leaked on the web a couple of times, but an official studio version has not been released. The band performed it 10 times in 2010. This version was recorded in Brussels - 2010-09-22 and was officially released on the Wide Awake In Europe EP.

 
(122) - > #119 - Dancing Barefoot

Vulture.com ranking and comment - Not Listed

Comment - A good b side takes risks or is unusual. This is fairly safe and therefore doesnt add anything to the conversation. Good song though

Total Points - 156.90

Rankers - 7

Average Points per rank - 22.41 (Approximately a 55th rank). 

Ranks 98th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 19

Lowest Rank - 177

Previous Rank - 122 > 119

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - 3 top 50 rankings including a 19 has me a bit shocked. Only 1 other top 100 vote. It is one of the few covers from last time to hold its place or better.

 
Next Up, we see 5 tracks we have seen before from all different eras spanning about 40 years. All are album tracks. We only have 24 more tracks as we edge toward 150. 

Same with the track towards 100, another non single album track

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(122) - > #119 - Dancing Barefoot

Vulture.com ranking and comment - Not Listed

Comment - A good b side takes risks or is unusual. This is fairly safe and therefore doesnt add anything to the conversation. Good song though

Total Points - 156.90

Rankers - 7

Average Points per rank - 22.41 (Approximately a 55th rank). 

Ranks 98th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 19

Lowest Rank - 177

Previous Rank - 122 > 119

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - 3 top 50 rankings including a 19 has me a bit shocked. Only 1 other top 100 vote. It is one of the few covers from last time to hold its place or better.
Click to expand...
The original is one of those songs that doesn’t need to be remade.  It’s great as is.

That said, they were true to the original.  Would be interested to know more about why they covered it.  (Sorry JML, it might have been in your original writeup but my brain is saturated right now)

 
Alex P Keaton said:
I’m a fan.  Should have ranked this one.  Somewhere in the 90-110 range if I had ranked more songs.   The biggest thing holding it back, IMO, is too much self-indulgent panting and moaning from Bono.
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Agreed. I’m probably in the same boat ranking-wise. I was shocked that it was as low as it was on the first countdown.

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
(122) - > #119 - Dancing Barefoot

Vulture.com ranking and comment - Not Listed

Comment - A good b side takes risks or is unusual. This is fairly safe and therefore doesnt add anything to the conversation. Good song though

Total Points - 156.90

Rankers - 7

Average Points per rank - 22.41 (Approximately a 55th rank). 

Ranks 98th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 19

Lowest Rank - 177

Previous Rank - 122 > 119

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - 3 top 50 rankings including a 19 has me a bit shocked. Only 1 other top 100 vote. It is one of the few covers from last time to hold its place or better.
Click to expand...
This was my highest-ranked cover at 32. It does justice to the original while being just enough distinctively U2 as well, especially on the “oh God I feel for you” coda.

 
I'm putting together Spotify playlists in order to contribute to the thread.  I plan to do 1-100, 101-200, and 201-308.

So far I have a WiP for #101-200 here.  Obviously there are a few to fill in to the middle and at the beginning as they're revealed over the next several days.  They're in order beginning at #101 (or right now, #119).

If someone requested a special version and it's on Spotify, I'm including that, with the "standard" version first and the requested version second.  The only one so far that this has applied to is "California," so there is a second, acoustic version of that after the regular one.  

Of course there are some that are not on Spotify at all, and I expect there will be a lot more of those when I get to 201-308, so this won't be complete.  But I think the #1-100 playlist will be pretty good and complete.

I'm running through these page-by-page so I catch any requests for special versions, but by the way the first post needs some updating for the past several days of songs.

 
Alex P Keaton said:
The original is one of those songs that doesn’t need to be remade.  It’s great as is.

That said, they were true to the original.  Would be interested to know more about why they covered it.  (Sorry JML, it might have been in your original writeup but my brain is saturated right now)
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That may be a @Anarchy99 or @Nemesisquestion. Im too lzy to check the original info. 

Btw we miss you nemesis. Hope you can rejoin us at some stage

Alex P Keaton said:
Still just one of the dumbest songs I’ve heard. Oof.
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Im just glad there are no alternate versions a la Native Son/Vertigo or Always/Beautiful Day

krista4 said:
I'm putting together Spotify playlists in order to contribute to the thread.  I plan to do 1-100, 101-200, and 201-308.

So far I have a WiP for #101-200 here.  Obviously there are a few to fill in to the middle and at the beginning as they're revealed over the next several days.  They're in order beginning at #101 (or right now, #119).

If someone requested a special version and it's on Spotify, I'm including that, with the "standard" version first and the requested version second.  The only one so far that this has applied to is "California," so there is a second, acoustic version of that after the regular one.  

Of course there are some that are not on Spotify at all, and I expect there will be a lot more of those when I get to 201-308, so this won't be complete.  But I think the #1-100 playlist will be pretty good and complete.

I'm running through these page-by-page so I catch any requests for special versions, but by the way the first post needs some updating for the past several days of songs.
Click to expand...
Thats awesome. Thank you.

As for first post, yeah i need to catch up. Much easier to do 6 at a time that 20 odd thats for sure. 

 
(137) - > #118 - The First Time

Vulture.com ranking and comment - 44/218 - Just when you think the record is going to be enjoyable, but not classic, “The First Time” shows up. Bono said he had been listening to a lot of Al Green, and wanted to write a song about faith, or rather, the loss of faith, or the struggle not to lose it. The prodigal son returns home, but it’s not a happy ending. Bono invokes John 14:2 — ”In my father’s house, there are many mansions” — but then says, “But I left by the back door / And I threw away the key.” It’s a quiet but intense song.

Comment - Like a lot of this album, just rushed and sounds like achtung baby leftovers. A funny criticism considering the extensive time put into trying to get Pop and No Line on the Horizon to sound right. The #221 ranking is interesting. We still have 4 tracks that attract a bottom 10 ranking from one of us, with many still in the 200s to come

Total Points - 165.60

Rankers - 9

Average Points per rank - 18.40 (Approximately a 63rd rank). 

Ranks 127th on average points per ranker

Highest Rank - 17

Lowest Rank - 185

Previous Rank - 137 > 118

Special version requested - None

Ranking Comments - 3 top 50 rankings including a 17. Only 1 other top 100 vote. It actually jump about 20 pots, primarily on the #19 ranking.

 
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