U2 Album: “The Joshua Tree (Deluxe Edition) [Limited] [Remast”

There is within music an ability to tap into the raw, revelatory power of beauty; music can give itself to the unknown whisper of the eternal in ways that other forms of art only hint at. The collage of sounds communicates something deep to the heart and, when combined with the presence of the voice, can be downright liberating. Few individuals, let alone bands, ever really reach a point where they are that open to the Unknown that it can give itself so freely through their music. U2 has done so time and again, but never with the level of directness and sincerity as they accomplished on the Joshua Tree.

A joshua tree is a real tree that thrives despite the dry environment it lives in. The image - the icon - of life amidst its seeming absence, embodied in the joshua tree, is one that is fully appropriate to U2 - particularly at the end of their first decade. U2, like the joshua tree, stood in stark contrast to its environment: ascetic, prophetic and disarmingly (some would say "naively", but let the tension stand) sincere. (Their foray into the realm of post-modern sampling, irony and sarcasm was an identity crisis fully in line with where they stood in the 80s: cynicism is frustrated optimism.)

"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For", the second song, really expresses the kernel of The Joshua Tree; every other song fleshes it out in some way or another. The album is, in the end, about distance: "I have run, I have crawled, I have scaled these city walls only to be with you: But I still haven't found what I'm looking for." While one may take this to be an admission of defeat - and distance whispers of despair as much as consummation - doing so is incorrect: "I'm still running," Bono sings. The song is an expression of hope more than anything.

Faith is a raw and disarmingly rough beauty; it looks within and it looks without. "Bullet the Blue Sky" and "Mothers of the Disappeared" give full expression to U2's long-time political engagement, while "With or Without You" gives a glimpse into U2's more tender side. "With or Without You" may very well be the best love song of the 80s. "One Tree Hill", a deeply personal song about the death of a friend, moves with passion and rugged grace - and, again, with hope: "I'll see you again when the stars fall from the sky and the moon has turned red over one tree hill."

I look forward to the day when my children ask me, "Dad, did you ever listen to U2?" Not only will I have stories to tell about live concerts, but I will be able to relive with them the goosebumps that certain songs will inevitably bring. If rock is dead, U2 was its apex. And U2 has yet to be eclipsed.

This is the only album I ever owned in which I wore out the vinyl copy AND the cassette and so had to get it on CD. I was always a U2 fan going back to "War" and "The Unforgettable Fire", but I know that a lot of people see this as their watershed album which, of course, it was. However, I also think the more recent U2 albums have been unfairly compared to this one, which if you think about it is silly since we should appreciate bands that don't stick with a successful formula just because it works and this album is as much of a departure from U2's early work as "Pop" is from this one. All that aside, this is why you should own this CD:

1) The production of Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno - listen to "Where The Streets Have No Name" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" with headphones and you'll hear what sonic layering can be in the hands of masters. 2) An uncanny match of lyrics and music - in the liner notes it says that "One Tree Hill" was written upon a friend's death. I would like to think that if I were ever in a similar situation I could come up with something that would evoke half the emotion that song does. 3) No bad spots - when was the last time you bought an album that was completely listenable all the way through?

I do think it's a shame that U2 has not been able to recapture the overall karma of this album in their subsequent years (not that they haven't tried) but I think the biggest testament to this album is that I have bought it for friends and relatives ranging in age from 45 to 17 and they all love it. That's one awesome album.

Having just listened to this CD for the bizillionth time last night, I am once against struck by the enduring beauty and meaning of the songs on "The Joshua Tree." This is, without a doubt, one of the best and most important pop recordings to come out of the 80's.

Perhaps more than any of their other albums, "The Joshua Tree" captures the great themes of U2's music. Politically forward, spiritually searching and earthily honest--these eleven songs all still speak as loudly today as they did in 1987.

The first three songs (Where the Streets Have No Name; I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For; With or Without You) are deservedly the most famous. Yet all of the songs are worthy in their own way of recognition.

It has always mystified me why "Running to Stand Still" is not more widely played. It is the lyrical gem of the CD. Likewise, I always thought "In God's Country" deserved and could easily find a larger audience.

U2 got to work with a dream team in Brian Eno, Daniel Lanois, and Steve Lillywhite. It shows in the absolutely great yet transparent sound of this recording.

I can honestly say that I wholeheartedly recommend this album. Get it today.

That this album is brilliance of the highest level goes without saying, and if you want to know about the album itself, go read about the 400+ reviews for the original CD printing. I'm not here to talk about that today - I'm here to review the remastering job, and for that this album gets five stars. The whole album is cleaner and with less noise. Specifically, compared to the original printing:

1. Adam's bass is deeper and absolutely huge,

2. Bono's vocals are more pure and realistic sounding and sit better in the mix, and vocal harmonies are cleaner and better balanced

3. Larry's drums are more natural sounding and also bigger and cleaner-sounding with less "fuzz" around the hits,

4. The Edge's guitar textures sound even better, cleaner, more layered and complexities are more easily heard, and

5. the overall mix is much better balanced, with every instrument heard better.

The best examples of this are in the first 2:15 or so of "With or Without You." I listened to this track most closely for specifics at first, because I feel it is one of the best technically recorded tracks on the album (and of all time...). I formed these conclusions based on that track's listening, then I listened to each track alternating the "original" and "2007" CD's, which confirmed all of the statements above. On "With or Without You," listen to these specific elements for their depth, clarity, balance, and natural timbre:

0:00 noise floor, toms

0:05 hat/tambourine hits

0:10 bass (this continues big and beautiful throughout)

0:17 lead guitar

0:29 vocals

0:42 lead guitar with echo

0:53 Bono inhales

1:09 tom eighth-note hits

1:26 guitar layers

1:35 "I can't live..."

1:45 drums

1:52 lead guitar

2:06 vocal harmonies

And the song's climax at 3:03 is also very distinct, each instrument sounding better and more easily distinguished, the overall mix better balanced.

One of the best remastering jobs I've ever heard (Miles Davis's Kind of Blue is another of my favorites). Bravo to the engineers for presenting this classic, brilliant album in an even more euphonically beautiful package than ever before. Even if you own the original album, buy the new remaster.

Note: Listening done on a Kenwood SE7 mini-component HiFi system with stock 10" bookshelf two-way near-field stereo speakers (came as complete system). Amp is in "pure A" mode, preset EQ called "NB 1," which has slightly enhanced bass and treble ('smile pattern').

The compression/over-processing scourge has struck once more! This new remaster is intended for the mp3 crowd. If you fall into that category - you'll like it just fine. If you're an audiophile looking to upgrade your old copy - forget it. The old version is better. The record companies are selling fewer CD's, and they're alienating the few good customers they have left. I buy hundreds of CD's every year, but that will change if I keep getting screwed. Are you listening record companies? Sell your compressed/over-processed audio to the ipod crowd through downloads. If you want to keep selling CD's, you'd better get your act together.