Customer Reviews

Electrical Storm Pt.2

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you have not purchased the b-sides version of 'The Best of 1990-2000', then this disk - which includes the "original" version of "Electrical Storm" is a must. The "William Orbit Mix" (which is the basis for the video and is the version on the cd-single part 1 and 'The Best of 1990-2000') is much more ambient and incoherent. By contrast, the original version has the punch in the chorus that the metaphorical electrical storm demands.

As for the live versions of "Bad/40/Where the Streets Have No Name", note that these are definitely not the best versions of these songs and these versions are available on the "Elevation Live in Boston" DVD.

Someone posted that the lyrics to the song represent a couple who cannot connect. I believe that this the song that Bono wrote not soon after the death of his father. Bono sings the lyrics, "If the sky should crack, there should be some way back to love sweet love". I believe he is singing about the fact that if there were a crack in heaven, he could be with his father again. Also in Ireland, they believe that most spirits are present during storms because of the higher levels of electricity in the atmosphere. This is just my personal opinion; but whatever the song really means it is still a beautiful song.
Sincerely:
The Bono Freak

Similar to their long, enriched history, u2 have released a single that is very addictive and simply grows on you. As they are by far my favorite group, I find myself sometimes too critical but after a few listens, I started to love this song. It has some great lyrics (especially the 2nd verse) and an incredibly addictive hook, and I think the Edge's "hiccup" riff at the end of the song is hot. I wrote this review about "Pt. 2" because I am more fond of this version than the William Orbit Mix. I like the Orbit mix, but I think it fits the video perfectly but when you listen to "Electrical Storm" in your home or car, this version is better in my opinion. The guitars are electric and it is more fast-paced. This is a great song, but not u2's best. If they were bringing out a new album and released this as their FIRST single, I'd be a little dissapointed. But this is their first and only single on the "1990-2000 Greatest Hits" Collection and I think it is a perfect song to promote the CD. The reason I give it 4 stars is because like I said, I'm sometimes too critical about my favorite group. Another reason is I love the entire song except the small bridge toward the end when Bono says "the air is heavy, heavy as a truck." I didn't like those couple lines, and I actually heard that the rest of the band wanted them cut out originally. But as a whole, this is a great song and single, and as it is only being sold as an IMPORT, I would recommend picking it up. The other tracks include live performances of "Bad," "40," and "Streets Have No Name," all very well done (taken from "Elevation Tour 2001: Live in Boston" DVD). u2 are getting up there in age, but they sound as good as ever and aren't going anywhere.

I have mixed feelings about "Electrical Storm". I enjoy listening to it, particularly warm lines like "You're in my mind all of the time/I know that's not enough" and "We need the rain to wash away our bad luck...Well if the sky can crack, there must be some way back to love and only love." The frustration of a storm yielding lightning but no rain mirrors the frustration of a couple going through the motions but not connecting with each other. If this storm can finally produce rain, then maybe there is hope for the couple, too. Musically, the song builds gradually to cloudburst, and the Edge's guitar finally rains down a fairly satisfying conclusion. Unfortunately, the lyrics and music seem a tad half-baked at times. I think the idea of the song is stronger than its execution. Nevertheless, it holds up to many repeated listenings. I haven't exhausted it yet.

The B-side is the memorable Bad/40/Where the Streets Have No Name sequence from the Elevation tour video. Audio cannot convey the grandeur of the video, but this B-side is the easiest way to enjoy this sequence away from your TV. These are beautiful and evocative performances.

This single is especially recommended to those who hold the Elevation tour sequence in high esteem. If "Bad" or "Where the Streets Have No Name" are personal favorites for you, I think you will like these live performances. (Only a portion of "40" is sung, but the effect of linking these three songs is striking.) Those not wishing to buy the "Best of 1990-2000" set should definitely buy this single; "Electrical Storm" is a song worth hearing. (Just be sure to secure "The Hands That Built America", if it is ever released on soundtrack.) Overall: recommended.

When you hit a song on Yahoo and play it about 87 times when you are at work, you know it has a "magical something," and it speaks to you. This evocative ballad with soaring, defiant, passionate chorus crystallizes all that is special about U2.

The first part of the "magical something" here are the lyrics: "Your on my mind all of the time, I know its not enough. If the clouds can crack, there must be someway back, to love and only love". There is enough in there for a master's thesis. For anyone who is has been in a relationship a long time, the way back to love and only love, becomes the ultimate question after all the failures and disapointments get in the way. For anyone missing someone, to be on one's mind is always, not enough. This is a song about very grown up, very world weary, yet still passionate love. When Bono sings "I want to see colors no one else has seen; go to places no one else has been" its a triumphant cry for all of us desperate to recapture the magic that we once felt.

The second part of the something is impossibly atmospheric, catchy, melody and a killer crunch of an anthemic chorus, Bon's voice never sounding better. Reminiscent of the feelng of "All I want is You" from 1989's "Rattle and Hum", here the lyrics are the more mature voice of someone who knows the pain of lenghty togertherness, as indeed Bono has had with his wife. The song sounds like a paen to her nad their relationship, as was, by the way, the classic "With or Without You". Pure magic, pure bliss. U2 never cease to amaze. Buy this.

Nothing special about this CD. I bought it for collection, but if you don't collect, save your money, extra songs are not that great.

This has a great song...Electrical Storm...and some great live performances. Get this too!