U2: Into the Heart: The Stories Behind Every Song [Paperback]

Niall Stokes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2005

With over 24 pages covering the band's newest CD, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, U2: Into the Heart examines the behind-the-scenes influences that shaped U2's internationally popular and critically acclaimed music. Included are original and revealing interviews with band members and the key people close to U2. The band's rich cultural and social context is fully explored, providing a colorful backdrop to the songs. U2: Into the Heart traces U2's meteoric rise from the early days of their career with Boy, their first album, to the spanning success of The Joshua Tree, Rattle and Hum, Achtung Baby, and Pop. U2 is a group that has become a world-class rock 'n' roll band; a band that continues to invent themselves and are not afraid to take chances with their craft—as well as make a unique impact in the world of music with their raw, emotional energy.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Niall Stokes is the founder and Editor of Hot Press, Ireland's bible of rock ’n’ roll and current affairs. He has also edited two best-selling books on U2, The U2 File and U2: Three Chords And The Truth. A musician and songwriter, his band The Brothers were responsible for the highly acclaimed album Torch. A regular contributor to radio and television in Ireland and abroad, in 1993 he was appointed Chairperson of the Independent Radio and Television Commission, the semi-state regulatory body for independent broadcasting in Ireland. He wears the No. 10 shirt and plays in central midfield for Hot Press Munchengladbach 1891 in Dublin’s Amateur Union League.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press; 3rd edition (September 15, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560257652
• ISBN-13: 978-1560257653
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #711,915 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars U2 Into the Heart: The Stories Behind every Song, January 16, 2006

By 

Matt "mrmatt" (Florida) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: U2: Into the Heart: The Stories Behind Every Song (Paperback)

First Negatives, then positives:

Negatives:
1. Not all of the songs have interpretations of the lyrics. Most, but not all. The stories told in each song's profile follow no formula or criteria - some cover lyrics, some music, some production, some inspiration, etc. Those stories are great and I like their inclusion, but I much prefer that every song had a lyrical explanation.

2. The author at times seems to marginalize the amount of Christian reference in U2's music. It just doesn't come up in proportion to how big it has been throughout U2's history.

3. Where is "Holy Joe" ? Other B-Sides are covered!

4. At times it's difficult to determine which points are the author's speculation and which are his conveyances of U2's thoughts and ideas. He admits in the introduction that some editorial speculation and interpretation - but I'd like some clarity about which is which, because I'm more interested in what U2 has to say than reading Stoke's brainstorming about his take.

As for the positives:

1. The book is very comprehensive (except for Holy Joe!) and very well organized - chronologically by album with a section in the back covering B-Sides, and other stuff not on albums. It gives a 2 or 3 page 'profile' on each song with several nice color pictures.

2. Despite my crticism above about not offering a lyric interpretation or explanation of every song, Stokes did a great job of finding some very interestings stories on other aspects of how songs came together.

3. And the last thing is that there don't seem to be any, or at least not many other books like this out there. I know there are others on this topic (covering U2 song by song) but the ones I've seen don't do as good of a job. In fact, the others I've seen actually make the line between editorializing and describing U2 by their own words - even more unclear. So if there are better works of this sort on U2 out there - I haven't seen them.

Enjoy the book!

35 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Laughably awful..., November 15, 2005

By 

Daniel Waterman (Hill AFB, Utah) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: U2: Into the Heart: The Stories Behind Every Song (Paperback)

"Into the Heart" takes equal turns being thick-headed and cheesy. It purports to be "the stories" behind the songs but it regularly is nothing of the kind. Instead it focuses at great length on how the songs were mixed-something probably interesting to somebody but not me. His greatest weakness is that Stokes seems to have no concept of the spiritual dimension of the band-a fact that strikes most critics as crucial to understanding U2's music. Though he has clearly interviewed Bono, the quotes that the author uses often seem ripped from their likely context to support whatever Stokes already believes about the songs. The photo captions are howlingly hideous-the type of joke your three year old would tell and you only laugh because you love. I love my three year old. I hate this book. Save your hard-earned cash. Shoot, save the cash you find in the cushions of your sofa!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It is what the title says, Stories Behind Every Song......, December 27, 2005

By 

Neil "Neil" (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: U2: Into the Heart: The Stories Behind Every Song (Paperback)

If you're after a book that will tell you exactly what each song on every U2 album was written about, this isn't it and it isn't supposed to be. In fact there isn't any book that can tell you exactly what each song is about because there are a number of U2 songs where the lyrics are highly personal to Bono and even he won't disclose the full meaning of them.

If, however, you are looking for a book that gives information on how certain songs came together with some lesser known facts thrown in and, in some cases, the meaning of the lyrics then this book will make interesting reading.

The main bulk of the book covers all the songs on every U2 studio Album from Boy to How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb (including Rattle & Hum) and briefly touches on B-Sides, Passengers, Edge's Captive soundtrack, The Million Dollar Hotel Project and a number of other 'side projects' undertaken by band members over the years. Interesting comments from producers, people who worked with the band and of course all the band members themselves, gives quite a facinating insight at times to how certain songs came about.

Niall Stokes has known U2 ever since they were a young up and coming Dublin band and has therefore been lucky enough to get plenty of access to the band over a 25+ year period and he's not done a bad job. The title is as it suggests, 'Stories Behind Every U2 Song' and not 'What The Lyrics To Every U2 Song Are About.' If you're a big U2 fan like me, some of the pictures and some of the stories are already familiar but there is enough in here that I didn't know that kept me from putting the book down and so it gets a 4 star review.