War

U2

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 15, 1990)
• Original Release Date: February 28, 1983
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Island
• ASIN: B000001F3C
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (171 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #12,955 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. Sunday Bloody Sunday

2. Seconds

3. New Year's Day

4. Like a Song...

5. Drowning Man

6. Refugee

7. Two Hearts Beat as One

8. Red Light

9. Surrender

10. "40"

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording

The final album of U2's early period, before the group broadened its sonic palette and lyrical vision, War is a brilliantly conflicted album, sounding martial and majestic while its very purpose is to tear down false idols propped up by politics. "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "40" take the subject of Ireland's troubles head-on, while it's the subtext of "New Year's Day," which is about a sundered love relationship symbolic of a greater division. "Torn in two, we can be one," Bono pleads, as Edge's guitar scratches and snarls behind him. Songs such as "Two Hearts Beat as One" and the delicate "Drowning Man" take a back seat here, but they help make War a compelling and well-rounded album. --Daniel Durchholz

Product Description

RE-MASTERED VERSION (1CD): standard jewel case w/ 24pg. book --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars U2 move into the political arena..., November 2, 2004

By	Jack Fitzgerald "JFD" (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews

The 1983 U2 release, "War," features a boy with haunted eyes on the cover, and the song cycle displays an increasing political awareness by the group, with "Sunday Bloody Sunday," "Seconds," and "New Year's Day."
What caught my attention back in the day was the video for "New Year's Day" played in high circulation on MTV. The band playing their instruments in that snowy field was cool, but I really liked the powerful bassline and piano melody. The Edge's slashing guitar style was unlike anything I'd heard before, and Bono's vocals are passionate and evocative. This remains one of my favorite U2 songs.
"Sunday Bloody Sunday" invokes images of Irish history, and with its rat-a-tat-tat martial drums and guitars, it's more choppy than "New Year's Day" but more anthemic. This really hit home with the Red Rocks video when Bono was waving that huge flag. It's a powerful song.
"Seconds" benefits from being sandwiched between these two songs, but the cold war lyric and intertwining vocals of Bono and the Edge, along with the largely acoustic tracking, make this an interesting piece.
Another standout is "Two Hearts Beat as One," which does not usually make the best of compilations, but is an underrated nugget with a propulsive guitar line and vocal performance by Bono. "Like a Song" moves with youthful energy and urgency, and the band captures excellent dynamics. "40" is a short closer, but another anthemic rouser that was captured well on the live Red Rocks EP.
While less atmospheric than "Unforgettable Fire," the songs on "War" are full of heart and soul and the band's personal convictions. They're playing like they mean it.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'm weird, but 2 hearts is my favorite U2 song, July 7, 2005

By	P. Fry "Pauli" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is my favorite U2 album; I feel like it was made at the crossroads of their career; their songwriting skill had matured beyond the atmospheric feel of "October" (another album I love) but hadn't yet become big megastars. The songs are still more "raw" than "cooked" like they were to become in the 1990's when Bono seemed to become a lost, self-parody who's biggest talent was wearing sunglasses - what was that about?

I'm not the only person who points out that "Two Hearts Beat As One" is an underrated tune and, along with the tracks which make the "best of", part of the winning hand on this set. It was one of the first U2 songs I ever heard and immediately I knew there was something different about this band from the usual new-wave fare. It's something that hockey fans routinely call "heart" and, not to mix metaphors, but this song has it in spades. Bono sounds like he is standing on a mountain peak, shouting the words:

I try to spit it out
I try to explain
The way I feel...oh, yeah, two hearts...

The rhythm section is driving and Edge's guitar line is propulsive with a riff that constantly invades my memory. I don't know, maybe you had to be there...hard to believe that was 22 years ago and that I'm that old!

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars U2 Takes A Stand, December 11, 2000

By	Thomas Magnum (NJ, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

War is the most overtly political album of U2's career. They touched on political subjects on their first two albums, but on War they take up arms. The album opens with the anthem "Sunday Bloody Sunday" which finds the band outraged at the situation in Northern Ireland. "Seconds" is about the nuclear arms race. "New Year's Day" is an apathetic song about despite all the rhetoric, nothing really changes. It contains a lovely piano and strong Edge solo. "Like A Song" is another anthem-like song, a declaration for solidarity. "Refugee" finds Larry Mullin providing a pounding drum beat to a fierce Bono vocals and Adam Clayton bass gives "Two Hearts Beat As One" it's driving backbone. Despite all the anger, "40" closes the album on an optimistic note. The song is based on Psalm 40 and the band states that there is chance for peace and understanding all though things are bleak. War broke U2 in America as it was their first top twenty album. They shifted away from making another album this political, but War's spirit still continues to permeate their work.