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A simply superlative effort...still U2's best album to date (although many subsequent come close). Given the innumerable positive reviews that appear hear of this work, I thought I'd narrow my analysis down to a synopsis of perhaps my favorite song by the band (and easily the best song on this album), "Mothers of the Disappeared."
This song became burned into my consciousness ever since The Joshua Tree's initial release in March of 1987 and I've continued to trump it as their everlasting masterpiece (although I totally love the ethereal Bullet The Blue Sky, Red Hills Mining Town and Running To Stand Still).
Is there anyone alive who can hear this and not stop completely in their tracks and feel the exacting emotions that a mother must endure following the brutal abduction of her child? Bono has captured what few artists have been able to...translation of true human grief and agony into a musical composition that is altogether stark and captivating. This song slowly builds from a simple synthesizer keystroke into an all encompassing orchestral melancholy soon punctuated with Bono's searing lyrics:
Midnight, our sons and daughters
Cut down, taken from us
Hear their heartbeat
We hear their heartbeat
In the wind we hear their laughter
In the rain we see their tears
Hear their heartbeat
We hear their heartbeat
Night hangs like a prisoner
Stretched over black and blue.
Hear their heartbeats
We hear their heartbeats.
In the trees our sons stand naked
Through the walls our daughter cry
See their tears in the rainfall.
To hear this over the band's moaning background is simply pure agony...I've never heard a song that conveys such a terrible outcome so resolutely. And it is one that is completely timeless...whether you Google it or listen to it on YouTube or any of the many other online mediums that feature music these days, I challenge anyone that has thoughtfully listened to this to not come away emotionally broken...this song goes far beyond popular music. It sends a powerful message like none before it.
As stated, the remainder of this album is pure genius...U2 became universal following the release of "The Joshua Tree," with emotionally draining works like "Mothers of the Disappeared" being their forefront. Stop and take the time to truly internalize this song...you'll come away from it with an intentional melancholy rarely experienced in other works.
- Audio CD (November 20, 2007)
- Remastered ed. edition
- Number of Discs: 1
- Label: Island
- ASIN: B000WS4PCO
- Average Customer Review: 973 customer reviews
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Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
#6,492 in CDs & Vinyl (See Top 100 in CDs & Vinyl)
- #35 in Post-Punk
- #113 in Hardcore & Punk (CDs & Vinyl)
- #155 in Christian Pop & Contemporary
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