A BLAST! . . . these guys had creativity to spare . . .

Still coasting on the euphoria from their ACHTUNG BABY juggernaut and the most successful tour of their career up to this point, U2 ventured into left field with ZOOROPA, far away from the more earnest monumental rock of their 80's heyday. The band sounds like thy're having a blast as they experiment with electronics, possibly more than they ever have before or since. Typical of Bono, the lyrics are great. I love every song on this album. It reminds me of one of the best summers of my life which is one of the really cool things music can do.



My impressions of ZOOROPA:



"Zooropa" - This is in fact my absolute favorite U2 song (I won't argue that it's their best, just my personal favorite although my favorite album is still THE UNFORGETTABLE FIRE despite its perceived flaws). An alien signal creeps in followed by haunted keyboards from the EDGE. Then a hyper-effects laden guitar bleeds into view before the song slides into focus with Bono's voice hovering in the background: "What do you want . . ." At one point the song REALLY launches into orbit, swirling and spinning as if it's trying to break into the 7th demention. The lyrics teeter on the edge of something dangerous while embracing the possible: "And I have no compass/ And I have no map/ And I have no reasons, no reasons to get back/ And I have no religion/ And I dont know what's what/ And I don't know the limit, the limit of what we've got!" Absolutely freakin' brilliant song!



"Babyface" - a song of twinkling wonderment in awe of a beautiful woman. Slightly hammy but totally sexy.



"Numb" - fun and very cool song has the Edge robotically spewing negative commands. Loaded with hissing tapes and other background effects and Bono singing falsetto in the background.



"Lemon" - a disco-fried wonder with shimmery synths. Bono in falsetto again. Great song! Although some people find Bono's performance embarrasing, you gotta admire the way the guy sticks his neck out there. Bono always puts his soul into it, even on this song!



"Stay (Faraway So Close!)" - beautiful, slightly country-tinged song that really soars. Heroic, heartfelt vocal from Bono and a perfect example of his talent for layering on angelic background harmonies.



"Daddy's Gonna Pay for Your Crashed Car" - a perfect example of U2's tongue in cheek decadence in the 90s. Larry Mullin Jr. lays down a tripped-out groove on this spacey rocker. Killer!



"Some Days Are Better Than Others" - playful, bouncy song, Clayton's bass turned up too loud (in typical fashion). Chime-y guitars from the Edge reminds me of the ancient U2 B-side "Things to Make and Do."



"The First Time" - solumn, floating serenity. Subtle, yet intense.



"Dirty Day" - another song on the serious side of the fence, this one has a quiet intensity with blasts of scorching guitar and a potent climax.



"The Wanderer" - guided by a rather cheesy, tinkly-bonk synthesiser that manages to evoke a country and western feel. Guest star Johnny Cash delivers a solid vocal with that distinctive voice of his. Some of Bono's best lyrics!

Not my choice

I am a big fan of the band, but this CD is in my opinion a low point. It is not terrible with songs like the title track and "Dirty Day" as my stand outs, but the rest of the album just doesn't stand out. U2 was moving toward more electronic music and away from some of the passion that makes this band great. I think that this is this CD's downfall. I was glad to see the follow up discs take a new direction. I admire the band's willingness to try new things, but this just didn't do it for me.

Still one of my favorites

I purchased this album on cassette when it originally came out in the summer of 1993. I hadn't listened to it in several years until recently when I got the CD version on sale.



After all these years, I still find the album as fascinating now as I did then. It was a best selling album as well as a chart topper featuring the hits "Numb", "Lemon", and "Stay Far Away So Close". Other noteworthy tracks include the title track, "Babyface", "Daddy's Gonna Pay..." and "The Wanderer" with Johnny Cash singing lead with U2 in the background. There's hardly a weak track on this album.



Anyone new to the band should try this if they haven't already. Whether or not this is as good as previous albums like "October", "The Joshua Tree" or "Achtung Baby" is a matter of opinion. But without question this is has to be their most daring. It had only been a year and a half after "Achtung Baby" was released and this follow up proved they were still at the top of their game.