Thursday, December 16, 2004

U2's Top 32 Songs

As if doing rankings for a single album weren't hard enough, here are my top 32 U2 songs of all time. I set out to do a top-25 list, I just couldn't cut it down any more.

1. One -Achtung Baby
2. Pride (In the Name of Love) - The Unforgettable Fire
3. With or Without You - The Joshua Tree
4. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - The Joshua Tree
5. Sometimes You Can't Make it On Your Own - How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
6. Walk On - All That You Can't Leave Behind
7. I Will Follow - Boy
8. New Years Day - War
9. Bullet the Blue Sky - The Joshua Tree
10. All I Want is You - Rattle & Hum
11. Love and Peace or Else - How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
12. Where the Streets Have No Name - The Joshua Tree
13. Stuck in a Moment - All That You Can't Leave Behind
14. Acrobat - Achtung Baby
15. All Because of You - How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
16. Sunday Bloody Sunday - War
17. Bad - The Unforgettable Fire
18. Electrical Storm - Best of 1999-2000
19. Kite - All That You Can't Leave Behind
20. Sweetest Thing - Best of 1980-1990
21. "40" - War
22. Beautiful Day - All That You Can't Leave Behind
23. Miss Sarajevo - Passengers Soundrack
24. Vertigo - How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
25. Love is Blindness - Achtung Baby
26. Staring at the Sun - Pop
27. If God Will Send His Angels - Pop
28. YahWeh - How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
29. Two Hearts Beat as One - War
30. Stay (Faraway, So Close) - Zooropa
31. Mysterious Ways - Achtung Baby
32. Gloria - October

Amazingly, I have another 25 or so that could all crack into this list on a given day.

Atomic Bomb Tracks Ranked

Better late than never, here are my rankings of the tracks from U2's How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. I should note that songs 7-10 are all pretty equal and just because a song is as low as tenth, doesn't me I don't like it. This is a great album with a ton of awesome songs. The only song that I don't care for is One Step Closer. Even A Man and A Woman is alright, if I'm in the right mood.

1. Sometimes You Can't Make it On Your Own
2. Love and Peace or Else (It's so funny how this song is dividing the u2 fans so greatly. I LOVE everything about this song.)
3. All Because of You
4. Yahweh
5. Vertigo
6. Fast Cars
7. Crumbs from Your Table
8. Original of the Species
9. Miracle Drug
10. City of Blinding Lights (interestingly, I'm not a big fan of "New York" off of their last album)
11. Man and a Woman
12. One Step Closer

Saturday, December 11, 2004

TV musings

Before Melissa and I had kids, our pop-culture fix was fueled pretty evenly, 33% music/33% T.V./33% movies. In college it was more like 49% Movies/49% music and 2% T.V. Now adays, we get to maybe one movie a month if we're lucky, so it's about 80% T.V./15% music/5% movies.

Most of the best shows on t.v. right now are amazingly, reality shows. I grew tired of the fringe reality shows that started coming out but a few are sticking around that I love. Here's my reality top-5:

1. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
2. The Amazing Race
3. Survivor
4. The Apprentice
5. Wife Swap

Right now, I'm also consistently watching the following shows (for better or worse): Monday Night Football, Scrubs, Oprah, Dr. Phil (hey, there TiVo'd, what can I say), The O.C. of course, Saturday Night Live, Without a Trace, the original CSI, the simpsons, and Sunday Stew: Pimp My Ride, Viva La Bam and You've Got a Friend.

Thursday, December 09, 2004

Time to Buy some D-Back Gear


http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=1942433

Since I knew he wouldn't be re-signed, I have always said that it would be ok for Glaus to go to any team but the Dodgers or Yankees. Arizona is great, because I'll have an outside chance to see him play in Anaheim and could go see him play at Petco, the BOB, or (shutter) Chavez Ravine. However, I value my car, so I won't go to Chavez.

Wednesday, December 08, 2004

Have I mentioned that I like the O.C.?

I finally watched last weeks episode last night. Overall, it sort of seemed like a set-up episode, putting some pieces in place for the rest of the season. No real drama. I was told that this was a great "Seth at his finest" episode, but to be honest, it didn't feel that way to me. The Seth/Summer thing has played its course and it is getting tiresome, so i hope it can die for a while.

This episode did set up all four primary 'kids' with their new prospective romances. Summer and Marisa I could care less about, and Seth and rocker-girl just aren't that interesting. She's smitten with him and his silly wit (gee, where have we seen that before?). I DO, however, love the Ryan and phyics-girl story line. I will be happy to see him happy and I hope it doesn't become an always-looking-over-your-shoulder-for-Marisa relationship.

I'm still not totally getting into the current story line with Caleb's impending trial and what not, and it's the only thing going for all of the 'adults' right now. Until the drama unfolds with Jimmy's departure at some point this season, I'm just a little bored. We need Luke to come back into town!

It was awesome to hear the boys on the end of the episode, too. Although the song fit as far as tone goes, it seemed a little out of place lyrically. Maybe i was just expecting it to be used for some great father-son moment with Seth and Sandy.

What the heck was Marisa wearing, btw?!?! I don't want to get all gay-fashiony, but that getup was just fugly. The frigging hat even had a bow on the back!!!

Friday, December 03, 2004

Rank and File



Now that I've had an appropriate "cooling off" time, it's time to rank the U2 catalog again, with the inclusion of HTDAAB. I'm sure if I were to do this list again after the tour, everything will change, but here we go.

(TIE) 1. The Joshua Tree/All That you Can't Leave Behind
Joshua Tree is the perfect album, ATYCLB is nearly a perfect album and I have a deeper connection with it, having been impacted so greatly by seeing three tour stops.

3. Achtung Baby
4. How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
5. War
6. Zooropa
7. Rattle & Hum
8. Pop
9. The Unforgettable Fire
10. Boy
11. October

Wednesday, December 01, 2004

The End of Propoganda

I got a letter today at my parents house from Propoganda, the U2 World Service Magazine, which has been the priority ticketing supplier for previous tours. The letter came with a U2.com membership card attached and said the following:

Dear Propoganda subscribers,

It's no secret that with the success of U2.com over the past four years, Propoganda, the band's official magazine, has appeared less and less frequently.

The net has become the best way to communicate quickly and directly with U2's audience.

As a ground-breaking band magazine, for two decades Propoganda offered a unique inside-track on what U2 were up to - exclusive interviews, unseen photos, rare CD releases and, of course, the chance to guarantee purchase of concert tickets!

We have been working on creating that same experience online and this month u2.com is set to relaunch with a "Members Only" area which will give subscribers access to an enormous range of exclusive U2 content.

When launched to the public, subscriptions to u2.com will be $40 p.a. but because you were a subscriber to Propaganda and may have part of your subscription unfulfillled, you may join U2.com for $20 for the next twelve months.

A subscription to the area via your personalized "U2.com ID card" will bring you immediate online access to what the band is up to.

Of course, U2.com will also continue to bring you up to date news of the band, as it does at present on a free subscription basis.

Best wishes and thanks for your support of Propoganda down the years.

Propoganda and U2.com
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I don't quite know what I think about this. Unfortunately, more people will know about this and subscribe to this, so although we'll still be able to get guaranteed seats this way for the concerts, it will be a broader market going this route, limiting the chances for getting the best seats. I hope that they something like "The heart" on the upcoming tour.