The Unforgettable Fire
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| The Unforgettable Fire | ||
 |
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| Studio album by U2 | ||
| Released | 1 October 1984 | |
| Recorded | Slane Castle, Slane, Ireland and Windmill Lane Studios, Dublin, Ireland, 1984 | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 42:19 | |
| Label | Island Records | |
| Producer(s) | Brian Eno, Daniel Lanois | |
| Professional reviews | ||
|---|---|---|
| U2 chronology | ||
| Under a Blood Red Sky (1983) |
The Unforgettable Fire (1984) |
Wide Awake in America (1985) |
The Unforgettable Fire is the fourth studio album by Irish rock band U2, released in 1984. It is the group's first collaboration with Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois.
Contents |
[edit] History
The title refers to a series of paintings made by survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The band saw the paintings at The Peace Museum in Chicago. The museum also had an exhibit on Martin Luther King, Jr.
It was recorded at Slane Castle and finished at Windmill Lane Studios in Dublin. Contrary to expectation, the castle depicted on the cover is not Slane but Moydrum Castle. [1]
The album has an atmospheric sound that emphasizes mood and ambiance over hooks and melody and explores the intricacies of The Edge's uniquely minimalist guitar sound. Its recording was rushed to meet the band's Unforgettable Fire Tour schedule, giving it an unfinished feel that complements its somewhat recondite songcraft. Lead vocalist Bono later said that "The Unforgettable Fire was a beautifully out-of-focus record, blurred like an impressionist painting, very unlike a billboard or an advertising slogan." [2]
Thematically, the album began the band's fascination with the United States of America and centered around the "two kings", Martin Luther King, Jr. and Elvis Presley. The former was elegized with the rousing, anthemic "Pride (In the Name of Love)" — the first single from the album, which cracked the UK Top 5 and the U.S. Top 50 and which would ultimately become the group's most frequently played song in concerts [3] — and the sparse, dreamlike "MLK". The latter is acknowledged by the murky, bumbling "Elvis Presley and America", an improvisation (based on a slowed-down backing track from "A Sort of Homecoming") that takes the album's emphasis on feeling over clarity to its furthest extreme.
Although never released as a single, "Bad" provided one of the album's defining moments: a cathartic exploration on the theme of heroin dependency - a problem particularly prevalent in Dublin during the mid-1980s. It became a live favourite amongst fans during the Unforgettable Fire Tour and later tours. Another song, "Indian Summer Sky", was a social commentary on the prison-like atmosphere of city living in a world of natural forces.
The album's release coincided with the painting exhibit; Bono would later contribute a poem entitled "Dreams in a Box" to the museum's archives.
The album was a success, initially on the strength of "Pride" as a single and later due to the band's attention-grabbing Live Aid performance. In 1985, Rolling Stone magazine called U2 the "Band of the 80s", saying that "for a growing number of rock-and-roll fans, U2 has become the band that matters most, maybe even the only band that matters". As a more unlikely endorsement, Miles Davis is reputed to have asked the album to be played while on his deathbed.
[edit] Track listing
- "A Sort of Homecoming" – 5:28
- "Pride (In the Name of Love)" (sample) – 3:48
- "Wire" – 4:19
- "The Unforgettable Fire" – 4:55
- "Promenade" – 2:35
- "4th of July" – 2:12
- "Bad" – 6:09
- "Indian Summer Sky" – 4:17
- "Elvis Presley and America" – 6:23
- "MLK" – 2:31
Music by U2, words by Bono.
Produced and engineered by Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois.
"Pride (In the Name of Love)" and the title track were released as singles to support the album.
In 1995, Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab remastered the album and released it as a special gold CD. This edition has slightly different running times, most notably an extended 2:39 version of the instrumental "4th of July".
In 1985, the band also released the supplementary Wide Awake in America EP, which offers a live performance of "Bad" along with a few collected B-sides (previously unavailable in North America).
[edit] Video
Several music videos were made for songs for the album, directed by Meiert Avis, Barry Devlin, and Donald Cammell. The one for "Pride" was in constant heavy rotation on MTV.
The videos were compiled on The Unforgettable Fire Collection, released in 1985, along with a half-hour-long documentary on the recording of the album.
- "The Unforgettable Fire" (directed by Meiert Avis)
- "Bad"
- "Pride (In The Name Of Love)" (directed By Donald Cammell)
- "A Sort Of Homecoming"
- "The Making Of The Unforgettable Fire Documentary (including version 2 of Pride)" (directed by Barry Devlin)
[edit] Personnel
- Bono - lead vocals
- The Edge - guitar, keyboards, vocals
- Adam Clayton - bass
- Larry Mullen Jr. - drums
[edit] Additional personnel
- Brian Eno - additional vocals, instruments, and treatments
- Daniel Lanois - additional vocals, instruments, and treatments
[edit] See also
[edit] Charts
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | The Billboard 200 | 12/16 |
Single
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | "Pride (in the Name of Love)" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 2 |
| 1984 | "Pride (in the Name of Love)" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 33 |
| 1984 | "Wire" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 31 |
| 1985 | "Bad" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 19 |
[edit] Certifications
| Organization | Level | Date |
|---|---|---|
| RIAA – USA | Gold | December 3, 1984 |
| RIAA – USA | Platinum | February 7, 1985 |
| BPI – UK | Gold | June 1, 1986 |
| BPI – UK | Platinum | April 1, 1987 |
| BPI – UK | 2x Platinum | April 6, 1987 |
| RIAA – USA | 2x Platinum | May 23, 1994 |
| RIAA – USA | 3x Platinum | September 11, 1995 |
[edit] External links
- Discography entry at U2 Wanderer - Comprehensive details on various editions, cover scans, lyrics, and more.
- Videography entry at U2 Wanderer - Similarly comprehensive entry about The Unforgettable Fire Collection.
- Album lyrics - Searchable album lyrics.
- U2 tours overview at U2-Vertigo-Tour.com - Includes setlists for every date on the Unforgettable Fire Tour.
- Quotes and information - Detailed background on each song.
- U2MoL - Contains fan interpretations and interview excerpts for each song.
- "The Unforgettable Fire" painting exhibit - has images from a couple of prints
- Another Description of "The Unforgettable Fire" exhibit
