U2 -- All That You Can't Leave Behind
9/10
U2's first release of the 21st Century, 2000's All That You Can't Leave Behind, was hailed as a return to the band's classic sound, eschewing the wilder musical and thematic experimentation of their 90's work. That sentiment is not entirely true. The album's lead single, opening track, "Beautiful Day," begins with synthesized strings, treated piano, and an electronic beat, which are not exactly classic U2 elements. However, when Bono's comes in, sounding far more comforting than menacing, and Edge's background vocals float through angelically just before his chiming guitar soars by on the wings of 1983, it's clear the band's 90's forward-thinking is now being tinged with nostalgia.
This creates what's actually a unique sound for U2, as for most
of All That You Can't Leave Behind, the band do a great job of balancing
their progressive musical ideas with conservative nods to the past. However,
"Beautiful Day," is by far the most anthemic piece on the album, and the band
never try to reach those kind of heights again. Instead,
"Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of," which is full of watery electronics, including the intro, finally realizes the soul sound the band were going for on 1988's Rattle and Hum. Bono's encouraging lyrics and fatherly admonitions ensure the song continues All That You Can't Leave Behind's non-threatening vibe. With that said, the weird, funky, electric worship of "Elevation" comes in next, certainly the most oddball item here, and a natural progression of the band's 90's work, though with upward looking lyrics that belie more of the band's early 80's straightforwardness.
It's at this point in the album that the band attempt to stake their claim as the elder statesman of rock, with two more uplifting, ballad type songs, "Walk On" and "Kite." "Walk On" is the more propulsive of the two, with drummer, Larry Mullen, Jr., doing drum roll after drum roll, as Edge plays a trademarked, chiming Edge guitar riff. I wish Adam Clayton's bass was as high in the mix here as it was in U2's 80's work. It's just a little lower, a more modern production touch I'm not entirely fond of. The bass is thankfully turned up a bit for "Kite," with Clayton putting on a show, perhaps one necessary to keep the slower of these two tracks interesting.
This would maybe be a moment for the band to come back with a more energetic track, but "In a Little While," probably the most optimistic song ever written about a hangover, keeps the more mellow vibes going, with gentle performances from each instrument, perhaps the better to not exacerbate Bono's headache. And what comes next on "Wild Honey" but an acoustic guitar? It's an unexpected touch, as the band continue to follow a more mellow muse, though at least this track turns up the tempo for what turns out to be a pretty fun song.
At this point, U2 decide that maybe they should include some political material (missing up until now, outside of the throwaway "see the China fleet clearing the sea out" line from "Beautiful Day"'s bridge). "Peace on Earth," exploring mankind's propensity toward violence and darkness, is a pretty big downer, building from a minimal opening to a full band performance halfway through. It's a weird and difficult song, though not necessarily a bad one. This leads to one of my favorites, and what I think is All that You Can't Leave Behind's most underrated track, "When I Look at the World." This song, with Mullen, Jr.'s snappy drumming, Clayton's playing, and the weird electronic stuff going on in the background, sounds most like the band's 90's work. Edge really pushes that skyscraping huge guitar sound here, culminating in the type of drill-tone guitar solo I'm sure Tom Morello enjoyed (I know I enjoy it!). The lyrics are the album's most challenging, as well, final verse lines "I'm in the waiting room/can't see for the smoke/I think of you and your holy book/while the rest of us choke" at first seeming like a challenge to God. However, as I've gotten older, I realize Bono isn't pointing his finger at the Almighty, but toward his fellow Christians who turn a blind eye to the suffering of the world...and yes, Bono is also pointing at himself. Outside of "Beautiful Day," and maybe "Walk On," I think "When I Look at the World" is this album's greatest achievement.
We then get the band's tribute to/warning about the Big Apple, "New York," which starts out with a lot of electronic stuff like it's a song from 1997's Pop, before transforming into a full band piece halfway through. It's actually a pretty weird song, but worked as a great anthem for that city post-Y2K. The entire album ended up being perfectly placed by history, as the band were able to wring a lot of pathos out of their post Y2K performances with these more uplifting songs. None is more uplifting than "All That You Can't Leave Behind"'s final piece, "Grace."
"Grace" is a slow song that seems to float on the suds of a comforting bath. It's fully about the Christian concept of grace, which Bono sings "...travels outside of karma." I take back what I said about anything else being this album's crowning achievement, as the crowning achievement of All That You Can't Leave Behind is the slow, pulsing power of "Grace." To give some life to how uplifting and encouraging this song is, I'll say this:
One Sunday night in 2003, while DJ'ing our radio show, my co-hosts and I did a "Quiet, Medium, Loud" theme, where we cycled songs of those types, and in that order. I chose the show's final sequence of songs, with the penultimate song being the incredibly heavy "The Dreams that Don't Come True" by the metal band, Zao. That song includes the repeated verse, "I tried again, I fell again, to find out for myself it hurts/for a lifetime." I followed that song, and closed the show with the gentle "Grace." At that moment, a seemingly tearful listener called in to say "Thank you. Just...thank you for playing this song right now." Here are song's lyrics:
Grace, she takes the blame
She covers the shame
Removes the stain
It could be her name
Grace, it's the name for a girl
It's also a thought that changed the world
And when she walks on the street
You can hear the strings
Grace finds goodness in everything
Grace, she's got the walk
Not on a ramp or on chalk
She's got the time to talk
She travels outside of karma
She travels outside of karma
When she goes to work
You can hear her strings
Grace finds beauty in everything
Grace, she carries a world on her hips
No champagne flute for her lips
No twirls or skips between her fingertips
She carries a pearl in perfect condition
What once was hurt
What once was friction
What left a mark
No longer stings
Because Grace makes beauty
Out of ugly things
Grace finds beauty
In everything
Grace finds goodness
In everything
When people (including this person) refer to U2 as "the greatest Christian Band in history," the statement is not without great merit.
While All That You Can't Leave Behind may not quite be the masterpiece many contemporary critics, and even I hailed it as in 2000, it is a great album, full of some really good songs, and not exactly a regression--more like a forward-looking piece of nostalgia.
P.S.: Since I was on a pretty big U2 high after this album, I even bought their Elevation 2001: Live from Boston DVD in early 2002. It's a great performance, and the DVD has plenty extras, though I wish the concert footage itself wasn't so quick cut in the main film (you can't see what any of the musicians are playing!). I do find it particularly noteworthy that during the band's 19 song set, they play 7 of 11 of All That You Can't Leave Behind's songs, and only TWO (really 1.5) songs from ATYCLB's immediate predecessor Pop. I get wanting to move forward, but almost ignoring Pop's existence feels like a pretty big statement. On top of that, which album gets the second most representation? The Joshua Tree.
"Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of," which is full of watery electronics, including the intro, finally realizes the soul sound the band were going for on 1988's Rattle and Hum. Bono's encouraging lyrics and fatherly admonitions ensure the song continues All That You Can't Leave Behind's non-threatening vibe. With that said, the weird, funky, electric worship of "Elevation" comes in next, certainly the most oddball item here, and a natural progression of the band's 90's work, though with upward looking lyrics that belie more of the band's early 80's straightforwardness.
It's at this point in the album that the band attempt to stake their claim as the elder statesman of rock, with two more uplifting, ballad type songs, "Walk On" and "Kite." "Walk On" is the more propulsive of the two, with drummer, Larry Mullen, Jr., doing drum roll after drum roll, as Edge plays a trademarked, chiming Edge guitar riff. I wish Adam Clayton's bass was as high in the mix here as it was in U2's 80's work. It's just a little lower, a more modern production touch I'm not entirely fond of. The bass is thankfully turned up a bit for "Kite," with Clayton putting on a show, perhaps one necessary to keep the slower of these two tracks interesting.
This would maybe be a moment for the band to come back with a more energetic track, but "In a Little While," probably the most optimistic song ever written about a hangover, keeps the more mellow vibes going, with gentle performances from each instrument, perhaps the better to not exacerbate Bono's headache. And what comes next on "Wild Honey" but an acoustic guitar? It's an unexpected touch, as the band continue to follow a more mellow muse, though at least this track turns up the tempo for what turns out to be a pretty fun song.
At this point, U2 decide that maybe they should include some political material (missing up until now, outside of the throwaway "see the China fleet clearing the sea out" line from "Beautiful Day"'s bridge). "Peace on Earth," exploring mankind's propensity toward violence and darkness, is a pretty big downer, building from a minimal opening to a full band performance halfway through. It's a weird and difficult song, though not necessarily a bad one. This leads to one of my favorites, and what I think is All that You Can't Leave Behind's most underrated track, "When I Look at the World." This song, with Mullen, Jr.'s snappy drumming, Clayton's playing, and the weird electronic stuff going on in the background, sounds most like the band's 90's work. Edge really pushes that skyscraping huge guitar sound here, culminating in the type of drill-tone guitar solo I'm sure Tom Morello enjoyed (I know I enjoy it!). The lyrics are the album's most challenging, as well, final verse lines "I'm in the waiting room/can't see for the smoke/I think of you and your holy book/while the rest of us choke" at first seeming like a challenge to God. However, as I've gotten older, I realize Bono isn't pointing his finger at the Almighty, but toward his fellow Christians who turn a blind eye to the suffering of the world...and yes, Bono is also pointing at himself. Outside of "Beautiful Day," and maybe "Walk On," I think "When I Look at the World" is this album's greatest achievement.
We then get the band's tribute to/warning about the Big Apple, "New York," which starts out with a lot of electronic stuff like it's a song from 1997's Pop, before transforming into a full band piece halfway through. It's actually a pretty weird song, but worked as a great anthem for that city post-Y2K. The entire album ended up being perfectly placed by history, as the band were able to wring a lot of pathos out of their post Y2K performances with these more uplifting songs. None is more uplifting than "All That You Can't Leave Behind"'s final piece, "Grace."
"Grace" is a slow song that seems to float on the suds of a comforting bath. It's fully about the Christian concept of grace, which Bono sings "...travels outside of karma." I take back what I said about anything else being this album's crowning achievement, as the crowning achievement of All That You Can't Leave Behind is the slow, pulsing power of "Grace." To give some life to how uplifting and encouraging this song is, I'll say this:
One Sunday night in 2003, while DJ'ing our radio show, my co-hosts and I did a "Quiet, Medium, Loud" theme, where we cycled songs of those types, and in that order. I chose the show's final sequence of songs, with the penultimate song being the incredibly heavy "The Dreams that Don't Come True" by the metal band, Zao. That song includes the repeated verse, "I tried again, I fell again, to find out for myself it hurts/for a lifetime." I followed that song, and closed the show with the gentle "Grace." At that moment, a seemingly tearful listener called in to say "Thank you. Just...thank you for playing this song right now." Here are song's lyrics:
Grace, she takes the blame
She covers the shame
Removes the stain
It could be her name
Grace, it's the name for a girl
It's also a thought that changed the world
And when she walks on the street
You can hear the strings
Grace finds goodness in everything
Grace, she's got the walk
Not on a ramp or on chalk
She's got the time to talk
She travels outside of karma
She travels outside of karma
When she goes to work
You can hear her strings
Grace finds beauty in everything
Grace, she carries a world on her hips
No champagne flute for her lips
No twirls or skips between her fingertips
She carries a pearl in perfect condition
What once was hurt
What once was friction
What left a mark
No longer stings
Because Grace makes beauty
Out of ugly things
Grace finds beauty
In everything
Grace finds goodness
In everything
When people (including this person) refer to U2 as "the greatest Christian Band in history," the statement is not without great merit.
While All That You Can't Leave Behind may not quite be the masterpiece many contemporary critics, and even I hailed it as in 2000, it is a great album, full of some really good songs, and not exactly a regression--more like a forward-looking piece of nostalgia.
P.S.: Since I was on a pretty big U2 high after this album, I even bought their Elevation 2001: Live from Boston DVD in early 2002. It's a great performance, and the DVD has plenty extras, though I wish the concert footage itself wasn't so quick cut in the main film (you can't see what any of the musicians are playing!). I do find it particularly noteworthy that during the band's 19 song set, they play 7 of 11 of All That You Can't Leave Behind's songs, and only TWO (really 1.5) songs from ATYCLB's immediate predecessor Pop. I get wanting to move forward, but almost ignoring Pop's existence feels like a pretty big statement. On top of that, which album gets the second most representation? The Joshua Tree.
The band really took full advantage of their post-9/11 moment as America's re-assuring Irish uncles, playing 2002's Super Bowl (XXXVI in New Orleans!), projecting the names of 9/11's victims on a huge screen behind them. The show (featuring "Beautiful Day," "MLK," and "Where the Streets Have No Name") ended with Bono opening his jacket to reveal an American flag stitched inside. This set is generally considered to be one of the greatest Super Bowl halftime shows of all time. I think sure think it's the greatest. This could also perhaps be the moment the band staked their claim at musical immortality.
2000 Island/Interscope
1. Beautiful Day 4:06
2. Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of 4:32
3. Elevation 3:45
4. Walk On 4:55
5. Kite 4:23
6. In a Little While 3:39
7. Wild Honey 3:47 8. Peace on Earth 4:46
9. When I Look at the World 4:15
10. New York 5:28
11. Grace 5:31
2000 Island/Interscope
1. Beautiful Day 4:06
2. Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of 4:32
3. Elevation 3:45
4. Walk On 4:55
5. Kite 4:23
6. In a Little While 3:39
7. Wild Honey 3:47 8. Peace on Earth 4:46
9. When I Look at the World 4:15
10. New York 5:28
11. Grace 5:31
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