U2 -- Wide Awake in America

9/10

U2's Wide Awake in America EP features 20 great minutes of U2 music from directly in the middle of the band's first golden age. Released between stunning LP's, 1984's The Unforgettable Fire and 1987's The Joshua Tree, this 1985 release features two live songs on its first side, and two previously hard to find tracks on its second (my main experience with Wide Awake in America has been vinyl, but it's on all the other formats, as well). 

These live songs are takes on two of The Unforgettable Fire's standouts. The first is a gloriously extended, beautiful performance of the band's emotional showstopper, "Bad." The second is a sped up, more high energy version of "A Sort of Homecoming" which works quite well (though nothing beats the original).

The second side, on my first listen years ago, immediately made me wonder where have these songs been my whole life? "The Three Sunrises" begins with some dreamy guitar effects, before launching into an upbeat, classic U2 sound. The standout for me, though, is the closer, "Love Comes Tumbling." This last track is dreamy all the way through, and makes clear that these two songs came from the excellent The Unforgettable Fire sessions. However, I'm not sure if any other song in U2's catalogue is as gorgeous and spacey as "Love Comes Tumbling." The Edge kicks things off with a classic Edge guitar figure, before settling into beautifully atmospheric effects. Bono's voice is drenched in delay, as Larry Mullen Jr. and Adam Clayton provide a trance-inducing rhythm. It's otherworldly, and they haven't made a song quite like it since. I love the other three songs here, but "Love Comes Tumbling" is brilliant. I spent $5 on this record back in the day, and even at only four songs, that feels like a steal.


1985 Island
1. Bad (live) 8:00
2. A Sort of Homecoming 4:05
3. The Three Sunrises 3:50
4. Love Comes Tumbling 4:45