Pop (album)

Template:Album infobox

Pop is an album released by the Irish rock band U2 in March of 1997 (see 1997 in music). It is notable for combining elements of popular nineties techno with traditional U2 alternative guitar rock. Although a critical and commercial success at the time of its release--reaching number one in many countries, including those of the UK and the US--it has come to be regarded as one of the band's lesser albums.

Guitarist The Edge described the album as "about as far away from U2 as it is possible to be." [1] (http://www.threechordsandthetruth.net/u2bios/) It is much more dark and experimental than, as the title would imply, light and mainstream. It has some of the band's most jaded and desolate lyrics, such as the political "Please" and the haunting "Wake Up, Dead Man." Bono has described the album as starting at a party and ending at a funeral, and indeed, the mood gets very bleak after the first couple of songs.

Every song has its own unique noises and nuances, like the watery guitar of "Staring at the Sun," the siren wailing of "Gone," or the gritty drumtrack of "Miami." Despite its rough production, it is an immensely textured record sonically. It spans various styles as well, such as the beat-driven trance of "Do You Feel Loved?", the techno of "Mofo," and the loungy balladeering of "If You Wear That Velvet Dress."

Following the PopMart Tour, the band has expressed their dissatisfaction with the final product. Since the tour was booked well in advance, the recording of the album had to be rushed. The vocals to "Last Night On Earth" were reportedly recorded at the mixing desk the day the album was to be sent for pressing. Between the album's various singles and the band's The Best of 1990-2000 compilation (and disregarding dance remixes and the like), the band has re-recorded, remixed, and rearranged "Discothèque," "If God Will Send His Angels," "Staring at the Sun," "Last Night On Earth," "Gone," and "Please." The band took a considerably more conservative, stripped down approach with Pop's follow-up, All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000), and the tour that supported it.

Contents

1 Track listing 2 Singles 3 Personnel 4 PopMart Tour 5 See also 6 External links

Track listing

1. "Discothèque" (5:19)
2. "Do You Feel Loved?" (5:07)
3. "Mofo" (5:46)
4. "If God Will Send His Angels" (5:22)
5. "Staring at the Sun" (4:36)
6. "Last Night on Earth" (4:45)
7. "Gone" (4:26)
8. "Miami" (4:52)
9. "The Playboy Mansion" (4:40)
10. "If You Wear that Velvet Dress" (5:14)
11. "Please" (5:10)
12. "Wake Up, Dead Man" (4:52)

Music by U2, words by Bono and the Edge.

Produced by Flood.

"Discothèque," "Staring at the Sun," "Last Night On Earth," "Please," "If God Will Send His Angels," and "Mofo" were released as singles internationally (the most singles the band has ever released from a single album).

The PopHeart live EP was also released in most regions. In the US, though, it was released as the "Please" single.

The Japanese edition includes "Holy Joe (Guilty Mix)" (5:08), a B-side to the "Discothèque" single, as a bonus track. The Malaysian edition has a censored version of "Wake Up, Dead Man."

Singles

The album's first single, "Discothèque", was a huge dance and airplay success. It also reached number one in the singles charts of most of European countries including the United Kingdom, where it was their third number one single after 1988's "Desire" and 1991's "The Fly."

In the United States, "Discothèque" is notable for being U2's only single since 1991 to crack the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. However, it did not spend very long on the chart, as its dance elements limited its appeal. The follow-up single, "Staring at the Sun" became a major airplay success in the US and remains one of U2's best remembered songs there.

Personnel

• Bono--lead vocals, guitar
• The Edge--guitar, keyboards, vocals
• Adam Clayton--bass guitar
• Larry Mullen, Jr.--drums, percussion, programming

PopMart Tour

U2 followed up on the album with an extensive world tour in 1997 and 1998, which was another huge success in terms of revenue, although it was not profitable for the band. PopMart was a parody of consumerism; the band kicked off the tour by holding a press conference at a K-Mart store. The stage included a large, McDonald's parabolic arch, a 40-foot-tall mirror ball lemon ("Well, it could have been an artichoke, but we wanted a more practical fruit." --Larry Mullen, Jr. [2] (http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Disco/7226/quotes.htm)), and a 150x50-foot LED screen, the largest in the world at the time. [3] (http://lightingdimensions.com/mag/lighting_us_super_popmart/)

The show's infamously bad, poorly rehearsed opening night in Las Vegas contributed to the backlash against both the album and the tour. Nonetheless, the quality of the band's performances improved greatly by the time they began the second leg in Europe (evidenced by the PopHeart EP, which features three songs from the first European show in Rotterdam). Among the tour's highlights was a heavily emotional (and heavily bootlegged) show in Sarajevo. "There's no doubt that that is an experience I will never forget for the rest of my life. And if I had to spend 20 years in the band just to play that show, and have done that, I think it would have been worthwhile." --Larry Mullen, Jr. [4] (http://www.atu2.com/news/article.src?ID=2640)

See also

• U2 discography

External links

• Discography entry at U2 Wanderer (http://www.u2wanderer.org/disco/alb012.html)--Comprehensive details on various editions, cover scans, lyrics, and more.
• Album lyrics (http://u2-lyrics.org/pop/)--Searchable album lyrics.
• U2 tours overview at U2-Vertigo-Tour.com (http://www.u2-vertigo-tour.com/all-u2-tours.html)--Includes setlists for every date on the PopMart Tour.
• Quotes and information (http://www.geocities.com/cirrusminor9/html/popinfo.htm)--Detailed background on each song.
• U2MoL (http://hem.bredband.net/steverud/U2MoL/)--Contains fan interpretations and interview excerpts for each song.hu:Pop (U2)

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