Joshua Tree

This is specifically the 2007 double LP reissue on vinyl that I am reviewing here. And my focus is on sound quality as the musical content has been thoroughly covered!
I love this double vinyl reissue and my expectations were surpassed for it. Not sure who did the pressing but my copy is beautifully pressed with excellent sound. From what I can tell reading online, this is the digitally mastered source used in the cd issue. As a vinyl fan, I find the sound very pleasing, very clear and still very `organic' sounding. Even if the source is digital, to my ears, vinyl provides a better soundstage than cd in this case.
As a double lp presentation at the normal 33 1/3 rpm. speed, the tracks are set up as follows:
Disc 1:
Side 1 - Original tracks 1-3
Side 2 - Original tracks 4 and 5
Disc 2:
Side 1 - Original tracks 6-8
Side 2 - Original tracks 9-11
This leaves lots of vinyl groove space for maximum sound reproduction. I wasn't sure from the cover if it would be 33 1/3 or 45 rpm. but it is the former. Yes, this means getting up more often to change sides but I was surprised to find this advantageous, not only in sound quality but it made me pay more attention to what I have previously considered the `lesser' tracks on this record - #6 - 11. They are the ones that perhaps benefit most from this presentation as there are some terrific production touches that I have missed before and now standout on this crystalline vinyl sound. Until know, I have not appreciated the left turn taken in mood with the final 2 songs `Exit' and `Mothers of the Disappeared'. There is a ghostly atmosphere provided by the Eno/Lanois production that is revealed better than ever here.
Also worthy of mention, `Bullet the Blue Sky' has never this good to me. The drums are rock solid while the Edge's guitar slithers menacingly between the speakers to capture the harrowing feel of this song like never before.
I got tired of the Joshua Tree after listening to it so much when it first came out, much like Rumours by Fleetwood Mac (which has also been reissued on great sounding new vinyl in 2011). However, with the new and improved vinyl sound of this reissue, I am reconnecting with it on a new level of appreciation.
Anyone wanting to know if this reissue is worth it, I would emphatically say `Yes'. I don't have an original UK pressing to compare it to so searching the audio forums may help if you want that comparison. However, this is definitely a sonic gem for me and you will be especially in for a treat if you have only owned it on cd before.

"The Joshua Tree was the album U2 HAD to make, the only one they COULD make"

Those are the words of Eamon Dunphy, author of "Unforgettable Fire - The Definitive Biography of U2", on U2's process of making a new record in 1986 and early 1987. That might sound like an over-dramatization for a rock record, but once you've heard the record, that thought goes out the window. This record, U2's exploration of America, is one of the quintessential rock records ever recorded. It is, varying with opinion, U2's masterpiece of masterpieces. Since this album was recorded back when it was still 'ok' to talk about records in the context of 'sides', I will say that every song on the first 'side' of this record is a classic. 'Where The Streets Have No Name' with an intro that ranks with the best of all time, 'I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For' with a theme of longing that anyone can relate to, 'With Or Without You'(my favorite U2 track), one of the most popular breakup songs ever, 'Bullet The Blue Sky' with its hypnotic talk/chant at the end at Edge's furious and passionate solos, and 'Running To Stand Still' with its atmosphere of deep pain being held in. The second 'side' was comprised of lesser-known but no less mesmerizing songs: 'Red Hill Mining Town', 'In God's Country', 'Trip Through Your Wires', 'One Tree Hill', which was written for roadie Greg Carroll, who died in a motercycle wreck running an errand for U2, the dark and moody 'Exit', and the mournful and haunting ballad closer, 'Mothers Of The Disappeared'.

This record catapaulted U2 in a realm of superstardom seldom seen by any band. They were not expecting it and they were taken by surprise a bit. I own this record on vinyl, cassette, and CD, and I even have the 'Classic Albums' DVD for it. This album has that quality about it, that sets it apart from from all other albums that don't pocess it. What quality is that? This was the first U2 record I ever heard, and I remember listening to it for the first time at age 13, and thinking to myself, before the album was even half over, 'hey, whoa, this band is one of the best ever'. That's the quality. Just like when you listen to 'Revolver' or 'Abbey Road' or any record of that quality, before it is even finished, you know the band is one of the best ever. I was completely blown away. It is a draining experience, one that will leave you exhausted when the album reaches its conclusion.

Spiritually, emotionally, lyrically, musically, commercially, U2 reached their peak with this record, and it was a peak they would remain on for a while to come, starting with the "Joshua Tree Tour", their biggest tour to date at the time. And not only did U2 reach their peak, but it is also important to note that on this record, Bono reached his peak as a singer. For U2's whole career up to this point, he had progressively improved as a singer with each outing. On this record he made the leap from being a very good rock singer to being one of the great rock singers of all time. I submit he is still the best, most emotional, most evocative rock singer of his time.

And though that tour would eventually lead to U2 being sick and tired of their current form, and to the brink of a breakdown, that was still a good two and a half years away. At this point U2 were excited to be as popular and relevant as they would ever be, which, incidentally gave them the leverage to pull stunts like the now legendary liquor-shop-roof-quasi-show during which the 'Where The Streets Have No Name' video was shot. U2 had arrived.

1. The remastered version of The Joshua Tree sounds way better (and louder) than previous editions on CD.

2. The Bonus CD: it's great to have ALL the remastered b-sides from the Joshua Tree singles on one CD (The Best of U2 1980-1990 only featured a selection of these tracks) + some of the outtakes, although obviously unfinished, give an idea of various directions the band could have taken with this album. A special mention goes to "Rise Up", which sounds almost exactly like Edge's and Sinéad O'Connor's "Heroïne" from '86. Also included are both versions of "Silver and Gold", one by U2 and the other by Bono with Keith Richards and Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones.

3. The DVD contains a full concert from the beginning of the Joshua Tree tour. Where the Rattle and Hum film used footage from later in the tour, when the band was not only getting better at playing the new songs, but had also already cut some of them out of the set list, here they were still road testing most of the songs from the album. Even the hit songs were not classics yet, so U2 doesn't even bother to play "Where the Streets Have no Name", which is something they probably couldn't get away with today. They also weren't performing as many covers as they would later in the tour, which leaves more room in the setlist for songs from the first four albums.Also included is a documentary featuring footage from the first leg of the American tour, including photo shoots with Anton Corbijn, the band performing country songs in small clubs and even shopping for cowboy boots. Interesting to watch because U2 were so much less self conscious than when filming Rattle and Hum. This footage shows U2's less serious side, which makes this DVD an essential complement to Rattle and Hum.