Classic Albums: U2 - The Joshua Tree (1999)
Release in March 1987, U2's The Joshua Tree quickly became the fastest-selling album in British chart history, selling almost 250,000 copies within the first week of release. In the US, it was equally successful, topping the Billboard album chart for nine weeks, spending 58 weeks in the Top 40 there and earning a Grammy Award for Album of the Year. The story of the making of The Joshua Tree is told here, via interview and archive film footage, with contributions from band members Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. U2’s long-time manager Paul McGuinness reveals how the album catapulted the band into the category of rock superstars, and there are contributions from Elvis Costello in the role of a major U2 fan, re-mix producer Steve Lillywhite, and of course co-producers Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois. Packed with reminiscences and powerful performances, this is the story of one of the most famous and best records of the Eighties, a true Classic Album.
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One of my all time favorites.
Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.
It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.
All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.
First off, I'm a huge fan of U2. So, maybe I watched "The Joshua Tree" documentary with too many expectations. I was severely disappointed by how much of the discussion was dedicated to how ahead of its time the album was, how timeless it will be, and how other (and others') music doesn't measure up to it. I wouldn't have minded had this been coming from critics. However, most of it was from each member of the band and those involved with the making of the album. Call me crazy, but I'd rather not listen to how great an artist thinks his/her work is during a documentary.Although that may be a somewhat trivial annoyance, I was also disappointed with the lack of content. I wanted to hear more relatable stories. By the end of the short "hour of bragging", oops, I mean documentary, I felt no closer to really knowing the band. This is something that was accomplished in a much greater way with the Rattle and Hum video (which is amazing if you haven't seen it). Actually, I take that back, I learned that the gossip was true, U2 is incredibly vain.Nevertheless, the album is an amazing one, and this video does an okay job of keeping my attention for an hour. I wouldn't be too sad if I never saw it again however.
This Classic Albums feature on The Joshua Tree is a fantastic look into the production of the legendary album. The new interviews with Bono, the Edge, Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen, Daniel Lanois, Brian Eno, and Flood are very warm and filled with personality and information. The highlights are the conversations with Edge, where he plays guitar along with "With or Without You", discussing his favorite guitar moments on the song, and when he shares the original demo of "Where the Streets Have No Name" produced in his home. Daniel Lanois (producer) shares his favorite instrumental moments, and Bono seems actually humble throughout (an amazing feat, it must have been done in editing). This DVD is definitely worth checking out.