My older sister was a big music influence on me from about 1985 onwards, ie from when i was about 10 and started an interest in music.
She introduced me to the joshua tree first.
Id sit for hours with a walkman and tape and later a cd player listening to where the streets have no name, that incredible riff and intro blew my mind… then i got rattle and hum and loved the film, the sun valley stadium version of streets is still my favourite.
Streets, Still havent found what im looking for, Bad and All i want is you, are my favourites from my favourite time of the band, almost entirely because of the guitar
I play guitar because of the edge, and this is one of my most fundamental loves in life (wish i was better!) so they as a band were incredibly important and influential on me as a kid and adult.
Then theres bonos lyrics, which can be incredible…
“She wears my love like a see through dress”
When everyone else was wearing happy mondays baggies i was in a biker jacket waist coat and pointy boots trying to be bono from the rattle and hum film….
Id agree that they started to turn after zooropa (love stay!),
Pop i still like very much. That velvet dress has a great Bridge section to it and the playboy mansion i like also for its simplicity.
But unlike radiohead (whom as i age i like more and can find new stuff in the their entire back catalogue, even the bleepy stuff) started to slide after Zooropa, and definitely should have stopped after Pop.
Anything newer is repetitious, derivative and lacking in soul or creativity imho.
