U2 - October
#556
By Chris Kouzes
October 12 1981
U2
October
Genre: Rock
Allen’s Rating: 2 out of 5
Chris’ Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Highlights:
Gloria
October
Scarlet
Before the Yellow And Black that is Stryper released their debut album in 1984, there was only one predominant Christian Rock Band and that band released their God Album (per Bono) two years prior. Not really, but there are some religious overtones lyrically and there certainly was plenty of discussion when this was released. Oh, and the fact that “Gloria,” the big single from it has some lyrics in Latin translating to “Glory in You, Lord / Glory, exalt [Him]." But hindsight, for the most part this is a “college rock” album through and through.
Coming off a pretty great debut album and a phenomenal single in “I Will Follow,” it was going to be tough for the band to do even better. They tried, and came close, but ultimately it’s not as good as “Boy.” Maybe it was a classic case of being on the road promoting the hell out of their first album and then trying to rush to record the follow up. There’s also the story of Bono losing all the lyrics he had just prior to the recording and had to pull them together in the 11th hour. Regardless, it’s still a pretty decent album with some great songs that paved the way to better albums.
“Gloria” is pretty fantastic. Big, bold and very U2. I’m sure you’re all very aware of this song. The next song, “I Fall Down” is also great. Lots of interesting production tricks (thank you Steve Lillywhite) with Edge adding various background vocals and piano throughout. Looking at those first four albums before they blasted to the stratosphere with “Joshua Tree,” this is a great overlooked track. Other standouts include the piano-based title track with Edge dominating musically. This really is his band and this album is lets us in on that fact really for the first time. “October,” the song, really conveys the fall in its starkness. I’m also partial to the last two tracks, “Scarlet” and “Is That All?” “Scarlet” initially sounds like a perfect b-side as it’s a bit off kilter and more adventurous than the other tracks. But then it pulls itself together very nicely and ends up strong. “Is That All?” is familiar having an early version of it being tacked on as an intro to “The Electric Co.” live. But it’s got a cool riff and nice way to end the album.
But all the other songs in the middle are fine, but nothing I feel were compelling much. I suppose you have to write your share of these to hone your songwriting craft. So while they serve a purpose, I don’t think I’ve ever (or will ever) feel I need to listen to these again.
You can see a lot of seeds developing here that cause you to love or hate U2. As mentioned, Edge is a pretty talented guy. Larry Mullen Jr. is an above average drummer who throws out some interesting patterns and fills. I’ve said it billion times, I’m not sure if there’s a luckier guy in music than Adam Clayton. Outside of his work on “Gloria,” a more boring bassist I’ve yet to hear. And Bono isn’t over the top (yet), but you can feel it a bit coming. I’ve had one encounter with Bono and he was super cool to me, so you won’t find me shitting on the guy.
This is far from a bad record. But of the first four, it’s definitely my least favorite. But what I’ve give for the guys to write a few songs again as good as the highlights here…
https://open.spotify.com/album/59O7CFxLYBBKYtrO61LyqF?si=UrBcoK4xTBuaxb6GYVhcFA
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