Product Description

After toiling for years as an underground cult favorite with a rabidly devoted fan base, Irish rock band U2 finally broke through to mainstream success on the strength of their 1987 opus THE JOSHUA TREE. Released in March of that year, THE JOSHUA TREE became U2's first number-one album and won a Grammy Award for Album of the Year. The record's crossover appeal stems from its emotional exploration of universal topics such as love ("With or Without You"), death ("One Tree Hill"), and spiritual longing ("I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For") without sacrificing any of the trademark social consciousness of the band's earlier albums ("Bullet the Blue Sky," "Mothers of the Disappeared"). This episode of the CLASSIC ALBUMS series details the making of U2's chart-topping album through interviews with band members, archival film footage, and live performances. Rating: Not Rated Content: n/a Runtime: 60 minutes DVD Code: Region 1 US, CA Genre: Musical & Performing Arts Color: Color Extra Info: DVD Features: Keep Case Full Frame - 1.33 Audio: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo - English EDITORIAL REVIEWS: ADDITIONAL PRODUCTION NOTES: Director: Producer:

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #74539 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-03-21
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 60 minutes

Amazon.com
An outstanding entry in the Classic Albums video series, this hourlong documentary, produced in 1999, assembles the creators of U2's The Joshua Tree to comment about the musical magic that occurred a dozen years earlier in a home studio in Dublin. Merging past and present, coproducers Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, mixer Steve Lillywhite, and guitarist The Edge isolate separate tracks on the album's master tapes to illustrate how some of U2's greatest songs were layered with each individual's crucial contributions. Bono listens in while Lanois deconstructs the masters, appearing genuinely shy about his vocal tracks but eloquent in describing the album as "not Irish at all" in its innovative sound, but "very Irish" in terms of the emotions that inspired it. Later, The Edge describes the "cinematic" sound of the album, intended to transport the listener to a specific physical location based on each song's mood and atmosphere.

Bassist Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen weigh in with illuminating comments, and the hour offers an abundance of video excerpts, concert footage, and memorable anecdotes. Eno sets the record straight on the torturous process of recording "Where the Streets Have No Name" (he almost "accidentally" erased the master tape in hopes of starting from scratch), and Bono admits to a heavy Led Zeppelin influence on "Bullet the Blue Sky." Archival footage shows the recording in progress (one wishes there were more of it), and what emerges from this collective reminiscence is an enlightening study of mutual chemistry and fruitful collaboration. Upon viewing this video, another listening to The Joshua Tree will be more rewarding than ever. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Much Better Than I Anticipated
I was little apprehensive buying this DVD sight unseen. I was afraid that this was going to be a collection of videos from the "Joshua Tree" album, with perhaps some stock footage thrown in to make it look like a documentary. I was pleasantly surprised.

The producers sat down recently (probably while making the new U2 album) with U2, Brian Eno, Daniel Lanois, and Flood and discussed in detail all that went into making this album. Bono and Lanois even play back the master tapes to show instumentations and vocals that weren't included in the final mix. The Edge also breaks down the master for "Where the Streets Have No Name" and discusses how the song evolved, and shows all of the different guitar parts included in the final mix. I found the whole DVD fascinating.

I only wish that it had lasted longer (60 minutes). My hope is that maybe some of the magic that went into the production of "The Joshua Tree" will find it's way onto the new album...

Great footage and interviews
I must admit that I didn't have high expectations for this DVD. I imagined a lot of old interviews and video footage of the band and not much else. However, when I watched the DVD, I was pleasantly surprised. This DVD was made in the last two years...interviewing all of U2, Flood, Daniel Lanois, Brian Eno, Steve Lillywhite and Paul McGuiness. There is also an interview with designer Steve Averill and photographer Anton Corbijn about the sleeve work. Lanois, Bono and Edge sit down at the mixing console and pull out the old 2" recording tape to listen to the old mixes of many of the songs. I also found it humorous to watch Bono wince as he listened to some of his old vocal tracks from the album's recording. Edge even pulls out the guitar and plays along to the end of With or Without You. He also plays the original 4 track recording of "Streets" that he made. There are also a great deal of unique short clips of the band...most notably one of U2 performing "Mothers of the Disapeared" in Chile (with some of the actual mothers of the disappeared) a couple years ago. Yes, it is short, but still worth the time and money. The DVD doesn't cover all the songs, leaving out One Tree Hill, In God's Country, Trip Through Your Wires and Red Hill Mining Town. It was interesting though to learn how songs like Exit and Mothers of the Disappeared were created. This DVD is a must for die-hard fans.

Ready for the laughing gas
I remember how Joshua Tree transformed U2 into superstars. Before, they had been on the same level as the rest. Duran Duran, Ultravox etc. The music was different, but they were one of those post-punk bands, and that was it. Joshua Tree changed all that. As the other bands were dying a slow and painful death, U2 exploded. It was and is a great album and this DVD only enhances that experience.

The only vice I could possibly find is that it's short. 60 minutes is not a lot of DVD. Including the Sweetest Thing video was a neat thing, but I would have liked to see the rest as well. I guess they want you to buy Best of 1980-1990, but then they better release that. Why was that only released on VHS?

I'm ready for the laughing gas. I want some ZooTV stuff on DVD... soon.

A great, short DVD, well worth the money if you like U2 or are interested in how albums are made.