All that you can't leave behind appreciation thread

On behalf of edges cat and all others who joined the U2 club on a beautiful day, felt elevated, were stuck in a moment, got criticized for liking the album but in a little while walked on with grace, fly your kite high.

This is appreciation only, so in this thread, there's peace on earth.

Enjoy

Kite is one of U2s best ballads for me. Ever.


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This might be U2's last truly cohesive album in terms of production and sound. Love it or hate it, everything flows together beautifully. The first half is exceptional and it's one of the best sides of any U2 album. The second half drops off a bit but I've always had a soft spot for Grace, Wild Honey, and When I Look at the World. It's held up really well in my book.

While it's my least favorite U2 album, I do like WILATW and New York. Walk On is alright too.

Stuck in a moment...this is an important song to me...
Beautiful day...should be an important song to everyone...MAKE it beautiful.

PS. I LOVE ELEVATION!!! Love the album version...and really LOVED it live! Can you see me jumping up and down (not an easy feat for a 62 year old!)

the entire first half of this album is what got me into this band. kite has to be my favorite, it is such a masterpiece imo

the entire first half of this album is what got me into this band. kite has to be my favorite, it is such a masterpiece imo

Fully agree on Kite. Also Walk On.

Agreed.  "Walk On" and "Kite" have aged beautifully....just like Adam :0

I have always believed, and will always believe, that this album is superb, if not a masterpiece.

Biasing might play a big part, but I just don't care. This is the album that, alone, made me a hardcore fan for life.

Simple songwriting, honesty, big heart, great melodies, dreamy soundscapes by Edge and Eno.

Beautiful Day, Stuck In A Moment, Walk On, Kite, When I Look At The World, New York, Grace, The Ground Beneath Her Feet...

I have cried, dreamed and rejoiced along these tunes more than any other U2 release.

Pop might be my favourite U2 album nowadays, but ATYCLB is the U2 album that will always be the closest to my heart.

U2s last great album IMO.

Walk on/Kite/In a little while are the best 3 consecutive songs on any of their albums apart from maybe the opening 3 on the Joshua tree.

I always saw ATYLB as another great reinvention, this time as a pop band. Shame they have struggled to reinvent since.

2nd side is considerably less good than the 1st side but it still rates as a fabulous album in my book.

Stuck in a moment...this is an important song to me...
Beautiful day...should be an important song to everyone...MAKE it beautiful.

PS. I LOVE ELEVATION!!! Love the album version...and really LOVED it live! Can you see me jumping up and down (not an easy feat for a 62 year old!)

I love Elevation too.  The bridge is great.  2nd best track on album after BD


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My top 3 albums:
In no particular order

ATYCLB
JT
AB

I agree it's the last truly cohesive album in terms of sound and production and I like it very much too.

Always an album close to my heart, and it's got some of Bono's best melodic work. The melodies... Kite, is exceptional.

I first listened to ATYCLB watching the sun set on Venice Beach, California. I'd missed my flight from LAX and had to wait two days for the next one. My luggage had gone missing and I only had $10 in my pocket. No money in my bank account because an employer had screwed me over on a contract, and the exchange rate for the US dollar had crashed to a record low. I'd just broken up with my girlfriend at the time. And I had a huge tear in my jeans from not spotting a barbed wire fence in the high desert of New Mexico the previous day. Thankfully, I'd convinced my ex to use her stereo before she booted me out, so I could tape ATYCLB from CD to cassette for my Sony walkman. The concept of All That You Can't Leave Behind, the airport, the lyrics and mood and melodies, my situation... it was like fate. The batteries went flat in my Sony walkman, and instead of buying a half decent meal the next day, I bought more batteries so I could keep listening to the album. I went hungry on the Californian beach to listen to ATYCLB, but the music fed my soul.

I agree with Very Good re: the two sides to the album. The album drops off after Little While and isn't as strong and cohesive. But that is a monumentally tough ask, trying live up to the standards set by Beautiful Day - Stuck - Elevation - Walk On - Kite. Maybe a different track order, with Ground Beneath Her Feet in there, would have worked. And it was just fantastic to hear U2 own their sound after a decade of tripping through Eno's mindscapes (as much as I love 'em). When The Edge was questioned for playing the Classic Coke Beautiful Day guitar riff, his response "Fuck off, this is how I play guitar" summed it up.

ATYCLB... this is why the claws come out when anyone trash talks my baby.

Always an album close to my heart, and it's got some of Bono's best melodic work. The melodies... Kite, is exceptional.

I first listened to ATYCLB watching the sun set on Venice Beach, California. I'd missed my flight from LAX and had to wait two days for the next one. My luggage had gone missing and I only had $10 in my pocket. No money in my bank account because an employer had screwed me over on a contract, and the exchange rate for the US dollar had crashed to a record low. I'd just broken up with my girlfriend at the time. And I had a huge tear in my jeans from not spotting a barbed wire fence in the high desert of New Mexico the previous day. Thankfully, I'd convinced my ex to use her stereo before she booted me out, so I could tape ATYCLB from CD to cassette for my Sony walkman. The concept of All That You Can't Leave Behind, the airport, the lyrics and mood and melodies, my situation... it was like fate. The batteries went flat in my Sony walkman, and instead of buying a half decent meal the next day, I bought more batteries so I could keep listening to the album. I went hungry on the Californian beach to listen to ATYCLB, but the music fed my soul.

I agree with Very Good re: the two sides to the album. The album drops off after Little While and isn't as strong and cohesive. But that is a monumentally tough ask, trying live up to the standards set by Beautiful Day - Stuck - Elevation - Walk On - Kite. Maybe a different track order, with Ground Beneath Her Feet in there, would have worked. And it was just fantastic to hear U2 own their sound after a decade of tripping through Eno's mindscapes (as much as I love 'em). When The Edge was questioned for playing the Classic Coke Beautiful Day guitar riff, his response "Fuck off, this is how I play guitar" summed it up.

ATYCLB... this is why the claws come out when anyone trash talks my baby.

Great story, Cat. There was a time in my life where I chose listening to U2 (any U2) over food and drink. Their music DOES soothe the savage beast.