Where the Streets Have No Name
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| “Where the Streets Have No Name” | |||||
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| Single by U2 from the album The Joshua Tree |
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| B-side | "Silver and Gold" "The Sweetest Thing" "Race Against Time" |
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| Released | August 1987 | ||||
| Format | 7", 12", CD, cassette | ||||
| Recorded | Windmill Lane Studios, Dublin, Ireland, 1986 | ||||
| Genre | Rock | ||||
| Length | 4:46 (single version) 5:37 (album version) |
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| Label | Island | ||||
| Writer(s) | U2 (music), Bono (words) | ||||
| Producer | Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois | ||||
| U2 singles chronology | |||||
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| The Joshua Tree track listing | |||||
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| The Best of 1980-1990 track listing | |||||
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| U218 Singles track listing | |||||
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"Where the Streets Have No Name" is a song by Irish rock band U2, from their 1987 album, The Joshua Tree.[1] It was released August 1987 as the third single from The Joshua Tree.[2] Bono was inspired to write the lyrics by the notion that it's possible to identify a person's religion by the street on which they lived, and also their income depending upon the part of the street. Amidst difficulties recording the song, producer Brian Eno attempted to erase it.
It peaked at #13 in the United States, #14 in Canada, and #4 in the United Kingdom.[1] The song became a staple of live shows, being played 645 times at 642 shows since its inaugural performance April 2, 1987 in Tempe, Arizona.[3] Its critical reception was mostly warm, praised by music critics such as Rolling Stone. In Rolling Stone issue 1054, the song was ranked 28th in the issue's list of the "100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time."
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[edit] Writing and recording
"Where the Streets Have No Name" was conceived prior to one of the Joshua Tree recording sessions by guitarist The Edge.[4] While recording the song as a band, however, they ran into difficulty. The song's frequent chord and time changes caused problems in playing the song correctly; the difficulty was so great that producer Brian Eno attempted to erase the track.[4][5] Drummer Larry Mullen Jr. later said of the song, "It took so long to get that song right, it was difficult for us to make any sense of it. It only became a truly great song through playing live. On the record, musically, it's not half the song it is live."[4] Originally, the third single from The Joshua Tree was meant to be the song "Red Hill Mining Town", but "Where the Streets Have No Name" was released instead.[6]
The song is interpreted in different ways; a common interpretation of the lyrics is that it refers to the streets of Belfast, Northern Ireland, where a person's religion is evident by the street they live on. In a 1987 interview, Bono said of the song:
"Where the Streets Have No Name is more like the U2 of old than any of the other songs on the LP, because it’s a sketch - I was just trying to sketch a location, maybe a spiritual location, maybe a romantic location. I was trying to sketch a feeling. I often feel very claustrophobic in a city, a feeling of wanting to break out of that city and a feeling of wanting to go somewhere where the values of the city and the values of our society don’t hold you down. An interesting story that someone told me once is that in Belfast, by what street someone lives on you can tell not only their religion but tell how much money they’re making - literally by which side of the road they live on, because the further up the hill the more expensive the houses become. You can almost tell what the people are earning by the name of the street they live on and what side of that street they live on. That said something to me, and so I started writing about a place where the streets have no name.[6]
He also alluded to this in a 2000 interview, saying in response to the question of what place he was referring to in the song's lyrics, "I'm not sure, really, about that. I used to think it was Belfast, you know, 'cos in Belfast you can tell somebody's religion, you know, from what street they live on. You just have to say where you're born and everybody knows if you're a Catholic or a Protestant and... I think that might have been where "Where The Streets Have No Name" started from as an idea."[7] He said later in the same interview that the song was about "Transcendence, elevation, whatever you want to call it."[7]
[edit] Structure
The album version of "Where the Streets Have No Name" opens with an instrumental section, starting with chorale-like synthesizer notes; the guitar, bass, and drums fade in near the one-minute mark. This part, following a I-IV-I-IV-vi-V-I chord progression, creates a "wall of sound", as described by Mark Butler, against which the vocals finally emerge after nearly two whole minutes.[8] The bass and drums continue in regular eighth and sixteenth notes, while Bono's vocal performance, in contrast, varies greatly in its timbre, ("he sighs; he moans; he grunts; he exhales audibly; he allows his voice to crack")[8] as well as timing by his usage of rubato to slightly offset the notes he sings from the beat.[8] The guitar part is an arpeggio that uses delay, so each note in the arpeggio sounds twice.[9]
This development reaches a climax during the first chorus at the line "burning down love" (A-G-F#-D); the melody progresses through a series of scale degrees that lead to the highest note in the song, the A4 at "burning". In later choruses, Bono sings "blown by the wind" with the same melody, stretching the same note even longer.
[edit] Critical reception
"Where the Streets Have No Name" was generally warmly received by critics. Rolling Stone called it "assertive rock" in their 1987 review of The Joshua Tree.[10] In another 1987 review by the Boston Globe, it was said of the song: "Witness the album's very first two songs, "Where the Streets Have No Name" (with bell-like tones from the Edge framing a search for heaven) and the prayerfully hypnotic "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." These show the band as pilgrims still on a quest; not preachers who claim to have found answers."[11] It was also reviewed favorably in the San Diego Union-Tribune, with the comments "The first cut, "Where the Streets Have No Name" sets a familiar tone for Side 1. The song begins with scratching guitar notes rising from solemn chords followed by Bono's disclosure: "I want to run/I want to hide/I want to tear down the walls that hold me inside." The music charges, like someone fleeing for life."[12]
[edit] Live performances
Since its concert introduction on April 2, 1987 in Tempe, Arizona, "Where the Streets Have No Name" has been played at almost every show up until the end of the Vertigo Tour. There are slight variations in the live presentation versus the recorded version; the final verse is played differently, and Clayton plays a particularly striking melodic bassline in the chorus, reminiscent of the style of Peter Hook,[citation needed] along the outline of a guitar part on the record. The Edge has always used a Fender Stratocaster of some sort for this song. On The Joshua Tree Tour and Vertigo Tour, he used a black with black pickguard 70s-era Stratocaster. On the Lovetown Tour, he used a Lace Sensor pickup-equipped yellow Stratocaster with a black pickguard. On the Zoo TV, PopMart and Elevation Tours, he has used a 60s-era Stratocaster that is black with a white pickguard.
During live performances, the beginning of the song has been accompanied by a red background. This background has appeared on both TV screens (The Joshua Tree Tour to Elevation Tour) and in the form of flashing lights (Vertigo Tour). The red background has appeared in the beginning on all occasions save a few exceptions—most notably at the Super Bowl performance where the names of those who perished in the events of September 11, 2001 attacks scrolled behind the band and on the Vertigo Tour, where scrolling African flags took its place. But on stadium performances in the European, Latin American, and Pacific legs, the red background would appear at the end of the song. [4]
[edit] Music video
This video was directed by Meiert Avis. The song was performed to playback on the rooftop of the Republic Liquor Store at East 7th Street and South Main Street in Los Angeles on March 27, 1987. The scenes including the police shutting the video down due to traffic concerns are real. In 1988, the music video won a Grammy Award for "Best Performance Music Video".[13]
[edit] Track listing
- "Where the Streets Have No Name" (Single Version) (4:46)
- "Silver and Gold" (4:40)
- "The Sweetest Thing" (3:03)
- "Race Against Time" (4:03)
This was the most common 12" release. The 7" version omitted "Race Against Time". "The Sweetest Thing" made its first appearance on this single, as an outtake from The Joshua Tree. The song would later be rerecorded and released as a single from the band's 1998, The Best of 1980-1990.[6] The single version of "Where the Streets Have No Name" is a different mix from the album, having a shorter introduction and close,[6] and featuring additional backing vocals from The Edge. The single version was later included on the bonus disc of the 20th anniversary edition of The Joshua Tree.
[edit] B-Sides
[edit] Silver and Gold
"Silver and Gold" is one of the few U2 songs written solely by Bono.[original research?] It was originally written in support of the Artists United Against Apartheid project, which protested the South African apartheid policy. The song was featured on the Project's 1985 album, Sun City, in a version that included Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood of The Rolling Stones.
"Silver and Gold" was later recorded in the studio by U2, and released as a B-side on the "Where the Streets Have No Name" single. The song was played live on The Joshua Tree Tour several times, one performance making onto the bands 1988 album and rockumentary, Rattle and Hum. Both the studio recording and the Sun City version were later featured on the bonus disc of the 20th anniversary edition of The Joshua Tree. The studio version also included on the limited edition B-sides bonus disk of the band's first compilation album, The Best of 1980-1990.
[edit] The Sweetest Thing
"Sweetest Thing" is a song by U2, originally released as "The Sweetest Thing" in 1987 on the "Where the Streets Have No Name" single. It was written by Bono as an apology to his wife for forgetting her birthday. The song was later renamed "Sweetest Thing", re-recorded, re-released as a single for the The Best of 1980-1990, in 1998.
[edit] Race Against Time
"Race Against Time" was the third and final B-side to the "Where the Streets Have No Name" single. The track is almost purely instrumental, the sole lyric, "Race against time", being sung only twice throughout the song.[14] The track is the only one of the single's B-sides that was never played live. It was also used in an episode of Miami Vice ("Child's Play"). "Race Against Time" was later rereleased on the bonus disc of the 20th anniversary edition of The Joshua Tree.
[edit] Chart positions
| Year | Single | Chart | Position[1] |
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| 1987 | "Where the Streets Have No Name" | UK Singles Chart | #4 |
| 1987 | "Where the Streets Have No Name" | US Billboard Hot 100 | #13 |
| 1987 | "Where the Streets Have No Name" | US Mainstream Rock Tracks | #11 |
| 1987 | "Where the Streets Have No Name" | Canada | #14 |
[edit] Covers
[edit] Pet Shop Boys ("I Can't Take My Eyes Off You")
| “Where the Streets Have No Name (I Can't Take My Eyes Off You)” | |||||
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| Single by Pet Shop Boys from the album Behaviour |
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| B-side | "How can you expect to be taken seriously?" | ||||
| Released | March 1991 | ||||
| Format | 7", 12", Cassette, CD | ||||
| Recorded | Munich, 1990 | ||||
| Genre | Synthpop | ||||
| Length | 4:50 (7" edit) | ||||
| Label | Parlophone - R 6285 | ||||
| Writer(s) | U2 | ||||
| Producer | Pet Shop Boys, Harold Faltermeyer | ||||
| Pet Shop Boys singles chronology | |||||
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In 1991, UK synthpop duo Pet Shop Boys covered "Streets" to accompany "How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously?", the third single from their 1990 album, Behaviour, as a double A-side in the UK (both singles were released separately in the U.S.). Released in March 1991, this song was the band's fifteenth consecutive Top 20 hit in the UK, peaking at #4 on the UK Singles Chart. The band have said that they thought the guitars in the original sounded similar to a sequencer.[15] In this version, "Streets" is turned into a medley with "Can't Take My Eyes Off You", the 1960s single by Frankie Valli, though in an arrangement informed by the 1981 disco version of the song by Boystown Gang rather than the original.[6]
The version has been called by the Pet Shop Boys, in the liner notes for the album Discography, that they wanted to turn "a mythic rock song into a stomping disco record."[6]
The Pet Shop Boys version has been significantly changed in its musical arrangement from the original version. In contrast to the U2 version's instrumental build-up, the Pet Shop Boys version opens abruptly with synthesized and sampled noises and a drum machine. The musical climax of the song is also changed in other elements; a background vocal sample of "burning down love" is played right at the start, and synthesized horns erupt with even higher notes immediately following each chorus. Singer Neil Tennant performs the lyrics with no vocal exertion or stresses, in contrast to Bono's performance. In addition, at the transition between "Where the Streets Have No Name" and "Can't Take My Eyes Off You", Tennant sings the two lines one after the other, with no change in pitch — pointing out the similarities in the two songs.[8]
This version has been paired with "How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously?", a song criticizing the insincere humanitarian messages of a number of pop stars during the 1980s and the institutionalization of rock and roll,[16][8]
The Pet Shop Boys have performed the medley live as recently as during their 2007 Fundamental tour, as well as at the Moscow Live 8 concert of 2005.[17]
[edit] Tracklisting
[edit] 7": Parlophone / R 6285 (UK)
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (7" Edit) - 4:31
- "How can you expect to be taken seriously?" - 4:10
[edit] MC: EMI USA / 4KM-50351 (US)
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (Original 7" Mix) - 4:31
- "Bet she's not your girlfriend" - 4:28
[edit] 12": Parlophone / 12 R 6285 (UK)
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (Extended Mix) - 4:31
- "How can you expect to be taken seriously?" (Extended Mix) - 6:03
- "Bet she's not your girlfriend" - 4:28
[edit] 12": Parlophone / 12 RX 6285 (UK)
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (David Morales Remix) - 6:24
- "How can you expect to be taken seriously?" (Mo Mo Remix) - 6:51
- "How can you expect to be taken seriously?" (Ragga Zone Remix) - 6:27
- All tracks remixed by David Morales
- Also released on CD in Holland (560-20 4266 2)
[edit] 12": EMI USA / V-56217 (US)
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (12" Dance Mix) - 7:35
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (Sound Factory Mix) - 4:37
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (Red Zone Mix) - 6:18
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (Eclipse Mix) - 1:38
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (Ska Reprise) - 2:59
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (7" Version) - 4:33
- Tracks 1-5 remixed by David Morales
[edit] CD: Parlophone / CD R 6285 (UK)
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" - 5:35
- "How can you expect to be taken seriously?" (Extended Mix) - 6:03
- "Bet she's not your girlfriend" - 4:28
- "How can you expect to be taken seriously?" (Classical reprise) - 3:05
- Tracks 2, 4 remixed by Brothers in Rhythm
[edit] CD: EMI USA / E2-56217 (US)
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (Original 7" Mix) - 4:31
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (12" Dance Mix) - 7:36
- "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you)" (Red Zone Mix) - 6:20
- "Bet she's not your girlfriend" - 4:28
- "I want a dog" (Techno Funk Mix) - 4:08
- Tracks 2-3 remixed by David Morales
[edit] Others
"Where the Streets Have No Name" has been covered by several other artists, including Vanessa Carlton (on her album Harmonium), Chris Tomlin (on the charity album In the Name of Love), Kane (on their live album With or Without You), Sugarland (live in concert), and MercyMe (in some live shows, including a live CD/DVD.)[18] Also, a group consisting of Flea (bass), Brad Wilk (drums), Tom Morello (acoustic guitar), Pete Yorn (guitar/vocals), Tim Walker (electric guitar), Serj Tankian (Vocals), Maynard James Keenan (vocals), and Jonny Polonsky (keyboard) performed a cover at a benefit performance in Los Angeles for the Axis of Justice.[19] "Where the Streets Have No Name" has also been covered in electronica form on Marcus Satellite's album The Marcus Satellite Tribute to U2. The beginning of the song is sampled in the beginning of Rise Again by DJ Sammy.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Where the Streets Have No Name. U2 Wanderer. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
- ^ The Joshua Tree. U2 Wanderer. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
- ^ Where the Streets Have No Name. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
- ^ a b c d Bono, Adam Clayton, The Edge, Larry Mullen Jr. (2006). in Neil McCormick: U2 by U2. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 0060776757.
- ^ Rock's Near Misses. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
- ^ a b c d e f Where the Streets Have No Name. Retrieved on 2007-10-23.
- ^ a b Bono Interview (transcript) - 2CR FM, 18 Nov. 2000. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
- ^ a b c d e Butler, Mark (January 2003), "Taking it seriously: intertextuality and authenticity in two covers by the Pet Shop Boys", Popular Music 22 (1): 1-19, ISSN 0261-143, <http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/blair%20chooses%20u2%20classic%20as%20favourite%20song_10128190>
- ^ Song Review: Where the Streets Have No Name. Retrieved on 2007-11-03.
- ^ Pond, Steve (1987-04-09). The Joshua Tree. Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2007-10-27.
- ^ The Joshua Tree. Retrieved on 2007-10-27.
- ^ U2 Climbs to Top with 'Joshua Tree'. Retrieved on 2007-10-27.
- ^ Where the Streets Have No Name Grammy Awards. Retrieved on 2007-10-27.
- ^ Race Against Time. U2wanderer.org. Archived from the original on 2008-02-14. Retrieved on 2008-02-14.
- ^ Heath, Chris (2001). "Where the streets have no name (I can't take my eyes off you". In Behaviour / Further Listening 1990-1991 [CD liner notes]. London: Pet Shop Boys Partnership.
- ^ Heath, Chris (2001). "How can you expect to be taken seriously?". In Behaviour / Further Listening 1990-1991 [CD liner notes]. London: Pet Shop Boys Partnership.
- ^ Complete Live 8 Setlist. Retrieved on 2007-10-27.
- ^ MercyMe Live DVD. Retrieved on 2007-10-27.
- ^ Axis of Justice Concert Series Volume 1 Track Listing. Retrieved on 2007-10-27.
[edit] External links
- U2.com entry
- Where the Streets Have No Name performance history
- U2Wanderer.org entry
- "Where the Streets Have No Name" video at YouTube
