The Unforgettable Fire

Following the flag-waving, speaker-climbing, tub-thumping populism of the War tour, U2 consciously wanted to reinvent themselves. Island Record boss Chris Blackwell was concerned that their choice of Brian Eno and engineer Daniel Lanois as producers would find them buried under a layer of avant-garde nonsense; the early sessions for The Unforgettable Fire took place in the ballroom of Slane Castle, where the experimentation reportedly included a day of naked recording. But Blackwell was spectacularly wrong. The album, released October 1st, 1984, was a classic. Although markedly European in its ambient atmospherics and orchestral manoeuvres in the light, Bono still had his lyrical eye on America – as evidenced in songs such as ‘Pride (In the Name Of Love)’ and ‘4th Of July’. The title track, live favourite ‘Bad’ and ‘Promenade’ were other stand-outs.

No 12 in 2009, as voted for by over 200 Irish musicians. Down from No 9 in 2004.