U2: The Edge (vocals, guitar, keyboards); Bono (vocals, guitar); Adam Clayton (bass); Larry Mullen Jr. (drums).
Additional personnel: B.B. King (vocals, guitar); Brian Eno (keyboards); Tom Petty, Benmont Tench, The Memphis Horns, Bob Dylan, The New Voices Of Freedom.
Recorded live during the Joshua Tree Tour in the U.S. and Europe in 1987.
The aural companion to the band documentary of the same name, RATTLE AND HUM is where U2's began to tire of being the anthem-making rock heroes they had become in the '80s. That's not to say the songs didn't approach serious subject matter, but there was more musical and lyrical diversity than on albums past. They repeatedly play with the rock & roll myth throughout RATTLE AND HUM, covering the Beatles' "Helter Skelter" and Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower," casting aspersions on "the golden age of pop" on "God Part II" and busting out their own blistering version of the Bo Diddley beat on the irresistible "Desire."
The band began to explore American roots music as well. "Angel of Harlem," a tune about Billie Holiday, was recorded in Memphis' famed Sun Studios. Bono makes his first official Gospel foray on "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." The lads from Dublin even collaborate with B.B. King on "When Love Comes To Town." RATTLE & HUM is wonderfully schizophrenic, full of passion and ambition.
What the critics say...
Rolling Stone - 3.5 Stars - Very Good
CMJ (1/5/04, p.26) - Ranked #7 in CMJ's "Top 20 Most-Played Albums of 1989"
