Live at Red Rocks, Under a Blood Red Sky [VHS]

People more familiar with the U2 of the "Achtung Baby" and "Pop" albums should check out this video for educational purposes alone. Filemd June 3, 1983 on a rainy night in Denver, Colorado, the band supports their groundbreaking "War" album with this hour-long concert video. People expecting to see giant TV screens and twenty foot Lemons may be a bit disappointed and should probably look into their latter videos of the ZooTV or PopMart shows. This is nothing more than a great band and unbeleivably great music. Visual aids are stripped down to nothing more than a white flag waved by frontman Bono during "Sunday Bloody Sunday." And guitarist The Edge shows his truly unique style and technique on songs like "Surrender", "Gloria" and "I Threw a Brick Through a Window." By far, one of the best concert videos ever produced for the rock and roll medium, and a must-see for fans of great music.

This video captures one of U2's finest performances of all time. Okay there aren't scores of world-wide smash hits and giant TV screens, but what there is is plenty of raw stripped down music from one of the worlds greatest ever bands. This concert was shot at Red Rocks colorado in 1983. The rain poured throughout the show soaking the 4000 capacity crowd that had turned up to see ,then cult, heroes Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Junior. However the crowd were warmed by the passionate performance of 22 year old Bono. This video illustrates where U2 got the tag of being "Rock's Consience" from. The highlight of the video being Bono's flag waving antics during their biggest hit of the time Sunday Bloody Sunday. Other hits included are the UK no.3 song New Years Day and I Will Follow, but in the main the songs are probably much lesser known than hits of later days such as With or Without You. Nevertheless 11 'o' clock tic talk and Surrender are sung with a passion and rawness that makes them instantly enjoyable. For U2 fans this is a must have album and I would highly recommend it for any rock fan.

U2 were once a relevant contemporary band, that only existed in bed-sit land and to college students walking left of the line. This CD essentially features live versions of tracks from all of U2's first three albums, and was the moment U2 simultaneously proved their formidable live and energetic reputation. When this EP was originally conceived U2 were a clumsy if not shy bunch of Irish upstarts who were mastering their trade..

"Anyone interested in retracing U2's meteoric rise in relocating what made them an 80s touchstone at a time when their flirtations with earnestness came across more as combativeness rather than self-righteousness would do well to start here. Under a Blood Red Sky, however, allows the opportunity to revel in the sheer excitement of early U2 as they really hit their stride, without the distraction of Bono's always dubious mullet concoction, his drunken-auntie-at-a-wedding dance moves. The EP actually has very little to do with the Red Rocks concert (only two of the eight tracks were recorded there) but this is its masterstroke. The recordings set out to build a new legend from the iconic silhouette cover onwards. The sequencing is a part of this genius, sprinkling end-of-set highlights amongst other lesser-known songs, culled from three different shows, to create a truly visceral and consistently exciting listen. The Edge, in particular has rarely, if ever, sounded better. Under a Blood Red Sky does what you may have thought impossible: reminds the listener that U2 were once a relevant contemporary band. One of its greatest assets is its freedom from accepted U2 legend this is before Live Aid, before The Joshua Tree and, as such it is carried along by the evolving band's desire and sheer enjoyment. Forget the first four albums - this is probably the only early U2 you really need. The only release where they really sound like they still matter.

A quarter-century after its first appearance, Under a Blood Red Sky remains the best summation of pre-Eno U2. A year on, and The Unforgettable Fire would herald the arrival of New, cappy U2, and Bono's gusty parasitic self-righteousness would be working up to the messianic mistral we know today.

Hearing Under A Blood Red Sky again all these years later has forced me to reconsider my original opinion. Hearing U2 once again as the hungry young band they once were -- playing as though their lives depended on it is, I have to admit, a real treat.

Bono in particular is a house of fire here. What comes through most is the fact that Bono clearly knows how lucky he is to be here. You can hear it clearly on the great versions of classic U2 songs like "Gloria" and "I Will Follow" that are included here. In the performances captured here, there's a fire burning deep within the collective belly of this band, and it definitely shows. It's a little hard to believe that the wide-eyed mulleted kid heard here is the same Bono who would later have private audiences with presidents and popes, although the politics do creep into the mix on War's "Sunday Bloody Sunday," which Bono intros by saying "this song is not a rebel song." Likewise, it's a bit strange to think that U2 was once regarded as a punk rock band. Especially since The Edge's ringing guitar powers the band's sound in a way that all but screams big arena rock. Still, the energy level approaches punk levels more often than not, and the rhythm section of bassist Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen doesn't let up here for a second. The bottom line is that as great a band as U2 remain, they've never really just all-out rocked the way they do here. Not in all the years since.

An excellent live document, U2's "Under a Blood Red Sky" showcases the band at its earliest incarnation, all energy and protest, doing some of their best songs from 1980 through 1983.

Fanstaic