I was thinking about St Patrick’s day today. I have never involved myself in the festivities of that day, other than wearing a green shirt if it works out for wherever I have to be. But, then again, I don’t like beer and dying it green would not increase it’s appeal. So, I was thinking of Irish things i could speak of and I just don’t know much about Ireland, period.

I do know a great deal about the band U2, however. When I was 13 and awkward I went into a thrift store and bought two U2 cassettes: October, which I loved, but found it difficult to sing along to and The Joshua Tree. I honestly wore that tape out. True, it was released four years earlier, but in our home secular music was not tolerated and more than once we were forced to throw out music that we had bought without parental permission. So, I never really had a sense of what was popular at the current time for music.

We all know that Bono has become an almost intolerable force in the past decade, but when he was young and less UN savvy, he made some of the greatest music ever. Here are the band’s top 7 songs:

7.Beautiful Day

I will start off with their overplayed anthem. I played this song when my son was born in 2001. Some nurse accidentally pushed “play” on the CD player when I was still in the push phase of labor. I told her to turn it off as it was not yet a Beautiful Day. I do like knowing that this was the first thing I heard when I saw Max’s head of red hair that he got from me and only me. I tell him about it sometimes. It doesn’t embarrass him yet, but someday when he is 16 and I tell that story to his friends he will slap his hand on his face and tell me to stop.

6.Gloria

Look at the band’s hair in here. It is so great. Also great, the guitar.

5.Where the Streets Have No Name

Amazing. My favorite video of all time. It’s the longer version but it shows the story behind it. Greatest musical intro to a song ever.
4.Walk On

Good song. Stupid Video. Open a new tab or something so you don’t have to see this nonsense.

3. A Celebration

Red Pants are hot.

2.With or Without You

I remember one episode of the TV show friends when Ross played this song for Rachel on the radio. When the episode aired for the first time my cousin (a fellow U2 frenzied fan) and I had simultaneous cows several states away and one of us called the other on the phone and we screamed to each other. Girls are weird.

1.Stay (Faraway So Close)

I have no idea why I love this song so much. But I do. I also love the video that only makes sense in Bono’s head. Silly Irish drunk Bono.

After composing this list, as I do with most, I realize that I missed many of their greatest songs. So sue me. Sue would be a difficult name to have.