Joshua Tree Double LP

By Bill Tiede

There are many interviews with the band when Joshua Tree first came out of how many songs they had for this album. One interview was on Radio One in Dublin, with Dave Fanning, where Bono talks about how they originally thought of releasing a double album, but there were so few good 2lp releases (he mentions B. Dylan's Blonde on Blonde as being a good one) and he felt that their pared down version of JT was almost "too much" as in heavy, for one listen anyways. So Bono and Edge argued over which tracks to release on the album, and they decided as a group to release the additional tracks as B-sides.

I pored through other interviews and stories, and found one in Hot Press (Irelands version of Rolling Stone, sorta) as reprinted in America in Three Chords and the Truth, a book you may be able to still special order. Its from Harmony Books.

The following is repeated verbatim without permission from Hot Press, December, 1987, from an article and interview with Edge and Bono:

[Edge:] "... For instance, we disagreed vehemently about what songs should go on the album. If Bono had his way, 'The Joshua Tree' would have been more American and bluesy, and I was trying to pull it back."

That compromise led to the later flood of new B-side tracks. Bono will argue that "the album is almost incomplete. 'With or Without You' doesn't really make sense without 'Walk to the Water' or 'Luminous Times'. And 'Trip Through Your Wires' doesn't make that much sense without 'Sweetest Thing.'

[end of excerpt]

Of all the b-sides, only Race Against Time doesn't really cut it as an album track. Anyways, I put the b-sides where I thought they belonged based on the information available through these interviews and what sounded right to meand made a restored version. Maybe someday, the band will release the full version (and correct that annoying track index problem with Exit and One Tree Hill!)

Tracklisting for restored Joshua Tree:

Side A: Side B:
Where The Streets Have No Name Red Hill Mining Town
Silver And Gold (studio) In God's Country
I Still Haven't Found... Trip Through Your Wires
Spanish Eyes Sweetest Thing
With Or Without You One Tree Hill
Luminous Times Deep In The Heart
Walk To The Water Exit
Bullet The Blue Sky Race Against Time
Running To Stand Still Mothers Of The Disappeared

Well, there you are!

Bill :)
[email protected]

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From: "Mark B. G."
Subject: save this for a rainy day

Here is how to make the Joshua Tree in it's intended form.
Note: you need a 90 minute cassette

SIDE A:
1. WHERE THE STREETS HAVE NO NAME, from JT album
2. SILVER AND GOLD, from Where The Streets Have No Name single
3. I STILL HAVEN'T FOUND WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR, from JT album
4. SPANISH EYES, from I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
5. WITH OR WITHOUT YOU, from JT album
6. LUMINOUS TIMES (HOLD ON TO LOVE), With Or Without You single
7. WALK TO THE WATER, With Or Without You single
8. BULLET THE BLUE SKY, from JT album
9. RUNNING TO STAND STILL, from JT album

SIDE B:
1. RED HILL MINING TOWN, from JT album
2. IN GOD'S COUNTRY, from JT album
3. TRIP THROUGH YOUR WIRES, from JT album
4. THE SWEETEST THING, Where The Streets Have No Name single
5. ONE TREE HILL, from JT album
6. DEEP IN THE HEART, I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking
7. EXIT, from JT album
8. RACE AGAINST TIME, Where The Streets Have No Name single
9. MOTHERS OF THE DISAPPEARED, from JT album.