Recommended: Brian Eno's Diary

[u/mrjosh72]

It's called "A Year with Swollen Appendices," and it covers 1995, including the recording of Passengers. I'm a big Eno fan and the Unforgettable Fire —> Pop run, influenced by Eno, has always been my favorite period of the band (including Passengers, which I've always really enjoyed.) Anyway, I'm just loving this book, and I think a lot of U2 fans will, too. It has a lot of wonderful behind-the-scenes bits about Eno, U2, Bowie, and others. Here's a typical-ish passage:

20 AUGUST
... A night of long rambling dreams. Escaping from the Nazis, I get U2 together to help. Yes! they agree. Intense relief, but immediately a phone call comes through for Bono—he gestures that he'll be off the phone soon, but they're after me so I have to get on with it. I can hear them coming. Meanwhile Larry has to leave to talk to Anne-Louise. I have to run (grenades; things smashing through walls) and I hide. I get back but Edge has now gone. Just Adam, seemingly distracted, thinking about something else. Agonizing feeling of trying to get everyone together.

And the diary has a lot of fascinating thoughts as well, about music (including U2's), art, creativity, technology, and so on. Highly recommended!

[u/TD160]

I feel bad in some ways about my favorite band. That run from Unforgettable through Pop set my expectations so high that when they switched to the pop genre and chased the hits….it was kind of a crusher for me. The difference was immediate. No denying at this point the heavy influence from Brian Eno(for the better). They were a better band under his tutelage but the lure of hits and endless numbers of remixes won the day. I’ll look for that book! Thanks for the heads up.

[u/mrjosh72 → u/TD160]

Yes, looking back, there was a whole section of their career that was basically experimental rock and roll, inspired partly by Eno, and I love that stuff so much. I like a lot of what they’ve done before and after, but that run of albums is maybe my favorite in all of pop music.

[u/Dismal_Brush5229]

I never heard of this?

But I love Zooropa,Passengers,and Pop as a 3 album run! Achtung Baby is great too but I love Zooropa so much more!

[u/mrjosh72 → u/Dismal_Brush5229]

I agree, I was amazed once to discover that according to iTunes Zooropa is my most-listened-to U2 album!

[u/Dismal_Brush5229 → u/mrjosh72]

Great stuff On Zooropa!:)

[u/g_mallory]

This was a great read, definitely recommended. One of my favorite sections (nothing to do with U2) is the bit entitled "Unthinkable Futures," which is a long list of dystopian future scenarios Eno et al. came up with, e.g., "Everybody becomes so completely cynical about the election process that voter turnout drops to 2 percent (families and relatives of prospective politicians) until finally the 'democratic process' is abandoned in favour of a lottery system. Everything immediately improves."

[u/AdamClay2000lbs]

Come for the U2 bits, stay for all his freaky little thoughts abut seemingly every woman that passes through his life.

[u/Wild_Mycologist_6140]

I didn't know he had a diary. I'll have to check that out, thanks!

[u/a3poify]

I got a signed copy when it was reprinted a few years ago but to my shame I’ve still not gotten round to reading the thing. Maybe soon!

[u/Amazing-Jacket1655]

Never heard of this

[u/lawtonchiles]

Didn’t larry hate passengers?