The Best of 1980–1990

The Best of 1980–1990
Video by U2
Released	April 1999
Recorded	1980–1989, 1998
Genre	Rock, post-punk, roots rock
Length	138 mins
Label	Island / PolyGram
Director	Donald Cammell, Meiert Avis, Barry Devlin, Gavin Taylor, Phil Joanou, et al.
U2 chronology

Professional ratings
Review scores
Allmusic; (Standard edition)
Allmusic; (The B sides)
Entertainment Weekly	B
Robert Christgau
Rolling Stone

"Sweetest Thing"
The Best of 1980 –1990
	File:U2bestof19801990.jpg
Greatest hits album by U2
Released	2 November 1998
Recorded	1980–1989
Genre	Rock, post-punk
Length	65:35
Label	Island
Producer	Brian Eno, Daniel Lanois, Steve Lillywhite, Jimmy Iovine, U2, St. Francis Xavier
U2 chronology
Singles from The Best of 1980-1990
	"Sweetest Thing"; Released: 1998;

The Best of 1980–1990 is the first greatest hits compilation by Irish rock band U2, released in November 1998. It mostly contains the group's hit singles from the eighties but also mixes in some live staples as well as one new recording, "Sweetest Thing." In April 1999, a companion video (featuring music videos and live footage) was released. The album was followed by another compilation, The Best of 1990–2000, in 2002.

A limited edition version containing a special B-sides disc was released a week earlier than the single-disc version. At the time of release, the official word was that the 2-disc album would be available the first week the album went on sale, then pulled from the stores. While this threat never materialized, it did result in the 2-disc version being in very high demand. Both versions charted in the Billboard 200.

The boy on the cover is Peter Rowen, brother of Bono's friend Guggi (real name Derek Rowen) of the Virgin Prunes. He also appears on the covers of the early EP Three, two of the band's first three albums (Boy and War), and Early Demos.

Track listing

Disc one

All music composed by U2, with lyrics by Bono.

No.	Title	Album	Length
1.	"Pride (In the Name of Love)"	The Unforgettable Fire (1984)	3:48
2.	"New Year's Day" (Japanese single version)	War (1983)	4:17
3.	"With or Without You"	The Joshua Tree (1987)	4:55
4.	"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"	The Joshua Tree	4:38
5.	"Sunday Bloody Sunday"	War	4:40
6.	"Bad" (Edited version)	The Unforgettable Fire	5:50
7.	"Where the Streets Have No Name" (Edited version)	The Joshua Tree	4:35
8.	"I Will Follow"	Boy (1980)	3:36
9.	"The Unforgettable Fire"	The Unforgettable Fire	4:53
10.	"Sweetest Thing" (Single mix)	Newly recorded version	3:00
11.	"Desire"	Rattle and Hum (1988)	2:59
12.	"When Love Comes to Town"	Rattle and Hum	4:17
13.	"Angel of Harlem"	Rattle and Hum	3:49
14.	"All I Want Is You" / "October" (Hidden track)	Rattle and Hum October (1981)	6:30 2:21
Total length:			65:35

Japan bonus track
No.	Title	Album	Length
15.	"One Tree Hill" / "October" (Hidden track)	The Joshua Tree October	5:24 2:21
Total length:			69:32

Disc two (Limited Edition B-sides Disc)

All songs written and composed by U2, except where noted.

No.	Title	Originally Released on	Length
1.	"The Three Sunrises"	"The Unforgettable Fire" single	3:52
2.	"Spanish Eyes"	"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" single	3:14
3.	"Sweetest Thing"	"Where the Streets Have No Name" single	3:03
4.	"Love Comes Tumbling"	"The Unforgettable Fire" single	4:40
5.	"Bass Trap" (Best Of edit)	"The Unforgettable Fire" single	3:31
6.	"Dancing Barefoot" (extended version; Patti Smith, Ivan Kral)	"When Love Comes to Town" single	4:45
7.	"Everlasting Love" (Buzz Cason, Mac Gayden)	"All I Want Is You" single	3:20
8.	"Unchained Melody" (Alex North, Hy Zaret)	"All I Want Is You" single	4:52
9.	"Walk to the Water"	"With or Without You" single	4:49
10.	"Luminous Times (Hold on to Love)"	"With or Without You" single	4:35
11.	"Hallelujah Here She Comes" (Best Of edit)	"Desire" single	4:00
12.	"Silver and Gold"	"Where the Streets Have No Name" single	4:37
13.	"Endless Deep"	"Two Hearts Beat as One" single	2:57
14.	"A Room at the Heartbreak Hotel" (Best Of edit)	"Angel of Harlem" single	4:32
15.	"Trash, Trampoline and the Party Girl"	"A Celebration" single	2:33
Total length:			59:53

Note: The version of "Bass Trap" found on this compilation is a shortened edit from the original 5:14 version found on the "The Unforgettable Fire 12" single EP of 1985. Same goes for the version of "A Room at the Heartbreak Hotel" which is an edit from the original version (5:29) on the "Angel Of Harlem" single from 1989.

Chart positions and certifications

Charts

Chart (1998)	Peak position
Australian Top 50 Albums^[7]	1
Austrian Top 75 Albums^[8]	1
Belgium (Flanders) 100 Albums^[9]	1
Belgium (Wallonia) 100 Albums^[10]	1
Canadian Albums Chart^[11]	1
Finnish Top 50 Albums^[12]	3
French Compilations^[13]	1
German Albums^[14]	1
Netherlands Top 100 Albums^[15]	1
New Zealand Top 40 Albums^[16]	1
Norwegian Top 40 Albums^[17]	2
Swedish Top 60 Albums^[18]	1
Swiss Top 100 Albums^[19]	1
UK Albums Chart^[20]	1
US Billboard 200^[11]	2

Chart (2005)	Peak position
Danish Top 40 Albums^[21]	8
Spanish Top 100 Albums^[22]	46

Certifications

Region	Certification	Sales/shipments
Argentina (CAPIF)^[23] Standard edition	3× Platinum	180,000
Argentina (CAPIF)^[24] + B-Sides	Platinum	60,000
Australia (ARIA)^[25]	8× Platinum	560,000
Austria (IFPI Austria)^[26]	2× Platinum	100,000
Belgium (BEA)^[27]	6× Platinum	300,000
Canada (Music Canada)^[28]	6× Platinum	600,000
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)^[29]	Platinum	50,000
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)^[30]	Gold	29,864^[30]
France (SNEP)^[31]	2× Platinum	600,000
Germany (BVMI)^[32]	Platinum	500,000
Greece (IFPI Greece)^[33]	2× Platinum	60,000
Hungary (MAHASZ)^[34]	Gold
Italy (FIMI)^[35]	Gold	50,000
2× Gold	200,000
New Zealand (RMNZ)^[37]	9× Platinum	135,000
Norway (IFPI Norway)^[38]	Platinum	50,000
Poland (ZPAV)^[39]	Platinum	100,000
Spain (PROMUSICAE)^[40]	4× Platinum	400,000
Sweden (GLF)^[41]	Gold	40,000
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)^[42]	3× Platinum	150,000
United Kingdom (BPI)^[43]	5× Platinum	1,500,000
United States (RIAA)^[44] Standard edition	2× Platinum	2,000,000
United States (RIAA)^[45] + B-Sides	2× Platinum	1,000,000
Summaries
Europe (IFPI)^[46]	7× Platinum	7,000,000
^*sales figures based on certification alone ^{^}shipments figures based on certification alone ^xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Video

Music and words by U2. All tracks have been remastered for this release.

"Pride (In the Name of Love)"
"New Year's Day"
"With or Without You"
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"
"Sunday Bloody Sunday" (from U2 Live at Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky)
"Bad" (from Rattle and Hum)
"Where the Streets Have No Name"
"I Will Follow"
"The Unforgettable Fire"
"Sweetest Thing"
"Desire"
"When Love Comes to Town"
"Angel of Harlem"
"All I Want Is You"
"One Tree Hill" (Live - from a previously unreleased cut of Rattle and Hum)

Personnel

Bono – lead vocals
The Edge – guitar, keyboards, vocals
Adam Clayton – bass guitar
Larry Mullen, Jr. – drums

References

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External links

The Best of 1980–1990 (standard edition) at U2 Wanderer, with comprehensive details on various editions, cover scans, lyrics, and more
The Best of 1980–1990 (limited edition) at U2 Wanderer
The Best of 1980–1990 (video) at U2 Wanderer

Preceded by I've Been Expecting You by Robbie Williams	UK number one album 14 November 1998 – 20 November 1998	Succeeded by Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael by George Michael
Preceded by The Living End by The Living End	Australian ARIA Albums Chart number-one album 9 November – 6 December 1998 28 December 1998 – 3 January 1999	Succeeded by Chef Aid: The South Park Album by Various artists

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Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic (Standard edition)	^[2]
Allmusic (The B sides)	^[3]
Entertainment Weekly	B^[4]
Robert Christgau	^[5]
Rolling Stone	^[6]

v t e U2
Bono The Edge Adam Clayton Larry Mullen Jr. Dik Evans Ivan McCormick
Studio albums	Boy October War The Unforgettable Fire The Joshua Tree Rattle and Hum Achtung Baby Zooropa Pop All That You Can't Leave Behind How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb No Line on the Horizon Songs of Innocence Songs of Experience Songs of Surrender
Compilations and EPs	Three Wide Awake in America Please: PopHeart Live EP The Best of 1980–1990 7 The Best of 1990–2000 Exclusive The Complete U2 Live from Under the Brooklyn Bridge U218 Singles Wide Awake in Europe
Live albums, fan-club releases, and other albums	Under a Blood Red Sky Melon: Remixes for Propaganda Original Soundtracks 1 Hasta la Vista Baby! U2 Live from Mexico City Live from the Point Depot U2.Communication Zoo TV Live U2 Go Home: Live from Slane Castle, Ireland Live from Paris Medium, Rare & Remastered Artificial Horizon Duals U22 From the Ground Up: Edge's Picks from U2360°
Singles	"Out of Control" "Another Day" "11 O'Clock Tick Tock" "A Day Without Me" "I Will Follow" "Fire" "Gloria" "A Celebration" "I Will Follow" "New Year's Day" "Two Hearts Beat as One" "Sunday Bloody Sunday" "Pride (In the Name of Love)" "The Unforgettable Fire" "With or Without You" "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" "Where the Streets Have No Name" "In God's Country" "One Tree Hill" "Desire" "Angel of Harlem" "When Love Comes to Town" "All I Want Is You" "The Fly" "Mysterious Ways" "One" "Even Better Than the Real Thing" "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses" "Numb" "Lemon" "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" "Miss Sarajevo" (ft. Luciano Pavarotti) "Discothèque" "Staring at the Sun" "Last Night on Earth" "Please" "If God Will Send His Angels" "Mofo" "Sweetest Thing" "Beautiful Day" "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" "Elevation" "Walk On" "Electrical Storm" "Take Me to the Clouds Above" "Vertigo" "All Because of You" "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own" "City of Blinding Lights" "The Saints Are Coming" (ft. Green Day) "Window in the Skies" "The Ballad of Ronnie Drew" "Get On Your Boots" "Magnificent" "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" "Ordinary Love" "Invisible" "The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)" "Every Breaking Wave" "Song for Someone" "You're the Best Thing About Me" "Get Out of Your Own Way" "Love Is Bigger Than Anything in Its Way" "Your Song Saved My Life" "Atomic City"
Other songs	"An Cat Dubh / Into the Heart" "The Electric Co." "October" "Seconds" "Red Light" "A Sort of Homecoming" "4th of July" "Bad" "Elvis Presley and America" "MLK" "Bullet the Blue Sky" "Running to Stand Still" "Red Hill Mining Town" "Trip Through Your Wires" "Exit" "Mothers of the Disappeared" "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" "Hawkmoon 269" "Heartland" "God Part II" "Night and Day" "Zoo Station" "Until the End of the World" "So Cruel" "Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World" "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" "Acrobat" "Love Is Blindness" "Zooropa" "Daddy's Gonna Pay for Your Crashed Car" "Dirty Day" "The Wanderer" "Slug" "Your Blue Room" "Gone" "Kite" "In a Little While" "Wild Honey" "Peace on Earth" "When I Look at the World" "New York" "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" "The Hands That Built America" "Miracle Drug" "A Man and a Woman" "One Step Closer" "Original of the Species" "Yahweh" "Instant Karma!" "No Line on the Horizon" "Moment of Surrender" "Unknown Caller" "Stand Up Comedy" "Fez – Being Born" "White as Snow" "Breathe" "Cedars of Lebanon" "Winter" "XXX"
Videos and films	U2 Live at Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky The Unforgettable Fire Collection Rattle and Hum Zoo TV: Live from Sydney PopMart: Live from Mexico City Elevation 2001: Live from Boston U2 Go Home: Live from Slane Castle, Ireland Vertigo 2005: Live from Chicago Vertigo 05: Live from Milan U218 Videos Live from Paris U2 3D Linear U2360° at the Rose Bowl From the Sky Down Innocence + Experience: Live in Paris
Tours and concerts	October Tour War Tour The Unforgettable Fire Tour Live Aid A Conspiracy of Hope The Joshua Tree Tour Vaillancourt Fountain concert Lovetown Tour Zoo TV Tour PopMart Tour concert in Sarajevo Elevation Tour Super Bowl XXXVI halftime show Vertigo Tour U2 360° Tour Innocence + Experience Tour The Joshua Tree Tour 2017 Experience + Innocence Tour The Joshua Tree Tour 2019 U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere
Related articles	Awards and nominations Discography Songs Covers of U2 songs The Million Dollar Hotel (soundtrack) Mother Records AHK-toong BAY-bi Covered U2 by U2 U2 Tower Paul McGuinness Guy Oseary Bram van den Berg
Category Timeline

The Best of 1980–1990

Contents

Track listing

Disc one

Disc two (Limited Edition B-sides Disc)

Chart positions and certifications

Charts

Certifications

Video

Personnel

See also

References

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