U2: 10 Best Album Tracks

U2 are the biggest band to ever come out of Ireland (sorry, Westlife), having been on the go for over forty years, releasing 13 studio albums, winning countless awards - even seeing Bono make wearing sunglasses indoors a semi-acceptable thing around the world. The U2 of today strive on staying relevant in the Spotify/illegal streaming world, and never want to fall into the category of "rock legends on tour", like the Rolling Stones.

With a new album on the horizon in the coming months, this is arguably U2's last chance at remaining relevant - though if they knock it out of the park with a couple of radio/streaming hits, the U2 machine will be back at full throttle.

So, with U2 albums in mind, what are the band's greatest tracks?

Now don't expect hits like Pride, One or Beautiful Day on this list, as this is exclusively tracks from U2's 13 albums that were never officially released as singles.

Before getting into the top ten, here are a list of honorable mentions and the album they appear on - ones that despite not making the cut, deserve to be recognized all the same:

Boy - An Cat Dubh, October - Tomorrow, Rattle and Hum - Van Diemen's Land, Zooropa – Zooropa.

The tenth track off U2’s debut album, Boy. The title is in reference to Electric Convulsion Therapy (ECT), which was a popular treatment in Irish mental hospitals and was used to treat patients with psychiatry problems. The band felt that this treatment was inhumane, and wrote the song about a friend of the band who tried to kill himself and was taken to a psychiatric hospital where ECT was practised.

The song is carried by a blistering guitar from The Edge that builds into Bono relaying what happens to you before, during and after you experience ECT treatment. Other than I Will Follow, The Electric Co. is the rockiest U2 get on their debut album as the band show off their skills as musicians for the first time.

A big live favourite in the early days of the band due to Bono famously climbing and hanging off the various parts of the stage, the song was played on nearly every show until 1987, where it underwent an 18 year hiatus and was not played again until 2005.