10 Rock Albums That Were A Nightmare To Make

Most people who saw it in real time remember where they were the first time they heard the Joshua Tree. Teaming up with Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois for the first time, this entire record is the sound of U2's musical ambitions being blown wide open, with some of the greatest anthems of the modern age in songs like With or Without You and Where the Streets Have No Name. In fact, the only reason why it sounds so good is the result of the near insanity the band had to go through to get there.

Instead of having everything plotted out beforehand, some of the more memorable parts of the record had to be drawn out in real time, with most of the band struggling to even find their place from one section to the next. Even with the more outlandish arrangement choices at play, these guys were thrown yet another curveball when the Edge showcased his delay techniques, with the entire band having to match that intensity.

The biggest job had to be Where the Streets Have No Name, which was so complex that Eno literally wrote out the arrangement on a chalkboard and nearly erased the whole thing after getting frustrated with the project. Despite the grueling hours and countless amounts of overdubbing, the Joshua Tree became the one record from the '80s that may very well outlive us all.