It’s Friday, so here’s the video for “Numb” by U2

I know this is a wildly unpopular opinion, but Zooropa is my favorite U2 album. It’s certainly not their best, but it’s the one I’ve personally enjoyed the most.

You know that signature U2 sound that won them millions of fans in their early days, and then won them all back and then some when they returned to it after a brief period of experimentation in the nineties? Well, I’ve always preferred their experimental stuff. Pop was a bit of a low point, sure, but you know what I mean.

For all its faults and indulgences, Zooropa is a fine record. “Lemon” and “Stay (Faraway, So Close!)” rank among the band’s stronger tracks, and the production work of Flood and Brian Eno is felt throughout the disc in wonderful ways. And who’s that nailing the vocals on the closing track? Why, it’s Johnny Cash, in a performance that’s all the more haunting now that he’s actually gone home to Jesus!

And then, of course, there’s “Numb,” a standout track for The Edge and an unlikely hit for the band. It was released as a video single, which was an unusual move for the early nineties, but one that was well suited to such an instantly iconic video.

Oh, and remember when I told you about EBN the other day? They produced a video remix of the track, which was also included on the single. U2 went on to use elements of this version in their live performances of the song.

Finally, just for the sake of covering all the bases, here’s an altogether different version that “Weird Al” Yankovic performed live on Canadian television all those years ago.

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