For this week’s article we’re going way back – all the way back to the early days before U2 had released anything, let alone had any hits or chart-toppers. I’m talking about a song that U2 recorded in 1978 and which wasn’t released officially until 26 years later, “Street Mission”. To fully appreciate “Street Mission”, one has to start with the video. Yes, some of it is kind of cringe-worthy, but it’s also absolutely fascinating to catch a glimpse of the world’s biggest band before they had figured out how to be on stage. Some things haven’t really changed all that much – Bono’s theatrical antics are already evident, as is the fact that the whole U2 experience is grounded to Earth by their fantastic rhythm section – and other things have changed a lot, like the huge grin Larry flashes at about 1:50. The whole band’s fashion sense has improved quite a bit since the time that this was filmed, but I believe that to be a symptom of maturity more than an actual change in taste. My wife always cracks up when Edge turns his back to the camera at about 1:32. It’s such a teenage thing to do, full of aimless rebellion and a need to be defined by something more than the obvious. I can almost hear Edge saying “No, don’t look at me – just listen”

And what a rewarding experience it is if we follow that advice! “Street Mission” is, on the surface, fairly typical of the post-punk that young bands were churning out by this time in 1978. The pendulum that had swung hard toward punk rock a few short years earlier – defiantly against progressive rock and other sounds that dominated the radio waves in the early ’70’s – had already started swinging back in the other direction, toward more polished performances and skillful songwriting. Thankfully,  U2 were up to the task, as evidenced by the meaty guitar hook and churning, grinding foundation laid down by Adam and Larry of this song. Bono’s lyrics aren’t as accomplished, unfortunately, – that would come much later – but his adolescent wail was still passionate enough to carry the day.

One of the highlights of “Street Mission” starts at about 1:57 into the audio track (or 1:17 in the video linked to above) with Edge’s dynamite guitar solo. Uncharacteristic for what we’ve come to know of the man who intentionally went with the least dramatic guitar solo possible at the end of “With or Without You”, “Street Mission’s” solo goes on for a whole minute and a half. I haven’t actually crunched the numbers by comparing it to every other guitar solo that the Edge has ever played, but I can’t think of another example that even comes close to meeting that length, at least not that Edge recorded in a studio. And what a minute and a half it is!

“Street Mission” is a song that I’d bet my bottom dollar will never be played by U2 again in a live setting. We’re fortunate that the band saw fit to include this winning track on 2004’s The Complete U2 digital boxed set from iTunes. Otherwise, we’d have to rely on sub-par internet bootlegs to bask in this slab of teen-aged rock ‘n’ roll. Equally fortunate is the fact that U2 have come so far since 1978, even if there are some things that they haven’t left completely behind.