One of the things that I really love about U2 is that they hang out with some really cool people. Some artists that I’d have very likely missed out on entirely if it weren’t for their U2 connections. A great example is Emmylou Harris, whose absolutely stunningly beautiful 1995 album Wrecking Ball features performances from Larry on several tracks, not to mention some stellar production and guitar from Daniel Lanois. The album was just reissued with a second disc of demos and alternate versions, some of which also feature our own Mr. Mullen. If you’ve never checked out this album, I cannot stress enough how wonderful it is. Another great piece of work that I’d have missed entirely if not for the U2 connection is Andrea Corr’s Ten Feet High album, which Bono and Gavin Friday both executively produced (which usually means simply that they helped pay for it, but I have a suspicion that both Gavin and Bono were a little more involved with this project than that). This album isn’t as breathtaking as the one mentioned above, but it’s far from the throw-away pop music that I suspected it would be, and there are some surprisingly good melodies here, too. Andrea still sings through her nose, but on the whole, this record is well worth a listen, and has a few songs that are so uplifting and joyful that they make me genuinely glad to be alive. There are many many more examples of artists who I would have never sought out if not for U2, and I’m eternally grateful to them for expanding my horizons like they have.