How U2 turned a ‘Bomb’ into their last classic album 20 years ago: ‘We were very lucky’

nypost.com:

“Vertigo,” “Sometimes You Can’t Make It on Your Own” and “City of Blinding Lights,” the group’s 11th studio LP would go multiplatinum and win them eight of their 22 Grammys — including a second Album of the Year prize after 1987’s seminal “The Joshua Tree.”Reinforcing their relevance as Bono’s boys gave way from alt-rock to aughts rock, it turned middle age into an “Atomic” age for U2.Boom.And who better to help U2 recapture their unforgettable fire than Lillywhite — who had produced the band’s first three albums: 1980’s “Boy,” 1981’s “October” and 1983’s “War,” while also contributing to “The Joshua Tree.”“They were feeling a bit depressed,” recalled Lillywhite, 69. “When they see me, they perk up because it reminds them of when they were young, I suppose.”Indeed, the British producer — who has also worked with everyone from the Rolling Stones to Dave Matthews Band and The Killers — has known U2 since Day One.“When I first worked with them, I was 24 and the eldest member of the band was 19,” he explained. “Bono was 19 and Larry [Mullen Jr., the drummer] was 17 when we recorded their first album.