Boy (studio album) by U2

Boy by U2
Year: 1980
Overall rank: 804th   Overall chart historyOverall chart history
Average Rating: 
75/100 (from 763 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution   Average rating historyAverage rating history
Accolades:
Award Top 20 albums of 1980 (15th)
Award Top albums of the 1980s (122nd)
Award Top 1,000 albums of all time (804th)

U2 bestography

Boy is ranked 5th best out of 36 albums by U2 on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by U2 is The Joshua Tree which is ranked number 52 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 18,960.

U2 album bestography « Higher ranked (461st) This album (804th) Lower ranked (815th) »
The Unforgettable FireBoyAll That You Can't Leave Behind

Upcoming concerts

Jul
21
Mon
18:00
Heart Attack Man
Marquis, Denver, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jul
16
Wed
19:30
GOO GOO DOLLS with DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL - Summer Anthem Tour 2025
Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jul
12
Sat
21:00
Kitty's Rave (18+) - 2 Year Anniversary
Riverside Municipal Auditorium, Riverside, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Discover more upcoming concerts

Listen to Boy on YouTube

Loading content from YouTube...

Boy track list

  Track ratingsTrack ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 80 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

Sort by
#
Track
Rating/Comments
1.
Track pick
Rating: 85 (216 votes)Comments: 4
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
2.
Rating: 81 (134 votes)Comments: 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
3.
Rating: 80 (132 votes)Comments: 3
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
4.
Rating: 80 (127 votes)Comments: 0
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
5.
Rating: 84 (138 votes)Comments: 5
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
7.
Rating: 74 (113 votes)Comments: 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify

Track pick Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Boy rankings

Boy collection

Boy ratings

Average Rating: 
75/100 (from 763 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 763 ratings for this album.

Sort ratings
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
90/100
 Report rating
06/10/2025 13:30 robertoveltri  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 66080/100
 
60/100
 Report rating
06/09/2025 10:03 Invader666  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,86867/100
 
85/100
 Report rating
06/09/2025 09:03 MemphisDelft  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 11681/100
 
85/100
 Report rating
05/29/2025 17:04 mash  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,28289/100
 
70/100
 Report rating
05/12/2025 13:52 CharonBri  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,00175/100

Rating metrics: Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 11% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 74.8/100, a mean average of 73.8/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 74.8/100. The standard deviation for this album is 16.3.

Please log in or register if you want to be able to leave a rating

Boy comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 39 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Maximum Rated First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
85/100
From 08/04/2022 06:18
I love post-punk and it's very good debut album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
40/100
From 01/26/2022 17:02
The beginnings of the incredible guitar sound The Edge can produce. The best was definitely still to come. First half is great, second half is quite forgettable. My highlights are Twilight and I Will Follow.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 01/08/2022 15:30
A great record - I got into U2 about 83 so missed this on release but soon caught up. I loved the energy, the guitar sound. The first 3 albums are all that post-punk youthful energy before they move onto their next phase probably at Unforgettable Fire.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 05/01/2021 05:52
Post-punk U2, Joshua Tree U2, Achtung Baby U2 and ALTYCLB U2 are all different bands to me.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 01/04/2021 22:35
Its is a good album, when you consider how early in their development as a band it was released. By the time WAR was released they had moved to higher level.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 12/14/2020 04:40
Not my favorite, nut my mom’s favorite album of all time
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 05/11/2020 18:56
I find this debut a sheer delight. The bouncy excitement mixed with teenage fear of Bono's voice and that first taste of Edge's treble heavy guitar lines. It's beautiful. Naive of course, but what do you expect from 20 year olds? The Ocean sounds far too sophisticated for a group their age, and Shadows and Tall Trees is an echoing nightmare. Electric Co is terrifying and thrilling in equal measure. There's simply not a song I don't love.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 08/16/2019 11:33
A brilliant debut album. The production for this was spot on
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 01/27/2019 18:24
Graciosidade e força, canta os males da Irlanda enquanto buscam o seu som.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 01/05/2019 18:32
This album reminds me of "The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn" by Pink Floyd because, just like Pink Floyd's first album, U2's first album is very different from the style that's going to make them famous later. Both those bands' first album are awesome, unique and full of energy. Plus, they both make a great use of the guitar with a surf rock sound at some point.

I really like this album from beginning to end, especially "Twilight", "An Cat Dubh" and "The Electric Co.". Right now, it's my second favorite U2 album, second to "War" only. Don't overlook it!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Please log in or register if you want to be able to add a comment

Your feedback for Boy

Anonymous
Let us know what you think of this album by adding a comment or assigning a rating below!
Log in or register to assign a rating or leave a comment for this album.
Best Albums of 1980
1. Remain In Light by Talking Heads
2. Closer by Joy Division
3. Back In Black by AC/DC
4. Scary Monsters by David Bowie
5. Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables by Dead Kennedys
6. Peter Gabriel III by Peter Gabriel
7. The River by Bruce Springsteen
8. Permanent Waves by Rush
9. Pretenders by Pretenders
10. Making Movies by Dire Straits
11. Seventeen Seconds by The Cure
12. Crazy Rhythms by The Feelies
13. Sandinista! by The Clash
14. Heaven And Hell by Black Sabbath
15. Boy by U2
16. Ace Of Spades by Motörhead
17. Gaucho by Steely Dan
18. Duke by Genesis
19. Dirty Mind by Prince
20. Sound Affects by The Jam
Back to Top