All I Want is You was released in the era of U2 I enjoyed the most; namely between years 1987 and 1991 when the successive albums: The Joshua Tree, Rattle and Rum and Achtung Baby were produced. The last time I heard this song was just the other day when I saw the 1994 movie Reality Bites which will feature here next Friday. My favourite song from them is One which won’t be long in coming. All I Want is You is the final track on their 1988 album, Rattle and Hum, and was released as its fourth and final single June 1989.
I’m afraid I don’t like All I Want is You anywhere near like I used to. But this song resonated so much with me back then and I wanted to post it for mainly nostalgic reasons. To me it is a fragment of history representing that happy place in time when the world was not so bad, but ironically this song captures the disappointment, longing and sadness when we have lost someone.
[Verse 1]
You say you want
Diamonds on a ring of gold
You say you want
Your story to remain untold
[Chorus]
But all the promises we made
From the cradle to the grave
When all I want is you
[Verse 2]
You say you’ll give me
A highway with no one on it
Treasure just to look upon it
All the riches in the night
[Verse 3]
You say you’ll give me
Eyes in the moon of blindness
A river in a time of dryness
A harbour in the tempest
[Chorus]
But all the promises we make
From the cradle to the grave
When all I want is you
Excerpts from the Wikipedia article below:
It reached number 4 on the UK charts and number 2 in Australia. Director Meiert Avis shot the promotional video in the town of Ostia, outside Rome in 1989. The video takes an unusual cinematic approach to the song, with U2 band members making only brief cameo appearances. The video tells the story of a person with dwarfism, played by Paolo Risi, who falls in love with a trapeze artist, played by Paola Rinaldi. The video pays homage to Fellini, who was shooting his last movie, La voce della luna, only a few miles away from the U2 set, and also to Tod Browning’s 1932 film Freaks.
Reference:
1. All I Want Is You (U2 song) – Wikipedia
“The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know.”- Michel Legrand
Observation Blogger 
It’s been such a long time… I had to relisten to this song…yea I still like it…it’s off my favorite album by them.
Same here. It was only because of seeing Reality Bites that I thought I should have the song in there. It’s probably my favourite as well although Joshua Tree is up there.
We are in the minority… many people don’t like that album… I like the Americana in it
Yeh, I really like Van Diemens land and Love Rescue Me from it.
Great songs!
Caught the Joshua Tree tour in Detroit..long ago…
Sweet. What did you think?
It was perfect for the times. Loud stadium show.
Thanks for clarifying. That would have been an occasion hehe