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U2

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U2 are a rock band from Dublin, Ireland. Formed in 1976, U2 have consistently been one of the most popular acts in the world since the mid 1980s. The band has sold upwards of 170 million albums worldwide.[1] With six #1 albums in the U.S. and nine #1 albums in the UK, U2 are one of the most successful acts of all time. They have won 22 Grammy awards,[2] more than any other recording artist.

U2
This article is about the Irish rock band. For other uses, see U2 (disambiguation).

Bono (vocals and occasional guitar), The Edge (guitar, vocals and keyboards), Adam Clayton (bass guitar), and Larry Mullen, Jr. (drums and percussion) formed the band as teenagers at a time when they had limited musical proficiency. However, by the mid 1980s, they had released four albums and developed a devoted international following, largely from extensive touring. They reached a level of mega-stardom with their 1987 release The Joshua Tree. In the early 1990s, they replied to the dance and alternative music revolutions, criticism of their image, and their own sense of musical stagnation, with the critically-acclaimed Achtung Baby and the groundbreaking Zoo TV Tour. Although U2 had already developed a reputation for pursuing new musical paths with each new album, this time the band had ostensibly re-invented themselves; this experimentation was to continue for the rest of the 1990s.

In the early years of the 21st century, U2 have pursued a more traditional sound while maintaining some influence of their previous musical explorations, and continue to enjoy the highest level of commercial and critical success. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked U2 #22 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[3] In 2005, U2 were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the first year they were eligible. The band is known for being politically active in human rights and social justice causes, such as Make Poverty History, the ONE Campaign, Live Aid, Live 8, Bono's DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade in Africa) campaign, and The Edge's Music Rising.

History

Formation and breakthrough (1976–1979)

U2 formed in Dublin, Ireland on 25 September 1976. Larry Mullen, Jr., then fourteen, posted a notice on his secondary school notice board (Mount Temple Comprehensive School) seeking musicians for a new band. Seven boys attended the initial practice in Mullen's kitchen. Known for about a day as "The Larry Mullen Band," the group featured Mullen on drums, Adam Clayton on bass guitar, Paul Hewson (Bono) on lead vocals, Dave Evans (The Edge) and his brother Dik Evans on guitar, as well as Ivan McCormick and Peter Martin, two other friends of Mullen.[4] Soon after, the group settled on the name 'Feedback', because it was one of the few musical terms they knew. Martin did not return after the first practice, and McCormick left the group within a few weeks.

We couldn't believe it. I was completely shocked. We weren't of an age to go out partying as such but I don't think anyone slept that night....Really, it was just a great affirmation to win that competition, even though I've no idea how good we were or what the competition was really like. But to win at that point was incredibly important for morale and everyone's belief in the whole project.

—The Edge on winning the CBS competition [5]

In March 1977, the band changed its name to 'The Hype'.[6] Dik Evans, who was older and by this time at college, was becoming the odd man out as the rest of the band was leaning towards the idea of a four-piece; he was 'phased out' in March 1978. During a farewell concert in the Presbyterian Church Hall in Howth, which featured The Hype playing covers, Dik ceremoniously walked offstage. The remaining four band members completed the concert playing original material as 'U2'.[7] The origin of the name 'U2' is not clear. It is the name of a famous 1960s surveillance plane, the Lockheed U-2; however, the Dublin punk rock guru Steve Averill (better known as Steve Rapid of The Radiators From Space) claimed it was chosen by the band from a list of ten names created by him and Adam Clayton. In an interview with Larry King, Bono said "I don't actually like the name U2," and "I honestly never thought of it as 'you too'."[8]

On Saint Patricks Day 1978, U2 won a talent show in Limerick, Ireland for which the prize was £500 and funding to record a demo; an important milestone and affirmation for the fledgling band.[7] In May, Paul McGuinness, who had earlier been introduced to the band by Hot Press journalist Bill Graham, agreed to be U2's manager.

 
U2's first release, the Three EP.

U2's early sound was influenced by bands such as Television and Joy Division, and contains a sense of exhilaration that resulted from The Edge's "radiant chords" and Bono's "ardent vocals".[9] U2's first release, an Ireland-only EP entitled Three, was released in September 1979 and soon reached the top of the Irish charts. In December 1979, U2 performed in London, their first shows outside Ireland, although they failed to get much attention from audiences or critics. In February 1980, their second single "Another Day" was released on the CBS label but again only for the Irish market.

Boy and October (1980-1982)

Island Records signed U2 in March 1980, and "11 O'Clock Tick Tock" became the band's first internationally released single that May. The band's debut album, Boy, followed that October. Boy has been praised as one of the better debuts in rock history.[10] Despite Bono’s unfocused, seemingly improvised lyrics, the hopes and frustrations of adolescence ran through the album as a lyrical theme[11] which touched on fear over sex, identity confusion, death and uncontrollable mood swings.[12] The album included the band's first hit single, "I Will Follow,". Boy's release was followed by U2's first tour beyond Ireland and the United Kingdom. Despite their unpolished nature, these early live performances nevertheless helped demonstrate U2's potential, as critics noted that Bono was a very "charismatic" and "passionate" showman.[13] U2 made their first appearance on US television on the Tomorrow show, on 4 June, 1981, performing "I Will Follow" and "Twilight".[14]

The band's second album, October, was released in 1981. The album contained spiritual lyrics; Bono, The Edge and Larry made little effort to hide their committed Christian outlooks. The three band members had joined a religious group in Dublin called "Shalom," which led them to question the relationship between the Christian faith and the rock and roll lifestyle.[15] Although the Bible has remained a major source of inspiration for Bono’s lyric writing, October is U2's only overtly religious album. It is generally considered as being among their less successful work.[16]

In February 1982, the band first met photographer Anton Corbijn, noted for his work with Depeche Mode and Joy Division. This was to be the beginning of a long relationship; Corbijn became U2's principal photographer and has had a major influence on their vision and public image.[17][18]

War (1983)

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"Sunday Bloody Sunday" (1983)
From the album War.
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Following the doubts of the October period, 1983 saw U2 with renewed purpose and the release of their third album War. The album included the song "Sunday Bloody Sunday," which expresses the band's reaction to the troubles in Northern Ireland. Rolling Stone magazine wrote that the ability to use a range of powerful images, taking a song initially about sectarian anger, and turn it into a call for Christians to unite and claim victory over death and evil, showed that the band was capable of deep and meaningful songwriting.[19] The album's first single, "New Year's Day", was U2's first international hit, reaching #10 on the UK charts, and almost breaking the Top 50 on the US charts.[20] MTV placed the "New Year's Day" music video, on heavy rotation. This was to be instrumental in exposing U2 to an American mass audience.

For the first time, the band began performing to sold-out concerts in mainland Europe and the U.S. on their subsequent War Tour. The image of Bono waving a white flag during performances of "Sunday Bloody Sunday" became a familiar sight. U2 recorded the Under a Blood Red Sky EP on this tour and a live video was released, both of which received radio and MTV play and helped expand the band's audience.[21]

With their generally unfavourable record deal with Island Records coming to end, in 1984 U2 signed an unusually lucrative extension. Forgoing a larger initial payment, they instead negotiated the return of their copyrights such that they owned the rights to their own songs, extending their contract, increasing the royalty rate, and a general improvement in terms.[22]

The Unforgettable Fire and Live Aid (1984-1985)

The Unforgettable Fire was the band’s fourth studio album and was released on 1 October 1984. Far more ambient and abstract than the hard-hitting War, it was at the time, the band’s most marked change in direction.[23] The album took its name and much of its inspiration from an exhibition of paintings and drawings at The Peace Museum in Chicago by survivors of the atomic bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.[24]

We knew the world was ready to receive the heirs to The Who. All we had to do was to keep doing what we were doing and we would become the biggest band since Led Zeppelin, without a doubt. But something just didn't feel right. We felt we had more dimension than just the next big anything, we had something unique to offer. The innovation was what would suffer if we went down the standard rock route. We were looking for another feeling.

—Bono on The Unforgettable Fire's new direction. [25]

The band feared that following the overt rock of the War album and tour, they were in danger of becoming another "shrill", "sloganeering arena-rock band";[26] the success of the Under a Blood Red Sky album and video, however, had given them artistic—and for the first time—financial room to move.[23] Thus, rather than become another formula band, experimentation was sought;[27] as Adam Clayton recalls, "We were looking for something that was a bit more serious, more arty."[28] The Edge admired the ambient and 'weird works' of Brian Eno, who along with his engineer Daniel Lanois eventually agreed to produce the record. Island Records boss, Chris Blackwell, initially tried to discourage them from their choice of producers, believing that just when the band were about to achieve the highest levels of success, Eno would "bury them under a layer of avant-garde nonsense".[29]

The initial recording sessions were at Slane Castle, Dublin; held in a Gothic ballroom built specially for music, the sessions had a relaxed and experimental atmosphere.[30] A far more atmospheric album than the previous hard-hitting War, The Unforgettable Fire has a rich and orchestrated sound and was the first U2 first album with a cohesive sound.[23] Under Lanois' direction, Larry's drumming became looser, funkier and more subtle, and Adam's bass became more subliminal, such that the rhythm section no longer intruded, but flowed in support of the songs.[30]

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"Pride (In the Name of Love)" (1984)
From the album The Unforgettable Fire.
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The album's lyrics are open to many interpretations, which alongside its atmospheric sounds, provides what the band often called a "very visual feel".[23] Bono had recently been immersing himself in fiction, philosophy and poetry, and came to realise that his song writing mission—which up to that point had been a reluctant one on his behalf—was a poetic one. The last two weeks of recording, however, were a panicked scramble to finish the lyrics,[30] such that Bono felt songs like 'Bad' and 'Pride In The Name of Love' were left as incomplete "sketches".[31] Typical of the album, "The Unforgettable Fire" track, has a rich, symphonic sound built from ambient guitar and driving rhythm; a lyrical "sketch" that is an "emotional travelogue" with a "heartfelt sense of yearning".[32] Bono tried to describe the rush and then come down of heroin use in the song "Bad". [33] "Pride (In the Name of Love)", the song closest to the established U2 sound, is about Martin Luther King; the first single from the album, it was at the time, the band's biggest hit.

File:Live Aid - U2.jpg
U2's performance at Live Aid was a turning point in their career.

Unforgettable Fire Tour saw U2 shows moving into indoor arenas in the United States, although in Europe they were not quite at that point. The tour commenced in Australia in September 1984 where translating the complex textures of the new studio-recorded tracks to live performance proved a serious challenge.[23] One solution was programmed sequencers, which the band until then had been reluctant to use. They were used to overcome difficulties in live performance of sonically elaborate new songs such as "The Unforgettable Fire" and "Bad"; since then sequencers are now used on the majority of U2 songs in performance.[23] Songs criticised as being 'unfinished', 'fuzzy' and 'unfocussed' on the album, made more sense on stage; Rolling Stone, for example, critical of the album version of "Bad", described its live performance as a 'show stopper'.[34]

U2 participated in the Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium for Ethiopian famine relief in July 1985.[35] U2's performance was one of the show's most memorable; during "Bad" Bono leapt down off the stage to embrace and dance with a fan. It became a break through moment for U2, showing a television audience of millions the personal connection that Bono could make with audiences.[36] In 1985, Rolling Stone magazine called U2 the "Band of the 80's," saying that "for a growing number of rock-and-roll fans, U2 have become the band that matters most, maybe even the only band that matters."[37] Interrupting writing for what was to become The Joshua Tree, the band headlined 1986's A Conspiracy of Hope Tour for Amnesty International. This 6-show tour across the U.S. performed to sold-out arenas and stadiums, and helped Amnesty International triple its membership in the process.[38]

The Joshua Tree and Rattle and Hum (1986–1989)

File:U2 the joshua tree.jpg
U2's The Joshua Tree

Following the Unforgettable Fire Tour, Bono and Edge had been exploring American blues, country and gospel music in attempt to make up for the fact that up until that point they had 'no tradition', and that their music was from 'outer space'.[39] Irish influences were also being explored with the band spending time with fellow Irish bands The Waterboys and Hothouse Flowers. The band felt a sense of indigenous Irish music being blended with American folk music' [40] Friendships with Bob Dylan, Van Morrison and Keith Richards not only encouraged the band to look back into Rock’s roots, but focussed Bono on his skills as a song and lyric writer.[41] The band wanted to build on The Unforgettable Fire's atmospherics, but also work for a more hard-hitting sound within the strict discipline of conventional song structures, rather than the Unforgettable Fire’s often out-of-focus experimentation.[42]

The wild beauty, cultural richness, spiritual vacancy and fercocious violence of America are explored to compelling effect in virtually every aspect of The Joshua Tree—in the title and the cover art, the blues and country borrowings evident in the music, the imagery that pervades songs like "Bullet the Blue Sky," "In God's Country" and "Exit" (which drew its inspration from The Executioner's Song, Norman Mailer's book about Gary Gilmore's murderous odyssey in the American West). Indeed, Bono says that "dismantling the mythlogy of America" is an important part of The Joshua Tree's artistic objective.

—Rolling Stone Magazine[43]

Taking place in the middle of their 1986 album sessions, U2 were a headline act on Amnesty International's A Conspiracy of Hope Tour, but rather than a distraction to their album work, their tour experiences had the effect of adding extra intensity and power, focussing the band on what they really wanted to say. [44] Bono’s 1986 travels in San Salvador and Nicaragua, for example, where he saw first hand the distress of peasants bullied in internal conflicts, were a central influence on the album most noticeably on 'Bullet the Blue Sky' and 'Mothers of the Disappeared'. Antipathy towards America, including anger at American foreign policy in Central America, is juxtaposed against the band’s deep fascination with the country, its open spaces, freedom and what it stood for.[45] The band aimed for music with a sense of ___location, or a 'cinematic' quality, with music and lyrics that drew on the imagery created by American literary writers that the band had been reading.[46]

Named The Joshua Tree as a 'tribute' to, rather than a 'metaphor' for America,[47] the album was released in March 1987. It debuted at #1 in the UK and quickly reached #1 in the U.S. It won the Grammy Award for "Album of the Year" and a Grammy for the "Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal".[48] The rock & roll bolero[49] "With or Without You" and the rhythmic gospel "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" quickly went to #1 in the U.S. U2 became the fourth rock band to be featured on the cover of Time magazine (following The Beatles, The Band, and The Who), who declared that U2 was "Rock's Hottest Ticket".[50] The album brought U2 to a new level of mega-stardom and is often cited as one of rock's great albums.[51] The Joshua Tree Tour sold out arenas and stadiums around the world, the first time the band had consistently played venues of that size.

The documentary Rattle and Hum featured footage recorded from The Joshua Tree Tour shows and the accompanying double album of the same name included nine studio tracks and six live U2 performances. A total of seventeen songs are on the album, including two non-U2 tracks. "Freedom For My People" is a live except by Adam Gussow and Sterling Magee, and "The Star-Spangled Banner" features Jimi Hendrix. Released in record stores and cinemas in October 1988, the album and film were intended as a tribute to American music. The film was recorded, in part, at Sun Studios in Memphis (along with The Point Depot, Dublin, Ireland), with tracks performed with Bob Dylan and B.B. King, and a song about jazz legend Billie Holiday. Among the live recordings on the album were the Beatles' "Helter Skelter" and a cover version of Bob Dylan's famous song "All Along The Watchtower". Despite a positive reception from fans, Rattle and Hum received mixed-to-negative reviews from both film and music critics.[52]

Achtung Baby, Zoo TV, Zooropa(1990–1993)

Buzzwords on this record were trashy, throwaway, dark, sexy, and industrial (all good) and earnest, polite, sweet, righteous, rockist and linear (all bad). It was good if a song took you on a journey or made you think your hifi was broken, bad if it reminded you of recording studios or U2. Sly Stone, T. Rex, Scott Walker, My Bloody Valentine, KMFDM, The Young Gods, Alan Vega, Al Green and Insekt were all in favour. Berlin became a conceptual backdrop for the record. The Berlin of the Thirties—decadent, sexual and dark—resonating against the Berlin of the Nineties—reborn, chaotic and optimistic...

—Brian Eno on the recording of Achtung Baby[53]

The band began work on Achtung Baby in East Berlin, again with Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois producing. In the initial sessions, conflict arose within the band over the direction of the album. While Adam and Larry preferred to keep a similar sound, Bono and The Edge, inspired by alternative and European dance music, advocated a change. Weeks of slow progress, argument, and frustration ended when Edge came up with a chord progression that the band quickly worked up into the song "One". In November 1991, U2 released the often experimental and distorted Achtung Baby. It was a more inward and personal record (Edge going through a divorce), and as a result, darker than the band's previous work. The band often referred to the new sound as "four men chopping down the Joshua Tree".[54] Commercially and critically it was one of the band's most successful albums, and like The Joshua Tree, is often cited as one of rock's greatest.[55] It played a crucial part in the band's early 1990s reinvention.

File:Zoo stage.jpg
The Zoo TV stage

1992-1993s Zoo TV Tour was a multimedia event, and showcased an extravagant but intentionally bewildering array of hundreds of video screens, upside-down flying Trabant cars, mock transmission towers, satellite TV links, subliminal text messages, and over-the-top stage characters such as "The Fly", "Mirror-Ball Man" and "(Mister) MacPhisto". U2 used the show to mock the excesses of rock and roll by appearing to embrace these very excesses. Live prank phone calls to President Bush caused controversy, as did satellite uplinks to war-torn Sarajevo.[56]

Recorded in 1993 during a break in the Zoo TV tour, the Zooropa album continued many of the themes from the Achtung Baby album and Zoo TV tour. Initially intended as an EP, Zooropa expanded into a full-fledged LP, and was released in July of 1993. It was an even greater departure from the style of their earlier recordings, incorporating techno style and other electronic effects. Most of the songs were played at least once in the 1993 leg of the tour through Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan, with half the album's tracks becoming fixtures in the set.

Passengers, Pop and Popmart (1995–1998)

After time off—and side projects including the Batman Forever and Mission: Impossible soundtracks—the band released an experimental album in 1995 called Original Soundtracks No. 1. Brian Eno, producer of three previous U2 albums, this time contributed as a full partner including writing and performing. For this reason, and due to its highly experimental nature, the band chose to release it under the moniker "Passengers" rather than "U2" to distinguish it from their conventional albums. Commercially, it was a relatively unnoticed album by U2 standards, although the single "Miss Sarajevo" featuring Luciano Pavarotti, and which Bono cites as one his favourite U2 songs,[57] was a hit.

On 1997s Pop album, U2 were once again experimenting. Utilization of tape loops, programming, rhythm sequencing and sampling, gave much of the album a techno/disco feel. However, the diversity of material on the album is as broad as other U2 releases, with experimental tracks balanced with more traditional anthems and ballads. Released in March, the album debuted at #1 in 35 countries, and drew mainly positive reviews.[58][59] Rolling Stone even went so far as claiming U2 had "defied the odds and made some of the greatest music of their lives."[60] Although highly regarded by some, others, particularly American fans, felt that the album was a disappointment. Frontman Bono later admitted that the band was hurried into completing the album before the impending tour and that the album "didn't communicate the way it was intended to".[61]

It's not enough to write a great lyric; it’s not enough to have a good idea or a great hook, lots of things have to come together and then you have to have the ability to discipline and screen. We should give this album to a re-mixer, go back to what was originally intended, so that ‘Mofo’ is on top of the stickiest groove with a proper plastic attack, 'Do You Feel Loved' is done as a liquid base line hook that carries the intimacies whispered on top of it, 'If God Will Send His Angels' should be diamonds and pearls.

—Bono on Pop[62]

For the subsequent Popmart Tour, U2 continued the Zoo TV theme of decadence. The tour started in April 1997; the set included a 100-foot tall golden yellow arch, a large 150-foot long video screen, and a 40-foot tall mirrorball lemon. Both the Popmart Tour and the Zoo TV Tour were intended to send a sarcastic message to those accusing U2 of commercialism. The shows were also intended to be shining a mirror back onto the world, taking subtle advertising and messages we are exposed to every day and blowing them up. Although the shows left some concert-goers wanting more, U2's "big shtick" failed to entertain others, who were confused by the band's new image and elaborate sets.[63][64][65] In fact, one NME critic later recalled a "ludicrous hullabaloo" that was a departure from "Planet Reality".[66]

Aside from the mixed reactions to both the music and the shows, Popmart itself was something of an up-and-down ride for U2. Although it was the second-highest grossing tour of 1997 (behind the Rolling Stones' Bridges to Babylon Tour) with revenues of just under $80 million, Popmart cost more than $100 million to produce.[67] Also, having been booked before the release of Pop, the tour's early shows were negatively impacted by the band's choice to sacrifice rehearsal time in order to complete recording of their four-month-overdue album.[68] Popmart was not without its highlight however; U2 was the first major group to perform in Sarajevo after the war.[69] Bono later called the Sarajevo show "one of the toughest and one of the sweetest nights of my life."[70] Larry Mullen, Jr. called it "an experience I will never forget for the rest of my life, and if I had to spend 20 years in the band just to play that show, and have done that, I think it would have been worthwhile."[71]

Following the Popmart Tour, the band played a brief concert to an audience of about 2,000 in Belfast's Waterfront Hall in May 1998, three days before the public voted in favour of the Northern Ireland Peace Accord.[72] Later that year, U2 performed on an Irish TV fundraiser for victims of the Omagh, Northern Ireland bombing which killed 29 and injured about 220 people earlier in the year.[73] In late 1998, "The Sweetest Thing" previously a b-side from a The Joshua Tree single, was re-recorded and re-released as a single, and the band's first compilation record, The Best of 1980-1990.

All That You Can't Leave Behind and Elevation Tour (2000–2002)

All That You Can't Leave Behind is easy to relate to, full of solid songs that appeal to a wide audience with its clear notions of family, friendship, love, death, and re-birth. More Lanois than Eno on first impression, the sounds on this album come from a band that has digested the music it started to consume while making Rattle and Hum. This time they are niether imitating or paying tribute. This time it's soul music, not music about soul.

—Caroline van oosten de Boer[74]

All That You Can't Leave Behind, was released in October 2000, and was considered by many of those not won over by the band's 1990s experimentation, as a return to the grace of their 1980s sound.[75] Regarded by many, including Rolling Stone magazine, as U2's "third masterpiece" alongside The Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby,[76] it was once again produced by Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois. It debuted at #1 in 22 countries[77] and spawned a world-wide smash hit single, "Beautiful Day," which earned three of a total of six Grammy Awards associated with the album. "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of", "Elevation" and "Walk On" were other successful singles. The album also won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Album in 2002 and garnered two Record of the Year awards in consecutive years.

File:U2 Super Bowl.jpg
U2 performs at Super Bowl XXXVI Halftime Show, 3 February 2002

The Elevation Tour saw the band performing in a scaled-down setting, returning to arenas after nearly a decade of stadium productions, with a heart-shaped stage and ramp permitting greater proximity to the audience. The September 11, 2001 attacks nearly led U2 to have to cancel the last third of the tour but the band decided to continue the tour nonetheless;[78] and the new album's "Walk On" and "New York" gained added resonance. Just weeks after the September 11th attacks, U2 performed a series of sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden in New York City, bringing firefighters and rescue personnel on stage at the end of the show in tribute. In later interviews, Bono and the Edge, would call these New York City shows among their most memorable and emotional performances. The tour ended up as the top concert draw in North America in 2001, grossing more than $143 million in ticket sales.[79] Following the Elevation Tour, the band performed during halftime of Super Bowl XXXVI. "Beautiful Day", "MLK" and "Where the Streets Have No Name" were played.[80]

In 2002, U2 released their second greatest hits compilation, The Best of 1990-2000. Four tracks were reworked in studio, most of them from Pop, which the band said had been rushed to complete because of the pre-booked Popmart Tour. Two new songs were recorded - "The Hands That Built America", which was written for the film Gangs of New York, and "Electrical Storm".

How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb and Vertigo Tour (2003–2006)

Recording sessions for How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb began late in 2003. However, in July 2004, a rough cut the album was stolen in Nice, France.[81] In response, Bono stated that should the album appear on peer-to-peer networks, it would be released immediately via iTunes and be in stores within a month, although no such pre-release transpired.

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"Vertigo" (2004)
From the album How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb.
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The first single from the album, "Vertigo", was released for airplay on 24 September 2004. The song received extensive airplay in the first week after its release and became an international hit. It was featured on a widely-aired television commercial for the Apple iPod. Apple, in a partnership with the band, released a special edition iPod bearing their namesake. The Complete U2, an iTunes-exclusive box set featuring previously unreleased content was released. Proceeds from the iPod and iTunes partnerships were donated to charity.[82]

The album was released on 22 November, debuting at #1 in 32 countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. It sold 840,000 units in the United States in its first week.[83] This was a personal record for the band, nearly doubling the first-week sales of All That You Can't Leave Behind in the US. In 2005, Bruce Springsteen inducted U2 into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the last band for which he "would be able to name all of its members", in their first year of eligibility.[84][85]

Using a similar setup and stage design as the previous tour, the band began the first leg of the Vertigo Tour in the United States in March 2005, followed by a European leg starting in June, before returning to North America between September and December. February and March 2006 saw the band play shows in Latin America. The tour featured a setlist that varied more across dates than any U2 tour since the Lovetown Tour, and a greater diversity of songs played each night including songs that had not been played since the early 1980s, including "The Electric Co." and "An Cat Dubh/Into the Heart".[86] Sold out shows for March 2006 in New Zealand, Australia, Japan and Hawaii were postponed due to a severe illness of an immediate family member of the band.[87] The dates were rescheduled for November and December 2006. Much like the Elevation Tour, the Vertigo Tour was a large commercial success.[88]

On 8 February 2006, U2 won Grammy Awards for each of the five categories they were nominated: Album of the Year for How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, Song of the Year for "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own," Best Rock Album for Atomic Bomb, Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for "Sometimes..." and Best Rock Song for "City of Blinding Lights". "If you think this is going to go to our head, it's too late," said Bono as he accepted the award for "Song of the Year".[89]

The band released an autobiography on 25 September 2006 entitled U2 by U2, pieced together from over 150 hours of interviews with contributing author/editor Neil McCormick. In continuing with the retrospective theme, the compilation album U218 Singles was released on 21 November 2006, containing 16 of the band's best-known songs, as well as two new recordings: "The Saints are Coming" with Green Day and "Window in the Skies".[90] A single and double disc version of the album were released. The latter is limited edition and includes a bonus ten track live DVD filmed on the band's stop in Milan on the Vertigo Tour.[91]

In October 2006 the band switched to Mercury Records after 26 years signed to Island Records, both of which are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group.

Next studio album recordings (2006–2007)

Template:Future album As of July 2006, U2 were reportedly recording a new album,[92] although it is unknown at what point in the process the sessions are. According to Bono there are 24 songs that came out of the last album sessions, of which the band took 11 for their subsequent record. Amateur recordings from the band's sessions in Èze, France suggest that the band are indeed preparing their next album.[93] Producer Rick Rubin has reportedly been working with U2 on new material for their next album in the south of France. On 12 September, it was reported on the official U2 website that the band was working on a new album in Abbey Road Studios.[94] Bono has hinted that the new U2 material will be a reinvention of U2's sound. "We're gonna continue to be a band, but maybe the rock will have to go; maybe the rock has to get a lot harder. But whatever it is, it's not gonna stay where it is", he says.[95] In the December 2006 issue of Q Magazine, The Edge said that the new album will be a very melodic record: "A new found appreciation for pure melody. That seems to be what we're all interested in at the moment." [96]

Other projects and influences

In 1989, Bono recorded the song "In a Lifetime" with the Irish band Clannad, which was accompanied by a video co-directed by The Edge. Together with the Edge, Bono wrote the song "Goldeneye" for the James Bond movie of the same name, which was performed by Tina Turner. In 1987, the pair wrote the song "She's A Mystery To Me" for Roy Orbison, which was released on his album Mystery Girl, and Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. did a rework of the title track of the movie Mission: Impossible in 1996. Green Day and U2 have recorded a cover version of the song "The Saints Are Coming" by The Skids to benefit the Music Rising charity.

Aside from musicians, U2 have worked together with authors, including the U.S. author William S. Burroughs, who had a guest appearance in their video of "Last Night on Earth" shortly before he died.[97][98] His poem "A Thanksgiving Prayer" was used as video footage during the band's Zoo TV Tour. Other collaborators included William Gibson and Allen Ginsberg.[99][100] In early 2000, with the release of the film The Million Dollar Hotel, the band recorded two songs for its soundtrack, including "The Ground Beneath Her Feet", co-written by Salman Rushdie and motivated by his book of the same name.[101] Charles Bukowski also influenced some of Bono's songwriting, especially Dirty Day.[102]

The band cites The Who,[103] The Clash,[104], The Ramones[105] and The Beatles[106] as their major influences. Other musicians have in turn been influenced by the work of U2. Cover versions of U2 songs have been made by performers such as Mary J. Blige, Johnny Cash, The Chimes, Joe Cocker, Pearl Jam, Pet Shop Boys, Radiohead, and The Smashing Pumpkins. U2 have enjoyed reciprocal influential relationships with artists including Bruce Springsteen and Anton Corbijn, as well as exerting influences on others.[107]

Campaigning and activism

U2 are almost as well-known for their humanitarian work as they are for their music. Both as a band and individually, the members of U2 have collaborated since the early 80s with other musicians, artists, celebrities, and politicians to address issues concerning poverty, disease, and injustice in Africa, Europe, and Asia.

In 1984, Bono and Adam Clayton participated in Band Aid, a brainchild of then Boomtown Rats frontman and fellow Irishman Bob Geldof. This initial collaboration, formed to raise money for Ethiopian famine relief, produced the hit charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" and would be the first among several between U2 and Geldof. Less than a year later, in July 1985, U2 played Live Aid, a follow-up to Band Aid's efforts with similar purposes. As an emerging force in rock-and-roll, U2 contributed to the success of Live Aid, offering up memorable moments during their televised performance to more than a billion people.

A 1986 visit to Ethiopia by Bono and his wife Ali by way of an invitation from World Vision allowed Bono to witness first hand some of the human tragedies that occurred due to the Ethopian famine and local corruption. This visit would lay the groundwork for some of Bono's future songwriting and personal and professional campaigning for African aid.[108][109] It was after this visit that U2 participated in both the A Conspiracy of Hope Tour, in support of Amnesty International, and Self Aid, in order to highlight unemployment in Ireland. Around this time, Bono and Ali also visited Nicaragua and El Salvador to "vacation" in the war-torn Central American countries upon invitation of a member of the Sanctuary movement.

In 1992, the band donned radiation suits for a photo-op and a "Stop Sellafield" concert to benefit Greenpeace while in the middle of their ZooTV tour.[110] A few years later, events in Sarajevo during the Bosnian war inspired the song "Miss Sarajevo", which premiered at a September 1995 Pavarotti and Friends show at which Bono and the Edge performed to benefit War Child.[111]. A promise U2 had made as well as the end of the Bosnian war compelled them to perform a 1997 show during the Popmart tour in Sarajevo, where they left feeling a sense of accomplishment in bringing "some semblance of normality" to the area.[112] 1998 saw U2 performing in Belfast days prior to the vote on the Good Friday Agreement and bringing Irish political party leaders David Trimble and John Hume on stage to promote the agreement.[113] Later that year, all proceeds from the release of "The Sweetest Thing" single went towards supporting the Chernobyl Children's Project.

In 2001, U2 offered their support of Burma's Aung San Suu Kyi by producing and dedicating the song "Walk On" to her activism and fight for freedom.[114] Bono and the Edge participated in the 46664 series of concerts hosted by Nelson Mandela to raise awareness of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa in late 2003. Less than two years later, in 2005, the entire band participated in the Live 8 concerts, another collaboration with Bob Geldof that ran in parallel with the Make Poverty History campaign, a UK member coalition of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty organization. Live 8's primary purpose was to raise awareness of and put pressure on the G8 summit to further assist Africa.

Solo work

Since 2000, Bono has done a significant amount of campaigning apart from the band. He was involved in the Jubilee 2000 campaign with Geldof, Muhammad Ali, and others with the aim of cancelling third world debt during the Great Jubilee. In January 2002, Bono, along with activists from Jubilee 2000 founded a multinational NGO called DATA, with the aim of improving the social, political, and financial state of Africa. He continued his campaigns for debt and HIV/AIDS relief into June 2002 by making high-profile visits to Africa.[115][116][117] Product Red, a 2006 for-product brand seeking to raise money for the Global Fund, was also founded in part by Bono. In addition, the counterpart of Make Poverty History in the US, The ONE Campaign, has been shaped in no small way by his efforts and vision. Bono has also teamed up with Yahoo! to promote the ONE Campaign, which Yahoo! has helped to re-develop. In doing so, Bono has also joined in the "Ask the Planet" campaign of Yahoo! Answers, in which celebrities pose questions to users.

The Edge has also taken his own brand of humanitarian work solo. In late 2005, after Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita hit the Gulf Coast region of the US, The Edge introduced Music Rising, an initiative to raise funds for musicians who lost their instruments in the storm-ravaged region.[118]

Discography

Main article: U2 discography

Studio albums

References

Sources

  • Chatterton, Mark (2001). U2: The Complete Encyclopedia. Firefly Publishing. ISBN 0-946719-41-1
  • Flanagan, Bill (1995). U2 at the End of the World. Delacorte Press. ISBN 0-385-31154-0
  • Parra, Pimm Jal de la (2003). U2 Live: A Concert Documentary. Omnibus PressISBN 0-7119-9198-7
  • McCormick , Neil (ed), (2006). U2 by U2. HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 0-00-719668-7

Notes

  1. ^ Vallely, Paul."Bono: The Missionary". The Independent, May 2006. Retrieved October 15 2006.
  2. ^ GRAMMY Winners List grammy.com. Retrieved October 15 2006.
  3. ^ "The Immortals: The First Fifty". Rolling Stone Issue 946. Rolling Stone.
  4. ^ Chatterton (2001), p. 130
  5. ^ McCormick (ed), Neil (2006). U2 by U2. London: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. pp.46-47. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. {{cite book}}: |last= has generic name (help); |pages= has extra text (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  6. ^ Parra (2003), p. 6
  7. ^ a b McCormick (ed), Neil (2006). U2 by U2. London: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. pp.46-48. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. {{cite book}}: |last= has generic name (help); |pages= has extra text (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  8. ^ Larry King Interview Transcript CNN.com. Retrieved October 15, 2006.
  9. ^ Reynolds, Simon. Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978-1984. Penguin, 2005. p. 368
  10. ^ Lynch, Declan. Boy. Hot Press, October 1980. Retrieved 15 October, 2006; Boy New Music Express review U2.com. Retrieved 15 October, 2006; Boy Billboard review U2.com. Retrieved 15 October, 2006; Boy The Washington Post review U2.com. Retrieved October 15, 2006.
  11. ^ Boy Rolling Stone Review Rollingstone.com. Retrieved October 16, 2006
  12. ^ The Meaning of U2 Lyrics (U2MoL). Retrieved 3 November, 2006.
  13. ^ Voice of Influential U2 Frontman bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 15 December 2006.
  14. ^ Parra (2003), p. 24
  15. ^ Flanagan (1995), pp. 46-48
  16. ^ October Review allmusic.com. Retrieved October 17, 2006.
  17. ^ Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen Jr (2006), p. 127
  18. ^ Browse Show Downloads for U2 - 1982 etree.org. Retrieved January 15, 2007.
  19. ^ Rolling Stone War review JD Considine. Retrieved 15 October, 2006.
  20. ^ Songfacts: New Year's Day by U2 Songfacts.com. Retrieved 31 October, 2006.
  21. ^ Net Music Countdown:U2. netmusiccountdown.com. Retrieved November 6 2006.
  22. ^ Connelly, Christopher (14 March 1984). "Keeping the Faith". Rolling Stone. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  23. ^ a b c d e f Parra, Pimm Jal de la U2 Live: A Concert Documentary, pp.52-55, 1996, Harper Collins Publishers, ISBN 0-7322-6036-1
  24. ^ U2 Limited (2006). U2 by U2. London: HarperCollinsPublishers. p. 151. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. {{cite book}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  25. ^ McCormick (ed), Neil (2006). U2 by U2. London: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. pp.147. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. {{cite book}}: |last= has generic name (help); |pages= has extra text (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  26. ^ Pond, Steve (9 April 1987). "The Joshua Tree Album Review". Rolling Stone. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  27. ^ Graham, Bill (2004). U2: The Complete Guide to their Music. London: Omnibus Press. pp. p.21. ISBN 0-7119-9886-8. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  28. ^ Adam Clayton:U2 Limited (2006). U2 by U2. London: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. p.147. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  29. ^ The Edge U2 Limited (2006). U2 by U2. London: HarperCollinsPublishers. p. 151. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. {{cite book}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  30. ^ a b c Stokes, Niall (1996). Into The Heart: The Story Behind Every U2 Song. Australia: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. pp.50-51. ISBN 0-7322-6036-1. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  31. ^ U2 Limited (2006). U2 by U2. London: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. p.151. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  32. ^ Stokes, Niall (1996). Into The Heart: The Story Behind Every U2 Song. Australia: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. pp.55. ISBN 0-7322-6036-1. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  33. ^ U2 Limited (2006). U2 by U2. London: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. p.152. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  34. ^ Henke, James (18 July 1985). "''Wide Awake in America'' Album Review". Rolling Stone. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  35. ^ Live Aid: A Look Back At A Concert That Actually Changed The World MTV.com. Retrieved 31 October, 2006.
  36. ^ Parra (2003), pp. 72-73
  37. ^ http://80music.about.com/od/artistsqu/p/u2profile.htm
  38. ^ U2 and the Conspiracy of Hope Tour atu2.com. Retrieved October 31, 2006.
  39. ^ Bono in McCormick (2006), p.169
  40. ^ McCormick (2006), p.172
  41. ^ McCormick (2006), p.179
  42. ^ DeCurtis, Anthony (27 March 1987). "U2 Releases The Joshua Tree". Rolling Stone. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  43. ^ DeCurtis, Anthony (7 May 1987). "Truths and Consequences". Rolling Stone. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  44. ^ McCormick (2006), p.174
  45. ^ McCormick (2006), p.186
  46. ^ Graham, Bill (2004). U2: the Complete Guide to their Music. Omnibus Press. pp. pp.27-30. ISBN0-7119-9886-8. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  47. ^ McCormick (2006), p186
  48. ^ GRAMMY Winners List grammy.com. Retrieved December 4, 2006.
  49. ^ Pond, Steve (9 April 1987). "The Joshua Tree Album Review". Rolling Stone. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  50. ^ "Rock's Hottest Ticket" Time Magazine Archive, April 1987. Retrieved on 20 January, 2007.
  51. ^ The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time Rollingstone.com. Retrieved 15 October, 2006.
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  53. ^ Eno, Brian (28 November 1991). "Bringing Up Baby". Rolling Stone. {{cite journal}}: Check |authorlink= value (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  54. ^ Deep Cuts: U2, Part I
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  56. ^ Parra (2003), pp. 153, 166
  57. ^ U2 Limited (2006). U2 by U2. London: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. 261–262. ISBN 0-00-719668-7. {{cite book}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  58. ^ (U2 have) relaxed sufficiently to allow a certain funk into their music... NME Retrieved 31 October, 2006
  59. ^ U2 have not reinvented themselves so much as rediscovered themselves... Sunday Times (UK) Retrieved 31 October, 2006
  60. ^ "Rolling Stone Pop Review". Rolling Stone (756). March 1997. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  61. ^ U2 Set to Re-Record Pop contactmusic.com. Retrieved 31 October, 2006.
  62. ^ McCormick (ed), (2006), p. 269
  63. ^ U2 live: Play-by-play of the concert lasvegassun.com. Retrieved 29 December, 2006
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  72. ^ Trimble and Hume centre stage for referendum BBCnews.co.uk. Retrieved 31 October, 2006.
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  75. ^ Time to Get the Leathers Out Guardian.co.uk. Retrieved on 31 October, 2006
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  95. ^ RTE report
  96. ^ u2boy.nl Quote from the printed magazine
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