Aqualung

Love 'em or hate 'em, U2 has been one of the most popular rock bands since the 80s, and their still going strong. With 22 Grammys and 150 million records sold, this band is well deserving of a spot as featured artist.

U2:


Band line up:
Bono aka Paul Hewson - vocals, harmonica, guitar
The Edge aka David Evans - guitar, keyboards, vocals
Adam Clayton - bass
Larry Mullen, Jr - drums

Discography:
Boy - 1980
October - 1981
War - 1983
Under a Blood Red Sky (live) - 1983
The Unforgetable Fire - 1984
The Joshua Tree - 1987
Rattle and Hum - 1988
Rattle and Hum (half-live/half-studio) - 1988
Achtung Baby - 1991
Zooropa - 1993
Pop - 1997
Hasta La Vista, Baby (live) - recorded in 1997, released in 2000 to member of the Propaganda Fan Club
All that You Can't Leave Behind - 2000
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb - 2004
U2. Communication - 2005, available only to u2.com subscibers

Their discography also includes 2 greatest hits albums (1980-1990 and 1990-200), three EPs, and a couple of soundtrack songs.

History:
This band was formed in Dublin in 1976 by Harry Mullen, Jr., (the drummer) when he posted an advertisement at his school requesting musicians for a band. Mullen eventually settle on Bono on vocals, Clayton on bass, The Edge and his brother Dik on guitars, and Mullen on drums. The band decided to call themselves Feedback and started practicing.

As a side note, you're probably all wondering where "Bono" and "The Edge" came from. Bono's name is shortened from Bono Vox, a mistranslation into latin the phrase "good voice" (it should really be vox bona). This was the name of a hearing aid company that advertised in Dublin's city center. Some say his nickname was based on the hearing aid company because he sang so loud that even the deaf could hear it. The Edge was nicknamed by Bono because he was always on the edge of things - he was sharp and attentive. Also, his head had an "edge" on it.

Anywho, back to Feedback. Renaming themselves The Hype, this band performed at a live show in Limerick, Ireland, where they were lucky enough to be spotted by Jackie Haden, of CBS Records. Hayden was impressed with The Hype, who won the show, that he allowed them to record a demo in the studio. During this time, too, somebody suggested the name of U2 for their group, which they adopted. Interestingly, Bono states that he never liked the name to begin with, but they went with it anyway.

In 1978, Dik Evans left the group, and Paul McGuiness became U2's manager. In September 1979, they released their first single, U2-3, which topped the Irish charts, but failed to go anywhere else. In December of that same year, they played a show in London, but also failed to be noticed by anyone outside.

U2 starts putting out albums:
In October 1980, U2 released their debut album, Boy, for Island Records. It is acclaimed as one of the best debut albums in rock and roll history, and sold 3 million copies. This album was inspired by William Golding's The Lord Of The Flies and has gives a very honest, almost brutally honest, portrayal of adolescence, and the identity confusion and mood swings that often come with. The release of this album also allowed for their first tour outside of the UK.

October was released in 1981, and almost led to the break up of U2. This album featured decidedly spiritual lyrics/themes (Bono, the Edge, and Mullen are devout christians), and prompted questions from many different sources about the dichotomy of a rock and roll lifestyle and christian life style. These three, forced to question the relationship, almost abandoned U2, but finally decided that they could make music without compromising their principles.

October:


1983 saw the release of U2's third album, War, an album which has sold more copies than their first two combined, with 8 million. This album contains one of their most popular and well known songs, "Sunday, Bloody Sunday" which speaks of some of the difficulties in Ireland. This one spins the incident into a very religious context. For example, the line "we eat and drink while tomorrow they die" is a corruption of 1 Corinthians 15:32, in the New Testament of the Bible. The song asks for the Christians to stop fighting each other in the name of religion, and to actually start demonstrating christian values. The religion in this album, however, was quite a bit more "hidden" than in their previous album, which may be one of the reasons it did so much better. This album also included the song "New Year's Day," their first international hit which reached #10 on the UK charts. The song's video was also played on MTV, introducing U2 to the United States.

A turning point for U2:
Unforgettable Fire was their next album, released in 1984. Produced in part by Brian Eno, this album was more experamental than their previous albums, and was inspired by paintings made by survivors of the Nagasaki/Hiroshima bombings. Bono's lyrics were much more complex and subtle than in previous albums, as well. This album also included the song "Pride (In The Name of Love)", a sigle which would reach the Top 5 in the US and the Top 40 in the UK.

U2 then released their best selling album of all time, the Joshuah Tree, with sales of around 30 million copies. This album was #1 on both sides of the Atlantic and won a grammy for Album of the Year in 1987. This album persuaded Time to make U2 the fourth artist to ever be featured on its cover. U2 was now a bonafide successs, and for the first time they were able to consistently sell out large venues when they toured.

The Joshua Tree:


The nineties:
In November of 1991, after taking some time off, U2 released Achtung Baby, their most successful album, with sales of 17 million. While this album did not sell nearly as many as the Joshua Tree, it expanded their fan base significantly. Those who before didn't really like U2 were buying this album.

Achtung Baby:


Zooropa, released in '93, was probably their most experamental album. It diverged from their more rock qualities and even incorporated some techno. This album, too, widened the fan base, probably because of its experamental, non-traditional-U2 qualities.

In 1996, after a long break from the studio (they filled their time with side projects and tours) U2 released Pop. Unlike thier previous albums, Pop placed a lot of emphasis on post-production and had much of the same techno/dance feel that Zooropa had. While this album reached #1 in almost 30 countries, many fans felt that it was just too different, and were dissapointed in the direction that U2 was going.

Modern times:
With the dissapointment of Pop still in their minds, U2 set out in 1999 to create an album that was truer to what their fans were looking for. All That You Can't Leave Behind, 2000, is considered to be a nice return, up there with The Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby. This album included hit single "Beautiful Day."

How to Dismatle an Atomic Bomb is their most recent release.

Political activism:
As the content of most of their albums suggests, U2 is very concerned about the conditions of the world today. Many of their songs include calls to action for people to make a difference in their world. A lot of their tours are for specific causes, such as debt forgiveness and HIV/AIDS relief.

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Here we go. Mushu cereal for breakfast with duck sauce.

 

Lonnieko

you know, my friend has always tried to get me to listen to u2, but i havent been very interested. but after reading this i think i might listen to them. Nice work.

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Aqualung

Thanks for the compliment. Welcome to KMA! I see from your signiature that there is a band called Boys Like Girls. Are you a part of that band? If you are, we'd love for you upload some of your music to our showcase so we can hear it.

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Here we go. Mushu cereal for breakfast with duck sauce.

Lakukaracha

I just LOVE U2!
Last year I went to their concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina and it was amazing!

I think they must have one regret when looking back in their career as a group though: Zooropa album.

Aqualung

Lucky!

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Lochmon

There are very few songs by U2 that I've actually liked. I don't even know the names of the songs.

Truth be told, I don't like U2 all too much. I can't really explain why, so that really isn't much of an excuse.

But I do have to say that I am glad for them (in a non-sarcastic/non-bitter way). They've made it as a commercially successful band. AND...as a successful band, they are trying to do their part in the world.

Thank you, Aqualung.

(I hope I never have to read about them again).

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Lakukaracha

That's one side of the band that annoys me sometimes: its "commercial success". I do admire Bono' social work, but there are times I just want him to sing!

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amberdawn

U2 is my favorite band. I especially like theirs songs, "In a little while" and
"Wild Honey"

collard

I follow that. Although Bono is a good singer, he's just not my type of vocalist. I enjoy some of their songs and I remember that I liked "All That You Can't Leave Behind" after its release.

But if you don't love the vocalist or the general sound of the band, you usually won't pick the band among your top favorites. I enjoy U2 sometimes, in fact "New Year's Day" was the first song I heard when I woke up on the 1st of January 2007.

My favorites might be "Miss Sarajevo" and "Mysterious Ways". At last, I have to agree with the one who said that Zooropa was a step backwards. It's just weird!

abelincolnish

I think he's been going downhill for years, it's sad really

Lochmon

Huh...you know what I just realized?

Joshua Tree is only a few hours from where I live. I never really that. Now, what's the significance of Joshua Tree anyway?

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Aqualung

Is there a place called Joshua Tree? Becuase it's also a kind of tree. They named it "Joshua Tree" as a kind of a tribute to America, as kind of a representation of that blues and country music that is particularly big in america.

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Here we go. Mushu cereal for breakfast with duck sauce.

hardkiss

I dont like U2 ,but i like this song beautiful day for them.

Lochmon

There's a park over here called Joshua Tree National Park. Everyone around here just calls it Joshua Tree. I just thought it was a neat coincidence.

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Daniela Petri

I love U2's music

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GS246836

U2 rocks can't wait for their new album

drlinux

U2 - Sunday bloody sunday is the best!

whistler's mother

they're good-looking guys who have aged well over the years. from the record company's perspective, there's still a lot to get behind. I personally think their music's sounded a bit watered-down and predictable over the past decade.

flavioso

Does anyone know which album the track, Lemon, was on?

Aqualung

Zooropa

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Here we go. Mushu cereal for breakfast with duck sauce.

AllieK

U2 is just amazing rock band, I always enjoy listening 'em.

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myst!c

I like listening to them from time to time
thanks

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yeesha

i agree. i love u2 a lot. their music has gotten me through one of the worst times of my life. if it weren't for them, i think i'd be in a really bad state of depression. Thank God for Bono, the Edge, and all the other members of u2.

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99

U2 is really an amazing band - one of my favorites.

sarken

Really Kick ass band. I liked their live.