History Music / U2

+ Music/TheStranglers, Music/TheJam, Music/TheClash, Music/{{Ramones}}, Music/{{Buzzcocks}}, Music/SexPistols, Music/{{Television}}, Music/SiouxsieAndTheBanshees, Music/JoyDivision, Music/TheWho, Music/TheBeatles, Music/ElvisPresley, Music/PattiSmith, Music/{{Kraftwerk}}, Music/BruceSpringsteen, Music/BBKing, Music/LouReed, Music/BobDylan, Music/JohnnyCash, Music/BrianEno

+ Music/{{Coldplay}}, Music/{{Oasis}}, Music/{{Radiohead}}, Music/PearlJam, Music/SnowPatrol, Music/{{Keane}}, Music/TheKillers, Music/KingsOfLeon, Music/GreenDay, Music/LinkinPark, Music/BlocParty, Music/LegiaoUrbana, Music/{{Feeder}}, Music/TheAlarm, The Temper Trap, Music/TheFray, Music/TheScript, Music/ThirtySecondsToMars, Music/OneRepublic, The Airborne Toxic Event, Music/{{Anberlin}}, Music/{{Switchfoot}}

+ Music/{{Coldplay}}, Music/{{Oasis}}, Music/{{Radiohead}}, Music/SnowPatrol, Music/{{Keane}}, Music/TheKillers, Music/KingsOfLeon, Music/GreenDay, Music/LinkinPark, Music/BlocParty, Music/LegiaoUrbana, Music/{{Feeder}}, Music/TheAlarm, The Temper Trap, Music/TheFray, Music/TheScript, Music/ThirtySecondsToMars, Music/OneRepublic, The Airborne Toxic Event

-->-- "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"

[[caption-width-right:280:[[Creator/CaseyKasem "These guys are from England and who gives a shit?"]][[note]]'''L-to-R:''' Larry Mullen Jr., Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton [-(Who actually was born in England)-][[/note]]]]

By the mid-1980s, U2 had become a top international act, noted for their anthemic sound, Bono's impassioned vocals, and The Edge's textural guitar playing. They started as one of the early pioneers of PostPunk, and their albums ''Boy'' and ''Music/{{War|U2Album}}'' were largely college radio hits. Their success as a live act was greater than their success at selling records until their 1987 album ''Music/TheJoshuaTree'' increased the band's stature "from heroes to superstars," according to ''Magazine/RollingStone''. U2 responded to the dance and alternative rock revolutions, the backlash against their earnest image and their own sense of musical stagnation by reinventing themselves with their 1991 album ''Music/AchtungBaby'' and the accompanying Zoo TV Tour, which introduced an experimental, heavily electronic sound alongside a satirical image. They carried on with this style for the rest of the 1990s. Starting in the 2000s, they pursued a more traditional sound that retained the influence of their previous musical explorations, although works like 2009's ''Music/NoLineOnTheHorizon'' saw them combining both their prior sound and the experimental spirit of their '90s releases.

[[caption-width-right:280:"[[Creator/CaseyKasem These guys are from England and who gives a shit?]]"[[note]]'''L-to-R:''' Larry Mullen Jr., Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton [-(Who actually was born in England)-][[/note]]]]

U2 are a rock band from UsefulNotes/{{Dublin}}, UsefulNotes/{{Ireland}}. The band consists of Paul "Bono" Hewson on lead vocals, David Evans aka The Edge on guitar, Adam Clayton on bass and Laurence Joseph "Larry" Mullen, Jr. on drums. The band formed in 1976 under the name "Feedback" when the members were teenagers with limited musical proficiency. It soon changed its name to "The Hype." In 1978, when David's older brother Dik left the band, they decided to change their name again; Mullen's friend Steve Averill of The Radiators from Space gave them six suggestions of names, and they settled on "U2" because it was the name they least disliked.

By the mid-1980s, the band had become a top international act, noted for their anthemic sound, Bono's impassioned vocals, and The Edge's textural guitar playing. U2 started as one of the early pioneers of PostPunk and their albums ''Boy'' and ''Music/{{War|U2Album}}'' were largely college radio hits. Their success as a live act was greater than their success at selling records until their 1987 album ''Music/TheJoshuaTree'' increased the band's stature "from heroes to superstars," according to Rolling Stone. U2 responded to the dance and alternative rock revolutions, the backlash against their earnest image and their own sense of musical stagnation by reinventing themselves with their 1991 album ''Music/AchtungBaby'' and the accompanying Zoo TV Tour. They carried on with their experimental, heavily electronic and satirical AlternativeRock sound for the rest of the 1990s. Starting in the 2000s, U2 pursued a more traditional sound that retained the influence of their previous musical explorations before combining ''that'' with the experimental spirit of the '90s on one of their most recent albums, ''No Line On The Horizon.''

U2 have sold more than 140 million albums worldwide and have won 22 Grammy Awards, more than any other band. In 2005, the band were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility. Rolling Stone magazine listed U2 at #22 in its list of the 100 greatest artists of all time. Throughout their career, as a band and as individuals, they have campaigned for human rights and social justice causes, including Amnesty International, the ONE Campaign, Music Rising and Bono's DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade in Africa) campaign.

Looking beyond the current discography, Bono said at the surprise launch for ''Songs of Innocence'' that U2 have made a few albums since 2009, and this is just the first one to be released, and a few hours later announced that their next album ''Songs of Experience'' should be out soon. [[ScheduleSlip It came out in 2017.]] Oh, and Bono and Edge worked on the soundtrack to ''Theatre/SpiderManTurnOffTheDark''. Suffice it to say, for a band that's been going for over forty years, they don't show any signs of slowing down soon.

[[caption-width-right:280: "[[Creator/CaseyKasem These guys are from England and who gives a shit?]]" [[note]]From left to right: Larry Mullen Jr., Bono, The Edge and Adam Clayton (who actually was born in England).[[/note]]]]

-->--'''"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"'''

* StepUpToTheMicrophone: Beyond his usual backing vocal duties, The Edge has sung lead vocals on "Van Diemen's Land" (from ''Rattle and Hum''), "Numb" (from ''Zooropa'') and "Corpse (These Chains Are Way Too Long)" (from the Passengers album), the first two verses of "Seconds" (from ''Music/{{War|U2Album}}''), and shares lead vocals with Bono on the verses of "Discothèque" (from ''Pop''). Adam Clayton sang lead vocals on "Endless Deep", the B-side to "Sunday Bloody Sunday", and also performed a {{Spoken Word|In Music}} verse on "Your Blue Room" (from the Passengers album), making Larry the only U2 member to never have done lead vocals, although he does sing the occasional backing vocals (most prominently in
"Numb").

* StepUpToTheMicrophone: Beyond his usual backing vocal duties, The Edge has sung lead vocals on "Van Diemen's Land" (from ''Rattle and Hum''), "Numb" (from ''Zooropa'') and "Corpse (These Chains Are Way Too Long)" (from the Passengers album), the first two verses of "Seconds" (from ''Music/{{War|U2Album}}''), and shares lead vocals with Bono on the verses of "Discothèque" (from ''Pop''). Adam Clayton sang lead vocals on "Endless Deep", the B-side to "Sunday Bloody Sunday", and also performed a {{Spoken Word|In Music}} verse on "Your Blue Room" (from the Passengers album), making Larry the only U2 member to never have done lead vocals, although he does sing the occasional backing vocals.

* 1980 - ''Boy''
* 1981 - ''October''

By the mid-1980s, the band had become a top international act, noted for their anthemic sound, Bono's impassioned vocals, and The Edge's textural guitar playing. U2 started as one of the early pioneers of PostPunk and their albums ''Boy'' and ''Music/WarU2Album'' were largely college radio hits. Their success as a live act was greater than their success at selling records until their 1987 album ''Music/TheJoshuaTree'' increased the band's stature "from heroes to superstars," according to Rolling Stone. U2 responded to the dance and alternative rock revolutions, the backlash against their earnest image and their own sense of musical stagnation by reinventing themselves with their 1991 album ''Music/AchtungBaby'' and the accompanying Zoo TV Tour. They carried on with their experimental, heavily electronic and satirical AlternativeRock sound for the rest of the 1990s. Starting in the 2000s, U2 pursued a more traditional sound that retained the influence of their previous musical explorations before combining ''that'' with the experimental spirit of the '90s on one of their most recent albums, ''No Line On The Horizon.''

* 1983 - ''Music/WarU2Album''

* 2017 - ''Music/SongsOfExperience''

** ''Music/WarU2Album'': While the album's title is fitting, the word is only mentioned in a line in "The Refugee" (the plural form, "wars," is heard in "New Year's Day").

* StepUpToTheMicrophone: Beyond his usual backing vocal duties, The Edge has sung lead vocals on "Van Diemen's Land" (from ''Rattle and Hum''), "Numb" (from ''Zooropa'') and "Corpse (These Chains Are Way Too Long)" (from the Passengers album), the first two verses of "Seconds" (from ''Music/WarU2Album''), and shares lead vocals with Bono on the verses of "Discothèque" (from ''Pop''). Adam Clayton sang lead vocals on "Endless Deep", the B-side to "Sunday Bloody Sunday", and also performed a {{Spoken Word|In Music}} verse on "Your Blue Room" (from the Passengers album), making Larry the only U2 member to never have done lead vocals, although he does sing the occasional backing vocals.

* 2004 - ''How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb''

* 2014 - ''Songs of Innocence''

* 2009 - ''No Line on the Horizon''

* 2017 - ''Songs of Experience''

* ChristianRock: ZigZagged. They've been described as "too spiritual for rock but too strange for church." All the band members are Christian, and many of their songs contain overtly Christian themes or at least go heavy on the LoveIsLikeReligion. On the other hand, they have never restricted themselves to Christian audiences or record labels, and a lot of their songs have a degree of ambivalence about faith, especially organized religion. Nonetheless, Christian fans have been happy to use their songs even in church; several denominations have put on entire services dubbed "[[{{Portmanteau}} U2charist]]". That said, the band's career has been completely in secular mainstream rock, not the Christian market, so they will not be filed under "Christian Rock" in anyone's listings.

* ChristianRock: ZigZagged. They've been described as "too spiritual for rock but too strange for church." All the band members are Christian, and many of their songs contain overtly Christian themes or at least go heavy on the LoveIsLikeReligion. On the other hand, they have never restricted themselves to Christian audiences or record labels, and a lot of their songs have a degree of ambivalence about faith, especially organized religion. Nonetheless, Christian fans have been happy to use their songs even in church; several denominations have put on entire services dubbed "[[{{Portmanteau}} U2charist]]".

* ChristianRock: ZigZagged. All the band members are outspokenly Christian, and many of their songs contain overtly Christian themes or at least LoveIsLikeReligion. On the other hand, they have never restricted themselves to Christian audiences or record labels, and a lot of their songs have a degree of ambivalence about faith, especially organized religion. They've often been described as "too spiritual for rock but too strange for church."

* DanBrowned: The lyrics of "Pride (In The Name of Love)" put MLK's assassination in the "early morning". MLK was shot at 6:01 p.m. Bono often changes the lyric to "early evening" in live performances.

* {{Fanservice}}: The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0adFYuNuns video]] for "Electrical Storm". [[ShirtlessScene Shirtless]] Larry Mullen? Check. Samantha Morton as a hot mermaid? Check.

* 2007 - ''Live From Paris''

* 2002 - ''7''

->''"Ooh, I've got no shame, oh no, oh no..."''
-->--"Window in the Skies"

[[caption-width-right:280: "[[MemeticMutation These guys]] [[CriticalResearchFailure are from England]] [[Radio/AmericanTop40 and who]] [[Creator/CaseyKasem gives a shit?]]" [[note]]From left to right: Larry Mullen Jr., Bono, The Edge and Adam Clayton (who actually was born in England).[[/note]]]]

* ArenaRock

* GriefSong: "Bad" is about a childhood friend of Bono who died of a heroin overdose.

* LongRunnerLineUp: Type 1.

* GriefSong: "Tomorrow", from the ''October'' album, was written about Bono's mother's funeral. It's become something of a forgotten classic these days.

* InTheStyleOf: "Rattle and Hum" features a version of "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" where the band is backed by a gospel choir.

*** Live performances of Hold Me Thrill Me (a song off of the Batman Forever soundtrack) on the 360 tour have Bono menacingly asking during the song's intro, "[[Film/TheDarkKnight Why So Serious]]?"

* NotChristianRock: Bono does incorporate some themes into his songs, but more of the peace, happiness, and brotherhood kind.
** Christian themes were more explicit in their early albums (Bono, the Edge and Larry all became friends while members of an evangelical students' group in Dublin). Bono continues to be a Christian to this day and in the early 2000's, he visited many churches to address the congregations as part of his campaign for African debt relief. He has consistently spoken of "Christian musicians" in 1st person plural, so they somewhat blur the line.

By the mid-1980s, the band had become a top international act, noted for their anthemic sound, Bono's impassioned vocals, and The Edge's textural guitar playing. U2 started as one of the early pioneers of PostPunk and their albums ''Boy'' and ''Music/WarU2Album'' were largely college radio hits. Their success as a live act was greater than their success at selling records until their 1987 album ''Music/TheJoshuaTree'' increased the band's stature "from heroes to superstars," according to Rolling Stone. U2 responded to the dance and alternative rock revolutions, the backlash against their earnest image and their own sense of musical stagnation by reinventing themselves with their 1991 album ''Achtung Baby'' and the accompanying Zoo TV Tour. They carried on with their experimental, heavily electronic and satirical AlternativeRock sound for the rest of the 1990s. Starting in the 2000s, U2 pursued a more traditional sound that retained the influence of their previous musical explorations before combining ''that'' with the experimental spirit of the '90s on one of their most recent albums, ''No Line On The Horizon.''

* NiceHat: The Edge! [[http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_pyfWoS2EpR8/TD6CsDQMgDI/AAAAAAAAD6I/3lH5o_DhZkg/s1600/Bono-hat-glasses.jpg Bono]] [[http://thefigurehead.files.wordpress.com/2007/04/bono.jpg as]] [[http://images.icanhascheezburger.com/completestore/2009/3/5/128807435564298917.jpg well]] [[http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a212/obiwandoodle/u2%20bono%20bw/BonoHatWayfarers.jpg sometimes.]]

** "Bullet the Blue Sky" and "Mothers of the Disappeared" from ''Music/TheJoshuaTree'' are protest songs against the USA's backing of right-wing dictatorships in South America during TheEighties, the former being inspired by the civil war in El Salvador (Bono actually instructed The Edge to "put El Salvador through the amplifier" for the guitar solo) and the latter by the "disappearances" committed by UsefulNotes/AugustoPinochet in UsefulNotes/{{Chile}} and the NationalReorganisationProcess in UsefulNotes/{{Argentina}}.