U2 Biography

Written by The Rock Radio staff, April 2005 © The Rock Radio

The Early Days
One of the most popular rock n' roll bands ever, U2 evolved in 1976 in a secondary school in Dublin when 14-year old Larry Mullen Jr. formed a band called Feedback comprising of himself on drums, Paul Hewson (Bono) on vocals, Adam Clayton on bass guitar and Dave Evans (The Edge) and his brother Dik on guitar.

Playing as a Beatles and Rolling Stones cover band they changed name to The Hype before eventually settling for U2 after the spy plane and submarine. During this time Dik Evans left the band to form his own group. At the end of 1978 music manager Paul McGuinness saw the band play and offered to manage them.

In September 1979 U2 released their debut single "U2-3" that was only available in Ireland where it topped the charts and in early 1980 the band released their second number 1 single "Another Day". The band then went on to sign to Island Records with whom they released the fist album "Boy" in October. Benefiting from its atmospheric sound, spiritual lyrics and constant touring the album entered the American Top 70 in early 1981. However, at that time the band nearly split up due to the fact that all members where practicing Christians (with the exception of Adam Clayton) and were troubled by the conflict of faith with rock lifestyle!

Breakthrough
Nevertheless, the band decided they could compromise between their faith and music and in 1981 they released "October". This album proved to be their British breakthrough topping at number 11 in the charts and also managed to make the band's name in America through constant touring and regular appearance of Boy's "I Will Follow" and October's "Gloria" on MTV.

The result was that their next album "War" released in 1983 entered the US charts in number 12 and UK charts at number 1 and for the first time the band performed in sold-out gigs around Europe and the US. Classics songs "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "New Year's Day" quickly become hits with MTV.

The band released their fourth studio album "The Unforgettable Fire" in 1984, an experimental album with complex lyrics and funkier sounds. With the help of the tribute hit single for Martin Luther King "Pride (In The Name Of Love)" the album entered the UK charts at number 1 and US charts at number 12.

Perhaps the biggest landmark in the band's career came in 1985 with the massive Live Aid concert for Ethiopian relief seen by more than one billion people worldwide where Bono and U2 along with Queen and Freddie Mercury managed to steal the show. Also in 1986 the band played in six shows across the US for the "Conspiracy Of Hope" tour to help Amnesty International.

Superstar Status
The band managed to reach superstar status with their next album in 1987 "The Joshua Tree". In 28 hours it became platinum in the UK and for the first time the band had a number 1 album in the US. The band decided to make a film supported by a double-album soundtrack of their subsequent tour and the result was "Rattle And Hum". Although the album was a success, the film attracted a lot of negative criticism.

After taking some time off, the band released its next album "Achtung Baby" in 1991. As a heavily experimental album, it successfully blended the band's post-punk music in their early career and American music during their mid-career. The album debuted at number 1 all around the world and their subsequent 1992 tour codenamed "Zoo TV" was a multimedia event with hundreds of video screens, satellite links, cellular phone calls and text messages aimed to masterfully confuse the audience.

Techno-Dance Decline
U2's next studio album "Zooropa" (1993) was a departure from the band's earlier recordings with its techno-dance style and electronic sounds. Although the album received strong reviews it failed to attract the public. After a break and some side projects the band reemerged with the 1995 project "Passengers" that also failed to make an impact.

In March 1997 "Pop" was released debuting at number 1 in 28 countries. The subsequent massive "Popmart" tour continued the "Zoo TV" style of shows and although it netted $80 million it actually cost more than $100 million to produce. In late 1998 the band released its first greatest hits compilation "The Best Of 1980-1990".

World's Hottest Band

A large number of hardcore U2 fans became unsettled with the techno-dance style music of "Zooropa" and "Pop". In order to keep their army of loyal fans U2's next studio album "All That You Can't Leave Behind" (2001) musically returned to their 1987 album "The Joshua Tree". It debuted at number 1 in 22 countries and the single "Beautiful Day" was a worldwide hit. Their massive "Elevation" tour grossed $110 million just in America, the highest ever in history after The Rolling Stones "Voodoo Lounge" tour in 1994. In the summer of 2002 the band released part two of their greatest hits collection with "The Best Of 1990-2000".

U2's next album came in November 2004 with "How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb" and debuted in number 1 in 32 countries, smashing in the process their previous record sales in the US. The band promoted their album heavily by licensing a special version of the Apple iPod music player and by making a number of TV appearances in the UK and the US. Tickets for their gigs around the world became music's hottest property. 150,000 tickets for the Dublin concerts sold in 50 minutes, in Canada their only show sold out in five minutes and a similar story was to be told pretty much everywhere else in the world. In March 2005 U2 was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in their first year of eligibility.

"Have you come here for forgiveness, Have you come to raise the dead, Have you come here to play Jesus to the lepers in your head..."
U2 - 1991