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About U2
U2 were formed in
Dublin, Ireland in 1976.
Starting out under the
name of Feedback, later
changing it to The Hype
and finally settling on
U2; the band won a local
talent competition and
were taken on by manager
Paul McGuinness.
The band members are
Bono – lead vocals and
guitar, The Edge –
guitar, vocals and
keyboards, Adam Clayton
– bass and Larry Mullen
Jr – Drums and
percussion. U2 have
released an impressive
string of albums during
their career each of
which has given rise to
numerous hit singles
along the way.
1980 Boy, the debut
album, produced by Steve
Lillywhite. The bands
first UK hit single I
Will Follow came from
this album.
1981 October, the band
temporarily split for a
time during the
recording of this album
due to spiritual
conflicts which were
later resolved.
1983 War, a number 1
album which included the
prolific Sunday Bloody
Sunday and successful
single New Years Day.
1984 The Unforgettable
Fire, produced by Brian
Eno, this album showed a
marked change of
direction for the band.
A song about Martin
Luther King (Pride In
The Name Of Love) became
one of the band’s most
successful singles.
1987 The Joshua Tree,
became the fastest
selling album in UK
history and won the band
their first 2 Grammy
Awards. Notable singles
include Where The
Streets Have No Name,
With Or Without You and
I Still Haven’t Found
What I’m Looking For.
1991 Achtung Baby,
another Brian Eno
production, the band
started work on this
album in Berlin and
finished in Dublin. One,
Mysterious Ways and The
Fly were all successful
singles.
1997 Pop, the ninth
studio album from U2
reached number one
around the world, but
the band were reportedly
unhappy with the
finished product. The
single Discotheque was
the biggest hit.
2000 All That You Can’t
Leave Behind, selling
over 12 million copies,
this album marked a
return to form for the
band. Beautiful Day,
Walk On, Elevation and
Stuck in A Moment You
Can’t Get Out Of all
feature on this album.
2004 How To Dismantle An
Atomic Bomb, the first
single from this album
featured in an iPod
advert at the same time
as a special edition U2
iPod and iTunes box set
was released.
2009 No Line On The
Horizon, released in
February 2009, this 12th
album from U2 was
written and recorded in
4 different cities.
U2 have always supported
their albums with
exceptional live shows
and have toured
extensively throughout
their career. The tours
have included:
War Tour – the image of
Bono waving a white flag
during the performance
of Sunday Bloody Sunday
came to be a defining
image of this tour.
Zoo TV Tour – very much
a multimedia production,
the tour was extravagant
and somewhat
controversial with the
inclusion of prank phone
calls to politicians and
the United Nations.
Popmart – this tour
incorporated a concert
in Sarajevo which was
the first major
performance to take
place since the end of
the Bosnian war.
U2 360° - this current
tour features a 360°
stage so that the
audience surrounds the
band from all sides.
The band were inducted
into the Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame in 2005.
Rolling Stone magazine
put U2 at number 22 in
their list of the 100
greatest artists of all
time.
The band have campaigned
tirelessly for a number
of causes including
Amnesty International.
They famously played at
Live Aid, a memorable
performance which truly
catapulted them into the
stratosphere.
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