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BanDs NamE-U2:-

U2 are a rock band from Dublin, Ireland, featuring Bono (Paul David Hewson) on vocals, rhythm guitar and harmonica; The Edge (David Howell Evans) on lead guitar, keyboards and vocals; Adam Clayton on bass guitar; and Larry Mullen, Jr. on drums, percussion and occasional vocals.

Formed in 1976, U2 has consistently remained among the most popular acts in the world since the mid 1980s. The band has sold approximately 50.5 million albums in the U.S., according to the RIAA,and upwards of 170 million worldwide,has had six #1 albums in the US and nine #1 albums in the UK and are one of the most successful bands of the rock era. The band has won 22 Grammy awards, more than any other recording artist.

The band is also politically active in human rights causes, such as the Make Poverty History campaign as well as Live Aid, Live 8, and Bono's DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade in Africa) campaign.

BanD members:-

Bono (Paul Hewson)
The Edge (Dave Evans)
Adam Clayton
Larry Mullen Jr.


BanDs HisTorY:-

The band was formed in Dublin, Ireland on Saturday, 25 September 1976 . Larry Mullen, Jr., then fourteen, posted a notice on his secondary school bulletin board (Mount Temple Comprehensive School) seeking musicians for a new band. The response that followed that note resulted in seven boys attending the initial practice in Larry'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 vocals, Dave Evans (The Edge) and his brother Dik Evans on guitar, as well as Mullen's friends Ivan McCormick and Peter Martin.Soon after, the group settled on the name Feedback because of the amplifier noise phenomenon they favored. Martin only came to the first practice, and McCormick was out of the core group within a few weeks.

After 18 months of rehearsals, Feedback changed its name to The Hype. The band performed with their new name at a talent show in Limerick, Ireland on 17 March 1978. One of the judges for the show happened to be CBS Records' Jackie Hayden; they won the contest, earning a £500 prize. Hayden was impressed enough with the band that he gave them studio time to record their first demo. Jackie Hayden would later work for Irish Magazine Hot Press.

Dik Evans announced his departure in March 1978. The Hype performed a farewell show for Dik at the Community Centre in Howth. Dik walked offstage halfway through the set, later joining the Virgin Prunes, a fellow Dublin band. The remaining four members finished their performance as U2.[5] In May, Paul McGuinness, who had been introduced to the band by Hot Press journalist Bill Graham, became U2's manager.

The origin of the name U2 is not clear. Although it is also the name of a famous 1960s spyplane, the Dublin punk rock guru Steve Averill (better known as Steve Rapid of The Radiators From Space) claimed that 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 is quoted as saying "I don't actually like the name U2," and "I honestly never thought of it as 'you too'.

iNfulenced by television and Joy Division, U2's early sound had a sense of exhilaration that resulted from The Edge's "radiant chords" and Bono's "ardent vocals", according to one author. U2's first release (an Ireland only EP), was in September 1979, entitled Three. Produced as a 12 inch and subsequently a 7 inch, the first 1,000 12 inch copies were individually hand numbered, and went on to top the Irish charts. In December 1979, U2 performed in London, their first shows outside Ireland, but 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 the band in March 1980. U2 released its first international single "11 O'Clock Tick Tock" in May 1980 and released its first album, Boy the following October. It was met with critical praise and is considered by some as one of the better debuts in rock history. Despite Bono’s unfocused, seemingly improvised lyrics, Boy had a specific theme – an examination of the hopes and frustrations of adolescence,[12] touching on fear over sex, identity confusion, death and uncontrollable mood swings.The album gave the band their first hit single, "I Will Follow," which remains a fan favorite to this day. 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. One critic was even reminded of a young Rod Stewart.U2 made their first appearance on US television on the Tomorrow show, on 4 June 1981, performing "I Will Follow" and "Twilight".

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

Since 1982, Anton Corbijn has been the principal photographer for U2, having a major and ongoing influence on their public image. Since their first encounter in February 1982 in New Orleans, they have had a longstanding friendship, mutual inspiration, and shared interest of rock

War[1983]:-

In 1983, U2 returned with apparently a newfound sense of direction and the release of their third album, War. The album included the song "Sunday Bloody Sunday," which dealt with the troubles in Northern Ireland, including the IRA, using religious imagery and what many considered as forceful and almost rebellious lyrics. 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, proved to many that the band was capable of deep and meaningful songwriting. When some Irish-Americans tried to misrepresent the song as a rallying call for the Provisional IRA Bono responded with what became one of his most recognizable phrases, notably the performance on the live EP Under a Blood Red Sky - "this song is not a rebel song. This song is Sunday Bloody Sunday."Furthermore, as captured in the concert film Rattle and Hum, during the performance of the song on 8 November 1987 in the USA, the day after the IRA bombing in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, in which 11 people were killed during a Remembrance Day service (see Remembrance Day Bombing), Bono denounced the violence in Ireland and the Irish-American expatriates who supported it. Unlike the style and emotions conveyed by other musicians in the early 1980s, many saw in Bono anger and passion that were palpable, especially as demonstrated by his blunt assertion "Fcuk the 'revolution'!"

The album's first single, "New Year's Day", was U2's first international hit, reaching the #10 position on the UK charts and nearly cracking the Top 50 on the US charts.MTV put the "New Year's Day" video, directed by Meiert Avis, into heavy rotation, which immediately launched U2 to the mass American 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" would immediately become a familiar sight. U2 recorded the Under a Blood Red Sky EP on this tour and a live video was also released, both of which received radio and MTV play and helped expand the band's audience.