U2: A look at the Irish rock giants' career
Facts about the band's near 50 years in rock
Last updated 21st May 2024
U2 are one of the biggest rock bands in the world. Formed in Dublin in 1976, U2 have gone on to achieve immense success with hits like 'With Or Without You', 'Beautiful Day' and 'Where The Streets Have No Name'.
One of the best-selling music acts in the world, U2 have released 14 studio albums, arguably their most popular being 'The Joshua Tree' released in 1987 - with another, 'Songs of Surrender', having been released earlier in 2023. Read on to learn more about U2...
Who are U2 and how did they form?
U2 are an Irish rock band formed in Dublin in 1976. Drummer Larry Mullen Jr. pinned an ad to his school's notice board asking for musicians, attracting singer Paul Hewson AKA Bono, guitarist David "The Edge" Evans and bassist Adam Clayton.
What was their original band name?
Initially called Feedback and then The Hype, the band continued to perform around their local area and built a good reputation. The band changed their name to in March 1978 and thus U2 as we know it was born.
Which other artists influenced U2?
David 'The Edge' Evans discussed the band's influences in an April 2023 Absolute interview. During the chat, The Edge opened up about U2’s early influences, saying: “In punk rock terms, it was what was happening post punk," name-dropping the likes of Echo & The Bunnymen, Teardrop Explodes, Wah! Heat, Patti Smith and Television and Richard Hell and the Voidoids as the groups that "got them going".
The Edge went on to explain that when U2 were an established band in the 80s, the exploding Manchester music scene very much changed their musical path. He told Tim: “The Manchester scene that you were part of (with The Charlatans), that was a huge kick up the arse for U2 I think. We were like trying to figure out where the energy was in the culture and what we wanted to do to expand our repertoire as songwriters and performers.
“What you guys were doing – The Charlatans and The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays - was a huge influence particularly (on) ‘Achtung Baby.’ I remember getting your song ‘The Only One I Know’ on 12-inch and listening to that and going ‘Cool groove. These guys are really killing it.’"
Are U2 still together?
U2 are still together and embarked on their most recent tour which spanned from 2017 to 2019, celebrating 30 years of their 1987 album 'The Joshua Tree'. The band started the epic world tour in May 2017 and finished in December 2019, visiting North America, Europe, Latin America, Oceania and Asia.
Are they on tour?
U2 aren't currently on tour but we hope to see them back on stage soon.
Bono and The Edge perform in Kyiv
Bono and The Edge were invited by the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to perform a concert in Kyiv. The pair played to a crowd of 100 people in a subway station in a surprise concert on 8th May 2022.
They played some of their biggest songs including ‘Sunday Bloody Sunday’, ‘Vertigo’, ‘Desire’, ‘With or Without You’, ‘Pride (In the Name of Love)’ and closer ‘One’.
Bono addressed the crowd during the performance to say: "The people in Ukraine are not just fighting for your own freedom, you are fighting for all of us who love freedom. We pray that you will enjoy some of that peace soon."
Watch Bono and The Edge perform in Kyiv:
U2's album 'Songs of Surrender'
The group announced their new album 'Songs of Surrender' in January 2023, made up of 40 tracks re-recorded from throughout their career. The record doesn't contain any new material, but does see some of the band's biggest hits redone and was released in March 2023.
The Edge explained why U2 were inspired: "The fact is that most of our work was written and recorded when we were a bunch of very young men. Those songs mean something quite different to us now. Some have grown with us. Some we have outgrown. But we have not lost sight of what propelled us to write those songs in the first place.
"Once we surrendered our reverence for the original version each song started to open up to a new authentic voice of this time, of the people we are, and particularly the singer Bono has become."
What are their biggest songs?
U2 have had some huge international hits during their career of nearly half a century!
'With Or Without You'
Released in March 1987, 'With Or Without You' is the lead single from U2's seminal fifth studio album 'The Joshua Tree'. It was certified 3x Platinum by the BPI in May 2024, translating to over 1.8 million sales in the UK alone.
'Where The Streets Have No Name'
Also on 'The Joshua Tree', 'Where The Streets Have No Name' was written by lead vocalist Bono and was produced by legendary producer, composer and musician Brian Eno.
'I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For'
Another huge tune from 'The Joshua Tree', 'I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For' scored the band their second consecutive Number 1 single in the US. It was nominated for Record of the Year and Song of the Year at the Grammys.
'Beautiful Day'
'Beautiful Day' is the first track on U2's 10th studio album 'All That You Can't Leave Behind', released in 2000. The song earned U2 three Grammy Awards, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
How many albums have U2 released?
There have been 14 studio albums: 'Boy' (1980), 'October' (1981), 'War' (1983), 'The Unforgettable Fire' (1984), 'The Joshua Tree' (1987), 'Rattle and Hum' (1988), 'Achtung Baby' (1991), 'Zooropa' (1993), 'Pop' (1997), 'All That You Can't Leave Behind' (2000), 'How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb' (2004)', 'No Line on the Horizon' (2009), 'Songs of Innocence' (2014)' and 'Songs of Experience' (2017).
Has Bono written a memoir?
Bono announced in May 2022 that he would be releasing a memoir called Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story on 1st November. The book will explore the origins of 40 U2 songs, with each chapter named after the song it covers.
Stories about Bono's life will be included throughout the book, from his early days in Dublin through to U2 becoming one of the world's most influential rock bands. In October 2022, he announced three UK dates to promote the book, saying: "I miss being on stage and the closeness of U2’s audience.
"In these shows I’ve got some stories to sing, and some songs to tell... Plus I want to have some fun presenting my ME-moir, SURRENDER, which is really more of a WE-moir if I think of all the people who helped me get from there to here."
Are U2 the biggest band in the world?
U2's incredible success and longevity have led many to regard them as one of the biggest bands in the world. They have sold in excess of 170 million records and continue to play to huge, packed-out stadiums.
Did U2 perform at Live Aid?
They certainly did. U2 played 'Sunday Bloody Sunday' plus an 8-minute rendition of their song 'Bad'. During U2's performance, Bono saved a teenage girl from being crushed by plucking her from the crowd. In an interview two decades later, she credited him with saving her life.
Live Aid is often heralded as making stars of the Irish band, with every U2 album available at the time returning to the chart after their performance at Live Aid.
Now read: The childhood homes of famous rock stars including Bono
Joe Elliott’s childhood home
Def Leppard frontman Joe Elliott was born and raised at 61 Crookes Road in Sheffield. Ahead of Def Leppard's homecoming gigs at The Leadmill and Bramall Lane in May 2023, Joe visited the property. He wrote: "The house I was born in, grew up in, met Sav & Tony Kenning for the very time in that upstairs room you can see above me …. Sigh …. Memories!!"
Ozzy Osbourne’s childhood home
One of six children, Ozzy Osbourne spent his formative years in this small two-bedroom terraced house on Lodge Road in Aston. Ozzy told Huffington Post in 2014: "I've been back to that house a few times over the years and I can't believe there were eight of us living in a two-and-a-half-bedroom house. It is tiny! I have wardrobes bigger in my house."
John Lennon’s childhood home
Now a lovingly restored Grade II listed building preserved by the National Trust, John Lennon lived at 251 Menlove Avenue in Liverpool with his Aunt Mimi from 1945 to 1963. It featured on the cover to Oasis single 'Live Forever' in 1994 and in 2000 it was adorned with an English Heritage blue plaque.
Paul McCartney’s childhood home
Sir Paul McCartney's childhood home at 20 Forthlin Road in Allerton, south Liverpool. It became a listed building in 2012 and is owned by the National Trust. The Trust markets the house as "the birthplace of the Beatles" as it was where McCartney and Lennon penned the earliest Beatles songs.
Ringo Starr’s childhood home
Ringo Starr (aka Richard Starkey) spent his very early childhood years at a terraced house on Madryn Street in Liverpool but moved to at two-up, two-down house 10 Admiral Grove in Dingle when he was 3 with mum Elsie when his parents separated. He lived there for the next 20 years. Pictured is 10 Admiral Grove in 1964.
David Bowie’s childhood home
40 Stansfield Road in Brixton where a young David Jones - aka David Bowie – lived until he was six years old. The house became a shrine for Bowie when the music legend died in January 2016.
Kurt Cobain’s childhood home
Kurt Cobain's childhood home in Aberdeen, Washington. Nirvana fan Lee Bacon bought the house in 2018 for $225,000 (around £170,000) and told Rolling Stone: "My goal is to preserve and restore it for my generation and for my kids."
Kurt Cobain’s childhood home
Kurt Cobain's Led Zeppelin graffiti is still on the walls in his attic bedroom.
Little Richard’s childhood home
The late rock and roll pioneer was brought up alongside his eleven siblings in this detached home in the Pleasant Hill neighbourhood of Macon, Georgia in the 1930s and 40s. Now named The Little Richard Resource Center, the home is now open to the public and hosts a number of community events.
Bruce Springsteen’s childhood home
Bruce Springsteen grew up in this home at 39 1/2 Institute Street in Freehold, New Jersey from the years 1955 to 1962. It was while living at this house aged 7 in 1956 that Springsteen witnessed Elvis Presley on The Ed Sullivan Show and decided he wanted to be a musician himself.
Johnny Cash’s childhood home
Meticulously restored in 2014 thanks to funds from Arkansas State University, Johnny Cash's boyhood home is in the tiny town of Dyess, Arkansas.
Jim Morrison’s childhood home
Jim Morrison's home in Albuquerque, New Mexico where he lived in his teens while his dad worked at the nearby Kirtland Air Force Base.
Bono’s childhood home
Paul 'Bono' Hewson's parents bought this house on Cedarwood Road, Dublin seven weeks after his birth in 1960 and he spent his entire childhood here. The U2 song 'Cedarwood Road' on their 2014 album 'Songs of Innocence' is a nostalgic musical celebration of Bono's boyhood abode.
Freddie Mercury’s childhood home
Aged 17, Freddie Mercury and his family fled the Zanzibar revolution to live at 22 Gladstone Avenue in Feltham, West London. Pictured is Queen's Brian May and Freddie's younger sister Kashmira Cooke at the unveiling of a Blue Plaque at the house in September 2016.
Lars Ulrich’s childhood home
Lars Ulrich lived in this uniquely designed property in Hellerup, Denmark with his family until he moved to America aged 17.
Mick Jagger’s childhood home
Sir Mick Jagger was brought up in this semi-detached house in Dartford, Kent. His future bandmate Keith Richards lived just around the corner.
Keith Richards’ childhood home
Keith Richards spent the first six years of his life living in this two-bedroom flat above a florists in Dartford, Kent.
Axl Rose’s childhood home
Axl Rose lived at this humble Lafayette, Indiana house from 1962 to 1982 before moving to Los Angeles in his early twenties.
Marc Bolan’s childhood home
The young Mark Field (Marc Bolan) lived at this terraced property on Stoke Newington Common, London from his birth in 1947 to aged 15 in 1962. In 2005, the London Borough of Hackney honoured Bolan with a plaque outside the property.
Elvis Presley’s childhood home
The humble two-bedroom house in Tupelo, Mississippi where The King himself Elvis Presley was born on 8th January 1935. It was built by his father Vernon after he successfully secured a $180 loan.
Jon Bon Jovi's childhood home
John Francis Bongiovi Jr.'s childhood home in Sayreville, New Jersey. Astonishingly, MTV bought the home in 1989 and gave it away in a competition. Jon Bon Jovi was reported to be "angry" at the publicity stunt and the competition winner soon sold the property.
Noel and Liam Gallagher's childhood home
Soon after Liam's birth, the Gallaghers moved to Ashby Avenue and then to Cranwell Drive in Burnage (pictured). With a violent and alcoholic father, Noel and his brothers had an unhappy childhood before mum Peggy left Thomas in 1982 with her three children.
Read more:
U2 have released their new single 'Your Song Saved My Life'
David Bowie: A celebration of the much-missed icon
The Rolling Stones through the years: How the band became rock icons