A few member changes and a year after they originally formed as Feedback, in 1976, they were called The Hype. A few short months later they were christened U2. A new name, and a new era, beckoned for Ireland's first bona fide supergroup.
A Boy’s War
U2’s first album Boy came about after the young boys won a talent competition. This album was not a commercial success in the United States, but won critical acclaim both in their homeland and in the US. The album dealt with themes of adolescence and even spoke about suicide on “A Day without Me.” With a sound of Punk, New Wave and Rock, the group symbolized something new on the airwaves.
October, the second disc, followed a year later and was nearly finished before it started. Bono, The Edge and Larry Mullen had become Christian and were wrestling with clash between their theology and the debauchery of rock and roll. The band decided to give it another try. These Christian themes are seen throughout October, and continue even further in the band’s arsenal.
The band’s third and commercial breakthrough album, War,was released in 1983. The band, primarily Bono, took a stand politically and put themselves in a position to gain both popularity and critical acknowledgement. Some of U2’s best known songs, such as “Sunday Bloody Sunday” and “New Year’s Day” are found on the War album.
Due to fear within the band that the public would see them as too political, The Unforgettable Fire saw the band step back and change sounds a bit. Adding touches of synthesizers and, at times, more staccato guitar playing, this album did nothing to dissuade audiences. Their performance on Live Aid a year into the touring schedule for the album didn’t hurt either. Ever the showman, Bono waved the white flag seen previously during the concerts supporting the War album and even invited a female fan onstage during “Bad,” a release from The Unforgettable Fire.
Rattle and Blues
1987 saw U2 investigating the blues, country and classic rock and roll for inspiration. The Joshua Tree is full of an American vibe from four primarily Irish men. This album saw incredible critical acclaim, including a magazine cover heralding the band as the greatest in the world. During this time Bono explored San Salvador and became passionate about raising awareness of the country’s plight.
This overall sense of classic music washed over into the next album and feature-length film Rattle and Hum. With an appearance of B.B. King on “Love Comes to Town,” it seemed the guys had finally ‘made it.’ However, due to bad press and discomfort within the band, at a show on New Year’s Eve 1989 Bono claimed they had to go away and “dream it all back up again.”
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