19 February 2009 'Get On Your Boots' is U2's 21st Irish number one single - and their last. (Those 21 U2 Irish number ones fall neatly: seven in the '80s, seven in the '90s, and seven in the '00s.) What's more, 2009 is also the last time U2 had an Irish top ten single, with … Continue reading U2 – ‘Get On Your Boots’ →

6 March 2008 Christy Dignam, who has died just a few days before I write this, didn't have an Irish number one single with his band Aslan. However, as a credited member of A Band of Bowsies, the collective noun for the plethora of Irish singers appearing here, this is the third time we've seen … Continue reading U2, The Dubliners, Kíla and A Band of Bowsies – ‘The Ballad Of Ronnie Drew’ →

9 November 2006 I had to double-check the dates: Hurricane Katrina was in August 2005 and the U2-Green Day collaboration tops our chart in November 2006. So, this charity single makes landfall over a year after the actual disaster (natural and man-made, or at least man-exacerbated) hit the people of New Orleans. I see, however, … Continue reading U2 and Green Day – ‘The Saints Are Coming’ →

11 November 2004 Well, this is a pleasant surprise: re-listening to 'Vertigo' now reminds me there's actually stuff about it I really like. In short, it's a U2 song that's genuinely fun. Yeah, I know! Come on now: you have to enjoy Bono's supremely goofy dog-Spanish count-in (translation: "Some! Two! Three! Fourteen!") and Edge's chord-crunching … Continue reading U2 – ‘Vertigo’ →

21 July 2001 Blur had a surprise US hit single in 1997 thanks to 'Song 2'. With its "Woo hoo!" hook and crunching rock chords, 'Elevation' sounds like U2's attempt to have a bit of that same 'Song 2' stuff for themselves. I'm not a fan of 'Song 2', Blur, or U2. I won't keep … Continue reading U2 – ‘Elevation’ →

3 February 2001 You probably know the story behind 'Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of' as a song by Bono about the tragic final years and death of his friend Michael Hutchence. No one's response to that kind of sad, complicated, frustrating situation is going to be perfect. So, the sincerity of … Continue reading U2 – ‘Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out Of’ →

14 October 2000 It wasn't just me. I remember the widespread first impression of 'Beautiful Day', after its world premiere radio play one weekday morning, as one of being underwhelmed. The subdued verses; the bland, unremarkable chorus; Edge dusting off his distinctive early '80s guitar: it all seemed to symbolise U2 not willing to take … Continue reading U2 – ‘Beautiful Day’ →

25 October 1998 Our obvious starting point here is to compare the two versions. The original 'Sweetest Thing' is the B-side to 'Where The Streets Have No Name', and Bono's vocal on that version is his '80s throaty, bluesy shtick, which doesn't suit the song. On this 1998 single version Bono's vocal is softer and … Continue reading U2 – ‘Sweetest Thing’ →

7 February 1997 Desperation: that's the first thing I remember from 'Discothèque', the Pop album and the PopMart tour. How else can you explain U2 (a) dressing up as the Village People, and (b) looking so uncomfortable doing it? Seeing Larry so stiff and self-conscious in this video, you suddenly realise: ah, so that's who's … Continue reading U2 – ‘Discothèque’ →

9 June 1995 A glam rock U2 record is... actually not a bad idea, especially at this point in time. Alter-egos and crunchy guitars were already part of the Zoo TV aesthetic. Their long-time co-producer was part of glam-era Roxy Music, whose first two albums are essential glam artefacts: surely Eno would be able to … Continue reading U2 – ‘Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me’ →