In 1976 Larry Mullen Jr., at the age of 14, decided to start a band.

He sent out fliers

to recruit members. Those that answered the call are currently the members of the
rock band U2. The four members of U2 that were brought together as teenagers in
1976 are: Bono (Paul Hewson) - vocals, guitar, harmonica; The Edge (David Evans) guitar, keyboard, vocals; Larry Mullen Jr. - drums, percussion, vocals; and Adam
Clayton - bass guitar. These four men are from Dublin, Ireland. U2 is usually the
band that comes to mind when someone thinks of bands from Ireland. They started
playing together and released their first album in 1980.

After the band got together, they played covers of other bands. They didnt sound
that great playing other peoples songs, so they began to write their own music. In
1980 they released their first album Boy. The album was released to great reviews
(Johnson). As time went on, their music style was difficult to tie down. Some called
their music rock, alternative, psychedelic. Some of their influences were the
Beatles, Bob Dylan and the Who. They quickly released three more albums:
October, 1981; War, 1983; and The Unforgettable Fire, 1984. U2 was gaining
momentum.

In 1985 when I was 13 years old there was a charity concert held to raise funds for
Ethiopia called Live Aid. It was huge. There were many great rockers that played, to
name a few; Phil Collins, Queen, David Bowie, Elvis Costello and U2. By 1985 most
people had at least heard of U2. Their performance at Live Aid ended up thrusting
them into worldwide stars. Their performance at Live Aid was touted as one of the
highlight performances of the day (Edwards). I was highly impressed with what I
saw as were all of my friends. Although I have many favorite bands, U2 is very
high up on my list. I love U2; yes that is so child of the 80s.

Bono is the front man of the band and the others dont seem to mind. He uses his
fame to push his personal political agendas. He has spent a lot of time convincing
world dignitaries to join in his fight against AIDS and poverty. In 2002 he helped to
found DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade, Africa) (Fricke). Every U2 concert I have attended,
Bono reaches out to the audience to join him in healing the world of its ills. It
bothers some people, but it is expected to happen. You may wonder, Does all of
this political activity bother his band mates? The answer is, no. They realize that
this is who he is even if they dont always agree with his methods (Tyrangiel).

U2 still makes music together now. They have been together for almost 40 years. It
hasnt always been easy and there were a few times they almost broke up.
Reinventing themselves is something they do well. U2 has been awarded 22
Grammy award over the course of the years. They are not as popular as they once
were and there are many fans that did not appreciate their musical experiments.
For now, they are still delighting people with their music.

The first song I am going to present is, One. It is from the album Achtung Baby
1991. This album won a Grammy for best rock performance by a duo or group with
Vocal (Grammy.com/artist/u2). This ballad from that album is my favorite song by
U2. I could listen to it for hours. Its been used as a love song for some. For me, its
more of a song for people that dont see eye to eye. This song is 4:36 long.

The next song is Numb from the album Zooropa 1993. This is a very different
sound for U2. Most of the song is spoken by Edge in a monotone rap. The lines are a
list of donts and they rhyme. This is a very interesting song with a very unique
sound. Numb is 4:20 long.

The next song is also from the album Zooropa 1993. It is called Stay (Faraway, So
Close). It was written for and inspired by the movie, Far away, So Close. The
movie is about angels that want to stay on Earth. It is a lovey song and a little sad.

The last song is Stuck in a Moment You Cant Get Out Of. This song is from the
album All that You Cant Leave Behind 2000. This song was written with Bonos
friend Michael Hutchence in mind. He was the lead singer of the band INXS. Michael
committed suicide in 1997. Of Hutchence Bono said, If hed just hung on ten
minutes more. . . (Wenner). For me, this song means that when everything seems
to be falling apart, it wont last.

http://app.rhapsody.com/artist/u2/album/achtung-baby-bonus-tracks/track/one
0:00 Drum sticks count in the beats. This song is in 4/4 time and played Andante.
0:03 Guitar starts the intro, this is the 1st melody of the song.
0:14 Vocals begin with the 1st verse and you can hear percussion lightly, the guitars
continue the same pattern.
0:55 1st verse ends, tempo speeds up a little. Bridge starts. Guitar changes pattern.
1:08 2nd Verse begins.
1:48 2nd verse ends with, One, trailing off.
2:00 3rd verse begins
2:39 3rd verse ends.
2:40 Bridge begins, Love is a temple. . .
3:05 Bridge ends
3:06 Coda begins.
3:38 Singing ends and the guitars and drums are playing
4:00 Skat singing begins, there is a build up of emotion.
4:27 Last vocal music and a final lick of the guitars.

http://app.rhapsody.com/artist/u2/album/zooropa/track/numb
0:00 Drums start their beat 1, 2, 3, 4.
0:06 Guitar and bass start. The tone they make almost sound circular. Same drum
beat in the background.
0:16 Synthesizer with sample noises
0:27 Vocals begin the 1st verse, very monotone. Guitars and drums keep the same
pattern
1:40 Chorus begins, I feel numb. This is sung in a high falsetto.
1:52 2nd verse begins with the falsetto still in the background creating polyphony
and a cacophony of sound.
2:00 Synthesizer plays a descending lick over and over with sampling in the
background.
2:34 3rd verse begins with the chorus in the background. There is still a lot going on
with the drums, guitars and synthesizer.
3:17 Bridge
3:28 4th verse begins in the same pattern that verses 2 and 3 had.
3:57 Coda begins and the same lines are repeated a couple of times
4:10 Last falsetto, I feel numb.
4:11 There is still sampling, then silence.

http://app.rhapsody.com/artist/u2/album/zooropa/track/stay-faraway-so-close
0:00 The strum of the guitar, then almost immediately the drum start. The bass is at
the bottom keeping the beat. 4/4 time.
0:13 1st verse starts.
0:44 The music gets louder and the melody changes.
1:08 2nd verse starts. Guitar still strumming.
1:31 The music crescendos again and the 2 nd theme starts.
2:00 Chorus. Louder and the guitar has a different pattern. The drums are more
apparent.
2:30 3rd verse begins. Guitars and drums go back to the original pattern.
2:51 2nd theme starts again with the crescendo.
3:20 Chorus, If I could stay. .
3:44 Bridge, increasing tempo and sound.
4:00 Skat singing begins. Music increases volume.
4:23 Coda begins with skat singing in the background.
4:40 Skat singing in the background ends.
4:42 Vocals continue with no back up singers, much quieter volume.
4:47 Last vocal, As an angel hits the ground.

4:41 Cymbals end the song.

http://app.rhapsody.com/artist/u2/album/all-that-you-cant-leave-behind/track/stuckin-a-moment-you-cant-get-out-of
0:01 Drums 1, 2, 3, 4 quick starts intro. This is 4/4 time played adagio. Then
keyboard begins and then the guitars.
0:15 1st verse begins.
1:03 Chorus begins.
1:33 2nd verse begins. Drums have a syncopated beat.
2:22 Chorus begins, Youve got to get yourself together. . . The guitar and the
drums have opposite beats.
2:46 Bridge, the vocals go quite high.
3:10 Chorus begins again.
3:35 Coda begins with almost a falsetto voice.
3:59 Coda continues and another voice comes in with the same words song in a
polyphonic manner.
4:22 The polyphony ends. One single voice sings the last line, Its just a moment
this time will pass. All instrument end as the same time as the last sung note.