The band formed at Mount Temple Comprehensive School in 1976 when the members were teenagers with limited musical proficiency. Within four years, they signed with Island Records and released their debut album, Boy (1980). Subsequent work such as their first UK number-one album, War (1983), and the singles "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "Pride (In the Name of Love)" helped establish U2's reputation as a politically and socially conscious group. By the mid-1980s, they had become renowned globally for their live act, highlighted by their performance at Live Aid in 1985. The group's fifth album, The Joshua Tree (1987), made them international superstars and was their greatest critical and commercial success. Topping music charts around the world, it produced their only number-one singles in the US, "With or Without You" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For".
Facing creative stagnation and a backlash following their documentary/double album, Rattle and Hum (1988), U2 reinvented themselves in the 1990s through a new musical direction and public image. Beginning with their acclaimed seventh album, Achtung Baby (1991), and the multimedia-intensive Zoo TV Tour, the band integrated influences from alternative rock, electronic dance music, and industrial music into their sound, and embraced a more ironic, flippant image. This experimentation continued through their ninth album, Pop (1997), and the PopMart Tour, which were mixed successes. U2 regained critical and commercial favour with the records All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000) and How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (2004), which established a more conventional, mainstream sound for the group. Their U2 360° Tour of 2009–2011 is the highest-attended and highest-grossing concert tour in history. The group's thirteenth album, Songs of Innocence (2014), was released at no cost through the iTunes Store, but received criticism for its automatic placement in users' music libraries.
U2 has released 14 studio albums and is one of the world's best-selling music artists in history, having sold more than 170 million records worldwide. They have won 22 Grammy Awards, more than any other band, and in 2005, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility. Rolling Stone ranked U2 at number 22 on its list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Throughout their career, as a band and as individuals, they have campaigned for human rights and philanthropic causes, including Amnesty International, Jubilee 2000, the ONE/DATA campaigns, Product Red, War Child, and Music Rising.
Foundation: The band originally formed in 1976 when Larry Mullen posted a bulletin in his school asking for musicians to form a rock band. The band then consisted of the four current members plus three additional guitarists, including The Edge’s brother Dick Evans (later a member of Virgin Prunes), Ivan McCormick and Peter Martin. According to legend, Bono originally auditioned as a guitarist but couldn’t play. He auditioned as lead vocals, but really couldn’t sing. He was, however, incredibly enthusiastic about the band, extremely charismatic, a great writer, and was strangely able to reach the audience when the band played, something he is known for still today. Bono will reach out into the crowd and dance or mess with someone in the crowd at every concert. He was kept as a member. The extra guitarists would soon leave the band and the group would go through the names “Feedback ” and “The Hype” before finally settling on U2.
The 70s & 80s: 1978 was a jumping point year for the band, finally finding their sound / voice. U2 won a talent contest in 1978: £500 and funds to make a record. Paul McGuinness became the band’s manager and U2 released an EP called Three and the single Another Day, the following year. U2 went on to release their first album, Boy and then more critically acclaimed albums incl.: October, War, Under A Blood Red Sky, and The Unforgettable Fire (featuring the song PlayMLK dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr). Seen by many as a political band with more charisma than others, they were called “a different kind” of band. After a short break U2 returned with The Joshua Tree & the USA music inspired Rattle And Hum (also a movie of the same name, based on the tour).
The 90s: Promising ”to dream it all up again”, they added industrial and dance styles to their music. Trying to drop a goody two shoes image, they went to Berlin (Germany), supposedly to develop new self-expressions. From there they started to make fun of themselves and had a good time of it in albums like Achtung Baby (meaning ”watch out, baby”, artwork feat. make-up artist Nassim Khalifa) & Zooropa. Bono took on many stage personae such as “The Fly”, “Mirrorball Man” and “Mr. MacPhisto” for the gigantic ZOO TV Tour. Later they continued to make fun of Pop culture and all its extremes with the album Pop and consequent PopMart tour which was announced to be launched at a Kmart store and included a giant golden arch across the stage.
The 00s: At the end of the 90’s into 00’s U2 became less image and more reality. With the death of Bono’s good friend Michael Hutchence, the lead singer of INXS, Bono wrote more songs from the heart surrounding ideas like life and death, children, hope, and the real world past all the pop culture and TV. Some say they’ve returned to a more band-centric sound with albums like All That You Can’t Leave Behind which features a song, Kite, dedicated to Bono’s father who passed away shortly after the album’s conception and 2004’s How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb.
The 10s: U2 went on the U2 360° Tour in 2009 and 2010. This tour set records for the highest-grossing concert tour. The band worked with producer Danger Mouse for their thirteenth album Songs of Innocence, which was released on 9 September 2014 for free to all Apple iCloud users.
The Name: There are many theories as to the origin of the name U2. For example, U2 was an intelligence airplane that was in use by the United States during the Cold War. Other obvious candidates include “You too” and “You two”, etc. Nonetheless the official line on the name’s origins remains unknown. The band has been quoted as saying that they did think of the U2 spy plane, but remain hushed about other reasons… U2
Ground Beneath Her
U2 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Her golden voice, her beauty's beat
How she made us feel, how she made me real
And the ground beneath her feet
And the ground beneath her feet
And now I can't be sure of anything
Black is white, and cold is heat
It was the ground beneath her feet
It was the ground beneath her feet
Go lightly down your darkened way
Go lightly underground
I'll be down there in another day
I won't rest until you're found
Let me love you, let me rescue you,
Let me bring you where two roads meet
Oh come back above, where there is only love
Only love
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
Let me love you true, let me rescue you,
Let me bring you to where two roads meet
Let me love you true, let me rescue you,
Let me bring you to where two roads meet
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
The Ground Beneath Her Feet by U2 and Daniel Lanois revolves around a woman who is highly worshiped and admired by the singer. He adores everything about her, from her golden voice to her beauty's beat, highlighting the impact she had on him and the people around her. The "ground beneath her feet" symbolizes her presence, which gives him a sense of reality and stability in life as if she is the anchor that keeps him grounded.
However, things take a drastic turn when she disappears, and the singer is left in a state of confusion and disillusionment. He questions everything as he cannot be sure of anything anymore, and everything seems to have changed from black to white and cold to heat. The woman he worshipped stole his love away, and the ground beneath her feet became the reason for his longing and pain.
Throughout the song, the singer expresses his desire to rescue the woman he adores and bring her back into his life. He promises to love her true and not rest until he finds her. The lyrics convey a sense of longing, love, and devotion, making it a poignant and emotionally charged song.
Line by Line Meaning
All my life, I worshiped her
I spent my entire life admiring her and holding her in high esteem
Her golden voice, her beauty's beat
Her melodious voice and captivating beauty were extraordinary
How she made us feel, how she made me real
She had a way of making us feel alive and present, especially to me
And the ground beneath her feet
The ground where she stood felt holy, like a sacred place
And now I can't be sure of anything
After she left, I lost my sense of certainty about everything
Black is white, and cold is heat
Things that were once opposite now feel the same, my perspective is skewed
For what I worshiped, stole my love away
What I revered took away the person I loved
It was the ground beneath her feet
The place where she stood and the aura around her were responsible for her sway on me
Go lightly down your darkened way
Move carefully down the path that seems difficult or unclear
Go lightly underground
Explore further on this dark path
I'll be down there in another day
I'll join you there soon
I won't rest until you're found
I'll keep searching until I find you
Let me love you, let me rescue you,
Let me offer my love and save you from whatever is keeping you away
Let me bring you where two roads meet
Let me take you to a place where everything comes together or makes sense
Oh come back above, where there is only love
Come back to the surface where we can be together and where love rules
Only love
Nothing but love remains
My oh my, my oh my
Expressing emotional surprise or amazement
My oh my, my oh my
Expressing emotional surprise or amazement
My oh my, my oh my
Expressing emotional surprise or amazement
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ADAM CLAYTON, DAVE EVANS, LARRY MULLEN, PAUL HEWSON, SALMAN RUSHDIE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@VivekKumar-ff2vr
All my life, I worshiped her
Her golden voice, her beauty's beat
How she made us feel, how she made me real
And the ground beneath her feet
And the ground beneath her feet
And now I can't be sure of anything
Black is white, and cold is heat
For what I worshiped, stole my love away
It was the ground beneath her feet
It was the ground beneath her feet
Go lightly down your darkened way
Go lightly underground
I'll be down there in another day
I won't rest until you're found
Let me love you, let me rescue you,
Let me bring you where two roads meet
Oh come back above, where there is only love
Only love
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
Let me love you true, let me rescue you,
Let me bring you to where two roads meet
Let me love you true, let me rescue you,
Let me bring you to where two roads meet
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my.
@haraldbuit4215
Stay strong, Salman Rushdie 🙏
@luciamorrone4404
❤
@diegotovar2471
When I was 10 years old I heard this song and I never knew who played it, since that time I have been looking for it, today I am 36 years old and I have found it, I cannot be happier.
@WertzuHun
Did you know U2 the entire time just not that this is their song?
@user-mf3xg3dx6o
It was in 2000 this song was released. You were at least 13 then…? 😊
@karlwhite8769
I remember buying this album and I loved it but this song became a bit of an obsession. Such a great song.
@davidrawzen8232
Seems that we all have stories about searching for things - at least some songs - for a half of life... ))
@flaviaramos849
Isto tambem aconteceu comigo...mas na epoca eu tinha uns 17... ela tocou raras vezes na Radio, e nao tinhamos youtube ou a tecn9logia do google disponivel para encontrarmos uma musica. Incrivel que apesar de tantos anos depois, esta musica toca minha alma de uma maneira ímpar e indescritivel❤
@Phisto89
One of their most underrated and underplayed songs
@matthewclay6535
So true... one of their most underrated songs ever!!