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
Magnificent
U2 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh, oh, magnificent
I was born
I was born to be with you
In this space and time
After that and ever after I haven't had a clue
Only to break rhyme
Oh, oh
Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar
I was born
I was born to sing for you
I didn't have a choice but to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice
From the womb my first cry, it was a joyful noise
Oh, oh
Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar
Justified till we die, you and I will magnify, oh-oh
The Magnificent
Magnificent, oh, oh
Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love unites our hearts
Justified till we die, you and I will magnify, oh oh
The magnificent
Magnificent
Magnificent
In U2's song "Magnificent," the lyrics speak of love, birth, and the power of music to uplift and heal. The song opens with the notion that the singer was born to be with someone, but after the initial connection, they were unsure what to do next. The song speaks to the power of love and how it can both hurt and heal, with the chorus repeating that only love can leave such a mark and only love can heal such a scar. As the song continues, the singer talks about being born to sing for someone and to lift them up with their voice.
The bridge of the song speaks to the transformative power of love, as the lyrics state that the singer and their partner will magnify, or amplify, each other until death. The word "justified" is also used in the bridge, and it speaks to the idea that their love and actions will be judged and found worthy. Overall, the song seems to be a celebration of the power of love to transform and heal us.
Line by Line Meaning
Magnificent
The singer is in awe of the subject of the song.
Oh, oh, magnificent
The singer continues to express their admiration for the subject.
I was born
The singer is acknowledging their existence.
I was born to be with you
The artist believes that they were destined to be with the subject.
In this space and time
The artist believes that this moment in history was designed for them and the subject to be together.
After that and ever after I haven't had a clue
The singer is unsure what the future holds for them and the subject.
Only to break rhyme
The singer is willing to go against tradition for the sake of their love for the subject.
This foolishness can leave a heart black and blue
The artist acknowledges that love can be painful.
Only love, only love can leave such a mark
The artist is emphasizing the fact that only love can leave such a powerful impact on a person's life.
But only love, only love can heal such a scar
The artist believes that love can also help to alleviate some of the pain it causes.
I was born to sing for you
The singer feels that their purpose in life is to sing for the subject.
I didn't have a choice but to lift you up
The artist feels that they have no other option but to help the subject rise up and flourish.
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
The singer is willing to do whatever it takes to make the subject happy.
I give you back my voice
The singer feels that their voice belongs to the subject.
From the womb my first cry, it was a joyful noise
The singer believes that their existence brought joy to the world.
Justified till we die, you and I will magnify, oh-oh
The artist feels that their love is righteous and will continue to grow until they pass away.
The Magnificent
The artist addresses the subject directly, referring to them as magnificent.
Only love, only love unites our hearts
The singer believes that love is the only thing that can bring people together.
Magnificent, oh, oh
The singer reiterates their admiration for the subject.
Justified till we die, you and I will magnify, oh oh
The artist is confident that their love for the subject will only continue to grow.
The magnificent
The artist once again addresses the subject directly.
Magnificent
The artist ends the song by repeating the title, expressing their awe and love for the subject.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Brian Peter George Eno, Adam Clayton, David Evans, Paul David Hewson, Daniel Roland Lanois, Laurence Mullen Jnr., Dave Evans, Larry Mullen
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@giulionucci8869
Magnificent
Oh, oh, magnificent
I was born, I was born to be with you
In this space and time
After that and ever after
I haven't had a clue
Only to break rhyme
This foolishness
Can leave a heart black and blue, oh, oh
Only love
Only love can leave such a mark
But only love
Only love can heal such a scar
I was born, I was born to sing for you
I didn't have a choice but to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice from the womb
My first cry, it was a joyful noise, oh, oh
Only love
Only love can leave such a mark
But only love
Only love can heal such a scar
Justified 'til we die
You and I will magnify
Oh, oh, oh, magnificent
Magnificent, oh, oh
Only love
Only love can leave such a mark
But only love
Only love unites our hearts
Justified 'til we die
You and I will magnify
Oh, oh, oh, magnificent
Magnificent
@carlagreyling1623
I was born
I was born to be with you
In this space and time
After that and ever after I haven't had a clue
Only to break rhyme
This foolishness can leave a heart black and blue
Oh, oh
Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar
I was born
I was born to sing for you
I didn't have a choice but to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice
From the womb my first cry, it was a joyful noise
Oh, oh
Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar
Justified till we die, you and I will magnify, oh-oh
The Magnificent
Magnificent, oh, oh
Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love unites our hearts
Justified till we die, you and I will magnify, oh-oh
The Magnificent
Magnificent
Magnificent
@BabaBest2000
I am from Morocco and have been a U2 fan since the eighties. This song is very special to me. Thank you Bono, Edge, Adam and Larry.
@VaclavFialaprofil
I love Morocco, from where (place in Morocco) are you? I am from Czech republic and I visited Morocco twice.
@lorenzopiccoli3428
Anyone watching in 2024?
@user-zs3zo6yd6g
Yes
@Careless_Badass
Who, doesn't?💛
@marquescarvalho31
🙋🏾♂️
@sinergiaevel
Yo 7/4/2024
@cedricmattera538
Oui moi tt l’es jour
@jsbass5635
Without any doubt, this is one of U2’s best studio recordings. It is quintessential U2. All its ingredients are the things that make U2 great. Machine gun drumming from Larry; Probably one of Adam’s best bass lines; Classic Edge riffs with those ethereal delays; Bono giving it hell on vocals. This is a masterpiece. Deserves to be heard much more widely.
@janet20257
I agree 💯