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
Miss Sarajevo
U2 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A time to turn your eyes away?
Is there a time for keeping your head down?
For getting on with your day?
Is there a time for Kohl and lipstick?
A time for cutting hair?
Is there a time for high street shopping
Here she comes
Heads turn around
Here she comes
To take her crown
Is there a time to run for cover?
A time for kiss and tell?
Is there a time for different colors?
Different names you find it hard to spell
Is there a time for first communion?
A time for east 17?
Is there a time to turn to mecca?
Is there time to be a beauty queen?
Here she comes
Beauty plays the clown
Here she comes
Surreal in her crown
Dici che il fiume
Trova la via al mare
E come il fiume
Giungerai a me
Oltre i confini
E le terre assetate
Dici che come fiume
Come fiume
L'amore giungera
L'amore
E non so piu pregare
E nell'amore non so piu sperare
E quell'amore non so piu aspettare
Is there a time for tying ribbons?
A time for Christmas trees?
Is there a time for laying tables?
And the night is set to freeze?
The lyrics of Miss Sarajevo by U2 touch upon some of the most pressing and timeless human questions. The first two stanzas of the song express the tension between different priorities and responsibilities in life. The line "Is there a time for keeping your distance?" is particularly poignant in the context of the song's subject matter, as it highlights how people can become disconnected from the suffering of others. Similarly, the lines "Is there a time to turn your eyes away?" and "Is there a time for keeping your head down?" speak to the human inclination to avoid difficult truths and situations.
The third and fourth stanzas of the song introduce the idea of beauty as a form of escapism. The lines "Is there a time for high street shopping / To find the right dress to wear?" draw attention to the excesses of consumer culture and its trivializing effect on human life. The idea of beauty as a form of artifice is further explored in the chorus, with the lines "Here she comes / To take her crown" and "Beauty plays the clown / Surreal in her crown." The contrast between the beauty queen and the surreal, clown-like figure is a commentary on the falseness of beauty ideals and the letdown that often follows when those ideals are attained.
The Italian interlude of the song, "Dici che il fiume / Trova la via al mare," adds an extra layer of meaning to the lyrics. The lines mean "You say that the river / Finds the way to the sea" and serve as a metaphor for the power of love to find its way even in the most difficult circumstances. The lines "L'amore giungera / L'amore / E non so piu pregare / E nell'amore non so piu sperare / E quell'amore non so piu aspettare" ("Love will come / Love / And I can no longer pray / And in love I can no longer hope / And for that love I can no longer wait") convey a sense of desperation and hopelessness but also offer a sliver of hope.
Line by Line Meaning
Is there a time for keeping your distance?
Is it ever appropriate to keep your distance from a situation or person?
A time to turn your eyes away?
Or should you always face the truth head on?
Is there a time for keeping your head down?
Is there a moment where it's better to avoid conflict?
For getting on with your day?
And carry on with your life?
Is there a time for Kohl and lipstick?
Is there a moment where it is appropriate to focus on vanity?
A time for cutting hair?
Or is it sometimes better to let go of your appearance?
Is there a time for high street shopping
Is it acceptable to indulge in consumerism?
To find the right dress to wear?
Or is it better to focus on the more important things in life?
Here she comes
She's making her entrance
Heads turn around
All eyes are on her
To take her crown
She's the center of attention
Is there a time to run for cover?
Is there a moment when it's better to avoid danger?
A time for kiss and tell?
Or is it better to keep certain things to yourself?
Is there a time for different colors?
Are there moments where diversity is important?
Different names you find it hard to spell
Even if it's hard to pronounce some names?
Is there a time for first communion?
Should we follow traditional religious practices?
A time for east 17?
Or embrace modern culture?
Is there a time to turn to mecca?
Is there a time to focus on prayer?
Is there time to be a beauty queen?
Or is it more important to focus on other things?
Beauty plays the clown
Sometimes beauty isn't serious
Surreal in her crown
The image of a beauty queen seems unreal
Dici che il fiume
You say that the river
Trova la via al mare
Finds a way to reach the ocean
E come il fiume
And like the river
Giungerai a me
You will come to me
Oltre i confini
Beyond borders
E le terre assetate
And thirsty lands
L'amore giungera
Love will come
L'amore
Love
E non so piu pregare
And I no longer know how to pray
E nell'amore non so piu sperare
And in love, I no longer know how to hope
E quell'amore non so piu aspettare
And I no longer know how to wait for that love
Is there a time for tying ribbons?
Is there a moment to focus on decoration?
A time for Christmas trees?
Or is it about coming together during the holidays?
Is there a time for laying tables?
Is it important to prepare for dinner guests?
And the night is set to freeze?
Even in the coldest of nights?
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Adam Clayton, Brian Peter George Eno, David Evans, Laurence Mullen, Paul David Hewson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
A me
on eleven o' clock tick tock
And girls can make children but not like this one...so will just have to walk around with a painted face then...
LMewdowlark
on One
Baby, baby, baby, I know I'm not alone
Ha, ha, ha
Oh, it's not a hill it's a mountain
As you start out the climb
You see, for me, I've been shouting
Let's shout into the darkness, squeeze out sparks of light
You know we're gonna go crazy, you know we'll go crazy
You know we'll go crazy, if we don't go crazy tonight
Oh, slowly
Oh
Hold me slow
Again, these are the wrong lyrics. They are not the lyrics for 'One' but a different song. I pasted the correct lyrics in my other comment.
LMewdowlark
on One
And there's a part of you that wants me to riot
Everybody needs to cry or needs to spit
Every sweet-tooth needs just a little hit
Every beauty needs to go out with an idiot
How can you stand next to the truth and not see it?
Oh, change of heart comes slow
It's not a hill, it's a mountain
As you start out the climb
Do you believe me or are you doubting?
We're gonna make it all the way to the light
But I know I'll go crazy if I don't go crazy tonight
Every generation gets a chance to change the world
Pity the nation that won't listen to you boys and girls
Is the sweetest melody the one we haven't heard?
Is it true that perfect love drives out all fear?
The right to be ridiculous is something I hold dear
Oh, but change of heart comes slow
It's not a hill, it's a mountain
As you start out the climb
You see, for me, I've been shouting
But we're gonna make it all the way to the light
But I know I'll go crazy if I don't go crazy tonight
Is it getting better
Or do you feel the same?
Will it make it easier on you now
You got someone to blame?
You say, one love, one life
When it's one need in the night
One love, we get to share it
Leaves you, baby, if you don't care for it
Did I disappoint you
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without
Well, it's too late tonight
To drag the past out into the light
We're one, but we're not the same
We get to carry each other, carry each other
One
Have you come here for forgiveness?
Have you come to raise the dead?
Have you come here to play Jesus?
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much? More than a lot
You gave me nothing, now it's all I got
We're one but we're not the same
Well, we hurt each other then we do it again
You say love is a temple, love a higher law
Love is a temple, love the higher law
You ask me to enter but then you make me crawl
And I can't be holdin' on to what you got
When all you got is hurt
One love, one blood
One life, you got to do what you should
One life with each other
Sisters, brothers
One life but we're not the same
We get to carry each other, carry each other
One
One