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
The Unforgettable Fire
U2 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Your only rivers run cold
These city lights
They shine as silver and gold
Dug from the night
Your eyes as black as coal
Walk on by
Walk 'til you run
And don't look back
For here I am
Carnival
The wheels fly and the colors spin
Through alcohol
Red wine that punctures the skin
Face to face
In a dry and water less place
Walk on by
Walk on through
So sad to besiege your love so head on
Stay this time
Stay tonight in a lie
I'm only asking but I
I think you know
Come on take me away
Come on take me away
Come on take me home
Home again
And if the mountain should crumble
Or disappear into the sea
Not a tear, no not I
Stay in this time
Stay tonight in
Ever after, this love in time
And if you save your love
Save it all
Don't push me too far
Don't push me too far
Tonight
Tonight
Tonight
The Unforgettable Fire by U2 is a beautiful and poetic anthem that uses metaphors and imagery to convey a message of hope and love. The lyrics begin with a description of a cold and lonesome world where "ice" runs through the rivers and the city lights shine like silver and gold, dug from the depths of night. The eyes of the people in this world are as black as coal, a reference to the darkness surrounding them.
In the chorus, the singer urges the listener to keep on walking, to run if necessary, and not look back. The song then turns to a carnival, a place of joy and celebration, but also of danger and recklessness. The wheels fly and the colors spin, through the haze of alcohol and the pain inflicted by red wine that punctures the skin. In this dry and waterless place, the singer wants to stay, asking the listener to take him away and bring him home.
The final verse brings a sense of resilience and defiance to the lyrics, as the singer declares that even if the mountain should crumble or the world should collapse, he will not shed a tear. The love shared between two people is worth holding onto, worth saving. The singer pleads not to be pushed too far, but to stay in the moment and preserve the love they share.
Line by Line Meaning
Ice
The beginning of the song, representing a cold and lifeless environment
Your only rivers run cold
The place where the singer is seems to have no sustainable resources, even the rivers are dried out
These city lights
City lights shining like silver and gold, showing the beauty of the urban world in the dark
They shine as silver and gold
Continuing the previous line's sentiment of the beauty of city lights shining bright and attractive
Dug from the night
Like precious jewels, luminous city lights with contrasting surroundings are being dug from the deep dark night
Your eyes as black as coal
Describing how the eyes of a person from this lifeless and cold environment appear
Walk on by
Advice given to those living in a lifeless community where the environment is not conducive
Walk on through
Still advising people of a lifeless community to walk straight and endure the obstacles that confront them as they make their way through life
Walk 'til you run
Continue persevering in this endless journey, with the hope of one day overcoming the challenges faced
And don't look back
Advice to continue focusing on the future and not to look back on the painful past
For here I am
Solidarity being offered by the singer to anyone who has suffered from the lifelessness of their environment
Carnival
Describing the vibrant colours of life that can be seen at a carnival
The wheels fly and the colors spin
The description of wheels and their movement at the carnival, conveying the energy and enthusiasm of the place
Through alcohol
The heavy use of alcohol to amplify the carnival experience
Red wine that punctures the skin
Describing the sharp taste of red wine and it's ability to lighten the mood
Face to face
The realization of the existence of each person in the carnival, every one of them backed by different life experiences
In a dry and water less place
Description of how the carnival is taking place in a desert area, where water is scarce and everyone just left pouring their thirst with the heavy consumption of alcohol
So sad to besiege your love so head on
Conveying an air of regret towards a past love relationship and the reasons why things went wrong
Stay this time
Asking someone to stay a while longer, even if they are not willing to stay forever
Stay tonight in a lie
Pleading with someone to stay for the time being, even if it means to deceive or prolong the inevitable goodbye
I'm only asking but I
The singer, being mindful that they don't want to sound intruding or demanding, only asking for someone to stay
I think you know
Assuming that the other person knows what the singer wants: to stay, to be together
Come on take me away
Plea for the other person to take them away from this tough environment to something better
Come on take me away
Similar to the previous line, the singer is once again pleading to be taken to a better place
Come on take me home
The singer, looking for a place of belonging, is asking to be taken to a place that they can consider their own
And if the mountain should crumble
Drawing attention to the certainty of change, with a metaphorical mountain crumbling, and what might happen next
Or disappear into the sea
Another example of the inevitability of change, if the singer's current environment disappears, what will they become or where will they go?
Not a tear, no not I
In the face of all this change, the singer tries to remain strong and unfazed, refusing to cry
Ever after, this love in time
The suggestion that even with all the changes, perhaps love will always endure
And if you save your love
Advice to someone, to hold onto their love, and not let it go, despite the difficulties and changes that life has to offer
Save it all
Continuing the previous line's sentiment, to preserve every aspect of the love and cherish it
Don't push me too far
The singer is indicating that they have limits and asking to be respected not to be pushed beyond those limits
Don't push me too far
Echoing the previous line, the singer's assertion that they have limits, they won't tolerate further pushing
Tonight
As the final word in the song, a concluding reminder of the temporary nature of life and the need to take action now
Tonight
Repeating the sentiment of the final word, tonight represents the need to take action now, rather than wait for tomorrow
Tonight
For the final time, reiterating the urgency of taking action tonight to bring a change in the situation
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Adam Clayton, David Evans, Laurence Mullen, Paul David Hewson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@michaelgabs9885
When things were at their very worst:
2 Suns, Cross in the sky, 2 comets will collide = don`t be afraid – repent, accept Lord`s Hand of Mercy.
The first sign - the Earth will spin faster.
The second sign concerns the sun, which will loom larger, brighter and begin to spin.
Scientists will say it was a global illusion.
Beaware – Jesus will never walk in flesh again.
After WW3 – rise of the “ man of peace“ from the East = Antichrist – the most powerful, popular, charismatic and influential leader of all time. Many miracles will be attributed to him. He will imitate Jesus in every conceivable way.
Don`t trust „pope“ Francis = the False Prophet
- will seem to rise from the dead
- will unite all Christian Churches and all Religions as one.
One World Religion = the seat of the Antichrist.
Benedict XVI is the last true pope – will be accused of a crime of which he is totally innocent.
- banking collapse was deliberately masterminded by the Antichrist
- Antichrist will step in and create a false peace in the state of Israel by joining them with palestine in an unlikely alliance.
- „He will recite extracts from My Teachings, which he will passionately proclaim from every secular stage in the world, until people sit up and take notice of him.“
The Book of Truth
https://mdmlastprophet.com/billions-will-convert-and-recognise-god-the-triune-god-for-the-first-time/
https://mdmlastprophet.com/the-time-for-the-schism-in-the-church-is-almost-here-and-you-must-get-prepared-now/
@tttm99
This is not a pop song. It's a musical incantation that takes the listener back to the moment they first heard it.
@JeffreyWilliams-dr7qe
That's nonsense!
@Anonymous-Joker74
What a way to put it 👌🏼 & you’re right too
@audreykennedy90
Very poetic 🎉
@JeffreyWilliams-dr7qe
OK album. Would have the verse for a more worth while recording.
@kevinhuether9038
Spot on. Every time I listen I'm transported back to my apartment in college, junior year. Great times. Loved the early 80s.
@Alex-bv8pl
I was 14 when I first heard this song, I'm 53 now and I still love it like the first day.
@marcelsantos1428
Me too ✋️
@19tubedude
Parallel lives.
@Mr.Kerr-cade
Ditto