U2

U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono (vocals and guitar), The Edge (guitar, keyboards, and vocals), Adam Clayton (bass guitar), and Larry Mullen, Jr. (drums and percussion). U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music. U2 are among the all-time best-selling music artists, having sold more than 150 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.

Links to Peel


Peel first mentioned U2 on 16 October 1979, when he asked the record company to send him another copy of the band's 12" 45 record:

''“And at this stage I would have played a 12” 45 by another Dublin band, U2, and I was given two copies of this earlier in the week, but if anybody from U2 is listening, both copies were far too warped for me to ever possibly play on the radio. So I’d like another copy of it certainly, because what little bit of it I could hear sounded rather good. Some good bands over there actually, because I saw Zebra and U2 and a few other bands last year sometime I think, and I’m surprised it’s taken them this long to get onto record.''”

Peel played some of U2's records between 1979 and 1980, but later got disillusioned with their music, despite listeners in 1983 voting for one of their songs in the 1983 Festive Fifty and Peel having several albums of U2 in his Record Collection: U.

Festive Fifty Entries

 * 1983 Festive Fifty: New Year's Day #41

Sessions
On Desert Island Discs in 1990, Peel told Sue Lawley, that he turned down amongst others U2, and Dire Straits doing a session for his show.

Other Shows Played
1979 1980
 * 15 November 1979: Out of Control ('Three' EP 7") CBS
 * 04 December 1979: Out of Control ('Three' EP 7") CBS
 * 05 December 1979 (Virgin In-Store): Out of Control ('Three' EP 7") CBS
 * 22 May 1980: 11 O'Clock Tick Tock (7") Island
 * 23 October 1980: A Day Without Me (7") Island