Pick a Day

U2 bass player Adam Clayton is born in Oxfordshire, England.

Paul Hewson is born in Dublin. He shortens his nickname from Bono Vox (Latin for "good voice") to simply Bono and fronts the band U2.More

David Evans is born in East London. He later becomes The Edge as a member of U2.

U2 drummer Larry Mullen is born in Artane, Dublin, Ireland.

British soldiers open fire on 26 unarmed civilians during a peaceful protest march in Derry, Northern Ireland, resulting in 14 deaths. The incident inspires Paul McCartney to write "Give Ireland Back To The Irish" (Wings' debut single) and gives rise to the U2 song "Sunday Bloody Sunday."

The Irish high school band U2, which just recently changed their name from The Hype, win the Limerick Civic Week Pop '78 talent competition, earning about $1,000 and a chance to record a demo for CBS Records.

U2 sign a worldwide deal with Island Records. They get about $100,000 for their first album.

U2 release their debut album, Boy, produced by Steve Lillywhite. It doesn't yield any hits but "I Will Follow" becomes one of their most popular songs.

After a U2 show at the Foghorn Tavern in Portland, Oregon, Bono leaves a briefcase behind with notes, lyrics and concepts for their second album, October. He's forced to come up with new ideas and lyrics on the fly, and the album suffers. The contents of the briefcase are finally returned to him in 2004 after they're recovered from a garage in Tacoma, Washington.

U2 begin their first major tour of the US with two shows at a Washington, DC, club called The Bayou.

U2 release their second album, October. Reflecting their Christian faith, it's filled with allusions to the Bible, notably on the song "Gloria."

U2 release their third album, War, with "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "New Year's Day." It's their first album to sell a million copies in America.

U2 play a rooftop concert in Los Angeles to film their video for "Where The Streets Have No Name." Thousands of onlookers gather and police order the band to stop playing.More

U2 release their fifth studio album, The Joshua Tree. The first two singles, "With Or Without You" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," climb to #1 in America. The album becomes their first #1 in that country, and takes the Grammy Award for Album of the Year.More

The day before releasing The Joshua Tree, U2 debut two songs from the album - "Exit" and "In God's Country" - on the BBC show The Old Grey Whistle Test. Also on the show is a young Irish singer named Sinead O'Connor with her first live TV performance.

U2 make the cover of Time magazine with the headline "Rock's Hottest Ticket."

U2's fifth album, The Joshua Tree, hits #1 in America, giving the band their rock star bona fides in that country (they've been huge in their native Ireland for years). It holds the top spot for an impressive nine weeks, finally dethroned by Whitney Houston's Whitney.

U2 break big in America with their first #1 hit in that country, "With Or Without You," from the album The Joshua Tree. Their next single, "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," follows to #1, cementing their superstar status.

U2 land their second American #1 as "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," from The Joshua Tree, goes to the top.

Christmas songs get a modern makeover with the all-star compilation A Very Special Christmas, featuring Whitney Houston's "Do You Hear What I Hear?," Madonna's "Santa Baby" and an original song from Run-D.M.C., "Christmas in Hollis." Proceeds from the album go to the Special Olympics.More

U2 win their first Grammy Awards, taking Album of the Year and Best Performance by Rock Duo or Group with Vocal for The Joshua Tree.

The U2 documentary Rattle And Hum opens worldwide.

U2 premiere their Zoo TV tour in Lakeland, Florida, making their first US concert appearance in four years and transforming the band into "an audio-visual idea."More

U2 play shorthanded for the only time when bass player Adam Clayton misses a show in Sydney after blacking out from a bender (his tech, Stuart Morgan, fills in). When the tour ends two weeks later, Clayton goes to rehab and gives up alcohol.

U2, whose video for "Where The Streets Have No Name" comes from a rooftop concert, play another roofie, this time atop the Clarence Hotel in Dublin to play their new songs "Beautiful Day" and "Elevation" for air on Top Of The Pops.

U2 notch their fourth UK #1 hit when "Beautiful Day" beats out Robbie Williams and Kylie Minogue's "Kids" for the top spot.

Embracing the Internet at a time when broadband is rare, U2 webcasts a concert from their Elevation tour in South Bend, Indiana, for free on U2.com.

Apple introduces the U2 iPod, the first available in a color other than white (it's black with a red click wheel). It's promoted in a commercial where the band performs their new single, "Vertigo." This is the first time U2 allow their music be used in commercials and the start of a cozy relationship with Apple, which features their music on the iTunes store.

In New York City, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducts Percy Sledge, The O'Jays, U2, Buddy Guy, and The Pretenders.

U2 launch their 360 tour with a show in Barcelona. 109 shows later, the tour finishes with $735 million in earnings, blowing away the $558 million record set by The Rolling Stones on their 2005-2007 A Bigger Bang tour. Ed Sheeran breaks the record in 2019 when his ÷ (Divide) tour rakes in $775 million.