The Beach Boys, The #16 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Two

 

(Continued from Part One)

 

After a tour, the group returned home to record the single "I Get Around" in 1964.  Meanwhile, Murry Wilson was fired as manager.  The song became their first #1 song in the U.S. (also #1 in Canada, 7 in the U.K. and #19 in Sweden), sold over one million copies, and was one of the biggest hits of the year (another of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*).  

 

The flip side, "Don't Worry Baby", is another fan favorite.

 

The group released the live album Beach Boys Concert, which went to #1, and then released the studio album All Summer Long, which reached #4 and also sold over 500,000 copies.  The latter included "I Get Around" as well as "Little Honda".  The Hondells scored a #9 hit with it later in the year.

 

The title song seemed like a farewell to the songs about surfin', hot rods, and the beach.  With the Beatles already having a firm hold on music charts, it was time for artists to up their game, or get left in the dust.

 

Brian recorded most of the group's upcoming Christmas album with a studio orchestra.  With the exception of this song, the group recorded it in June, one month after they completed work on the All Summer Long album.  The band recorded "Little Saint Nick" in October and released The Beach Boys' Christmas Album, which was certified Gold, later in the month. 

"Little Saint Nick" has become a holiday favorite, and music historian James Perone wrote that the album is "regarded as one of the finest holiday albums of the Rock Era."    

"The Man With All The Toys" is another song on the album which receives significant airplay around the Christmas season.

All the work and stress, however, were getting to Brian, and on December 23, he suffered a panic attack while on a flight from Los Angeles to Houston.  In January of 1965, he announced he would not tour anymore and would focus instead on songwriting and production.  Session musician Glen Campbell replaced Brian for live shows.

The Beach Boys dominated the market for surfing and hot rods, but Wilson used this time to explore other topics in his songwriting, and to greatly raise the level of complexity, both in his lyrics as well as his music.  Brian wrote introspective lyrics and greatly developed his talents in the studio, adding layers and layers of sound, hiring more bassists and keyboards to make Beach Boys' records much deeper and more complex.

"We needed to grow," Wilson explained to Luis Sanchez for the 2014 book The Beach Boys' Smile.  "Up to this point," Wilson said, "we had milked every idea dry [and did] every possible angle about surfing and [cars].  But we needed to grow artistically." 

Wilson, however, also began to go deeper into drugs, such as marijuana and LSD.  He viewed recording as a competition with other artists at the time, and the Beatles being out by now was a major challenge.  The stress felt from this competition, combined with increasing drug use, was soon to send Brian into a downward spiral that he is still recovering from to this day.

 

The group released the album  The Beach Boys Today, the 7th Gold album of their career!  Wilson and Love wrote this song and share lead vocal duties.  Many young men his age aren't advanced enough to know that they aren't grown up yet (in fact, there are many men who don't even know what it means to be grown up!), so the fact that Wilson had that perspective is in and of itself amazing.  The single "When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)" hit #1 in Canada and #9 in the U.S.

Brian, Carl, and Love combined to write "Dance, Dance, Dance", which also reached the Top 10 in the U.S., Canada, and Sweden.  Many songs you hear raise the key of the song prior to a chorus, but this one was innovative in that it modulates in the middle of the verse.

 

Here is the highest-charting song to feature Dennis on lead vocals and the first single to include members of The Wrecking Crew (Hal Blaine on drums, Larry Knechtel on bass, Leon Russell playing the Hammond B-3 organ and Tommy Tedesco playing baritone guitar and mandolin, among others).  "Do You Wanna' Dance" stopped just short of the Top 10 at #12, although it hit Top Five in most major markets, including a peak of #2 in Baltimore, Maryland, San Jose, California, and the Twin Cities.

 

"Help Me Rhonda" (featuring Glen Campbell on guitar and Leon Russell on piano) gave the group their first and only album with four hits.  But the backstory to the recording is important as well.

The first version of the song was recorded in two sessions at Hollywood's United Western Recorders Studio on January 8 and 19, 1965.  Well into the first session, a drunken Murry Wilson barged in and took over the session with a strange mix of abusive melodrama and scat singing.  Murry's drunken rants and criticisms of the group drove the normally well-mannered Brian over the edge.  

As the recording tape continued to run, Brian screamed expletives, took off his headphones, and confronted his father.  Murry wanted to stop the tape but Brian insisted on keeping it rolling.  That tape, which is available in bootlegs, validates the situation that has finally been brought to light about the way Wilson was treated, as so brilliantly portrayed in the movie Love and Mercy.  

The tape verifies the vile image that we now know of Murry and we see Brian in a very sympathetic light.  Brian sounds patient, mature and sane compared to his alcoholic, abusive father.  Murry and wife Audrey eventually left, but the session was ruined and the group quit for the night.  The Beach Boys finally completed the song on February 24.

"Help Me Rhonda" is another of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era* and reached #1 in the U.S., Canada, and Norway.  This was the first single to include Jardine on lead vocals and replaced the Beatles' "Ticket To Ride" in the top spot. 

 

This song was written in respect for Phil Spector's music.  "I wrote that at my apartment in West Hollywood," Wilson told Goldmine in 2011.  "As soon as I finished I felt I had to record it so I called up my engineer, Chuck Britz, and woke him up," Brian continued.  "'Please Let Me Wonder"' was recorded at 3:30 in the morning.  I drove to the studio in the middle of the night and recorded it."

Campbell's pursuit of a solo career took him from the touring group and when Columbia Records producer Bruce Johnston was not able to find a suitable replacement for Campbell, Johnston became a full-time member of the band in May, replacing Brian on the road and contributing vocals in the studio.  The Beach Boys released their next album Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!), which rose to #2 and gave them another Gold release.  "California Girls" danced to #2 in Canada and #3 in the U.S.

 

The Beach Boys released the single "The Little Girl I Once Knew", an example of Brian's ever-increasing talent which included unique arrangements, tempo changes and several false endings.  Radio stations do not like dead air and at that time didn't appreciate songs which included several seconds of silence, which partially explains why the song didn't chart high (#20).  The Beach Boys' single release of "Barbara Ann" shortly after also led stations to drop "The Little Girl I Once Knew" in favor of the latter.

Summer is a time for romance, but alas, most summer romances don't last.  "Girl Don't Tell Me" captures the emotional pull of experiencing a passionate relationship only to have that doused by the end of the season.

Much more from the legendary Beach Boys!

The Beach Boys, The #16 Artist of the Rock Era, Part One

 "The Beach Boys are awesome!"

"One of the best bands ever."

"The Beach Boys are an American institution."

"I just love listening to these guys."

"Brian Wilson is a musical genius."

"Legends".

"Magnifique!"

"Genius is in style in any era."

"The Beach Boys had an outstanding sound."

"Amazing, legendary band."

"The best vocals of all-time in my opinion."

"Immortal."

"The masters of vocal harmony."

"Long live the Beach Boys!"

"Their music gives me chills."

"They were trailblazers."

"It is so beautiful how the Beach Boys harmonized."

"Pure magic."

"Some of the best harmonies ever."

"This music is so phenomenal."

"The best songwriters are the ones who can make complicated melodies and harmonies appear simple, accessible, and singable.  Brian Wilson does that in spades."

"Their entire catalog is timeless."

"The Beach Boys are at the tippy top of best artists ever."

"Their harmony and songs were iconic."

"Awesome vocals.  Makes the soul cry."

"Their music appeals to all ages and generations."

"Such beautiful harmonies.  I love their sound."

"Phenomenal, iconic band."

Their innovative harmonies broadened popular music and influenced thousands of groups.  They worked magic in the studio, and were one of the only groups popular prior to 1964 to withstand the Beatles' onslaught.  

After listening to songs on the radio in Inglewood, California, 16-year-old Brian Wilson would teach brothers Dennis (13) and Carl (11) how to sing background harmonies.  Such is the childhood of a genius.  Brian received a reel-to-reel tape recorder for his birthday and he learned how to overdub, using the vocals of he and Carl and their mother.

Inspired by the R & B songs he heard on the radio, Brian changed his piano-playing style and began writing songs.  Brian, cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine teamed up with Carl and Dennis to form the group called the Pendletones.  Dennis was the only surfer in the group and suggested that the group write songs about the sport that had caught on so big in California.

Brian's first-such song was Surfin'".  The Wilsons' father, Murry, was a songwriter and he helped the group at times, but was physically abusive and would undermine them in the years to come.  Murry set up a meeting between the Pendletones and his publisher, Hite Morgan.  

Morgan loved the song and recorded the group performing "Surfin'" in September of 1961.  A more professional recording was made on October 3 in Hollywood.  Murry took the demos to Her Newman, owner of Candix Records and Era Records, which signed the group on December 8.

Candix didn't like the group name, and Russ Regan, a promoter with Era Records, suggested the Beach Boys.  That is the name that stuck.  "Surfin' was released as a single and it was a moderate hit.  Murry found the group a gig at a New Year's Eve dance in Long Beach, California.  In February of 1962, however, Jardine left the group to study dentistry, with David Marks replacing him.

Candix went bankrupt, and the Beach Boys were turned down by several labels in the search for a new deal.  Finally, the group signed a seven-year contract with Capitol Records.  This song from 1962 mentions all the hot spots in California for surfing:  Huntington, Malibu, Doheny State Beach, Rincon and Laguna Beach.  They also mention Cerro Azul in Peru.  The Beach Boys released the single "Surfin' Safari", which reached #14 in the U.S.

Besides surfing, the other passion was hot rods, and the group found plenty of inspiration for both.  The flip side got airplay as well.  Brian wrote "409" with Gary Usher, who told Songfacts:

     I was a hot rod freak. I had a 409. One day we were 

    driving up to Los Angeles looking for a part for my car, 

    and I said 'Let's write a song called '409'. We'll do a 

    thing 'giddy up, giddy up,' meaning horses for 

    horsepower,' just kidding around. We came back and 

    put it to three simple chords in five minutes, and it          

    developed into a multi-million dollar car craze."

 

The Beach Boys released the album Surfin' Safari later in the year.  In 1963, Wilson used double-tracking and added his falsetto to Love's lead vocal.  The Beach Boys released the single "Surfin' U.S.A.", their first Top 10 hit at #3.  

 

The album of the same name hit #2 and has been certified Gold.  Enjoy the amazing vocals on "Lonely Sea".

At this time, the Beach Boys were one of the only acts in history who wrote and produced their own songs.  "Record companies were used to having absolute control over their artists," Carl told Luis Sanchez for his 2014 book The Beach Boys' Smile.  "It was especially nervy, because Brian was a 21-year-old kid with just two albums," he continued.  "It was unheard of.  But what could they say?  Brian made good records."  

Jardine rejoined the group after a Midwest Tour, but Brian quit touring to instead concentrate on writing and recording.  The Beach Boys released the album Surfer Girl, which included outside musicians on many tracks.  The album peaked at #7 and went Gold as well.  Wilson was inspired to write the title song by his girlfriend, Judy Bowles.  "Surfer Girl" (the first song credited to Wilson as producer) reached #7.

 

The group followed with their first album to be certified Platinum, Little Deuce Coupe, just a few months later, but Marks left the band after recording.  The title song about a 1932 Ford Model 18 stalled at #15, one of The Top Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*. 

 

The follow-up song "Be True To Your School" gave the group another Top 10 hit.  The fight song featured is "On Wisconsin!", which was adopted by Hawthorne High School, where the Wilsons went to school.  The single is in a lower key and a faster tempo than the version that appears on the album.

 

But the personal introspective "In My Room", with a peak of #23, is another of The Top Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.  We have all been at a point where the world is too much, and we need some solace, a place to get away and relax.  When we are young, that place typically is our room.  Wilson wrote it with Gary Usher, who was a respected songwriter and producer who also worked with the Byrds, among other acts.

Usher explained in the liner notes of a later Beach Boys compilation album that "Brian was always saying that his room was his whole world" and the sensitivity in the song was very important to the idea that Wilson wanted to get across.  

 

This song, a development of a longer poem written by Roger Christian, describes a drag race between a Super-Stock 413 cu. in.-powered 1962 Dodge Dart and a fuel-injected 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray.  Although the song ends before the race is concluded, the narrator claims that he "shut you down".  "Shut Down" means to beat someone in the drag race. 

 

In 1964, the group released the album Shut Down, Volume 2, a Gold release but their first album not to make the Top 10 in four tries.  However, the single "Fun, Fun, Fun" hit the Top 5 and is one of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*.

 

The Beach Boys recorded "The Warmth Of The Sun" on the day that U.S. President John Kennedy was murdered.  Love said, "We didn't change the lyrics to conform to the event, but because of that event, when we recorded that song, it was charged with emotion.  There's no doubt about that.  And I think you can feel it in the lyric and the music combined."

 

We also want to feature "Keep An Eye On Summer".

Much more incredible music and sensational harmonies from the Beach Boys!

U2, The #17 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Six

 

(Continued from Part Five)

 

U2 released the album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb in 2004.  "Vertigo" hit #1 in the U.K. and Ireland, and was another single which topped one million in the U.S. but Billboard ranked at #31.  Despite its astonishingly low peak on Billboard, "Vertigo" nevertheless won Grammy Awards for Best Rock Song, Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Short Form Music Video and helped U2 win Grammys for Album of the Year and Best Rock Album.  "Vertigo is another of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

The video for "Vertigo" chalked up five nominations at the MTV VMA's, including Best Group Video and Breakthrough Video.

 

Bono wrote "City Of Blinding Lights" after the September 11 murders and the group played in New York City.

“Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own” is another song about the relationship between Bono and his father, who died of cancer in 2001.

The Grammy win total for How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb reached eight when "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" scored Song of the Year and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal honors and "City Of Blinding Lights" earned Best Rock Song.  The album landed at #1 throughout the world and has topped three million in U.S. sales and nine million globally.

The band once again floored audiences on the Vertigo Tour, selling 4.6 million tickets and grossing $389 million, the second-highest grossing tour at that time.

In 2005, Bruce Springsteen inducted U2 into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and U2 won a People's Choice Award for Favorite Musical Group or Band and another People's Choice in 2006 for Favorite Tour Artist.  

In between albums, U2 performed with Mary J. Blige for their own cover of "One", featured on Blige's album, The Breakthrough.  The superstars were nominated for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals at the Grammy Awards. 

 

The next year, U2 and Green Day combined for their remake of "The Saints Are Coming", nominated for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal at the Grammys.  In addition to recording the song, the two groups performed together live during the Monday Night Football pregame show of the New Orleans Saints vs. Atlanta Falcons game on September 25, 2006.  This was the first game in the Louisiana Superdome since it was heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina.  All proceeds from the song went to aid victims of the disaster.

The band released the collaboration U2 18 Singles in 2006, which earned them Grammy nominations for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals (for "Window In The Skies") and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal (for their remake of John Lennon's "Instant Karma!").

U2 released the album No Line on the Horizon in 2009.  The album debuted at #1 in over 30 countries and has sold over five million copies.  Bono explained the lyrics  "Every generation has a chance to change the world/Pity the nation that won't listen to you, boys and girls" in "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" to The Observer Music Monthly in February, 2009:

     Well, that is building up to the next line, "The

     sweetest melody is the one we haven't heard."  

     That's just a nice thought.  The solution to the 

     problems we find ourselves in will have to be

     found by the new generation but often the

     new ideas just aren't listened to.

The band was nominated for Best Rock Album and Best Rock Song (for "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight") at the Grammy Awards.  

 

This song resulted from improvised recording sessions with Eno and Lanois in Fez, Morocco in June, 2007. "The basic chord progression had a power that got everyone inspired," Edge explained.  "I think we all knew that it was inherently joyful, which is rare."  A group of percussionists from Morocco played on "Magnificent", and the song became a group favorite.

 "Unknown Caller" is presented from the perspective of a drug addict who begins to get strange text messages.  It was recorded in a single take.

 

Here is the somber but also beautiful and unforgiving "Cedars Of Lebanon".

In the song "Moment Of Surrender", there is the line "Vision over Visibility".  The title is the term used in Alcoholics Anonymous for when an addict admits their helplessness.

For the accompanying tour, the band performed "in the round" on a circular stage with a four-legged structure nicknamed "The Claw" built above the stage, which included a sound system and an expanding video screen on top.  The Claw was 164 feet tall, the largest stage ever constructed.

The group recorded "Winter" for the movie Brothers, which was nominated for Best Original Song at the Golden Globe Awards.

U2 closed the decade second only to the Rolling Stones in total concert grosses.  They were the only band among the top 25 touring acts of the decade to sell out every show they played.  

The 360° Tour from 2009-2011 is the most-attended and highest-grossing concert tour in history, with 7.2 million people spending a total of $736 million.  In 2011, U2 won a Billboard Music Award for Top Touring Artist and were nominated for Top Duo or Group.  They earned Top Touring Artist again in 2012 and were nominated for a People's Choice Award for Favorite Tour Headliner.  

From The Sky Down, a documentary about U2 and the making of their 1991 album Achtung Baby, was nominated for Best Long Form Music Video at the 2013 Grammy Awards.

 

In 2013, U2 recorded "Ordinary Love" for the movie Mandela:  Long Walk to Freedom, which won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and was nominated in the same category at the Oscars.  The band was again nominated for Top Duo or Group and Top Touring Artist at the Billboard Music Awards.  Later in the year, McGuinness, their manager for over 30 years, stepped down with Guy Oseary taking over.  

U2 released the album Songs of Innocence in 2014, with the album reaching the Top 10 in every major country and earning a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Album.  Many of the tracks are about the group's experiences in Dublin before making it big.  

"The Crystal Ballroom" was a club the group used to play at called McGonagle's in Dublin, but it used to be known as the Crystal Ballroom.

 

"Get Out Of Your Own Way" is addressed to Bono's daughters, but also mentions the crisis in the United States due to the election of Donald Trump, righting pointing out that Liberty got a slap in the face.

 "Sleep Like A Baby Tonight" tackles child abuse by the Catholic church.

 "Invisible" began a partnership between RED, an organization founded by Bono and Bobby Shriver, and Bank of America to fight AIDS.

Bono suffered fractures of his shoulder blade, humerus, orbit and pinky finger in a bicycle accident in Manhattan, New York's Central Park in November.  After recovering, he and U2 performed 76 shows in North America and Europe.

In 2014, the Grammy Awards inducted the 1987 album The Joshua Tree into their Hall of Fame.  To celebrate the 30th anniversary of The Joshua Tree, U2 performed the album in its entirety at each show of their 2017 tour.

 

The tour grossed over $316 million as the band played before over 2.7 million people, making it the highest-grossing tour of the year.  In 2017, U2 released the album Songs of Experience.  Bono pondered that if he could leave one message for his children, what would that be?  The result was "Love Is Bigger Than Anything In Its Way".  As he told iHeart Radio:

     I think everybody substitutes their own obstacles

      for [what] gets in the way.  You know, what gets in

      the way of your realizing your full potential?  What 

      gets in the way of a community realizing its full

      potential?  What gets in the way of the whole world

      realizing its full potential.  Love is bigger than it.  And I

      really believe that. 

"The Blackout" is about how we look into the deep abyss and realize that it is you and I who are the light.

In 2019, the group celebrated the 32nd anniversary of The Joshua Tree with shows throughout the world.  

U2 has 32 career hits to their credit, with five reaching the Top 10 and two #1 songs.  That's not as many as some of the ones just down the countdown, but they more than make up for it with a plethora of superb album tracks.

According to CBS News, U2 has sold over 170 million albums worldwide.  Heading into their album Songs of Innocence, the group has a winning streak of 12 consecutive Platinum studio albums.

They have won 22 Grammy Awards (from an astounding 47 nominations), more than any group in history, four MTV Video Music Awards from 29 nominations, two People's Choice Awards out of three nominations, two Billboard Music Awards from five nominations, two Golden Globe Awards from five nominations and one American Music Award.  U2 has also been nominated for two Academy Awards.

U2, The #17 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Five

 

(Continued from Part Four)

 

In 1995, U2 recorded "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me" for the "Batman Forever" Soundtrack.  They were nominated for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal at the Grammy Awards, Best Original Song at the Golden Globe Awards and Best Video from a Film at the MTV Video Music Awards.

U2 released an experimental album later in the year called Original Soundtracks 1, which they credited to "Passengers" to distinguish it from other material by the group.  Luciano Pavarotti sang the opera solo on "Miss Sarajevo".  Bono later not only produced a documentary based on Sarajevo's underground resistance movement but he also donated funds towards the project.

The band hired Nellee Hooper, Flood and Howie B to produce their next album and utilized the unique contributions of each producer.  But when they gave permission for manager Paul McGuinness to begin booking their tour before the album was completed, U2 was rushed to complete the album.

 

In 1997, U2 released the album Pop, which debuted at #1 in over 30 countries and has sold over one million copies.  This next song, the group's first foray into Electronic music, is a riddle about love.  "Once you know that, it changes the way you hear the song," Bono said in the book U2 by U2.  "You can reach but you can't grab it, you can't hold it, control it, you can't bag it."  "Discothèque" went Gold and popped inside the Top 10 in every major country except France, where it stalled at #12.

Pop was nominated for Best Rock Album at the Grammy Awards.  The PopMart Tour satirized consumerism, with a 100-foot tall golden yellow arch, a 40-foot tall mirrorball lemon (which the group emerged from for encores) as stage props and a 150-foot long LED video screen.  The highlight of the tour was a concert in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia following the Bosnian War, and the tour grossed $171.7 million with 3.9 million tickets sold.  U2 was nominated for Best Long Form Music Video for PopMart:  Live from Mexico City.

 "Mofo" is a song at least partially written about Bono's mother, who died when he was 14.  The track got its start in Nice, France, where the Edge and Bono flew to for musical inspiration.  Originally, Bono played a wah-wah guitar and the song had a Blues sound.  After the group began recording it in the studio, the song took on a different feel when Clayton added an R&B bassline to it.  

What a great body of work, and we're far from done! The only thing keeping U2 from ranking higher is not having the album sales of those ahead of them. But the quality of their music is without question.  "Staring At The Sun" is about people not always wanting to hear the truth, for lies can seem more comforting.  The Edge's guitar is distorted through a Leslie speaker cabinet.

 

"Last Night On Earth" was the third single released from the album, just as U2's tour hit full stride.  The song had its beginnings during the Zooropa sessions but it wasn't finished.  With the tour upcoming, the band rushed to finish it and weren't happy with the album version.  So while they were in San Diego for a concert, U2 booked Signature Sound Studio during April to re-record the track prior to its single release.

"Holy Joe" is another song originally developed for Zooropa before it was dropped from that project.

“Please" is a song about the conflict in Northern Ireland.  "It's about terror, really," Bono said in the book U2 by U2.  "Are there ever any excuses for it?"

 

We also want to feature "Do You Feel Loved".

In 1998, U2 released the compilation album The Best of 1980-1990, which has sold over four million copies.  "Sweetest Thing" was released as the B-side to "Where The Streets Have No Name" in 1987 and was re-recorded and released as a single from the album.

 

U2 then reunited with Eno and Lanois for their 10th album, All That You Can't Leave Behind, released later in 2000.  The single "Beautiful Day" rose to #1 in the U.K., Canada, Australia and Ireland.  Billboard's methodology, meanwhile, was hacky suey for it sold over one million units in the U.S. but peaked at #21.  That peak for the song looked silly when U2 won Grammy Awards in three prestigious categories for "Beautiful Day":  Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.  It is easily one of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

 

The album debuted at #1 in 32 countries and has sold over 12 million copies worldwide.  This song is about Michael Hutchence of INXS, who committed suicide in 1997.  Bono said the song is an argument between friends, but "in my case it's a row I didn't have while he was alive."  "I feel the biggest respect I could pay to him was not to write some soppy song," he continued, "so I wrote a really tough, nasty little number, slapping him around the head."  "Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of" landed in the Top 10 in most countries.  

U2 received the prestigious Video Vanguard Award at the MTV Video Music Awards, with "Beautiful Day" nominated for Video of the Year and "Elevation" (also featured in the movie Lara Croft:  Tomb Raider) nominated for Best Group Video and Best Video from a Film. 

 Again, the group has never been afraid to tackle tough subjects.  "Walk On" is about Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, a Burmese activist who was in house arrest from 1989-2010 for protesting her government.  Kyi won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991.  

When "Walk On" earned Record of the Year honors, it was the first time an artist had won the award in consecutive years for songs from the same album.  U2 also won an American Music Award for Internet Artist of the Year.  U2 toured North America and Europe and after the mass murders of September 11, 2001, songs such as "Walk On" and "Peace On Earth" received significant radio airplay.  

U2 performed at Madison Square Garden in the televised special America:  A Tribute to Heroes.  In 2002, less than five months after the attacks, U2 performed during halftime of Super Bowl XXXVI, with the names of victims displayed in the background.  At the conclusion of their performance, Bono opened his jacket to show an American flag in the lining.  USA Today ranked U2's performance as the best halftime show in Super Bowl history.

U2 continued to be recognized at the Grammy Awards in 2002 and 2003.  "Elevation" won Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and was nominated for Best Rock Song, while "Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of" earned Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and was nominated for Song of the Year, "Walk On" took Record of the Year and was nominated for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and All That You Can't Leave Behind won a trophy for Best Rock Album and was nominated for Album of the Year.

Bono explained the song "All Because Of You" in the book U2 by U2:

     One of the things that underpins our work is the idea

     that you can begin again and that you can reinvent

     yourself, but also that you can go back to the 

     beginning, that you can be free of the mistakes that

     you've made.  So in "All Because Of You", there are

     the lyrics:  "I'm alive, I'm being born, I've just arrived,

     I'm at the door of the place I started out from and I

     want back inside."

Later in the year, U2 released the compilation The Best of 1990-2000, a Double Platinum album.

 

The group recorded "The Hands That Built America" for the movie The Gangs of New York, which won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and was nominated for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media at the Grammy Awards and Best Original Song from a Movie at the Academy Awards.

Be sure to catch Part Six of U2!