hannah montana tour dates
We couldn't find the page you requested, either because it is temporarily unavailable, has had its name changed, or no longer exists on FindArticles.
This error occurred at: 2009-12-28 08:23:04
If you'd like to forge ahead here are some ideas:
Thank you for visiting FindArticles.
| | | |
© 2009 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. | | |
Forget 'What are your strengths and weaknesses?' If you want to get the real dope on prospective employees, ask job candidates these seven questions.
Jo-Ann Stores is posting impressive sales and earnings numbers and is an example of a retail sector on which Walmart doesn't have a steel grip.
The new extension of the home-buyer tax credit gives buyers more time and more opportunity to take advantage. Income limits have changed, for instance, and you no longer have to be a first-time home buyer. Here’s how to grab the newly expanded tax break.
Through a combination of zealous righteousness and post-punk experimentalism, U2 became one of the most popular rock & roll bands of the '80s. They were rock & roll crusaders during an era of synthesized pop and heavy metal, equally known for their sweeping sound as for their grandiose statements about politics and religion. The Edge provided the group with a signature sound by creating sweeping sonic landscapes with his heavily processed, echoed guitars. Though the Edge's style wasn't conventional, the rhythm section of Larry Mullen, Jr. and Adam Clayton played the songs as driving hard rock, giving the band a forceful, powerful edge that was designed for arenas. And their lead singer, Bono, was a frontman with a knack of grand gestures that played better in stadiums than small clubs. It's no accident that footage of Bono parading with a white flag with "Sunday Bloody Sunday" blaring in the background became the defining moment of U2's early career -- there rarely was a band that believed so deeply in rock's potential for revolution as U2, and there rarely was a band that didn't care if they appeared foolish in the process.
During the course of the early '80s, the group quickly built up a dedicated following through constant touring and a string of acclaimed records. By 1987, the band's following had grown large enough to propel them to the level of international superstardom with the release of The Joshua Tree. Unlike many of their contemporaries, U2 were able to sustain such popularity in the '90s by reinventing themselves as a postmodern, self-consciously ironic, dance-inflected pop/rock act, owing equally to the experimentalism of late-'70s Bowie and '90s electronic dance and techno. By performing such a successful reinvention, the band confirmed its status as one of the most popular bands in rock history, in addition to earning additional critical respect.
With its textured guitars, U2's sound was undeniably indebted to post-punk, so it's slightly ironic that the band formed in 1976, before punk had even reached their hometown of Dublin, Ireland. Larry Mullen, Jr. (born October 31, 1961; drums), posted a notice on a high-school bulletin board asking for fellow musicians to form a band. Bono (born Paul Hewson, May 10, 1960; vocals), the Edge (born David Evans, August 8, 1961; guitar, keyboards, vocals), Adam Clayton (born March 13, 1960; bass), and Dick Evans responded to the ad, and the teenagers banded together as Beatles and Stones cover band called the Feedback. They then changed their name to the Hype in 1977. Shortly afterward, Dick Evans left the band to form the Virgin Prunes, and the group changed names once again, this time adopting the moniker of U2.
U2's first big break arrived in 1978, during the members' final year of high school, when they won a talent contest sponsored by Guinness. By the end of the year, the Stranglers' manager, Paul McGuinness, had seen the band play and offered to manage them. Even with a powerful manager in their corner, the band had trouble making much headway, and they failed an audition with CBS Records at the end of the year. In the fall of 1979, U2 released their debut EP, U2 Three. The EP was available only in Ireland, where it topped the national charts. Shortly afterward, they began to play in England, but they failed to gain much attention away from home.
U2 scored one more chart-topping single, "Another Day," in early 1980 before Island Records offered the group a contract. Later that year, the band's full-length debut, Boy, was released. Produced by Steve Lillywhite, the record's sweeping, atmospheric but edgy sound was unlike most of its post-punk contemporaries, and the band earned further attention for its public embrace of Christianity; only Clayton was not a practicing Christian. Through constant touring, including opening gigs for Talking Heads, U2 was able to take Boy into the American Top 70 in early 1981. October, also produced by Lillywhite, followed in the fall, and it became their British breakthrough, reaching number 11 on the charts. By early 1983, Boy's "I Will Follow" and October's "Gloria" had become staples on MTV, which, along with their touring, gave the group a formidable cult following in the U.S.
Released in the spring of 1983, the Lillywhite-produced War became U2's breakthrough release, entering the U.K. charts at number one and elevating them into arenas in the United States, where the album peaked at number 12. War had a stronger political message than its predecessors, as evidenced by the international hits "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "New Year's Day." During the supporting tour, the band filmed its concert at Colorado's Red Rocks Amphitheater, releasing the show as an EP and video titled Under a Blood Red Sky. The EP entered in the U.K. charts at number two, becoming the most successful live recording in British history. U2 had become one of the most popular bands in the world, and their righteous political stance soon became replicated by many other bands, providing the impetus for the Band Aid and Live Aid projects in 1984 and 1985, respectively.
For the follow-up to War, U2 entered the studios with co-producers Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, who helped give the resulting album an experimental, atmospheric tone. Released in the fall of 1984, The Unforgettable Fire replicated the chart status of War, entering the U.K. charts at number one and reaching number 12 in the U.S. The album also generated the group's first Top 40 hit in America with "(Pride) In the Name of Love," a tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. U2 supported the album with a successful international tour, highlighted by a show-stealing performance at Live Aid. Following the tour, the band released the live EP Wide Awake in America in 1985.
While U2 had become one of the most successful rock bands of the '80s, they didn't truly become superstars until the spring 1987 release of The Joshua Tree. Greeted with enthusiastic reviews, many of which proclaimed the album a masterpiece, The Joshua Tree became the band's first American number one hit and their third straight album to enter the U.K. charts at number one; in England, it set a record by going platinum within 28 hours. Generating the U.S. number one hits "With or Without You" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," The Joshua Tree and the group's supporting tour became the biggest success story of 1987, earning U2 the cover of respected publications like Time magazine. U2 decided to film a documentary about their American tour, recording new material along the way. The project became Rattle & Hum, a film that was supported by a double-album soundtrack that was divided between live tracks and new material. While the album Rattle & Hum was a hit, the record and film received the weakest reviews of U2's career, with many critics taking issue with the group's fascination with American roots music like blues, soul, country, and folk. Following the release of Rattle & Hum, the band took an extended hiatus.
U2 reconvened in Berlin in 1990 to record a new album with Eno and Lanois. While the sessions for the album were difficult, the resulting record, Achtung Baby, represented a successful reinvention of the band's trademark sound. Where they had been inspired by post-punk in the early career and American music during their mid-career, U2 delved into electronic and dance music with Achtung Baby. Inspired equally by late-'70s Bowie and the Madchester scene in the U.K., Achtung Baby was sonically more eclectic and adventurous than U2's earlier work, and it didn't alienate