Album is No 1 in UK, Ireland, US and others
Island Records and Interscope are celebrating the news that Songs Of Surrender, the latest release from U2, has topped the Official Albums Chart in the UK, making it their 11th UK No. 1 album. The album debuted on the US charts at No. 1 on Album, Rock, Alternative and Vinyl charts as well as No. 5 on the Top 200 chart. The record also secured the No. 1 chart position at home in Ireland as well as Italy, Germany, Holland and Belgium, with Songs Of Surrender also hitting No. 1 on iTunes in 35 countries around the world.
The success of the project rounds off a busy period for the band. The idea for an acoustic, reimagined album had been around for a while but it was the time afforded by lockdown which allowed The Edge to focus on the project, with band recording sessions taking place parallel to Bono working on his New York Times and Sunday Times-bestselling memoir Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story, published last November. Stories Of Surrender followed later that same month, Bono’s acclaimed theatre tour in support of the book that saw the U2 frontman bring the stories of his life to 14 cities across North America and Europe, with a return to the Beacon Theatre in New York for a further run of dates starting next month.
To mark the release of the album, a Disney+ special titled Bono & The Edge: A Sort Of Homecoming, with Dave Letterman premiered on St. Patrick’s Day, capturing Dave Letterman on his first visit to Ireland to spend time with Bono and The Edge in their hometown, experience Dublin, and join the two U2 musicians for a concert performance unlike any they’ve done before. A Super Bowl commercial in February announced the band’s next ambitious project – titled U2:UV Achtung Baby Live At The Sphere – which will see the world’s biggest rock band launch the world’s most exciting all-new state-of-the-art venue later this year.
Other highlights include a one-hour Zane Lowe interview special on Apple Music; a first-ever NPR Tiny Desk appearance by Bono and The Edge; plus a visit to the BBC’s Maida Vale studios where Bono and The Edge performed three tracks for Radio 2’s Piano Room accompanied by members of the BBC Concert Orchestra.
U2SOS40 – 40 songs, 40 creators, 40 stories – is a unique collaborative project which has seen 40 artists and creators from around the world invited to create a 60 second piece of content, each soundtracked by re-recorded U2 song. With 32 of the 40 films rolled out so far – amassing 1.3 million views collectively and counting – the remaining videos will be shared by the respective creators on their social media channels over the coming weeks, linked by the hashtag #U2SOS40.
