The Album That Turned Bono and U2 Into “The Political Band”

When one thinks about the relationship between music and politics, they most likely think of musicians such as Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Woody Guthrie, Joan Baez, Green Day, Marvin Gaye, Tom Morello, and, of course, U2. U2 has always had something to say and has also always acted upon their wishes and desires for the world. It is no hidden secret that Bono and the rest of the band are deeply involved in philanthropic humanitarian efforts. Though before they became political, primarily through their actions, they did it mainly with their words.

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Bono and U2’s catalog includes several very poignant political songs. Some of those singles include “Bullet The Blue Sky”, “Pride (In the Name of Love)”, and “Get Out Of Your Own Way”. Every so often, U2 chimes in on some political matter through verse and song. However, in 1983, U2 created an album that comprised primarily of political songs. Well, they were at least political to the public, but Bono disagreed with that notion.

Regardless, after U2 released War in 1983, the world knew the four Irishmen for their political mission and humanitarian motivation to better the world through music.

Bono’s Thoughts on the Politicization of ‘War’

While Bono is an ambitious man in regard to changing the world one step at a time, he very well knows that music cannot incite great change all alone. Specifically, he once stated to the now-discontinued fan club publication, U2 Magazine, “It would be wrong for me to say, yes, we can change the world with a song. But every time I try writing, that’s where I’m at. I’m not stupid. I’m aware of the futility of rock ‘n roll music, but I’m also aware of its power. We’re only coming to terms with our trade,” per U2 Interference.

Despite the restraints the craft imposes, Bono never stopped and hasn’t stopped speaking out on certain issues in U2’s songs. Though, when U2 released War, he was reluctant to call it a strictly political album, despite its overt political subject matter.

Concerning his reluctance, Bono stated, “‘War’ came out and to some people in America again, it was ‘the political band’ and they loved it and they failed to see that ‘War’ was an emotional LP rather than a political one. So there have been misconceptions all the way and it’s like chasing your tail. So I just stopped,” per U2 Magazine, via U2 Interference.

There is certainly a lens one can listen through to interpret Bono’s desired vision of ‘War.’ However, thanks to singles such as “Sunday Bloody Sunday” and “New Year’s Day”, it’s hard to interpret the album as anything else than a political one. Consequently, ‘War’ made U2 into “the political band”, and to this day, they have seemingly leaned into that title. Though there is certainly nothing wrong with that in the slightest.

Photo by Peter Noble/Redferns