"Bad" is a song by Irish rock band U2 and the seventh track on their 1984 album ''

The Unforgettable Fire ''The Unforgettable Fire'' is the fourth studio album by Irish rock music, rock band U2. It was produced by Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, and released on 1 October 1984 by Island Records. The band wanted to pursue a new musical direction followi ...

''. Thematically, the song is about

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

addiction, though lead vocalist

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by the nickname Bono ( ), is an Irish singer-songwriter and activist. He is a founding member, the lead vocalist, and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Bono is known for his impassioned voca ...

has given varying accounts of who was the inspiration behind his lyrics. "Bad" is considered a fan favourite and is one of U2's most frequently performed songs in concert. The band's 12-minute performance of the song at the

Live Aid Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...

charity concert in 1985 was a breakthrough moment for them. A live version of the song appears on U2's 1985 EP '' Wide Awake in America''; this rendition became popular on

album-oriented rock Album-oriented rock (AOR, originally called album-oriented radio) is an FM radio format created in the United States in the late 1960s that focuses on the full repertoire of rock albums and is currently associated with classic rock. US rad ...

radio stations. In the United States, the song peaked at number 19 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' Top Rock Tracks chart. The album version of the song featured on the trailer of the 2009 film ''

Brothers A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingl ...

'' and in the opening and closing sequences of the 2004 film '' Taking Lives''.

History

"Bad" originated from a guitar riff that

the Edge David Howell Evans (born 8 August 1961), better known as the Edge or simply Edge,McCormick (2006), pp. 21, 23–24 is a British-Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the lead guitarist, keyboardist, and backing vocalist o ...

improvised during a

jam session A jam session is a relatively informal musical event, process, or activity where musicians, typically instrumentalists, play improvised solos and vamp over tunes, drones, songs, and chord progressions. To "jam" is to improvise music without ...

Slane Castle Slane Castle () is located in the village of Slane, within the Boyne Valley of County Meath, Ireland. The castle has been the family seat of the Conyngham family since it was built in the late 18th century, on land first purchased in 1703 by ...

, where U2 were recording their 1984 album ''

.'' The basic track was completed in three

take A take is a single continuous recorded performance. The term is used in film and music to denote and track the stages of production. Film In cinematography, a take refers to each filmed "version" of a particular shot or "setup". Takes of each ...

s. Of its immediate and live nature, the Edge said, "There's one moment where rummer Larry ullen Jr.puts down brushes and takes up the sticks and it creates this pause which has an incredibly dramatic effect." Producer

Brian Eno Brian Peter George Jean-Baptiste de la Salle Eno (, born 15 May 1948), also mononymously known as Eno, is an English musician, songwriter, record producer, visual artist, and activist. He is best known for his pioneering contributions to ambien ...

added the sequencer

arpeggio An arpeggio () is a type of Chord (music), chord in which the Musical note, notes that compose a chord are individually sounded in a progressive rising or descending order. Arpeggios on keyboard instruments may be called rolled chords. Arpe ...

s that accompany the song.McCormick (2006), p. 151 The early 1980s recession had led to a high number of

addicts in inner city

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. In concert, lead vocalist

frequently introduced the song as a song about Dublin. The Edge and the album's producers, Eno and

Daniel Lanois Daniel Roland Lanois ( , ; born September 19, 1951) is a Canadian record producer and musician. He has produced albums by artists including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson, and Harold Budd ...

, were focused on the music and were less interested in the lyrics. Bono said that he left the song unfinished. During the 3 December 1984 concert at

Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall (also known as Radio City) is an entertainment venue and Theater (structure), theater at 1260 Sixth Avenue (Manhattan), Avenue of the Americas, within Rockefeller Center, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York C ...

in New York City for the Unforgettable Fire Tour, Bono said the song was about heroin and that he wrote it for a friend and also for himself; in discussing this comment during a 17 December radio interview, Bono said, "Well, I think I said I wrote the song for a friend of mine; I also wrote it for myself because you can be addicted to anything. And, you know, that song's not just about heroin: it's about a lot of things. None of our songs, really, are just about one thing." There are other versions of the story from Bono himself. His account from a 1987 concert in Chicago during

the Joshua Tree Tour The Joshua Tree Tour was a concert tour by the Irish Rock music, rock band U2. Staged in support of their 1987 album ''The Joshua Tree'', it comprised 109 shows over three legs, spanning from April to December that year. The first and third legs ...

indicate "Bad" is about a friend of his who died of a heroin overdose and also about the conditions that make such events likely to be repeated. Bono once commented in another concert (in the UK) about people lying in gutters with "needles hangin' outta their fuckin' arms while the rich live indifferently to the suffering of the less fortunate." At Eriksberg, Gothenburg in Sweden 1987, he said: "I wrote the words about a friend of mine; his name was Gareth Spaulding, and on his 21st birthday he and his friends decided to give themselves a present of enough heroin into his veins to kill him. This song is called 'Bad.'" During a 26 July 2011 concert in Pittsburgh during the

U2 360° Tour The U2 360° Tour was a worldwide concert tour by the Irish rock music, rock band U2. Staged in support of the group's 2009 album ''No Line on the Horizon'', the tour visited stadiums from 2009 through 2011. The concerts featured the band pla ...

, Bono introduced a performance of "Bad" as a song written for a "very special man, who is here in your city, who grew up on Cedarwood Road. We wrote this song about him and we play it for him tonight." He was referring to Andy Rowen, whom the song was written about in 1984 and who was present at the show. Rowen is the brother of Bono's Lypton Village friend

Guggi Guggi (born Derek Rowen) is an Irish artist and musician who was once a member of the post-punk band Virgin Prunes. Early life Derek Rowen was born in Dublin in 1959. He is one of 10 children. He grew up with and remains best friends with U2's ...

and Peter Rowen, who is featured on the sleeve artwork for the band's albums ''

Boy A boy is a young male human. The term is commonly used for a child or an adolescent. When a male human reaches adulthood, he is usually described as a man. Definition, etymology, and use According to the ''Merriam-Webster Dictionary'', a boy ...

'' (1980) and ''

War War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

'' (1983).

Live performances

"Bad" is one of the band's most performed songs. Translating the elaborate and complex textures of the new studio-recorded tracks to live performance proved to be a serious challenge when the Unforgettable Fire Tour commenced.de la Parra (1994), pp. 52–56 One solution was programmed sequencers, which the band had previously been reluctant to use. Sequencers were prominently used on "Bad". The studio version of "Bad" was criticised as being "unfinished", "fuzzy" and "unfocused", but the band found that it made more sense on stage. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'', for example, critical of the album version, described its live performance as a "show stopper". A staple of U2's concert tours of the 1980s, "Bad" was also frequently performed during the first four legs of the 1992–1993

Zoo TV Tour The Zoo TV Tour (also written as ZooTV, ZOO TV or ZOOTV) was a worldwide concert tour by the Irish rock music, rock band U2. Staged primarily to support their 1991 album ''Achtung Baby'' and later their 1993 album ''Zooropa'', the tour visited ...

. Although not played until the fourth leg of the PopMart Tour of 1997 and 1998, it returned to the normal set list for 2001's Elevation Tour and saw occasional performances during the Vertigo Tour of 2005 and 2006, sometimes even appearing as the closing song for shows. It made very sporadic appearances on the U2 360° Tour and has featured occasionally on the 2015 Innocence + Experience Tour. The song once again returned to the normal setlist for both the Joshua Tree Tours 2017 and 2019, typically being played early on in the set with other pre-''

The Joshua Tree ''The Joshua Tree'' is the fifth studio album by the Irish rock music, rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 9 March 1987 by Island Records. In contrast to the ambient music, ambient experimentati ...

'' era hits. The Experience + Innocence Tour however (which took place in 2018 between the 2017 and 2019 legs of ''The Joshua Tree'' anniversary tours) did not feature a single performance of the song, making it the first tour in U2's history where the song was not performed. Bono is known for singing a wide variety of snippets during performances of "Bad". Lyrics from over 50 different songs have been included in "Bad", ranging from brief quotes of a single line through to multiple verses. These snippets are typically sung after the line "I'm not sleeping" and Bono has included up to six different excerpts in a single performance of "Bad". Performances without at least one snippet are very rare.

Live Aid

U2 participated in the

concert at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...

for

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

n famine relief on 13 July 1985. They played a 12-minute version of "Bad", which was extended by snippets of

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...

's " Satellite of Love" and " Walk on the Wild Side", and

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

' " Ruby Tuesday" and " Sympathy for the Devil". During the performance, Bono leaped down off the stage to embrace and dance with a fan. In 2005 the girl with whom he danced, who was at the front to see

Wham! Wham! were an English pop duo formed in Bushey in 1981 consisting of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They were one of the most successful pop acts during the 1980s, selling more than 30 million certified records worldwide from 1982 to ...

, revealed that he actually saved her life at the time. She was being crushed by the throngs of people pushing forwards; Bono saw this, and gestured frantically at the ushers to help her. They did not understand what he was saying, and so he jumped down to help her himself. Bono's rescue of and dance with the girl was captured on the TV broadcast sent around the world. The performance was so long that the band were only able to play two of the three songs in their set, leaving out " Pride (In the Name of Love)", which was supposed to end the band's performance. The concert turned out to be a breakthrough moment for the band, showing a television audience of millions the personal connection that Bono could make with audiences. A week later, Bono realized that the dance with the fan became a key image of Live Aid. All of U2's albums re-entered the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

after their performance.U2, the Only Band that Mattered in the '80s?
about.com. Retrieved 31 January 2007

Discography

"Bad" is the first track on the 1985 EP '' Wide Awake in America'', this being a live version recorded at

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

's NEC Arena on November 12, 1984 during sound check. This version includes prerecorded rhythm tracks. There are no other snippets of songs on this version for copyright reasons. Three other versions of "Bad" have been officially released by the band. An edit of the version from ''The Unforgettable Fire'' appears on the 1998 compilation '' The Best of 1980–1990''; with the exception of the hidden version of "

October October is the tenth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. The eighth month in the old calendar of Romulus , October retained its name (from Latin and Greek ''ôctō'' meaning "eight") after Januar ...

", "Bad" is the only non-single to appear on the compilation. In addition to the live performance included on ''Wide Awake in America'', a live version from 1987's Joshua Tree Tour appears in the rockumentary ''

Rattle and Hum ''Rattle and Hum'' is a hybrid live/studio album by Irish rock band U2, and a companion rockumentary film directed by Phil Joanou. The album was produced by Jimmy Iovine and was released on 10 October 1988, while the film was distributed by ...

'' and a version from 2001's Elevation Tour appears in the concert film '' Elevation 2001: Live from Boston'' (with a snippet of " 40" at the end and therefore credited as "Bad / '40'"). For the release of the 2004 digital box set '' The Complete U2'', another live version of "Bad" was included on the live album '' Live from the Point Depot''. An acoustic version of "Bad" with lyrical changes is included on U2's 2023 album '' Songs of Surrender''.

Charts

References