| "Vertigo" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byU2 | ||||
| from the albumHow to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb | ||||
| B-side |
| |||
| Released | 8 November 2004 (2004-11-08) | |||
| Recorded | 2003–2004 | |||
| Studio |
| |||
| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 3:11 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Composer | U2 | |||
| Lyricists | ||||
| Producer | Steve Lillywhite | |||
| U2 singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Vertigo" onYouTube | ||||
| Audio sample | ||||
"Vertigo" | ||||
"Vertigo" is a song by the Irishrock bandU2. It is the opening track on their eleventh studio album,How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (2004), and was released as the album'slead single on 8 November 2004. It received extensive airplay and in its first week sold more than 30,000 copies.[1] The song was an international success, bolstered by its usage in a television advertisement featuring the band forApple'siPod digital music player. The song lent its name to the band's 2005–2006Vertigo Tour.
In the United States, "Vertigo" peaked at number 31 on theBillboard Hot 100 and number one on theModern Rock Tracks chart. It topped the singles charts in Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom while reaching the top 10 in Australia, Austria, Canada, Finland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland andWallonia. "Vertigo" won threeGrammy Awards forBest Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal,Best Rock Song, andBest Short Form Music Video at the47th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony in 2005.[2] "Vertigo" was ranked 64th onRolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of the Decade (2000 to 2010).[3]
"Vertigo" originated from a demo that guitaristthe Edge composed at his home inMalibu on a "very simplePro-Tools rig". Playing along to drumloops that drummerLarry Mullen Jr. had recorded for him, the Edge created the guitarriff among others while "exploring rock 'n' roll guitar" and "what that means in the twenty-first century".[4] Inspiration for the riff came within 20 minutes of the Edge first plugging into a 1957Fender Deluxe amplifier, which was acquired for him by histechnician Dallas Schoo after he requested a small amplifier he could use to record demos at his home studio.[5] The Edge gave the demo a working title of "Full Metal Jacket".[6] When lead singerBono heard it, he was very enthused, describing it as: "the mother of all rock 'n' roll tunes. I don't know where it came from but it's a remarkable guitar thing. You want to hear it – it's a reason to make a record. The song is that good!"[7]
Believing that their pending record would have apunk rock energy and be very collaborative between the band members, U2 hiredChris Thomas to produce it; the Edge said that he worked well with bands and had produced several records that were favourites among U2, including earlyRoxy Music albums and theSex Pistols'sNever Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols.[4] U2 began working with Thomas on the albumHow to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb in February 2003.[8] During the sessions, U2 experimented with different melodies and rhythm ideas for "Full Metal Jacket".[4] Bono's original set of lyrics was inspired byLeonard Peltier, a Native American rights activist who was controversially convicted of killing twoFederal Bureau of Investigation agents.[6] Bono did not believe Peltier deserved to be imprisoned, and he took a "new-journalism approach" to writing the lyrics.[9] The song was subsequently retitled "Native Son",[6] and after extensive experimentation on it, the band recorded and mixed a version of the song to completion with Thomas.[4] The group were so excited by the song, they sent it toInterscope Records, which was equally excited by it. However, Bono called the decision a mistake and said the song ultimately "wasn't as good as [they] thought".[9]
After working for nine months with Thomas, U2 had recorded an album's worth of material, but they were dissatisfied with the quality of it and decided to delay the release. As a result, they hired producerSteve Lillywhite to replace Thomas in January 2004. Lillywhite urged the band to record in the larger space at Hanover Quay Studio to encourage better performances. While Bono was away for the week, the band re-recorded the backing track for "Native Son".[4] When Bono returned, Lillywhite asked him to record a guide vocal, but 30 seconds into atake, Bono stopped, as he became uncomfortable with the thought of singing the lyrics to a large crowd in a live setting.[6] He said: "The lyrics were about something I care deeply about, but the song didn't vibrate. It didn't change the room temperature."[8] The song subsequently was deconstructed and the lyrics were changed around, with various iterations of the song being called "Shark Soup" and "Viva la Ramone". At one point, Bono wrote a completely new set of lyrics in Spanish, remnants of which would survive in the completed version of the song. Eventually, the song transformed into "Vertigo", but the group were still considering several possible variations of the chorus. At the suggestion of some outsiders, the band chose the "Hello, hello" version. Lillywhite alsodouble tracked Bono's vocals in the chorus to give them more impact.[6] The Edge said the vocal melody in the final version of the song differed from his original demo, but that otherwise most of the musical ideas from the demo were present in the completed song.[4]
The Edge achieved the guitar tones on the song using four pieces of equipment: a 1966Fender Telecaster guitar, aLine 6 DM4 Distortion Modeler effects pedal, aKorg SDD-3000 digital delay pedal, and the Fender Deluxe amplifier. The distortion pedal is used for the raw sound of the mainpower chord riff, while the delay pedal is used for the clean, ambient accent notes in the song's instrumental break.[5]
At the beginning of the song, Bono counts off in Spanish "Unos, dos, tres, catorce!" In English, this translates to "some, two, three, fourteen!"[10] When asked about this oddity in an interview forRolling Stone, Bono replied "there may have been some alcohol involved".[9] The count off was parodied by novelty singerRichard Cheese on his version of U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday" on his 2005 albumAperitif for Destruction.
A Spanish reply of "¡Hola!" is also heard behind the "Hello, hello" of the refrain, as well as "¿Dónde está?" ("Where is it?" or "Where are you?" depending upon if this is intended as a question to the location of Vertigo or Bono himself) after the line "I'm at a place called Vertigo". The "Hello, hello" line itself is reminiscent of similar lyrics in the song "Stories for Boys" from U2's debut albumBoy; inVertigo Tour concerts, the band frequently included a section of the latter song in their performances of "Vertigo."
U2 performed "Vertigo" in atelevision commercial for theAppleiPod as part of a cross-marketing plan to promote both the album and Apple's music products (especially the U2 Special Edition iPod and theiTunes Music Store's exclusive digital box set for U2,The Complete U2).[11]
.jpg)
U2 performed "Vertigo" at a number of promotional appearances in 2004 and early 2005, prior to the song's tour debut on the opening night of the Vertigo Tour. Since the first date of the Vertigo Tour, the band has virtually performed "Vertigo" at every single full tour concert, the only exceptions being the first few concerts ofThe Joshua Tree Tour 2017. On the Vertigo Tour during the North American arena legs as well as the 2006 stadium legs, "Vertigo" was typically the second song played after "City of Blinding Lights". For the European stadium leg, as well as a handful of other shows on the other legs, "Vertigo" opened the show. Many performances on this leg as well as occasional shows on the other legs sometimes featured "Vertigo" played twice, once early in the show and again as a final encore; this also looks back to U2's early days, when they did not have enough songs to fill out an entire performance and had to repeat some at the end. Performances on this tour typically featured an extended outro to the song, which included a repeat of Bono's "Yeah, Yeah" lines.[12] Visuals on this tour were inspired by the album cover, with heavy use of red and yellow lighting and the 'Vertigo target' artwork from the CD.
For theU2 360° Tour the song was typically performed midway through the main set, again after "City Of Blinding Lights".[13] It was one of the only songs to use the fully retracted pantograph video screen. For theInnocence & Experience Tour it was typically the third song played, with a swinging lightbulb hanging overhead during the performance.[14] On The Joshua Tree Tour 2017 and 2019, the song was typically performed in the encore following "Elevation", this tour marked a return of the extended outro and the same visuals as on the Vertigo Tour.[15] On theExperience + Innocence Tour the song was played as part of the "e-Stage" section, again following "Elevation" and featuring the extended outro. Bono would perform this song in his "MacPhisto" character.[16]
The Redanka Power remix of the song was used as bumper music for theNine Network'sFriday night AFL coverage in 2006.[17]
Upon release, "Vertigo" debuted at number 18 onBillboard'sModern Rock Tracks chart and number 46 on theBillboard Hot 100. In the following weeks, the track jumped to number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, moved from number 27 to number three on theMainstream Rock Tracks chart, and from number 35 to number nine on theAdult Top 40. It also debuted at number one on the Hot Digital Tracks chart and, after falling to number 4, returned to the top position. The track later moved into the top 40 of theBillboard Hot 100, peaking at number 31. It spent 20 weeks on the chart.[18][19] At the time of the song's release, Billboard did not count digital downloads as part of a single's overall sales. "Vertigo" recorded strong digital sales, and had these been incorporated into physical sales and airplay, would have seen a much stronger placing on theBillboard Hot 100 chart.
In the United Kingdom, the song moved fromBBC Radio 1's B-list in the first week of its airplay release to the A-list in the second week. The song was released commercially on 15 November, and debuted at number one on theUK Singles Chart, and remained there for one week. In total, it spent nine weeks in the top 40. In Australia, the track debuted at number five on theARIA Singles Chart and was ranked number 38 onTriple J's Hottest 100 of 2004. In the Netherlands, "Vertigo" reached number two on the Mega Top 100. In Brazil, the single went gold with more than 50,000 downloads.[20] The digital single holds a Gold status in the United States.
The video for the song features U2 performing in a featureless desert as black jet streams emit from behind each band member; on the ground is a huge white bulls-eye symbol used as a motif for the album graphics. The circular platform that the band performs on constantly elevates up and down in a spiral pattern, as the wind blows in the band's face. It was directed by the team ofAlex & Martin.It was recorded in Punta Del Fangar (Ebro Delta) in Spain and won aGrammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video at the47th Annual Grammy Awards in 2005.
Nathaniel Willemse released acover version of "Vertigo" as his debut single in 2008, after having performed it onAustralian Idolseries four in 2006.[21]Bon Jovi performed a snippet of the song during "Bad Medicine" onBon Jovi Live, their 2011 tour.[citation needed]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Vertigo" (Jacknife Lee 12-inch) | 5:36 |
| 2. | "Vertigo" (Jacknife Lee 7-inch) | 3:08 |
| 3. | "Vertigo" (Jacknife Lee 10-inch) | 4:13 |
| 4. | "Vertigo" (Jacknife Lee 12-inch instrumental) | 5:36 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Vertigo" (Redanka Power mix) | 7:32 |
| 2. | "Vertigo" (Trent Reznorremix) | 3:38 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Vertigo" | 3:11 |
| 2. | "Are You Gonna Wait Forever?" | 3:48 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Vertigo" | 3:11 |
| 2. | "Vertigo" (Jacknife Lee 10-inch) | 4:13 |
| 3. | "Neon Lights" | 4:07 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Vertigo" | 3:11 |
| 2. | "Are You Gonna Wait Forever?" | 3:48 |
| 3. | "Vertigo" (Jacknife Lee 10-inch) | 4:13 |
| 4. | "Neon Lights" | 4:07 |
| 5. | "Vertigo" (Live at HQvideo) | 3:11 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Vertigo" (HQ video) | 3:11 |
| 2. | "Vertigo" (Audio with photo gallery) | 4:13 |
| 3. | "Are You Gonna Wait Forever?" (Audio only) | |
| 4. | "Vertigo" (Jacknife Lee 10-inch – Lisbon video) |
Personnel taken fromHow to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb CD booklet.[25]
U2
Additional personnel
Weekly charts[edit] | Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[77] | Platinum | 70,000‡ |
| Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[78] Digital | Gold | 30,000‡ |
| Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[78] DMS | Gold | 30,000* |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[79] | Gold | 15,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[80] | Gold | 400,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[81] | Gold | 500,000* |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 4 October 2004 | Interscope | [82] | |
| Australia | 8 November 2004 | CD | Island | [83] |
| United Kingdom |
| [84] | ||
| Canada | 9 November 2004 | CD | [85] | |
| Japan | 15 November 2004 | [86] | ||
| 22 December 2004 | DVD | [87] |
Footnotes
Rising star Nathaniel Willemse is set to launch his debut single "Vertigo" in January 2008 ... Nathaniel made "Vertigo" his own when he performed his laid-back soul version of the U2 hit on Australian Idol 2006,
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)Bibliography
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
