#36 - Vertigo (2014) Highest- 15 Lowest- 182 How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb LP
Vulture-78/218 - If this song hadn’t been in an Apple ad, everyone would have loved it. Bono describes it as being trapped in a nightclub that you do not want to be at. Through that lens, even the botched count-off at the beginning makes sense; there’s always some slob who thinks they speak the local language when they do not. There are good lines, there are great images — it’s really just a rock-&-roll song. There was, however, no need to play it twice during a show, which U2 were entirely too fond of doing.
Comment -It was a track that was derided on release, including by me. It wasnt until I saw it live that i loved it. Not the 1st time, but the 2nd time in the 1 concert. I dont know what research went into doing this song twice in the same concert, but it worked a treat on me. Totally disagree w the Vulture comment on it. Unashamedly commercial, like the Killers w ""Are we Human or are we Dancer"", the opening lyrics of “Uno, dos, tres, catorce” rubbed some close minded the wrong way. There's a reason for it which i will let Nemesis explain.
Songfact: (note: this song took over 2 yrs to develop & I found a lot of vague overlapping info, so I'm going include a bunch of it & let you go thru it. Personally, I'm not seeing the "Trapped in a Nightclub" angle, but whatever....)
The Edge listened to a lot of the Buzzcocks, the Sex Pistols & the Who when U2 began work on 2004’s HTDAAB, & the influence of those raging guitar bands is very clear on the lead single. “It’s just a great, visceral rock & roll song,” Edge said. “It’s very simple: drums, 1 guitar, 1 bass & the vocals.”
This song is notorious for its intro, in which Bono says "Uno, dos, tres, catorce," which is "1, 2, 3, 14" in Spanish.
One theory is that Bono was directing listeners to The Bible: 1st Testament, 2nd Book, 3rd Chapter, 14th verse. Another theory is that he did it because HTDAAB was U2's 14th album. When Bono was asked about the intro in an interview, he said: “There may have been some drinking involved”.
Development & Recording:
The song originated from a 2002 demo that Edge called "Full Metal Jacket" & recorded at his home in Malibu while playing along to a drum loop that Larry had recorded for him. Upon hearing the demo, Bono was immediately impressed & thought it had the makings to become a song on the next album. In the beginning, Bono's original set of lyrics was inspired by Leonard Peltier, a Native American rights activist who was controversially convicted of killing two FBI agents. The song was subsequently retitled "Native Son", & after extensive experimentation on it, the band recorded & mixed a version of the song w the producer at that time, Chris Thomas. The group were so excited by the song, they sent it to Interscope Records, which was equally excited by it. However, Bono called the decision a mistake & said the song ultimately "wasn't as good as [they] thought". Eventually, the band brought in Steve Lillywhite to finish the album & he suggested a change in recording venues.
During the recording sessions, Bono took a 1 week break to get away from it all & went on a pilgrimage to visit the home of 1 of his favorite poets, Pablo Neruda, who lived in Chile. Per Bono: "I was w my childhood friend Guggi & I had a meal in the inn next door where I poisoned myself. I thought I was going to die. It was just me & Guggi, there was no one else in the inn, even the innkeeper had gone home. I was laying on the ground, throwing up at 10-minute intervals & Guggi was trying to get water but it was locked behind the bar. When the innkeeper came in, she found me on the ground. I said, ‘Can you call a doctor?’ She said, ‘You really don’t want to meet the doctor,’ I thought, ‘Okay, don’t call a doctor, just call us a taxi.’ Anyway, somewhere in & around there emerged a song’.
(maybe this is inspiration for "Vertigo"?)
Meanwhile, the band re-recorded the backing track for "Native Son". When Bono returned, the song subsequently was deconstructed & the lyrics were changed around, w various iterations of the song being called "Shark Soup" & "Viva la Ramone". At 1 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 kept the "Hello, hello" version.
U2 producer Steve Lillywhite, on how "Native Son" became "Vertigo" <--if you are into "How did this song morph & evolve from the start into the finished product?.......you'll want to listen to this.
Release & Charting:
Vertigo was the album's lead single (released Nov 8, 2004) and was also used in commercials as part of a big promotional deal w Apple
(For those that don't remember). The commercials, where many people 1st heard the song, promoted Apple's iPod. Apple also released a special-edition iPod w the signatures of the band members engraved on the back, & made the entire U2 catalog along w special bonus tracks available for download at iTunes for $150.
U2 made many high-profile appearances to promote the album, including performances on Saturday Night Live & the Grammy Awards.
In the US, the song peaked at #31 on the Billboard Hot 100 & #1 on the Alternative Songs chart.
In Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Spain, & UK.......went to #1.
While Australia, New Zealand, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland...was Top 10.
This won 3 Grammy Awards: Best Rock Song, Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal & Best Short Form Music Video. U2 performed on the show, but didn't play this - they played "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own," which Bono dedicated to his father.
U2 played this when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005.
This song was ruthlessly parodied on the South Park episode "More Crap." The plot of the episode revolved around the character Randy Marsh breaking the world record for largest piece of crap, which was previously held by Bono. Bono is featured throughout the episode trying to beat, & then preserve this record. Almost everywhere he goes (including poor nations in Africa) he sings run around pointing & singing his "yeah, yeah, yeah" outro of "Vertigo." He also answers his cell phone w the "Hello, hello" part of the chorus.
Link
This song landed at #25 when Rolling Stone ranked their Top50 U2 songs.
Vertigo - HQ version An early simple performance video, filmed in the bands own Hanover Quay studios (HQ) & was used for some promotion of the song while the main video was being finished.
U2 - Vertigo (Temple Bar Mix) Bono singing vertigo with Edge playing the banjo
Acoustic with only Bono + Edge - Ellen DeGeneres show
Bono & The Edge Are Ellen's Assistants for the Day: Part 1 
Been played played 531 times.........516 (full song) at 473 shows.......and 15 times as a snippet:
) but this is a simple, pleasant song. I like it. #38? Oh, hell no. But — I didn’t submit rankings. Kudos to those who did. This thread is awesome. I still love U2’s music after all these years.
