Staring at the Sun (U2 song)

"Staring at the Sun" is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is the fifth track on their 1997 album, Pop, and was released as its second single on 15 April 1997. It peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart, number one in Canada and Iceland and number 26 on the US Billboard Hot 100. In the US, it topped the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks and Adult Alternative Songs charts. It also reached the top 10 in Finland, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand and Norway.

"Staring at the Sun"
Single by U2
from the album Pop
B-side
Released15 April 1997
GenreAlternative rock
Length4:37
LabelIsland
Composer(s)U2
Lyricist(s)Bono and The Edge
Producer(s)Flood, with additional production by Steve Osborne
U2 singles chronology
"Discothèque"
(1997)		 "Staring at the Sun"
(1997)		 "Last Night on Earth"
(1997)

Background

The song was written with the line "Stuck together with God's glue," which was taken directly from the title of the album by the Irish band Something Happens, who are good friends with U2.[1] The band felt the song was a potential "anthem to rival 'One'."[2][3] A new mix of "Staring at the Sun" was released for the compilation, The Best of 1990-2000.[2] During the summer of 2002 recording sessions in which "Electrical Storm" and "The Hands That Built America" were recorded, parts for four U2 songs were re-recorded, including "Staring at the Sun." The song has been compared to the work of Oasis.[4][5]

A kaleidoscope bearing the single's logo in gold was distributed to promote the single.[6]

Live performances

"Staring at the Sun" was played at most of the PopMart Tour shows. However, during the first concert at Las Vegas, U2 failed to time the song correctly and had to start over. Bono singing at the wrong tempo was to blame for the mistake. The song was performed acoustically for most of the rest of that tour.[2] It had several appearances on the Elevation Tour, being the only Pop song to be performed on all three legs of the Elevation Tour. Sometimes it also appeared as a snippet in "Discothèque". It was performed as a live staple of the North American leg of the 2018 Experience + Innocence Tour."[7][8]

It appeared in the live videos/recordings Please: PopHeart Live EP, "Please" single, PopMart: Live from Mexico City, Hasta la Vista Baby! and U2 Go Home: Live from Slane Castle, Ireland.

Formats and track listings
7" and cassette release
No.TitleLength
1."Staring at the Sun"4:37
2."North and South of the River"4:38
CD release 1
No.TitleLength
1."Staring at the Sun"4:37
2."North and South of the River"4:38
3."Your Blue Room"5:28
CD release 2
No.TitleLength
1."Staring at the Sun" (Monster Truck mix)5:06
2."Staring at the Sun" (Sad Bastards mix)6:19
3."North and South of the River"4:38
4."Staring at the Sun" (Lab Rat mix)5:05
2002 promotional release
No.TitleLength
1."Staring at the Sun" (Brothers in Rhythm club mix)9:42
2."Staring at the Sun" (Brothers in Rhythm ambient mix)5:27

These remixes by Brothers in Rhythm originated as bootlegs on 12" vinyl. They use the live Rotterdam performance featured on the "Please" single rather than the album version. U2 approved it for limited promotional use to coincide with the release of The Best of 1990-2000.[9]

Charts

See also

References
  1. http://u2faqs.com/songs/#19 Archived 2009-07-24 at the Wayback Machine
  2. Greene, Andy (14 March 2017). "U2's 'Pop': A Reimagining of the Album 20 Years Later". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media LLC. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
  3. Power, Ed (30 October 2018). "PopMart: Were U2 Making a Joke or was the Joke on Them?". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
  4. "Stylus Magazine".
  5. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Pop Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 29 September 2009.
  6. http://www.u2wanderer.org/silver/
  7. Greene, Andy (3 May 2018). "U2 Dig Deep at Transcendent 'Experience' Tour Opener in Tulsa". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  8. Olivier, Bobby (26 June 2018). "Hits be damned, U2 doubles down on spectacle for tech-heavy new tour: review". NJ.com. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
  9. "U2 - Staring at the Sun (Brothers in Rhythm Remixes)".
  10. "Australian-charts.com – U2 – Staring at the Sun". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  11. "Austriancharts.at – U2 – Staring at the Sun" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  12. "Ultratop.be – U2 – Staring at the Sun" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  13. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 3203." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  14. "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 3211." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  15. "Top RPM Rock/Alternative Tracks: Issue 3195." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  16. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 14 no. 18. 3 May 1997. p. 20. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  17. "U2: Staring at the Sun" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  18. "Lescharts.com – U2 – Staring at the Sun" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  19. "Offiziellecharts.de – U2 – Staring at the Sun". GfK Entertainment Charts.
  20. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (NR. 213 Vikuna 20.3. '97 – 26.3. '97)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 21 March 1997. p. 16. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  21. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Staring at the Sun". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  22. "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 14 no. 21. 24 May 1997. p. 14. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  23. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 19, 1997" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40 Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  24. "Dutchcharts.nl – U2 – Staring at the Sun" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  25. "Charts.nz – U2 – Staring at the Sun". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  26. "Norwegiancharts.com – U2 – Staring at the Sun". VG-lista. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  27. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  28. "Swedishcharts.com – U2 – Staring at the Sun". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  29. "Swisscharts.com – U2 – Staring at the Sun". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  30. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  31. "U2 Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  32. "U2 Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  33. "U2 Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  34. "U2 Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  35. "U2 Chart History (Dance Singles Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  36. "U2 Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  37. "U2 Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  38. "RPM '97 Year End Top 100 Hit Tracks". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. 15 December 1997. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  39. "RPM '97 Year End Top 50 Alternative Tracks". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. 15 December 1997. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  40. "Árslistinn 1997 – Íslenski Listinn – 100 Vinsælustu Lögin". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 2 January 1998. p. 25. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
  41. "Najlepsze single na UK Top 40–1997" (in Polish). Archived from the original on 4 June 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
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