Opening with the ominous, fiery protest of "Sunday Bloody Sunday," War immediately announces itself as U2's most focused and hardest-rocking album to date. Blowing away the fuzzy, sonic indulgences of October with propulsive, martial rhythms and shards of guitar, War bristles with anger, despair, and above all, passion. Previously, Bono's attempts at messages came across as grandstanding, but his vision becomes remarkably clear on this record, as his anthems ("New Year's Day," "40," "Seconds") are balanced by effective, surprisingly emotional love songs ("Two Hearts Beat as One"), which are just as desperate and pleading as his protests. He performs the difficult task of making the universal sound personal, and the band helps him out by bringing the songs crashing home with muscular, forceful performances that reveal their varied, expressive textures upon repeated listens. U2 always aimed at greatness, but War was the first time they achieved it.

"Sunday Bloody Sunday" is a song by rock band U2. It is the opening track from their 1983 album War and was released as the album's third single on 11 March 1983 in Germany and the Netherlands. "Sunday Bloody Sunday" is noted for its militaristic drumbeat, harsh guitar, and melodic harmonies. One of U2's most overtly political songs, its lyrics describe the horror felt by an observer of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, mainly focusing on the Bloody Sunday incident in Londonderry where British troops shot and killed unarmed civil rights protesters and bystanders who were there to rally against internment (imprisonment without trial or evidence). Along with "New Year's Day", the song helped U2 reach a wider listening audience. It was generally well received by critics on the album's release.
The song has remained a staple of U2's live concerts. During its earliest performances, the song created controversy. Lead singer Bono reasserted the song's anti-sectarian-violence message to his audience for many years. Today, it is considered one of U2's signature songs, and is one of the band's most performed tracks. Critics rate it among the best political protest songs, and it has been covered by over a dozen artists. It was named the 272nd-greatest song by Rolling Stone on their list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

U2's most successful album (their first No. 1 album and the 1987 Grammy award-winner for Album of the Year) is also their most dour. From the stark, black and white cover photography, with U2 looking like missionaries (or at least M*A*S*H extras), to the existential angst at the heart of each track, The Joshua Tree is one long, atmospheric wail at the abyss. Producers Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois turn in an austere production that heightens the drama substantially.

U2的第7張專輯【Achtung Baby】在1990年10月於德國柏林的Hansa Studio錄音室展開錄製，樂團從當時的東、西德統一時局中汲取創作靈感，團員在創作之初發生樂團走向的爭論，直到完成"One"這首歌曲之後，創作靈感才湧現，在1991年初轉往愛爾蘭都柏林的Windmill Lane錄音室完成錄製。專輯由U2長期合作夥伴Daniel Lanois、Brian Eno與Steve Lillywhite共同擔綱製作，專輯勇奪美國、加拿大、法國、荷蘭、澳洲等國排行冠軍，挺進英國流行專輯金榜亞軍，全球累積銷售超過1800萬張，連推"The Fly"[冠軍]、"Mysterious Ways"[#13]、"One"[#7]、"Even Better Than The Real Thing"[#8]、"Who`s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses"[#14]等5首打進英國流行金榜前20名的暢銷單曲，其中的"Mysterious Ways"與"One"雙雙蟬連全美主流搖滾榜與現代搖滾榜的冠軍，同時晉升全美流行單曲榜TOP10，而"One"也在滾石雜誌2010年版的「史上最偉大500首歌曲名單」中名列第36名。專輯同時收錄德國名導文溫德斯的電影「直到世界末日」主題曲"Until The End Of The World"。U2以【Achtung Baby】專輯跟隨後運用多媒體視聽互動技術規劃的「Zoo TV Tour」重新改造過往平實與自我解嘲的形象。