North Side Story: U2 in Dublin 1978-1983

by Niall Stokes (Editor)

Publication for U2.com members for the year 2014

When a bunch of young Dublin hopefuls played their first gig as Feedback way back in 1976, no one could have dreamed that they would go on to write their own chapter in the story of rock 'n' roll.

*But where did they come from?
*What was Ireland like when they first took up instruments in the suburbs of North Dublin?
*Who were their musical friends and contemporaries?
*And what gave U2 staying power when other bands fell away?

North Side Story offers a vivid blow-by-blow account of the rise of U2, from their earliest schooldays right up to the release of Under a Blood Red Sky in 1983. All the original material from the back-pages of Hot Press is now complemented with new recollections from key players in the extraordinary history of the band.

North Side Story is the insiders' account of where Adam, Bono, Edge and Larry came from, a portrait of a band in the process of forgin its own unique identity.

A Hot Press original title for U2.com

Genres: Music, Biography, Nonfiction, Ireland

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2014

Reviews

[Rich Marx · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prior to reading this book, I only knew the music of U2. While reading it, I became immersed in the Dublin music scene of the late 1970s as U2 found their footing. As they played show after show, they eventually made inroads across Europe and America. This is must reading for any U2 fan that wants to know the rest of their story. It also comes with a map detailing U2's Dublin haunts.

[Neil R. Coulter · Rating 5 out of 5]

North Side Story is the gift for U2 fan club subscribers in 2014. And I have to admit, when I heard that this year's gift was a book about the early days of U2, I was disappointed. I was actually hoping for a special CD or DVD (last year's subscriber package included 5 CDs and a book and several extra downloads), especially since I continued to hope that 2014 would see a new album release by the band (and especially since the gift is really the only reason I can see for joining the fan club). Also, having followed U2 for most of my life (starting in The Joshua Tree days), and having read the fantastic U2 by U2, I wondered if there's much I don't already know about the early days of the band; and I feared that this new book would be at the same level as From the Ground Up, last year's fan club book, which contains many beautiful photos, but the written content is pretty light and the whole book can easily be read in one sitting.

How wrong I was!

North Side Story is an excellent book. It comprises 36 parts, most of which include a period magazine article (mostly from the Irish rock publication Hot Press) and a "What They Say Now" article, written more recently by someone who was connected to the band in the early years. The written content is dense, and it takes much more than one sitting to read through the book--very satisfying! It makes for a really enjoyable, meandering narrative journey through the establishing years of U2--from the beginnings at Mount Temple school, through the first UK, US, and European tours, and the first three albums plus Red Rocks. True, I'd read the band members' own version of the story in U2 by U2, but it was fascinating to read about their formation and rise to stardom through the eyes of other people of the time. I liked seeing the ways in which, even as young kids just starting out, they were already the personalities we're familiar with now--and the wisdom they showed even in their teens, especially toward the rock image.

The real benefit of this book for me, though, was not just the glimpse into U2's beginnings, but the historical context of what the Dublin music scene was like in the late 70s and early 80s. The bands of that time were living in the shadow of the Boomtown Rats and the Radiators from Space--Irish bands that had recently "made it"--and also fighting the provincial identity of Ireland in the UK and internationally (which is really interesting, given the much higher profile of Irish music and culture in the past 20 years). I already knew a lot about U2 in those years, but what I learned from this book was about the other bands that were forming in Dublin at the time, any one of which might have risen to the top: The Virgin Prunes, D.C. Nien, The Atrix, and others. And it's enlightening to see U2 against that backdrop, to see their seriousness and commitment to their mission, which set them apart from other bands and seems to have almost destined them for international stardom.

The collection of articles is not by any means a doctoral dissertation, but somehow it rises above the level of the individual magazine articles it contains. I could only wish that the book came with a companion "North Side sampler" CD, featuring one or two songs from each of the other bands mentioned throughout the text. I'm really glad that I continued in the fan club this year and got to enjoy this fantastic volume.

[Bradley Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An exclusive publication for U2’s fan club members, this book is the definitive account of the emergence of U2 in Dublin. During the mid-1970s, before the arrival of punk, Ireland was a culturally bleak place, with the church still dictating societal norms. An afterthought as a colonial outpost, plagued by poverty and violence in the North, making a living in Ireland as a rock group was an impossibility. It was during this era that four ambitious young lads by the names of Paul Hewson, Dave Evans, Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen, Jr. met at their school and agreed to form a band. Founded in 1976 and initially billed as Feedback and then the Hype, the group were cutting their chops by poorly performing the radio hits of the day. It wasn’t until 1978, after rebranding as U2, that they would discover that their strengths lie in being authentic to themselves and crafting an original sound. From there, with their ambition guided by discipline and a curiosity to learn more, U2 laboriously crafted their sound and built their following. Unlike other acts in Ireland, U2 avoided growing as a musical act by appealing to the cynical and superficial audiences in the UK, instead setting their sights on conquering America through constant touring as main acts in small clubs. So, by the release of their breakthrough album “War” in 1983 and the subsequent phenomenon of the live document “Under a Blood Red Sky,” U2 had paved a way to international fame doing things their way and under their terms. This book features articles from Hot Press magazine, never before seen photos, and essay contributions from friends, crew members, collaborators, and others who were there from U2’s humble beginnings and watched their star rise projecting them from dingy clubs to festivals. To understand how U2 became such a cultural force, this book explores their decisions and unique path they undertook that set them apart from the rest of the popular acts of the 1980s and still remain Irish at heart.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this through the U2 fan club - each year they send us a fan club-exclusive gift and for 2015 it was this book with the accompaning fold-out map. The book charts the early history of U2, not just in terms of the personal backgrounds of Bono, Edge, Adam and Larry, but also putting them into the wider cultural context of the Irish music scene at the time. Interviews with friends of the band members themselves make it a really interesting read as they share their memories. There are reviews from the early shows as well as photos. As someone who wasn't even born back then, it really brings alive what things were like in that era as this baby band tried to find their feet.

It's a really good read - although good luck if you decide to try and actually follow the drawn-from-memory map. "Enjoy getting lost in U2's Dublin!".

[Tammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a compilation of Hot Press articles about U2 from 1978 - 1983 intermixed with photos from the period and reflections from people who know the band about that period. It is very interesting reading about what people thought of the band back then knowing what they went on to become. It was also cool to read old interviews with the band and a tour diary from Adam. Though didn't rate it higher as it could be a bit of a slog to read at time as it is just a whole lot of magazine articles and not something necessarily meant for long haul reading. I found it best to read in small doses interspersed with other things.

[Tim Duff · Rating 4 out of 5]

All the beginnings of that band from Dublin, Ireland. They worked on being successful on a world-wide basis back the. As told by interviews in Hot Press magazine and from those involved in working with the band.

A long book, but good insight in to U2.

[John Goebel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must for U2 fans and bands that want to know what it takes to make a career in music. You will love the Adam day by day diary and Paul McGuinness last word.

[Doug Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting look at the early days of U2 through the eyes of writers for music magazines (mostly Hot Press) of the time. The book is a little choppy because it's a collection of somewhat unrelated articles, but the fact that the articles were written at the time, not by people remembering or looking back, makes you feel "in the moment" at times. This is a publication for the U2 fan club and fans of the band will find this book fascinating, providing real insight into the members of the band, the environment they came out of, and even into the people surrounding the band.

[Sabne Raznik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun, fun, fun! And the best closing line of any book I've read. Gotta love the Irish!

[Rebecca Mckenzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great insight into the beginnings of the greatest band ever - U2!

[Steven Thorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating look into the formative years of the world's best and longest-lasting band. Loved the photos, interviews from friends, articles, and stories. A treasure.