U2 are a rock band from Dublin, Ireland. The band consists of Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen, Jr.. The band formed in 1976 when the members were teenagers with limited musical proficiency. By the mid-1980s, the band had become a top international act, noted for their anthemic sound, Bono's impassioned vocals, and The Edge's textural guitar playing. Their success as a live act was greater than their success at selling records until their 1987 album The Joshua Tree elevated the band's stature "from heroes to superstars," according to Rolling Stone. U2 responded to the dance and alternative rock revolutions and their own sense of musical stagnation by reinventing themselves with their 1991 album Achtung Baby and the accompanying Zoo TV Tour. Similar experimentation continued for the rest of the 1990s. Since 2000, U2 have pursued a more conventional rock sound that retains the influence of their previous musical explorations. U2 have sold more than 145 million albums worldwide and have won 22 Grammy Awards, more than any other band. In 2005, the band were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility. Rolling Stone magazine listed U2 at #22 in its list of the 100 greatest artists of all time. Throughout their career, as a band and as individuals, they have campaigned for human rights and social justice causes.

Read the rest of this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U2

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

451:

Armenian rebels were defeated by forces of the Sassanid Empire on the Avarayr Plain in Vaspurakan, but were eventually guaranteed religious freedom. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Avarayr

1828:

Kaspar Hauser , a foundling with suspected ties to the Royal House of Baden, first appeared in the streets of Nuremberg, Germany. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaspar_Hauser

1896:

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, representing twelve stocks from various American industries, was first published by journalist Charles Dow as a stock market index. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dow_Jones_Industrial_Average

1918:

The Democratic Republic of Georgia was proclaimed following the breakup of the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Republic_of_Georgia

1972:

U.S. President Richard Nixon and Soviet Leader Leonid Brezhnev signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty in Moscow, concluding the first round of the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategic_Arms_Limitation_Talks

2008:

An earthquake measuring about 6.3 Mw struck near the Indonesian city of Yogyakarta on the southern side of the island of Java, killing at least 5,700 people, injuring at least 36,000, and leaving at least 1.5 million homeless. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_2006_Java_earthquake

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

balustrade (n): (architecture) A row of balusters topped by a rail, serving as an open parapet, as along the edge of a balcony http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/balustrade

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Thunder only happens when it's raining.

Players only love you when they're playing. Say... Women... they will come and they will go.

When the rain washes you clean... you'll know. --Stevie Nicks http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Stevie_Nicks