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U2 – The Fly (4:29)

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About This Track

“The Fly” is a song by rock band U2. It is the seventh track from their 1991 album Achtung Baby and was released on 12 October 1991 as the album’s first single. “The Fly” introduced a more abrasive sounding U2, as the song featured hip-hop and industrial beats, distorted vocals, and an elaborate guitar solo. Lead vocalist Bono described the single as “the sound of four men chopping down the Joshua Tree,”[1] due to its departure from the traditional sound that had characterised the band in the 1980s.

Bono described the song’s subject as that of a phone call from someone in Hell who enjoys being there and telling the person on the other end of the line what he has learned.[2] The song and its video were also a showcase for “The Fly”, a persona that Bono took on for the Zoo TV Tour, in which he played the part of a stereotypical leather-clad rock star known for wearing large wrap-around sunglasses and strutting around the stage. The song became the band’s second number-one single in the UK and was successful among alternative rock radio audiences.
The promotional video was the first appearance of The Fly character and displayed the band’s “new look”. The song was promoted with a music video directed by Ritchie Smythe and Jon Klein. Smythe’s contribution was a basic performance video, relying heavily on unfocused, fast, wandering takes. Klein’s part featured only Bono sitting in a chair with a remote control, facing a wall with several TV sets. The intro to the video, also filmed by Klein, featured a small portion of the “Lounge Fly Mix”, with Bono running in the streets in his “Fly” costume.
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Albums featuring this track

  • Achtung Baby
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  • Greatest Hits
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  • The Total Thing (disc 1)
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  • All The Best
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See all 38 albums

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  • CannedMango

    Edge shows a different take on the guitar solo here and it never fails to give me goosebumps.

    last month

  • felipecgo

    mas que solo é esse que isso

    September 2011

  • hollins48

    1 of my favs from u2 and from there 2nd best album achtung baby only war better.

    September 2011

  • albertrose

    this song is legendary good. and i stopped liking u2 in the late 90s.

    August 2011

  • wiwaU2

    jaaaa ... einfach Spitze :-)

    August 2011

  • Newborn_Bantam

    After seeing this live at Glasto, it has become my favourite U2 song

    August 2011

  • heavner72

    !!!

    May 2011

  • RichXTuta

    best lyrics EVER imo.

    April 2011

  • YoungHeretic

    The Edge at his best.

    April 2011

  • clarky212

    'look i gotta go.......am runnin outta change'

    March 2011

  • meerkatboy13

    has to be my favorite U2 song, the Edge's solo is just amazing [2]

    February 2011

  • damar47

    amazing guitar solo

    February 2011

  • bistec54

    el 25 de Marzo 2011 voy al recital de U2, 360 grados, en Chile¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿

    February 2011

  • mani5984

    has to be my favorite U2 song, the Edge's solo is just amazing

    January 2011

  • MaryForsberg

    U2 зарабатывают 130 млн. $ в год и являются на сегодняшний день самой высокооплачиваемой группой

    January 2011

  • floydianslip313

    The ZooTV live footage of this is amazing. These guys take stagecraft to a whole new level for rock.

    January 2011

  • dizel760

    its been a few years since i played this.

    January 2011

  • Ssuper_freakK

    First time when I heard this song... there is something like 'every poet is a thief' and I thought he sings 'every POLE is a thief'... and my face looked like 'HAHHAHAHAHAHA'. xDD

    December 2010

  • zombiegorennoir

    lmao this soooong.

    December 2010

  • MightyShane2

    Not sure if it fits the 90,s dance tag but great song anyways

    October 2010
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