Discothèque

"Discothèque"
Single by U2
from the album Pop
B-side	"Holy Joe" various remixes
Released	3 February 1997
Format	7" vinyl, 12" vinyl, CD, cassette
Genre	Alternative rock, techno, alternative dance
Length	5:19
Label	Island
Producer	Flood
U2 singles chronology
"Miss Sarajevo" (1995) "Discothèque" (1997) "Staring at the Sun" (1997)
Alternate cover

"Discothèque" is the lead single from Irish rock band U2's 1997 album, Pop, it was a hit single heading straight to number one in many countries charts including the UK Top 40.

Release history

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A 30-second sample of "Discothèque" was leaked to the internet on 26 October 1996. By 27 December, the entire track had been leaked, forcing U2 to move up the release date. "Discothèque" debuted at #3 on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart, and hit #1 the following week. It was certified Gold by the RIAA on 7 April, 1997. The song debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at #10, but dropped off the charts after only four weeks in the Top 40. It was also the band's sixth (and last) Top 10 single in the US. It debuted at #1 on the UK singles chart, remaining on top for one week and spending a total of eleven weeks in the chart.

The song was remixed for U2's The Best of 1990-2000 greatest hits album, released in 2002. The new version features a longer intro and subtle use of the techno-sounding drum beat that figured prominently in the opening of the original track. The 'new' "Discotheque" was similar in sound to how U2 performed the song during the PopMart Tour in 1997 and 1998. The 12" version on the single contains a slightly different introduction.

The song has been said to bear an uncanny resemblance to that of "Begging You" by The Stone Roses. The Edge revealed that he met Stone Roses bassist Gary "Mani" Mounfield and admitted the similarities between both songs, to which Mani had replied "Every band has to start somewhere".

A somewhat abbreviated form of "Discotheque" was played during the first two legs of U2's Elevation Tour in 2001. A more rock-sounding version of the song was played twice on the Vertigo Tour accompanied by an elaborate stage lightshow, but the band wasn't happy with the sound of the new arrangement.^{[citation needed]}

Music video

The accompanying music video, which was directed by Frenchman Stéphane Sednaoui, the band performed in atmosphere approximating the inside of a mirrorball. They alluded to several elements of the disco era, including disco-style dancing and the film Saturday Night Fever. U2 further and directly alluded to the Village People, a popular disco era band, by similarly adopting the guises of various professions: a motorcycle police officer (Bono), a gay-fetish biker (The Edge), an American sailor (Adam Clayton), and a cowboy (Larry Mullen, Jr.).

Track listings

Charts

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2007)

See also

• List of covers of U2 songs - Discothèque

References