U2 to Drop "Atomic Bomb"

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U2 have titled their tenth studio album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. The follow-up to 2000's Grammy-winning All That You Can't Leave Behind, which sold more than 4 million copies in the U.S., will be released November 23rd.

The foursome -- singer Bono, guitarist the Edge, bassist Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen Jr. -- recorded the album over the past two years in its native Dublin and the South of France. Steve Lillywhite, who produced U2's first three albums, and former Sex Pistols producer Chris Thomas both worked on the album.

The first single from is "Vertigo," which should hit airwaves on September 24th. The album also includes the tracks "Full Metal Jacket" and "Tough," an homage to Bono's late father. U2 -- the top-grossing live act of 2001, thanks to their Elevation Tour -- plan to tour the U.S. next spring.

The band may have further cause to celebrate in spring -- along with the Stooges, the Sex Pistols, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Grandmaster Flash and the Pretenders, U2 are eligible for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

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Song Stories

“Everyday People”

Sly and the Family Stone | 1968

"Everyday People" managed to trailblaze in two different ways -- it was one of the first pop hits to deal with the subject of racial harmony, and it utilized Larry Graham's "slap" technique on the bass guitar, which would soon be copied by countless other bassists. Graham once said about his pulsating style, "I'd never done that before … that's where the freedom of creativity came in for the band, that we'd be allowed to do that." In 1978, the song's line "Different strokes for different folks" would be borrowed for the title of the hit television show Diff'rent Strokes.

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