Ongoing History Daily: U2 ignored
It seems hard to believe now, but when U2 first came out, they were virtually ignored by everyone.
They struggled to get record company interest and got one rejection letter after another. Their debut EP and the follow-up single were disasters outside of Ireland. Even their record company, who had little faith in the band, didn’t bother to release their stuff in Britain.
As a result, when U2 played their first gig in London on December 2, 1979, at a place called the Nashville Rooms, only nine people showed up.
To add even more insult to the entire affair, the promoter and the venue even got their name wrong. The marquee out front read “TONIGHT: V2.”
Friday’s post featured some Cage the Elephant facts. And don’t forget to check out my podcast The Ongoing History of New Music where you listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google, Stitcher, or wherever you get your on-demand audio.
