Song · U2
“40” by U2
From the album War (1983)
“40” by U2 appears on 13 radio countdowns from 3 stations between 1999 and 2021. It was first released in 1983 on the album War. Its best result is #813 on the 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '80s. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #2,377 alternative song of all time.
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"40" closes out War, U2's 1983 album, and after all that barrage it lands as a hush. Bono built the words out of Psalm 40, the Edge's guitar chimes and Adam Clayton's bass rolls gently underneath, Larry Mullen, Jr. handles drums and percussion, and Steve Lillywhite produced.
Onstage it grew into something bigger. U2 first played it on 26 February 1983 in Dundee on the War Tour, and it soon settled in as their closer: the Edge and Clayton swap instruments, then the band files offstage one at a time while the crowd keeps singing its question back at them. They have played it almost 400 times. On vinyl it was a single only in Germany, pressed to promote their 1983 Loreley Festival appearance, with "Two Hearts Beat as One" on the flip.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 1046 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) | 2000 |
| 2000 | 1046 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000) | 2001 |
| 2001 | 1051 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) | 2002 |
| 2002 | 1050 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002) | 2003 |
| 2003 | 1035 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) | 2004 |
| 2004 | 1035 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) | 2005 |
| 2005 | 1035 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) | 1994 |
| 2007 | 1902 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) | 2008 |
| 2008 | 1879 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) | 2009 |
| 2009 | 1914 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) | 2010 |
| 2010 | 1969 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) | 2011 |
| 2020 | 1321 | WXPN | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2020 |
| 2021 | 813 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '80s | 909 |
Also listed as: "40".
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