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Cover of Achtung Baby by U2
Cover: Achtung Baby

Song · U2

“One” by U2

From the album Achtung Baby (1991)

“One” by U2 appears on 172 radio countdowns from 48 stations between 1991 and 2026. It was first released in 1991 on the album Achtung Baby. Its best result is #1 on the 91X Top 91 Songs of 1992. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #4 alternative song of 1992, #10 alternative song of all time and #77 of the '90s.

172countdowns
48stations
#1best position
1#1 finishes
16top 10 finishes
1991–2026years charted

Watch

U2 - One (Official Music Video)

Video from YouTube (U2VEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"One" sits third on Achtung Baby, U2's seventh album, released on Island in 1991, and it's the song that kept the band from coming apart. The sessions at Hansa Studios in Berlin had turned into a fight over where U2's sound was headed and whether the new songs were any good, and the four of them came close to splitting before they stumbled onto "One", improvised from a chord progression The Edge was playing in the room.

Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois produced it and played on it, Eno on extra keyboards and Lanois on extra guitar, while Flood engineered and mixed. Bono wrote the lyrics out of the band's frayed relationships and the reunification of Germany, and he sings about disunity with a weary, wounded grace, though listeners have found plenty of other meanings in it. Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen, Jr. hold it to an unhurried walk, which makes every swell land harder.

It went out as a benefit single for AIDS research and topped the Irish chart, Canada's RPM chart and both Billboard's Album Rock Tracks and Modern Rock Tracks. It has been a fixture of U2 concerts since they first played it live in 1992, it gave its name to Bono's ONE Campaign, and the band cut it again for Songs of Surrender in 2023.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

Classic Rock

Hard Rock & Metal

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1991 70 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1991 107
1991 60 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana 91X Top 91 Songs of 1991 91
1992 5 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1992 107
1992 1 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana 91X Top 91 Songs of 1992 91
1992 7 Live 105 San Francisco, CA Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 1992 105
1992 5 Q101 Chicago, IL Q101 Top 101 Songs of 1992 101
1992 6 WHFS Washington, DC / Baltimore, MD WHFS Top 99.1 Songs of 1992 100
1992 31 CFNY 102.1 The Edge Toronto, ON CFNY Top 102 Songs of 1992 102

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
– 7 CRNC 90.1 CRNC Top 90.1 Songs of the '90s 91
1992 207 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1992) 500
1992 50 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (1992) 100
1993 27 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (1993) 100
1994 154 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1994) 497
1994 7 Live 105 Live 105 Revolutionary 500 (July 1994) 500
1994 77 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1994) 500
1994 962 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1994) 1000
1994 25 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (1994) 100
1995 33 Live 105 Live 105 Revolutionary 300 (July 1995) 300
1995 19 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (1995) 100
1996 173 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1996) 500
1996 66 Q101 Q101 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (1996) 500
1996 74 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1996) 498
1996 21 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (1996) 100
1996 106 WNEW-FM WNEW Firecracker 500 (1996) 500
1997 14 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (1997) 100
1997 148 102.3 WBAB WBAB Top 1,023 Rock and Roll Songs of All Time (1997) 1023
1998 11 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (1998) 100
1998 11 Triple J Triple J Hottest 100 of All-Time (1998) 100
1999 64 KROQ KROQ Top 300 Most Requested Songs of the '90s (Labor Day 1999) 300
1999 23 WHFS WHFS Top 500 Songs of the '90s (December 1999) 500
1999 17 91X 91X Fat 500 Songs of All-Time (July 1999) 500
1999 101 Q101 Q101 Top 1,011 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 1017
1999 142 WLIR / WDRE WLIR Top 300 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 300
1999 71 WFNX WFNX Top 500 Songs of All-Time (June 1999) 500
1999 195 107.7 The End The End Top 1077 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 1077
1999 134 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1999) 500
1999 36 CD101 CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 2000
1999 274 CFNY 102.1 The Edge CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (November 1999) 1002
1999 52 The Buzz The Buzz Top 99 Songs of All-Time (1999) 99
1999 12 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (1999) 150
2000 82 Y100 Y100 Top 300 Songs of the '90s (September 2000) 100
2000 64 DC101 DC101 Top 101 Rock Songs of the 90s 101
2000 79 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2000) 500
2000 36 CD101 CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000) 2001
2000 12 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2000) 100
2001 81 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2001) 498
2001 41 CD101 CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) 2002
2001 31 KISW KISW Top 99 Rock Songs (2001) 99
2001 11 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2001) 100
2001 254 WFPK WFPK 2001 Greatest Songs of All Time 2000
2001 10 Virgin Radio Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) 500
2001 89 WBRU WBRU Modern Rock Top 500 (2001) 500
2002 91 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2002) 500
2002 41 CD101 CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002) 2003
2002 246 100.7 WZLX WZLX Memorial 500 (2002) 500
2002 812 KISW KISW Top 999 of All Time (2002) 999
2002 10 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2002) 100
2002 219 Fred (XM 44) Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002) 2002
2003 23 91X 91X Top 91 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) 91
2003 107 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2003) 500
2003 41 CD101 CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) 2004
2003 17 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2003) 100
2003 344 Fred (XM 44) Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) 2044
2004 290 107.7 The End The End Original Alternative 500 (May 2004) 500
2004 41 CD101 CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) 2005
2004 97 Y100 Y100 Top 300 Songs of All-Time (July 2004) 300
2004 6 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2004) 100
2004 843 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2004) 923
2004 10 WXPN WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Songs (2004) 885
2004 2 Virgin Radio Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) 500
2005 32 Live 105 Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of the '90s (August 2005) 106
2005 114 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2005) 500
2005 44 CD101 CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) 1994
2005 4 Virgin Radio Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) 500
2005 9 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2005) 100
2005 17 99X 99X Freedom of Choice 1000 (2005) 1000
2006 40 107.7 The End The End Top 107 Songs of the '90s (December 2006) 107
2006 89 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 2006) 500
2006 237 Live 105 Live 105 500 Co-Op Countdown (Memorial Day 2006) 500
2006 115 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2006) 499
2006 9 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2006) 100
2006 3 Virgin Radio Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2006) 500
2007 133 KROQ KROQ Top 500 Most Requested Songs of the '90s (Labor Day 2007) 500
2007 114 CD101 CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) 2008
2007 27 WTMD WTMD Top 897 Songs of All Time 897
2007 12 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2007) 100
2008 139 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 2008) 500
2008 90 CD101 CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) 2009
2008 14 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2008) 100
2009 106 CFNY 102.1 The Edge The Top 200 Songs of the 90's According to 102.1 The Edge 200
2009 355 Live 105 Live 105 Memorial 500 Song List (2009) 500
2009 90 CD101 CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) 2010
2009 16 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2009) 100
2009 31 WYEP WYEP 913 Essential Songs 913
2010 93 CD101 CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) 2011
2010 16 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2010) 100
2010 583 WXPN WXPN 885 Ultimate Road Trip Songs (2010) 885
2011 101 CD101 CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) 2011
2011 438 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1100 Countdown (2011) 1100
2011 30 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2011) 100
2012 34 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2012) 100
2012 241 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2012) 500
2012 32 WYEP WYEP Top 500 Songs Countdown 500
2012 443 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1200 Countdown (2012) 1200
2013 107 CD101 CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) 2012
2013 34 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2013) 100
2013 332 Big 100 BIG 500 Labor Day Countdown (2013) 500
2013 155 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR CT 500 (2013) 500
2013 270 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2013) 500
2013 319 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2013) 500
2013 162 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Grand Jam 1000 (2013) 1000
2014 110 CD101 CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) 2013
2014 25 WXPN WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Songs (2014) 885
2014 377 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX 1K Countdown (2014) 1000
2014 96 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2014) 100
2014 382 Big 100 BIG 1000 New Year's Countdown (2014) 1000
2015 452 102.9 The Whale 102.9 The Whale Hartford 500 (2015) 500
2015 161 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Classic Rock Countdown (2015) 1007
2015 331 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2015) 499
2015 20 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR U2 20 20
2016 89 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2016) 100
2016 372 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Countdown for 2016 1007
2016 152 WYEP WYEP 913 Countdown 2016 913
2016 280 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2016) 500
2017 90 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2017) 100
2017 358 97.9 The Loop 97.9 The Loop Top 540 Countdown (2017) 540
2017 294 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2017) 500
2018 292 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2018) 500
2018 37 The Current The Current's 893 Essential Songs 892
2019 125 WYEP WYEP Labor Day Weekend Countdown 2019 1099
2019 69 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2019) 100
2019 441 102.5 KZOK KZOK Top 1025 of 2019 1025
2019 125 WYEP WYEP Big Spring Countdown 2019 1017
2020 685 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2020) 1025
2020 49 WXPN WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time 2020
2020 333 105.9 The X 105.9 The X July 420 (2020) 420
2020 70 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2020) 100
2020 259 DC101 The DC101 Top 500 500
2021 185 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '90s 908
2021 141 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2021) 500
2021 12 KISW KISW 25 Biggest Rock Songs From The Past 50 Years 25
2021 19 WYEP WYEP 2021 Labor Day Countdown 168
2021 338 105.9 The X 105.9 The X July 420 (2021) 420
2021 312 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2021) 500
2021 454 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2021) 1043
2021 83 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2021) 100
2022 40 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 900 Songs of the '90s 900
2022 62 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2022) 100
2022 217 97.1 The River River 500 (2022) 500
2022 724 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2022) 1025
2022 120 KEXP KEXP Top Songs of the Last 50 Years (1972-2022) 491
2022 304 X96 X96 Top 500 Alternative Songs of All Time 500
2022 204 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2022) 1043
2023 14 The Current The Current's 893 Essential Songs of the '90s 893
2023 26 91X 91X Top 91 Songs of The Last 40 Years 91
2023 568 101.5 WPDH WPDH Top 1015 (2023) 1015
2023 165 WYEP WYEP Countdown to Fall 2023 1229
2023 472 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2023) 1043
2023 69 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2023) 100
2023 199 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of All Time 909
2023 85 ALT 104.5 ALT 104.5 Top 104 of ALT Time 104
2024 411 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2024) 1043
2024 89 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2024) 100
2024 321 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Top 400 of the Last 40 Years (2024) 400
2024 93 WYEP WYEP Best Songs of the Past 50 Years 1049
2025 55 WFPK WFPK Top 500 Songs of the '90s 500
2025 549 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2025) 1043
2025 97 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Top 400 of the Last 40 Years (2025) 400
2025 476 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2025) 500
2026 178 WYEP WYEP Greatest Songs of All Time 1180
2026 311 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2026) 500
2026 326 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2026) 500

Charting alongside it in 1992

Best songs of 1992 →
  1. 1Friday I'm in LoveThe Cure
  2. 2Under the BridgeRed Hot Chili Peppers
  3. 3DriveR.E.M.
  4. 5JeremyPearl Jam
  5. 6TomorrowMorrissey
  6. 7HitThe Sugarcubes

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