Discothèque (song)

"Discothèque"
Single by U2
from the album Pop
B-side
  • "Holy Joe"
  • various remixes
Released 3 February 1997
Format
Genre
Length
  • 5:19 (album version)
  • 4:34 (radio edit)
  • 5:08 (12" version)
Label Island
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Flood
U2 singles chronology
"Miss Sarajevo"
(1995)		 "Discothèque"
(1997)		 "Staring at the Sun"
(1997)
Alternative cover

"Discothèque" is the lead single from Irish rock band U2's 1997 album, Pop. It peaked at number one in many countries' charts, including the UK Singles Chart. The song received mixed reviews from critics.

Release history

A 30-second sample of "Discothèque" was leaked to the Internet on 26 October 1996. By 27 December, the entire track had been leaked, after which U2 moved the release date forward. "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 ten 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 has 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" sounds similar to the way U2 performed the song during the PopMart Tour in 1997 and 1998.

The version on most versions of the single was the 12" version, which altered the introduction's instrumentation and vocals. It was also slightly shorter than the album version.

A somewhat abbreviated form of "Discothèque" was played during the first two legs of U2's Elevation Tour in 2001, normally containing the snippets of "Staring at the Sun" and INXS's "Devil Inside". A more rock-sounding version of the song was played twice on the Vertigo Tour accompanied by an elaborate stage lightshow. It has not been played in full since 20 September 2005. In the 2010 European leg of the U2 360° Tour, the band began performing an extended snippet of Discothèque during their remixed version of "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight", with Bono singing several verses of the song during the intro and the outtro, and Edge mixing its guitar riff in at the end.[1]

Music video

In the accompanying music video, which was directed by the Frenchman Stéphane Sednaoui, the band performed in what seemed like 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.). Stylus magazine described the video as "sublimely bizarre".[2]

Reception

U2 were criticized by some reviewers for the large number of dance music remixes used as B-sides, suggesting that it was an attempt to gain credibility.[3] However, Stephen Thomas believed it to be indicative of the growing influence of remixes in music.[3] Commercials for the 2003 Toyota Matrix used the Hexadecimal remix. In a 2006 article by Stylus, the magazine had trouble trying to classify the genre of the song, calling it "sheer WTFery" and "permanently unclassifiable".[2]

Formats and track listings

Personnel

Charts and certifications

See also

References

  1. ↑ "U2 Discothèque - U2 on tour". U2gigs.com. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
  2. 1 2 http://www.stylusmagazine.com/articles/weekly_article/u2-vs-rem.htm
  3. 1 2 Ryan, Stephen. "Dancing about architecture: Postmodernism and Irish popular music" (PDF). Irish Communications Review. Retrieved 6 February 2010.
  4. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – U2 – Discothèque". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  5. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – U2 – Discothèque" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  6. ↑ "Ultratop.be – U2 – Discothèque" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  7. ↑ "Ultratop.be – U2 – Discothèque" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  8. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 3155." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  9. ↑ "Top RPM Dance/Urban: Issue 3163." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  10. ↑ "Top RPM Rock/Alternative Tracks: Issue 9808." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  11. ↑ "Lescharts.com – U2 – Discothèque" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  12. ↑ "U2: Discothèque" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  13. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – U2 – Discothèque". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  14. ↑ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (NR. 207 Vikuna 6.2. '97 - 12.2. '97)" (PDF) (in Icelandic). Dagblaðið Vísir. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  15. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Discotheque". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  16. 1 2 "I singoli più venduti del 1997". Hit Parade Italia (in Italian). Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  17. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 8, 1997" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40 Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  18. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – U2 – Discothèque" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  19. ↑ "Charts.nz – U2 – Discothèque". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  20. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – U2 – Discothèque". VG-lista. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  21. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  22. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – U2 – Discothèque". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  23. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – U2 – Discothèque". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  24. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  25. ↑ "U2 Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  26. ↑ "U2 Chart History (Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  27. ↑ "U2 Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  28. ↑ "U2 Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  29. ↑ "U2 Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  30. ↑ "ARIA Charts - End Of Year Charts - Top 100 Singles 1997". ARIA. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  31. ↑ "RPM '97 Year End Top 100 Hit Tracks". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  32. ↑ "RPM '97 Year End Top 50 Dance Tracks". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  33. ↑ "RPM '97 Year End Top 50 Alternative Tracks". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  34. ↑ "Årslista Singlar - År 1997" (in Swedish). Hitlistan. Archived from the original on 8 February 2015. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  35. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association.
  36. ↑ "British single certifications – U2 – Discotheque". British Phonographic Industry. Select singles in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Discotheque in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  37. ↑ "American single certifications – U2 – Discotheque". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
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