Editing U2 (section)

=== Passengers, ''Pop'', and PopMart (1994–1998) ===
In 1995, following a long break, U2 contributed "[[Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me]]" to the [[Batman Forever (soundtrack)|soundtrack album]] of the film ''[[Batman Forever]]''.<ref>{{cite news|title=Studio Shake-Up Has Production Team Singing 'Blues'|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Daily News]]|first1=Marilyn|last1=Beck|first2=Stacy Jenel|last2=Smith|date=25 May 1995}}</ref> The song reached number one in Australia and Ireland, number two in the UK, and number 16 in the US.<ref>McGee (2008), p. 178</ref> In November, the band released an [[experimental music|experimental]] album called ''[[Original Soundtracks 1]]'', a collaboration with Brian Eno, who contributed as a full songwriting partner and performer. Due to his participation and the record's experimental nature, the band released it under the moniker "Passengers" to distinguish it from U2's conventional albums.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.atu2.com/news/passengers-original-soundtracks-1-3.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130102023947/http://www.atu2.com/news/passengers-original-soundtracks-1-3.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2 January 2013|title=Eno, U2 Make An 'Original'|newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]]|first=Jim|last=Sullivan|date=7 November 1995|access-date=30 September 2009|pages=59, 64}}</ref> Mullen said of the release: "There's a thin line between interesting music and self-indulgence. We crossed it on the Passengers record."<ref>{{cite magazine|title=The Professionals|magazine=[[Q (magazine)|Q]]|first=Tom|last=Doyle|date=April 1997|issue=127}}</ref> It was commercially unnoticed by U2 standards and it received mixed reviews.<ref>McGee (2008), p. 181</ref> The single "[[Miss Sarajevo]]" (featuring [[Luciano Pavarotti]]) was among Bono's favourite U2 songs.<ref>McCormick (2006), pp. 261–262</ref>

U2 began work on their next studio album, ''[[Pop (U2 album)|Pop]]'', in mid-1995, holding recording sessions with [[Nellee Hooper]], [[Flood (producer)|Flood]], and [[Howie B]]. The band mixed the contrasting influences of each producer into their music, in particular Howie B's experiences with electronica and dance music.<ref name="sound-on-sound-pop">{{cite magazine|url=http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/1997_articles/jul97/flood_u2.html |title=Pop Art: Flood & Howie B |magazine=Sound on Sound |date=July 1997 |first=Paul |last=Tingen |access-date=29 September 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150607055529/http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/1997_articles/jul97/flood_u2.html|archive-date=7 June 2015}}</ref> Mullen was sidelined due to back surgery in November,<ref name="McCormick 2006, p. 262">McCormick (2006), p. 262</ref> prompting the other band members to take different approaches to songwriting, such as [[Programming (music)|programming]] drum [[tape loop|loops]] and playing to [[Sampling (music)|samples]] provided by Howie B.<ref name="sound-on-sound-pop"/> Upon Mullen's return in February 1996, the group began reworking their material but struggled to complete songs, causing them to miss their mid-year deadline to complete the record.<ref name="mcg182">McGee (2008), p. 182–185</ref> The band allowed manager Paul McGuinness to book their 1997–1998 [[PopMart Tour]] with the album still in progress;<ref name="mcc266">McCormick (2006), p. 266, 269–270</ref> Bono called it "the worst decision U2 ever made".<ref name="pop-nme-retrosp">{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/u2-463-1354442 |title=U2 Revisit Pop? |website=[[NME]] |date=23 May 2005 |access-date=12 March 2021 |archive-date=27 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210927160052/https://www.nme.com/news/music/u2-463-1354442 |url-status=live }}</ref> Rushed to complete the album, the band delayed its release date a second time from late 1996 to March 1997,<ref name="mcg182"/><ref>{{cite news|title=The Trouble With U2|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|first=Brian|last=Boyd|date=19 October 1996|at=sec. The Week, p. 6}}</ref> cutting into tour rehearsal time.<ref name="legends"/><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/flashback-davy-jones-sings-daydream-believer-at-a-u2-concert-89758/|title=Flashback: Davy Jones Sings 'Daydream Believer' at a U2 Concert|magazine=Rolling Stone|first=Andy|last=Greene|date=31 March 2015|access-date=2 July 2018|archive-date=5 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705150721/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/flashback-davy-jones-sings-daydream-believer-at-a-u2-concert-89758/|url-status=live}}</ref> Even with the additional recording time, U2 worked up to the last minute to complete songs.<ref name="sound-on-sound-pop"/><ref name="mcc266"/>

In February 1997,<ref name="mcg187">McGee (2008), pp. 187–189</ref> the group released ''Pop''{{'}}s lead single, "[[Discothèque (song)|Discothèque]]", a dance-heavy song with a music video in which the band wore [[Village People]] costumes.<ref>{{cite news|title=Don't Call It Disco. Well, OK, You Can If You Want To. But Whatever You Call It, Dance Music Is Back With a Vengeance|newspaper=[[The Buffalo News]]|first=Anthony|last=Violanti|date=7 February 1997}}</ref> The song reached number one in the UK, Japan, and Canada, but did not chart for long in the US despite debuting at number 10.<ref name="mcg187"/> Within days of the single's release, the group announced the PopMart Tour with a press conference in the lingerie section of a [[Kmart (United States)|Kmart]] department store.<ref name="mcg187"/> Tickets went on sale shortly after, but ''Pop'' would not be released until March.<ref name="job253">Jobling (2014), pp. 253–256</ref> The album represented U2's further exploration of [[nightclub]] culture, featuring heavy, funky dance rhythms.<ref>Graham (2004), pp. 62–63</ref> The record drew favourable reviews.<ref>{{bulleted list|{{cite magazine|title=Pop: Kitsch of Distinction|magazine=NME|date=1 March 1997}}|{{cite news|title=Pop|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|first=Andrew|last=Smith|date=23 March 1997}}}}</ref> ''Rolling Stone'' stated that U2 had "defied the odds and made some of the greatest music of their lives".<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/pop-193667/|title=Review: Pop|magazine=Rolling Stone|first=Barney|last=Hoskyns|date=20 March 1997|access-date=2 July 2018|issue=756|archive-date=21 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121220914/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/pop-193667/|url-status=live}}</ref> Other critics felt that the album was a major disappointment.<ref>{{bulleted list|{{cite magazine|url=http://www.andrewmueller.net/display.lasso?id=88|title=U2's "Pop" Reconsidered|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100810120533/http://www.andrewmueller.net/display.lasso?id=88|first=Andrew|last=Mueller|author-link=Andrew Mueller|magazine=[[Uncut (magazine)|Uncut]] Legends|volume=1|issue=3|date=May 2004|access-date=18 June 2010|archive-date=10 August 2010}}|{{cite news|first=Matt|last=Dentler|date= 30 October 2000| title=U2 makes album world is waiting for|newspaper=[[The Daily Texan]]}}|{{cite web|url=http://www.crosswalk.com/culture/music/the-best-of-1990-2000-11618586.html|title=The Best of 1990–2000&nbsp;– U2|website=[[Crosswalk.com]]|first=Russ|last=Breimeier|access-date=23 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160319093618/http://www.crosswalk.com/culture/music/the-best-of-1990-2000-11618586.html|archive-date=19 March 2016|url-status=dead}}}}</ref> Despite debuting at number one in over 30 countries, ''Pop'' dropped off the charts quickly.<ref name="mcg187"/> Bono admitted that the album "didn't communicate the way it was intended to",<ref name="pop-nme-retrosp"/> while the Edge called it a "compromise project by the end".<ref name="mcc266"/>

{{Multiple image|direction=vertical|align=right|image1=U2 PopMart Tour, Belfast, August 1997 (01).jpg|image2=U2 PopMart Tour, Belfast, August 1997 (18).jpg|caption2=The [[PopMart Tour]] stage featured a golden arch, mirrorball lemon, and 150-foot-long LED screen. The band emerged from the lemon during encores, although it occasionally malfunctioned.}}
The PopMart Tour began in April 1997 and was intended as a satire of [[consumerism]].<ref name="job253"/> The stage included a 100-foot-tall (30 m) golden yellow arch reminiscent of the [[McDonald's]] logo, a 40-foot-tall (12 m) mirrorball lemon, and a 150-foot-long (46 m) LED video screen, at the time the world's largest.<ref name="gopopmart">{{cite press release |url=http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=34093 |title=U2 Go 'PopMart' |publisher=[[PR Newswire]] |date=12 February 1997 |access-date=12 December 2016 |archive-date=3 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120503051222/http://www2.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=34093 |url-status=live }}</ref> U2's "big shtick" failed to satisfy many who were seemingly confused by the band's new kitsch image and the tour's elaborate set.<ref>{{bulleted list|{{cite magazine|last=Carter|first=Geoff|title=U2 live: Play-by-play of the concert|magazine=The Las Vegas Sun|date=27 April 1997}}|{{cite web|url=http://www.spin.com/2006/10/u2-brute/|title=U2, Brute?|website=Spin|last=Anderson|first=Kyle|date=4 October 2006|access-date=23 March 2016|archive-date=6 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306102839/http://www.spin.com/2006/10/u2-brute/|url-status=live}}}}</ref> The reduced rehearsal time for the tour affected the quality of early shows,<ref>de la Parra (2003), pp. 193–202</ref> and in some US markets, the band played to half-empty stadiums.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1997-06-09/lifestyle/9706060468_1_popmart-rock-group-u2-dates|title=U2 'Popmart' A Tough Sell in Some Cities|newspaper=[[Sun-Sentinel]]|first=Sean|last=Piccoli|date=9 June 1997|access-date=12 December 2016|page=3D|archive-date=20 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220125521/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1997-06-09/lifestyle/9706060468_1_popmart-rock-group-u2-dates|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="McCormick 2006, p. 277">McCormick (2006), p. 277</ref> On several occasions, the mirrorball lemon from which the band emerged for the encores malfunctioned, trapping them inside.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vulture.com/2008/03/ten_rock_star_stunts_even_more.html|title=Ten Rock-Star Stunts Even More Ridiculous Than Flying to Antarctica|website=[[Vulture (website)|Vulture]]|first=Tammy|last=Oler|date=28 March 2008|access-date=12 December 2016|archive-date=22 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161222083014/http://www.vulture.com/2008/03/ten_rock_star_stunts_even_more.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Despite the mixed reviews and difficulties of the tour, Bono considered PopMart to be "better than Zoo TV aesthetically, and as an art project it is a clearer thought."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/just-the-2-of-u-1.711046|title=Just the 2 of U|website=Irish Times|first=Brian|last=Boyd|date=27 February 2009|access-date=23 March 2016|archive-date=2 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170702122221/http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/just-the-2-of-u-1.711046|url-status=live}}</ref> He later explained, "When that show worked, it was mindblowing."<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Stairway to Devon − OK, Somerset!|magazine=Q |date=July 2010|issue=288|page=100 |author=((U2)) }}</ref>

The group's 20 September 1997 show in [[Reggio Emilia]] was attended by over 150,000 people, which was reported to have set a [[List of highest-attended concerts|world record for the largest paying audience]] for a one-act show.<ref>{{cite press release|url=http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=29052 |title=U2 Play to Biggest Audience Ever |publisher=[[PR Newswire]] |access-date=23 January 2017|date=21 September 1997|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180706191525/http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/u2-play-to-biggest-paying-audience-ever-156005155.html|archive-date=6 July 2018}}</ref><ref>McGee (2008), p. 198</ref> U2 also [[U2 concert in Sarajevo|performed in Sarajevo on 23 September]], making them the first major group to stage a concert there following the [[Bosnian War]].<ref>de la Parra (2003), pp. 211–212</ref> Mullen described the show as "an experience I will never forget for the rest of my life, and if I had to spend 20 years in the band just to play that show, and have done that, I think it would have been worthwhile."<ref>{{cite episode |title=Jo Whiley interview with U2 |series=The Jo Whiley Show |airdate=November 1998 |network=[[BBC Radio 1]] |location=London}}</ref> Bono called the show "one of the toughest and one of the sweetest nights of my life."<ref name="Mueller2">{{cite news |title=U2 in Sarajevo: Part 2&nbsp;– The Rattle and Hum |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |date=26 September 1997 |first=Andrew |last=Mueller}}</ref> The tour concluded in March 1998 with gross revenues of {{USD|173.6&nbsp;million}} and 3.98&nbsp;million tickets sold.<ref name="kissfuture">{{cite magazine |title=Kissing the Future|magazine=Billboard|first=Ray|last=Waddell|page=19|volume=121|issue=10|date=14 March 2009}}</ref> The following month, U2 appeared on the [[Trash of the Titans|200th episode]] of the animated sitcom ''[[The Simpsons]]'',<ref>{{cite news|title=The Best... The Beautiful... and the Bizarre; Cast Aways; Cow-a-Bono, Dude|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|first=Janet|last=Kinosian|date=26 April 1998|at=sec. [[Los Angeles Times Magazine]], p. 10}}</ref> in which [[Homer Simpson]] disrupts the band on stage during a PopMart concert.<ref>{{cite news|title=Homer joins U2 on stage in 200th episode of 'Simpsons'|newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|first=Roisin|last=Ingle|date=30 May 1998|edition=City|at=sec. Home News, p. 3}}</ref> In November 1998, U2 released their first compilation album, ''[[The Best of 1980–1990]]'',<ref name="mcg208">McGee (2008), pp. 208–209</ref> which featured a re-recording of a 1987 B-side, "[[Sweetest Thing]]", as its single.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/1819098/the-31-best-u2-non-album-tracks/franchises/ultimate-playlist/|title=The 31 Best U2 Non-Album Tracks|website=[[Stereogum]]|first=Ryan|last=Leas|date=27 July 2015|access-date=12 December 2016|archive-date=13 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160513072834/http://www.stereogum.com/1819098/the-31-best-u2-non-album-tracks/franchises/ultimate-playlist/|url-status=live}}</ref> The album broke a first-week sales record in the US for a greatest hits collection by a group,<ref>{{cite press release|title=U2's 'Best Of' Highest Greatest Hits Debut by Any Band in the History of SoundScan|publisher=[[Island Records]]|agency=[[PR Newswire]]|date=13 November 1998}}</ref> and "Sweetest Thing" topped the singles charts in Ireland and Canada.<ref name="mcg208"/>