Bono

Bono was born Paul David Hewson, May 10 1960 in Dublin. He was raised there and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his future wife, Ali Hewson, and the future members of U2.

He has been referred to as Bono, his stage and nickname, by his family and fellow band members since his adolescence. Bono writes almost all U2 lyrics, often using political, social, and religious themes.

During their early years Bono's lyrics contributed to U2's rebellious tone. As the band matured, his lyrics became inspired more by personal experiences shared with members of U2. Based on weeks that Bono's compositions have spent on the charts, he is the fifty-fourth most successful songwriter in U.K. singles chart history.

Outside U2 he has collaborated and recorded with numerous artists, sits on the board of Elevation Partners, and has refurbished and owns The Clarence Hotel in Dublin with The Edge. Bono is also widely known for his activism concerning Africa, for which he co-founded DATA, EDUN, the ONE Campaign and Product Red. He has organized and played in several benefit concerts and has met with influential politicians. Bono has been praised and criticized for his activism and involvement with U2. He has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, was granted an honorary knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, and was named as a Person of the Year by Time, among other awards and nominations.

Bono had several names: first, he was "Steinvic von Huyseman," then just "Huyseman," followed by "Houseman," "Bon Murray," "Bono Vox of O'Connell Street", and finally just "Bono."

"Bono Vox" is an alteration of Bonavox, a Latin phrase which translates to "good voice." It is said he was nicknamed "Bono Vox" by his friend Gavin Friday. Initially, Bono disliked the name. However, when he learned it loosely translated to "good voice", he accepted it.

The Edge

The Edge was born David Howell Evans August 8,1961. His distinctive electric guitar timbre and percussive style of playing, along with his use of digital sound processing — delay in particular — have been instrumental in defining U2's unique sound. In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine named him at #24 on its list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time"

The Edge was named by Bono because he was always on the fringe of things. Other stories suggest Bono gave him the name because of his angular face.

Adam Clayton

Adam Charles Clayton was born March 13 1960 in Chinnor, Oxfordshire, England. Clayton has resided in County Dublin since the time his family moved to Malahide when he was five years old in 1965. Clayton is well-known for his bass playing on songs such as "New Year's Day," "With or Without You," "Get on Your Boots," and "Magnificent."

He has worked on several solo projects throughout his career, such as his work with fellow band member Larry Mullen Jr. on the theme of 1996's Mission: Impossible. Clayton, as a part of U2, has won 22 Grammy awards.

Clayton remains the only bachelor member of U2. During the early 1990s, he was involved with and briefly engaged to British supermodel Naomi Campbell. He also had a long-standing relationship with Suzanne "Susie" Smith. They were engaged in 2006, but the pair broke up in February 2007

Larry Mullen

Lawrence Joseph "Larry" Mullen, Jr. was born October 31 1961 in Artane, Dublin, Ireland. He is the founder of U2, which was originally known as "The Larry Mullen Band" at its inception. He has worked on numerous side projects during his career, including a collaboration with Michael Stipe and Mike Mills of R.E.M. to form Automatic Baby in 1993 and working with bandmate Adam Clayton on the re-recording of the theme to “Mission: Impossible,” in 1996.

Mullen has worked with Maria McKee, Nanci Griffith, and U2 producer Daniel Lanois. Mullen played drums on many of the songs on the 1995 Emmylou Harris album Wrecking Ball. Mullen, along with bandmate Adam Clayton, recorded the soundtrack to the 1996 movie remake of “Mission: Impossible,” including the theme song, whose time signature was changed from the original 5/4 time signature to an easier and more danceable 4/4 time signature. The "Theme from Mission:Impossible" reached #8 on the U.S. Billboard chart, and was nominated for a Grammy award in the "Best Pop Instrumental Performance" category.