U2’s third studio album, War, broke new ground for the band. It’s the album that propelled them into international stardom, but its protests songs also meant this was their first blatantly political record, most notably with songs like “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” “Seconds” and “The Refugee.” In particular, their depiction of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland on “Sunday Bloody Sunday” remains one of the most powerful political songs ever.
Read: The 20 Best U2 Songs
On this day (May 6) in 1983, U2 performed at the Orpheum Theater in Boston to promote the album, and since they had already established themselves as a world class live act by this point, their energy was electric. The show was recorded live for the King Biscuit Flower Hour radio program, and you can hear three selections from the show below, all taken from War: “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” “Seconds” and “Two Hearts Beat as One.”
Hear U2 perform live in 1983 via the Paste vault below.
