Three (U2 EP)

Three, also known as U2 3, is the first release by the rock band U2. A three-song EP recorded and released in 1979, it was produced by the band with Chas de Whalley and was available in Ireland when released.

History

Three was produced as a 12-inch and subsequently a 7-inch, with an initial run of 1,000 individually numbered copies. It has been reissued six times, but it remains a rarity and was first released on CD in 2008 as part of the bonus disc with the that year's reissue of Boy. The track order was determined by a listener poll on Dave Fanning's radio show. Callers chose "Out of Control" to be the A-side of the record, with "Boy/Girl" and "Stories for Boys" as runners-up, constituting the B-side of the record.

Following Three, the band released the singles "Another Day", "11 O'Clock Tick Tock", and "A Day Without Me" before releasing Boy, in 1980.

U2 performed all songs from Three live regularly in the band's formative years. The earliest known performances of "Out of Control" and "Stories for Boys" took place in August 1979. "Out of Control" was written on lead singer Bono's eighteenth birthday. "Boy/Girl" may have also been played at this stage: a song named "In Your Hand" may have been related in some way to "Boy/Girl" but no recordings of it exist. The first confirmed performance of "Boy/Girl" took place in October 1979. All three songs were regularly performed on the Boy Tour in 1980–1981, although "Boy/Girl" appeared less than the others. "Stories for Boys," which premiered at an unknown date in August 1979, was used as a concert opener a few times before being moved to late in the main setlist, nearer to "Out of Control", which was typically the last song of the main set. In mid-March 1981, the Three songs were united to close the main set. "Stories for Boys" was first, followed by "Boy/Girl", which segued into "Out of Control". This trilogy lasted until the end of the tour.