U2 on October

October, originally with the working title of Scarlet, was released in the summer of 1981. In several countries, October was re-issued on 5" CD in March 1996 as part of the Island Master series. This Island Masters re-issue featured higher quality paper and extra pictures from the original LP's inner sleeve. However, a different back cover featured a black and white photograph of the band instead of the photo of the docks in Dublin from the original version of October. In Argentina, a promotional copy of October was released with the title Is That All?, title of the last track on the album. The album peaked at No.11 on the UK album charts during its first week of release. Conversely, it never cracked the Top 100 on the US album charts and didn't rise higher than No.104 where it was certified platinum by the RIAA. UK magazine New Musical Express voted the album No.4 in its annual poll.


'October was the most dificult of the three records I did with them basically because of the well-chronicled story of Bono losing his lyrics during the American tour. The fact that the first album had a bit of success in America meant that the band toured over there for a long time to do the groundwork. When they came back and it was time to do the second album, nothing was ready!'


Steve Lillywhite in Propaganda 5



'I listened to it last week for the first time in ages and I couldn't believe I was part of it. It's a huge record. I couldn't cope with it. I remember the pressures it was made under, I remember writing lyrics on the microphone and at fifty pound an hour that's quite a pressure. Lillywhite was pacing up and down the studio... he coped really well. And the ironic thing about October is that there's a kind of peace about the album even though it was recorded under that pressure.'


Bono, 1982 





'A lot of people who liked Boy were disappointed by October, while people who didn't like Boy, preferred October..... you can't come to terms with our music in one or two listens. I think October will prove to be a very important album for the band.'


Edge 


" 'October'...It´s an image," Bono said in 1981. "We´ve been  through the '60s, a time when things were in full bloom. We had fridges and cars, we sent people to the Moon and everybody thought how great mankind was. And now,  as we go through the 70's and 80's, it´s colder time of the year. It´s after the harvest. The trees are stripped bare. So 'October' is an ominous word, but it´s also quite lyrical."