October (song)

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"October"

Song by U2
from the album October
Released	20 October 1981
Genre	Rock
Length	2:21
Label	Island Records
Producer(s)	Steve Lillywhite
October track listing
"Tomorrow" (6)	"October" (7)	"With a Shout (Jerusalem)" (8)
The Best of 1980-1990 track listing
"All I Want Is You" (14)	"October" (15)

"October" is the seventh and title track from U2's 1981 album, October. It is a departure from U2's classic sound, as it is a quiet, almost instrumental piece. It was included as a hidden track on The Best of 1980-1990 compilation.

"October" made its live debut on 16 August 1981 and this performance featured extended, rambling lyrics from Bono that were never used again live. It was a setlist staple for much of the October Tour and followed "I Fall Down", another song from the October album that The Edge played on piano. However, it was omitted from the setlist at all 1982 dates where U2 supported the J. Geils Band.

At the first show of the War Tour's "Pre-Tour", "October" preceded New Year's Day, a pairing that would later become a famous segue at U2 concerts. The pairing was utilised for all "Pre-Tour" concerts with known setlists, but for the first proper leg and the first two weeks of the second leg, U2 reverted to a pairing initially tried at two October Tour dates, where "October" segued into "Tomorrow". In May 1983, "New Year's Day" returned to its position after "October" and the pairing was filmed for the Under a Blood Red Sky video. This pairing was played at almost every show on the Unforgettable Fire Tour and Joshua Tree Tour, typically as part of a greater combination that closed most main sets: "Bad", then "October", "New Year's Day", and finally "Pride (In the Name of Love)". At a few early Joshua Tree Tour shows, "With or Without You" was played between "October" and "New Year's Day". It is one of only two songs from October to be played live after the Unforgettable Fire Tour; the other is "Gloria".

The demise of "October" as a live song came on the Lovetown Tour. It was played at most of the tour's early shows in the position it had held on the Unforgettable Fire and Joshua Tree Tours, but on 9 October 1989 in Melbourne, its replacement was debuted, "Van Diemen's Land". The 9 October show was the only one where both were played; subsequently, the band played one or the other, and they demonstrated a strong preference for "Van Diemen's Land" as it was from the band's most recent album, Rattle and Hum. "October" was played just three more times. Its final live performance was on 11 November 1989 in Auckland.