The Electric Co.

"The Electric Co." is the tenth track from U2's debut album, Boy. The song is about psychiatric patients in Ireland who went through electric shock treatment as part of their treatment.^{[citation needed]}

It debuted live in mid-1980 and was a concert regular for the band's first four tours. It was typically performed in the middle of the setlist, and at a Boy Tour show in Edinburgh on 21 November 1981, it was preceded by a short song known as "Cry" or "The Cry". Its precise title is uncertain as band setlists, which often feature abbreviations, usually list it simply as "Cry" but Bono sometimes introduced it as "The Cry". This short song was linked to "The Electric Co." and its main riff was later used in the song "Is That All?" on the October album. "The Cry" preceded "The Electric Co." at all performances from the 1980 Edinburgh date until the end of the Unforgettable Fire Tour. During this period, Bono frequently snippeted Stephen Sondheim's "Send in the Clowns" during "The Electric Co.", although his repertoire of snippets expanded in 1984.

On the Joshua Tree Tour, "The Electric Co." was played without "The Cry" and it saw a significant drop in the amount of times it was performed. Its last performance was on 3 August 1987. However, over 17 and a half years later, it made a comeback to the setlist on the Vertigo Tour and became a fan favourite. On the tour's first leg, it was performed with "The Cry", but usage of "The Cry" ceased on the second leg except for one reappearance in Montreal on the third leg. "The Electric Co." was played at a slight majority of concerts on the first leg, all but one show on the second leg, and was initially a regular on the third leg before declining to only sporadic appearances in the later stages. It appeared at just one of the band's 21 concerts in 2006. During the Vertigo Tour, it became known for the variety of snippets Bono sung during the song. Regulars included The Smashing Pumpkins' "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" and The Who's "I Can See for Miles", but many others were used. In its entire performance history, over thirty different songs have been snippeted in "The Electric Co." It has been played by U2 over 400 times. [1]

The song has appeared on two of U2's live releases. It is featured on the Under a Blood Red Sky VHS and Vertigo 2005: Live From Chicago DVD. On both, it is preceded by "The Cry".