"Bad" is a song by Irish rock band U2 and the seventh track on their 1984 album, The Unforgettable Fire. Thematically, the song is about heroin addiction, though lead vocalist Bono has given varying accounts of who was the inspiration behind his lyrics. "Bad" is considered a fan favourite and is one of U2's most frequently performed songs in concert. The band's 12-minute performance of the song at the Live Aid charity concert in 1985 was a breakthrough moment for them. A live version of the song appears on U2's 1985 EP Wide Awake in America; this rendition became popular on album-oriented rock radio stations. In the United States, the song peaked at number 19 on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart. The album version of the song featured on the trailer of Brothers and in the opening and closing sequences of Taking Lives. History "Bad" originated from a guitar riff that the Edge improvised during a jam session at Slane Castle, where U2 were recording The Unforgettable Fire. The basic track was completed in three takes. Of its immediate and live nature, the Edge said, "There's one moment where [drummer] Larry [Mullen Jr.] puts down brushes and takes up the sticks and it creates this pause which has an incredibly dramatic effect." Producer Brian Eno added the sequencer arpeggios that accompany the song. The early 1980s recession had led to a high number of heroin addicts in inner city Dublin. In concert, lead vocalist Bono frequently introduced the song as a song about Dublin. The Edge and the album's producers, Eno and Daniel Lanois, were focused on the music and were less interested in the lyrics. Bono said that he left the song unfinished. During the 3 December 1984 concert at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, Bono said the song was about heroin and that he wrote it for a friend and also for himself; in discussing this comment during a 17 December 1984 radio interview, Bono said, "Well, I think I said I wrote the song for a friend of mine; I also wrote it for myself because you can be addicted to anything. And, you know, that song's not just about heroin: it's about a lot of things. None of our songs, really, are just about one thing." There are other versions of the story from Bono himself. His account from a 1987 concert