Billy Corgan Says He Gave Bono Advice He Used on Hit U2 Album

Billy Corgan has made a number of incendiary comments over the years, and this latest comment is interesting, to say the least.

Corgan recently participated in an interview with Zane Lowe. During the interview, the Smashing Pumpkins frontman touched on some of the major artists of the '90s that impacted him. One of those artists was U2, who had quite a prolific decade. With the new millennium, however, U2 was clearly looking for a change.

Enter Corgan.

The singer recalls being in Dublin around 2000 and visiting Bono at his home. Corgan says the two of them stayed up all night, and in the morning, Bono wanted to play some new U2 music for him. Since they were the only two people in the house that were awake at the time, they went outside and got in a car to listen to this music.

Corgan says, "So, it's me and him freezing in the driveway, and he pop in, and he's playing me what became the 'It's a Beautiful Day' album, and it's not all the way there, but sort of there."

The album featuring "Beautiful Day" was, of course, All That You Can't Leave Behind, which was a commercial and critical success. It's sold over 12 million copies worldwide and netted U2 seven Grammy Awards. Among them were Song of the Year and Record of the Year for "Beautiful Day."

Corgan says while he and Bono were listening to the recordings, "[Bono] goes, 'Tell me honestly what you think.' I'm like, 'You really want me to give you my opinion?' ... And I told him what I thought. They actually used my advice! He let me know later, 'Hey, we used your advice.'"

Corgan didn't detail his exact advice, but this soundbite has already led to some very funny headlines. The best comes via The Line of Best Fit, which is, "Billy Corgan Confirms U2's 'All That You Can't Leave Behind' Album Was All His Fault."

U2 has been one of the biggest bands of the past 50 years and for good reason: Their catalog is a prime example of a band evolving and growing up before the eyes of the world.

So far, U2 has released 14 studio albums. Their catalog also features live releases, box sets, compilations and more. In total, they have sold over 175 million records worldwide.

The legend of U2 had humble beginnings. Its four members -- Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. -- were all students at Mount Temple Comprehensive School in Dublin.

One day in 1976, Mullen Jr. put a flyer on the school's bulletin board searching for musicians to start a band. He was only 14 at the time. Among the people who responded were Bono (16), The Edge (15) and Clayton (16). The band's first practice was on September 25, 1976 in the kitchen of Mullen Jr.'s childhood home.

Who would've thought all of this success started with a just simple post on a bulletin board and a practice in a kitchen?!

U2's list of accolades is nothing short of insane. They've won 22 Grammy Awards out of 46 nominations. In 2005, they were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The band received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2022.

In addition to those awards, they've been a massive tour draw. Per Pollstar, U2 has sold over 26 million tickets since 1980. Their tours have grossed a staggering $2.12 million. The only other act to make more money on the road is the Rolling Stones with $2.16 million.

With all of this mind, we thought we'd take on the daunting task of ranking U2's best song. Scroll through the list below to see which songs from their vast catalog we think are their 50 best!