The new U2 album "No Line on the Horizon" debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts by selling 484,000 copies. The band's last album -- "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" -- moved 840,000 units in its first week of release back in November 2004. However, as the always insightful Todd Martens of the Pop & Hiss blog points out in this must-read story, "a closer look at U2's sales stats suggests that 'Atomic Bomb' was an aberration in the career of the Irish superstars." Turns out that U2 usually sells its albums over the long run rather than in a short burst in the first few weeks of release. All of its first 11 albums eventually went at least platinum. Interestingly, "Atomic Bomb" moved almost 30% of its 3 million copies in that first week.

Reviews for this new album were always respectful if not raves. Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Ann Power gave the disc three out of four stars. She thought, "U2's celebration of life has always also been a celebration of itself, and Bono still has a gift for radiating joy in a way that feels inclusive, not egotistical. At the same time, 'No Line on the Horizon' is most interesting when the band and its producers let their well-deserved wallowing become a drift down the river toward something different."

While part of the promotional effort had U2 appearing all last week on "The Late Show With David Letterman," the band premiered the first single -- "Get on Your Boots" --- on the Feb. 8 Grammy Awards telecast. Though that track has been only a modest success with 188,000 downloads, there are many more to come in the months ahead. And taken individually and as a whole, how many of these will figure in the Grammy nominations when they are announced at the end of the year?

Over the years, U2 has won 22 Grammys spread out over 11 categories. That haul ties the group with Stevie Wonder. However, Wonder has won three album of the year Grammys, as did Paul Simon and the late Frank Sinatra. U2 has taken this top honor twice -- for "The Joshua Tree" and "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb."

While the band's first five albums failed to break through with Grammy voters, all that changed with disc No. 6 — "The Joshua Tree." U2 won album of the year in 1987 and the first of seven rock duo or group awards (the other wins in that category came in 1988, 1992, 2000, 2001, 2004, and 2005).

U2's next studio album, "Achtung Baby," lost album of the year to Eric Clapton's "Unplugged" in 1992. While "Zooropa" won the alternative album award in 1993, U2's follow-up "Pop" went flat with Grammy nominators. "All That You Can't Leave Behind" contended for the top prize in 2001 but lost to the "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack. But "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" won album of the year in 2005.

Besides their two album of the year Grammys, U2 has won record of the year twice -- "Beautiful Day" (2000) and "Walk On" (2001) -- and song of the year twice as well: "Beautiful Day" (2000) and "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own" (2005). And in addition to those seven Grammys for rock group, U2 has won rock album twice -- "All That You Can't Leave Behind" (2001) and "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" (2005) -- and rock song twice: "Vertigo" (2004) and "City of Blinding Light" (2005). And they have three video wins -- performance ("Where the Streets Have No Name," 1988)' long-form ("Zoo TV," 1994), and short-form ("Vertigo," 2004) -- as well as single wins for alternative album ("Zooropa," 1993) and pop group ("Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of," 2001).

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Photo: Interscope Records

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