Adam Clayton is U2’s bass player. He was born on 13 March 1960 in Oxfordshire, England before moving to Malahide, Co. Dublin in 1965.
Adam met Larry Mullen, The Edge and Bono at Mount Temple School in 1978. U2 was formed soon after and their first album, Boy, was released in 1980. Acknowledged as one of the best live acts in the world, U2 have toured the globe countless times and released 14 studio albums with sales in excess of 157 million. The band have won numerous awards including 22 Grammys; an Oscar nomination and two Golden Globes in the Best Original Song category; as well as the Amnesty International, Ambassador of Conscience Award.
Several solo music projects throughout his career include recording with Sharon Shannon for The Winkle Tapes 1989; with Larry Mullen for the Nanci Griffith record Flyer (1994); Little Steven for Born Again Savage (1999); as well Robbie Robertson and Daniel Lanois for their albums; and the re-recording of the theme to the 1996 film ‘Mission: Impossible’ with fellow band member Larry Mullen. Larry and Adam also joined members of REM to form the group Automatic Baby, performing one time only, at MTV’s inaugural ball for Bill Clinton in 1993.
Adam has written about contemporary art for British GQ and the role of art critic has seen him interview artists including Allen Jones, Wolfgang Tillmans, Jeff Koons and William Eggleston. In 2022 he presented a documentary titled Francis Bacon: The Outsider which follows the story of the painter’s early life in Ireland.
In 2017, the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences honoured Adam with the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award at MusiCares 13th annual MAP Fund Benefit Concert in recognition of his dedication to helping others with the addiction recovery process.
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts selected Adam, along with his U2 bandmates, to receive the 45th Kennedy Center Honors for lifetime artistic achievements at a ceremony in Washington D.C. in December last year.
