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| Birth Name(s) : Larry Mullen Jr. |
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Full Larry Mullen Jr. Biography
Lawrence Joseph "Larry" Mullen, Jr. (born 31 October 1961 in Artane, Dublin, Ireland) is the drummer for the Irish rock band U2. He is the founder of U2, which was originally known as "The Larry Mullen Band" at its inception. He has worked on numerous side projects during his career, including a collaboration with Michael Stipe and Mike Mills of R.E.M. to form Automatic Baby in 1993 and working with bandmate Adam Clayton on the re-recording of the theme to Mission: Impossible, in 1996. He and U2 have won several awards, including 22 Grammy awards.
Mullen, the middle child and only son of Larry and Maureen Mullen, was born 31 October 1961, and raised in Artane, on the north side of Dublin, Ireland. Mullen began drumming in 1971, at the age of 10, under the instruction of Irish drummer Joe Bonnie and later, Bonnie's daughter Monica. Mullen's younger sister, Mary, died in 1973, and his mother died in an auto accident in 1976, the same year U2 was founded.
As U2 grew more popular, Mullen added the "Junior" suffix to his name to stop confusion with his father (also Larry Mullen), who was receiving large tax bills meant for his son. Mullen is unmarried, but has lived with his girlfriend Ann Acheson for more than 20 years. They have three children, Aaron Elvis (born 1995), Ava (born 1998), and Ezra (2001). He is known to be the "brakes of the band", and prefers to let the other band members take the spotlight at interviews. Mullen has made two rare backing vocal appearances, once on 1993's "Numb", and once on 2004's "Miracle Drug". Mullen has also played synthesizer or keyboards on several songs, including "United Colours" from 1995's Original Soundtracks 1, an album that Mullen has always disliked.
People say, "Why don't you do interviews? What do you think about this? What do you think about that?" My job in the band is to play drums, to get up on stage and hold the band together. That's what I do. At the end of the day that's all that's important. Everything else is irrelevant.—Larry Mullen Jr.
After forming U2, Mullen’s drumming style and techniques began to evolve. In the early days of the band, his contributions to the band was often limited to fills and drum rolls, but he became more involved in the writing of the songs later, particularly in conjunction with Adam Clayton, his partner in the rhythm section, with whom he has collaborated on solo projects. When the band was first being signed to CBS Records, they refused to sign the band unless Mullen was fired. He was not, and as a result, his drumming became more integrated into the song structures.
During the recording of the album Pop in 1996, Mullen suffered from severe back problems. Recording was delayed due to surgery. When he left hospital, he arrived back in the studio to find the rest of the band experimenting more than ever with electronic drum machines, something driven largely by The Edge's interest in dance and hip-hop music, and, given his weakness after the operation, he finally gave in to The Edge and continued to use drum machines, which contributed heavily to the album's electronic feel.
Throughout his career, Mullen has had tendonitis problems. In order to reduce inflammation and pain, he uses specially designed Pro-Mark drumsticks. He uses Yamaha drums and Paiste cymbals. He was placed at # 21 in Stylus Magazine's list of the 50 Greatest Rock Drummers.
Mullen and U2 have won more than 60 awards, 22 of which were Grammy awards. At the Grammy awards, the band has won Best Rock Duo or Group with Vocal 7 times, Album of the Year twice, Record of the Year twice, Song of the Year twice, and Best Rock Album twice. |
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