U2 won the 2005 Grammy for Best Rock Song for “Vertigo.”
“Vertigo” was the lead single from U2’s 2004 album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. Written by Bono, the Edge, Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen Jr., it uses a compact, hard-driving rock arrangement that marked a return to the band’s most immediate sound after its more experimental 1990s work.
At the 47th Annual Grammy Awards, “Vertigo” beat songs including Green Day’s “American Idiot,” the Killers’ “Somebody Told Me,” and Modest Mouse’s “Float On.” The songwriters formally receive the Best Rock Song award, but U2 is the canonical band answer because all four members wrote and performed the track.
The song had an unusually strong Grammy night. It also won Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Short Form Music Video. Its visibility grew further through U2’s appearance in an Apple iPod advertising campaign and the subsequent Vertigo Tour.