NEW YORK -- In observation of a [url id="http://newsroom.mtv.com/2009/03/03/will-u2s-new-album-live-up-to-bonos-promise/"]monumentally busy week for U2[/url], in which the group released a new album and will play five consecutive nights on David Letterman's show, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has (briefly) renamed a section of the city's West 53rd Street after the veteran Irish quartet.

On a cold Tuesday afternoon (March 3), the band and Bloomberg spoke at a ceremony celebrating the event.

The mayor playfully opened by saying, "It's a beautiful day in New York" (referring to the weather and the band's song, "Beautiful Day") before turning the microphone over to Bono, who thanked Bloomberg and the city of New York for the honor.

"New York is a place that people come to [and] feel at home. And we truly do feel at home here in New York," the frontman said.

Each member of the band received his own version of the street sign "U2 Way," which Bono jokingly said marked the first time guitarist the Edge was able to hold a street sign without being arrested for it.

The band kicked off its week on Letterman Monday with a performance of their new song "Breathe" and a comedy skit that found them shoveling snow in front of the city's legendary Roseland Ballroom after a blizzard hit the area on Sunday and Monday.

U2's 11th full studio album, No Line on the Horizon, was released Tuesday and is expected to top album charts in many countries throughout the world. In January, the band performed at [article id="1602995"]President Obama's "We Are One" inaugural concert.[/article]