"Silver and Gold" was written in support of the Artists United Against Apartheid project, which protested the South African apartheid. In 1985, Bono participated in Steven Van Zandt's anti-apartheid "Sun City" project and spent time with Keith Richards and Mick Jagger of The Rolling Stones. When Richards and Jagger played blues, Bono was embarrassed by his lack of familiarity with the genre, as most of U2's musical knowledge began with punk rock in their youth in the mid-1970s. Bono realised that U2 "had no tradition", and he felt as if they "were from outer space". This inspired him to write the blues-influenced song "Silver and Gold", which he recorded with Richards and Ronnie Wood. It was re-recorded by U2 for the "Where the Streets Have No Name" single while the band returned to Dublin in May 1987 during a break between the first and second legs of The Joshua Tree Tour. The song was described by "Musician" as "tough and raw, with Bono in husky and confident voice, underpinned by a sinuous bass line, and with The Edge demonstrating his newfound prowess in blues-based guitar." "Silver and Gold" was played live on The Joshua Tree Tour several times, one performance of which was featured on the band's 1988 album and rockumentary, "Rattle and Hum". Both the studio recording and the Sun City versions were later featured on the bonus disc of the 20th anniversary edition of "The Joshua Tree". The studio version was also included on the limited edition B-sides bonus disk of the band's first compilation album, "The Best of 1980–1990".