Hands that Built America appreciation

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I don't listen to this song much(in fact I haven't listened to it in a long time) and a few days I found myself singing the "Of all of the promises, is this one we can keep" part and I can't get it out of my head.

Apparently I like the song more than I thought...
 
"Digging in our pockets, for a reason not to say goodbye", i love that line, not quite sure why but always sticks out to me for some reason.
 
I like the Orbit version on the Best of better than the soundtrack version.
 
I like some things about the song - some unexpected and unusual chord changes in the verse.

But it feels like a rough draft to me. The keyboard sounds feel demo-ish and I think Bono could've used a rewrite to fine tune some of his phrasing, which has a lot more potential.

I think I like the idea of the song more than the execution.
 
I love this song, in my head it's part of a trilogy of songs related by their sound "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" "Electrical Storm" and "Hands", I would have liked u2 had persued this path a bit longer.
It's the soundtrack for one of my favourite walks down the Liffey when I walk past the Customs House to meet the sculptorical group by Gillespie inspired in the 19th century famine, it really makes me shudder.

Irelandsummero7015-1.jpg


It had never occurred to me that the lines about the cloud over NYC and the yellow line could be about 11/9, but that's the magic of Bono's lyrics, they talk about universals in such a way you can relate them to your own experience.
 
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