Acrobat

[bayernfc]

as in my new status... ......ok seriously....here's one of my favorite songs off AB:

"Don't believe what you hear, don't believe what you see
If you just close your eyes you can feel the enemy.
When I first met you girl, you had fire in your soul.
What happened t'your face of melting snow
Now it looks like this!
And you can swallow or you can spit
You can throw it up, or choke on it
And you can dream, so dream out loud
You know that your time is coming round
So don't let the bastards grind you down.

No, nothing makes sense, nothing seems to fit.
I know you'd hit out if you only knew who to hit.
And I'd join the movement
If there was one I could believe in
Yeah, I'd break bread and wine
If there was a church I could receive in.
'Cause I need it now.
To take the cup
To fill it up, to drink it slow.
I can't let you go.

And I must be an acrobat
To talk like this and act like that.
And you can dream, so dream out loud
And don't let the bastards grind you down.

What are we going to do now it's all been said?
No new ideas in the house, and every book's been read.

And I must be an acrobat
To talk like this and act like that.
And you can dream, so dream out loudv And you can find your own way out.
And you can build, and I can will
And you can call, I can't wait until
You can stash and you can seize
In dreams begin responsibilities
And I can love, and I can love
And I know that the tide is turning 'round
So don't let the bastards grind you down."

I really love the last verse....ideas... interpretations anyone?

 

[U2girl]

So far I've seen both interpretations that this is a hopeful song and that it's about despair. To me it's essentially hopeful, and one of my favorites from the album.

For me, I look at it through the eyes of a teenager - or a young adult - someone who is uncertain about the world, his/her place in it and the future. Still they are not giving up.

On the other hand, for me it's also Bono's way of deconstrocting his 80's image - "to talk like this and act like that" (considering how very different that image was in the 90's), anger/frustration over religion ("join the movement if there was one I could believe in", "church I could receive in"...)

"what do we do it's all been said, no new ideas in the house and every book has been read" could apply to the painful recording of the album, or the frustration of the fact that he (as a songwriter) absolutely depends on inspiration - he can't force out a song.

"you can swallow you can spit, throw it up/choke on it" - you have a choice - either you deal with life or you just look at it passively.

The last verse is hopeful for me, kind of encouraging towards the listener.

 

[bayernfc]

I agree with the song being a hopeful one.....the last verse and the chorus throughout the song "don't let the bastards ground you down" has always had a positive influence on me.

my favourite line off that song has got to be "in dreams begin responsibilities", suggesting don't be affraid to follow your dreams but just sitting still and wondering doesn't help in achieving any goals ....(kind of a different take on John Lennon's Imagine if you will...)

I really like your idea of destructing the 80s Bono-image .... never thought of it that way.