Bono's Lyrics

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blueyedpoet

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I remember reading that the band were working on Bono's lyrics during the sessions in Abbey Road. Here's a theory: the awkward rhyming sequences might be influenced by other members in the band.
Some of the best lyrics that U2 has produced lately have been from unreleased songs that the band obviously didn't spend too much time on - Mercy and Smile. With those songs I think Bono didn't have Larry on his back trying to influence the writing. Call me crazy, but I don't think the drummer - especially since his drumming hasn't been exceptionally creative recently - should have much of a say lyrically.
 
Call me crazy but I don't see Larry influencing lyrics.

If anyone, blame Edge. He often helps out Bono and has been co-credited on past albums.
 
Larry is a robot who hates cats:madspit: When he puts his mind to it he is a bloody good drummer:yes:.

Bono you have said that U2 are lazy musicians then do something about it :wink:
 
ElectricalVoice said:
Call me crazy, but I enjoy Bonos lyrics these days. He has got the guts to be direct. That's difficult.
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It does not take guts to be "direct", it only takes a lack of creativity. As a songwriter, I speak from experience.
 
He repeats "Oh can't you see what love has done?" sixteen times.

I'd say it's more of a mantra than lyrics.
 
Plus,

in the live performances Bono has this cheeseball (yet effective) way of sermonizing the goofiest lyric into an epiphany

"Whoaaaa...Boom-Cha! That is deeeeep."
 
Hey, why did my thread about lyrics get banished to the "Musical Journey" area where no-one will ever see it again, while this one is allowed to thrive?

Is discussing the lyrics of the NEWEST SONG from the NEWEST ALBUM, not what WHERE THE ALBUM HAS NO (A) NAME is all about? Seriously, if people want to talk about the new album they are not going to go rummaging through "Musical Journey," they are going to come here.

Please put my thread back.
 
Every songwriter puts out some misses, but Bono is one of the best, but yes I'll give you that Boom Cha! is not deep (although it is damn cool haha :dancing: )
 
Westport said:
He repeats "Oh can't you see what love has done?" sixteen times.
Click to expand...

And "we all live in a yellow submarine" is repeated about the same number of times. Repetition of lyrics is not a bad thing.
 
2861U2 said:


And "we all live in a yellow submarine" is repeated about the same number of times. Repetition of lyrics is not a bad thing.
Click to expand...



I'm fine with repetition. I love the way it is used on the nonsensical Yellow Submarine and it worked great on Hey Jude but I just don't feel the the build up or pay off here.
 
Granted I like deeper songs, with more poetic lyrics, but WITS is just such a fun song, so I enjoy the repetition.
 
I don't mind the WITS lyrics, but I agree that Bono doesn't push himself much any more as a lyricist. Some of his JT and Achtung-era lyrics were downright poetic.

When most pop lyricists try to get poetic, it gets embarrassing. Bono, despite his occasional misses, can pull it off, though, when he really applies himself. I wish he'd put himself through the paces again on the next album. No more "please stay a child / somewhere in your heart"
 
Hoodlem said:


It does not take guts to be "direct", it only takes a lack of creativity. As a songwriter, I speak from experience.
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Maybe it is different in music, but it takes guts to write a short story, poem or a novel with a direct language and with direct symbolism. And what is even more difficult is to do it good. By writing cryptic, you can hide your faults and you can hide from people questioning your writings. Even better, you can just not talk about your writings, and consequently people will feel that this text is much bigger than it is. It is easy to mystify a text, hiding your lack of creativity and hiding your lack of meaning. Being direct (and doing it good) is very difficult and you have to be creative.

I also speak from experience. Not from songwriting, but from other kinds of writing. As I said, maybe it's different in music, but I really doubt it.
 
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ElectricalVoice said:

Being direct (and doing it good) is very difficult and you have to be creative.
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I think you are right about this. However, I personally feel the lyrics of late have not done it very well or creatively.

Also, many of the lyrics are not very direct at all. They are just plain stupid.

"Soul in it's strip-tease"??? That's not direct. You can try to guess what he is talking about but it doesn't even make sense. And it sounds stupid.

Please remember that this is the man who wrote lyrics such as these:

"Love is clockworks and cold steel
Fingers too numb to feel
Squeeze the handle
Blow out the candle
Love is blindness...
A little death with out mourning
No call and no warning
Baby a dangerous idea
That almost makes sense"

or

"A man builds a city
with banks and cathedrals
A man melts the sand so he can see the world outside"

or if you don't like the 90's

"sweet the scent, bitter the taste
In my mouth
I see seven towers
But I only see one way out
You've got to cry without weeping
Talk without speaking
Scream without raising your voice
You know I took the poison
From the poison stream
And I floated out of here..."

"You say you'll give me
Eyes in a moon of blindness
A river in a time of dryness
A harbor in the tempest..."

"Ice
Your only rivers run cold
These city lights
They shine a silver and gold
Dug from the night
Your eyes as black as coal"

"I have spoke with the tongue of angels
I have held the hand of the devil
It was warm in the night
I was cold as a stone
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for"

The list really goes on and on. I don't understand how people could not be disappointed with U2s recent output lyrically.
 
they'd pass trough the 80's, the 90's, and now is a new century, the way of touching with the people, is a whole different way, the times are not the same, and the issues and the way of talking about that is different either....

I think that is not a question of lack crativity, but is new way to talk about the things...

and I don't think that the new songs are so "in the face"...I think they'd could have a lot of interpretations...
 
"Soul in it's strip-tease"??? That's not direct. You can try to guess what he is talking about but it doesn't even make sense. And it sounds stupid.

Maybe he is meaning bearing your soul like at confession for example?
 
pentax said:
"Soul in it's strip-tease"??? That's not direct. You can try to guess what he is talking about but it doesn't even make sense. And it sounds stupid.

Maybe he is meaning bearing your soul like at confession for example?
Click to expand...

Maybe...

like I said, you can only guess what he is saying, and any way you work it out, it still sounds lame to my ears.
 
blueyedpoet said:
Call me crazy, but I don't think the drummer - especially since his drumming hasn't been exceptionally creative recently - should have much of a say lyrically.
Click to expand...
Call me crazy, but I don't think the lead singer, especially since his lyrics haven't been exceptionally creative recently, should have much of a say lyrically.

Maybe they should try some spoken word stuff with Edge reading headlines from Popular Science.
 
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