How Many Ali Songs?

[doctorwho]

Just a quick question...

With Ali in the news so much lately, it made me wonder - how many songs has Bono written with Ali in mind?

I can think of the obvious ones:

• The Sweetest Thing
• Spanish Eyes
• Trying to Throw Your Arms around the World
• In a Little While
• Big Girls Are Best

Any others?

 

[Desire4Bono]

WOWY
Wild Honey
Ultraviolet
Acrobat

 

[follower]

Two Hearts Beat As One, for sure
Promenade, maybe
The First Time, maybe

And I have my own theory about Big Girls Are Best...not Ali related.

 

[wertsie]

This could be totally wrong, but I heard somewhere that WOWY is really directed more toward the fans. The band had become THE rock band at that point, and they were really dealing with all the pressures. It could be about Ali too, I s'pose, though!

I've got another Ali-related question...How many songs mention "spanish eyes"? There's "Spanish Eyes" and "In a Little While" of course, but it seems like there could be others...

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"We're one, but we're not the same..."

http://U2Baby.com

 

[NicaMom]

Hawkmoon 269
The three sunrises
Elevation-I think it has a double meaning,
it can be about God or Bono & Ali.

follower, I think "for the 1st time" talks about Ali too.

 

[NicaMom]

Originally posted by follower:


And I have my own theory about Big Girls Are Best...not Ali related.

I'd love to hear it.

wertsie, in sweetest thing he sings 'brown-eyed girl", I think that counts.

 

[wertsie]

Originally posted by NicaMom:

Originally posted by follower:


And I have my own theory about Big Girls Are Best...not Ali related.

I'd love to hear it.

wertsie, in sweetest thing he sings 'brown-eyed girl", I think that counts.

Yes, very true! Ah! Now I have the Van Morrison song in my head!



------------------
"We're one, but we're not the same..."

http://U2Baby.com

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

Originally posted by follower:
Promenade, maybe

yeeeees.

it's a love song and all that jazz, with stuff about their house in south dublin. (the spiral staircase, etc.)

Originally posted by follower:
And I have my own theory about Big Girls Are Best...not Ali related.

what is it? i'm curious.

 

[Desire4Bono]

Originally posted by wertsie:
This could be totally wrong, but I heard somewhere that WOWY is really directed more toward the fans. The band had become THE rock band at that point, and they were really dealing with all the pressures. It could be about Ali too, I s'pose, though!

I think I heard once that WOWY, Spanish Eyes and The Sweetest Thing were a trilogy about Ali and they would not make any sense without each other. I don't know for sure. I've also heard WOWY had a symbolic religious meaning. Who knows.

I think All I Want is You is about her.

I also heard that New Year's Day was originally a song about how he would always love her but it took on political meanings too.



[This message has been edited by Desire4Bono (edited 04-18-2002).]

 

[joyfulgirl]

I remember Bono saying that WOWY was an example of a song whose meaning changes over time, that it could be about a lover, but also about his relationship with his audience.

Playing off the duality of the lyrics is very Bono.

Look at the way he performs it in the Elevation DVD vs. the PopMart video...in one he's in character with a lover, in the other he has fans pawing all over his head while he's singing "and you give yourself away..."

[This message has been edited by joyfulgirl (edited 04-18-2002).]

 

[oliveu2cm]

Originally posted by Desire4Bono:
I think I heard once that WOWY, Spanish Eyes and The Sweetest Thing were a trilogy about Ali and they would not make any sense without each other. I don't know for sure. I've also heard WOWY had a symbolic religious meaning. Who knows.

I've read a few quotes where Bono said it is WOWY, Walk To The Water, and Luminous Times in which he insists WOWY will not make any sense w/o each other!! lol guess he was wrong!! but yeah about the religious aspects- although it's SUCH a quagmire of a song it's very hard to pin anything to it.

cool thread as i was thinking of this myself today, i think everyone got the ones I was going to say.


------------------
I'm honey child to a swarm of bees
Gonna blow right through you like a breeze

U2 Take Me Higher
Macphisto's Mansion

 

[follower]

Well Nica, wertsie, KhanadaRhodes...probably all of you would need to come to Rio to get my point.

I?m afraid of getting bashed, but anyways it?s just my theory, you know, throw it in the trash can if you prefer. Here it goes.

Big Girls Are Best was written after U2 came to Rio for the first time, in 1998. The song is full of references of their visit, even the address of their hotel. In the song Bono describes the women from Rio on their way to the beach, as he saw them from the balcony of his hotel room or even when he was at the beach. Many Brazilian women are voluptuous, you know, especially the ones from Rio, and they are not ashamed of showing their bodies wearing really small bikinis. Even pregnant women and the ones who are breastfeeding dress like that. There is an interview for Brazilian TV, it?s from their second visit in 2000, where Bono describes what he calls Rio?s sexuality, he talks about the women with words and gestures. He was eloquent enough to make me developt this theory. That?s it.

 

[zooropa16]

Originally posted by Desire4Bono:
WOWY
Wild Honey
Ultraviolet
Acrobat

Acrobat?? Please explain. I always took acrobat as a personal armegeddon. A complete colapse of a mans beliefs and truths. Not about Ali.

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Don't let the bastards grind you down.

Zooropa FTP

 

[Desire4Bono]

Originally posted by zooropa16:
Acrobat?? Please explain. I always took acrobat as a personal armegeddon. A complete colapse of a mans beliefs and truths. Not about Ali.

Maybe I misread it, but I read that most songs on AB were about him going out into nighttown, then finding himself face down on the street (TTTYARRW) and crawling back to his wife (Ultraviolet) and Acrobat was how he felt and she felt about him once he was home, maybe because of the things you mentioned? I can't read his mind so I don't know what's true. Sometimes journalists speculate and write things for the truth that the artist never meant.



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I've seen his baby blue eyes in the freeze frame so many times I feel like I'm his very best friend~~~~

 

[oliveu2cm]

Originally posted by follower:
Well Nica, wertsie, KhanadaRhodes...probably all of you would need to come to Rio to get my point.

I?m afraid of getting bashed, but anyways it?s just my theory, you know, throw it in the trash can if you prefer. Here it goes.

Big Girls Are Best was written after U2 came to Rio for the first time, in 1998. The song is full of references of their visit, even the address of their hotel. In the song Bono describes the women from Rio on their way to the beach, as he saw them from the balcony of his hotel room or even when he was at the beach. Many Brazilian women are voluptuous, you know, especially the ones from Rio, and they are not ashamed of showing their bodies wearing really small bikinis. Even pregnant women and the ones who are breastfeeding dress like that. There is an interview for Brazilian TV, it?s from their second visit in 2000, where Bono describes what he calls Rio?s sexuality, he talks about the women with words and gestures. He was eloquent enough to make me developt this theory. That?s it.

That's pretty cool follower.. any chance this interview is transcribed somewhere? I'd love to read it. My friend just told me "avenue atlantico" is the name of a street in Rio. Thanks for this!

------------------
I'm honey child to a swarm of bees
Gonna blow right through you like a breeze

U2 Take Me Higher
Macphisto's Mansion

 

[wertsie]

That theory DOES seem plausible, follower. I'd like to see a transcript of the interview too!

------------------
"We're one, but we're not the same..."

http://U2Baby.com

 

[partygirl]

Follower's definition of Big Girls was exactly what I thought the song was about.

 

[follower]

no bashing until now...cool

I can try to make a transcript of that specific part of the interview later, although there is not any kind of reference to the song, or any song, I must say. The problem is...it?s not only his words, but also his body language when he describes them. When I heard Big Girls Are Best and read its lyrics for the first time my very first thought was of him describing the girls he saw, in that interview. Lots of fans here felt the same, I mean here in Brazil. I?ll try.

 

[doctorwho]

Originally posted by follower:
no bashing until now...cool

*bashes follower - just for fun!

I would say that's a great explanation.

I included it in my list of Ali songs because I always received the impression of Bono singing either about a pregnant Ali (or woman) or Ali right after she gave birth ("baby at her breast"). If Bono is like many "proper" men, the sight of a pregnant woman can be very beautiful for SO many reasons. Plus, it is very empowering of women, as it is something a man can never do.

I also thought of the interpretation of a "big woman" meaning that wemen are so "big" that they can handle a home, career, the world - even a baby at their breast - all at once. In contrast, most men become babies with a little head cold.

Therefore, to me, this is a song praising women, and perhaps Ali, on SO many levels.

However, I have to disagree with "With or Without You" being about Ali. I took this as a "I love you, but can't be with you" type of song - and clearly that's not the relationship Ali and Bono have. Also, "The First Time" is, to me, clearly a song about Jesus and God. I don't see any connection to Ali there at all - even if I push my imagination.

Thanks everyone for the input!

 

[Diamond The U2 Patriot]

Hold On To Love?

DB9

 

[dizzy]

Originally posted by doctorwho:
I included it in my list of Ali songs because I always received the impression of Bono singing either about a pregnant Ali (or woman) or Ali right after she gave birth ("baby at her breast"). If Bono is like many "proper" men, the sight of a pregnant woman can be very beautiful for SO many reasons. Plus, it is very empowering of women, as it is something a man can never do.

I also thought of the interpretation of a "big woman" meaning that wemen are so "big" that they can handle a home, career, the world - even a baby at their breast - all at once. In contrast, most men become babies with a little head cold.

Therefore, to me, this is a song praising women, and perhaps Ali, on SO many levels.

However, I have to disagree with "With or Without You" being about Ali. I took this as a "I love you, but can't be with you" type of song - and clearly that's not the relationship Ali and Bono have. Also, "The First Time" is, to me, clearly a song about Jesus and God. I don't see any connection to Ali there at all - even if I push my imagination.

Thanks everyone for the input!

I agree. I think I read somewhere about the same interpretation of "Big Girls...". The word big is taken figuratively, I think.

As for WOWY, I believe it is a negative song. I love it though, as it explores the dark side of relationships, like wanting more of what you already have and wanting what you can't have. If taken in the context of religion, or a relationship with God, there seems to be a kind of struggle involved. Anyway, could go on and on, but I might just be repeating what others have said.

The thing with U2 songs is you can get so many meanings, and yet build up part of the meanings yourself.

 

[Lise]

I think I read somewhere that When I look At The World is a song inspired by Ali. If I remember it's in the book Into The Heart by Niall Stokes. Here's the info:

??Bono has been accused of putting women on a pedestal: it?s something that Ali, his partner, has protested about on occasion. But she is a remarkable woman who strikes anyone who meets her as being special, as having an inner glow. Ali has done extraordinary work, with Adi Roche on the Children from Chernobyl project that assists the children of a region that will remain infamous as the location of the worst ever peacetime nuclear catastrophe.
??At the risk to her own health, Ali and her co-workers have gone to Chernobyl and Belarus and spent time there working with people who are the victims of this nightmare occurrence, and with their children, in an attempt to alleviate the suffering, isolation and neglect, which is part of their shocking legacy.
Written by Bono and Edge, ?When I Look at the World? acknowledges the special qualities that this kind of commitment takes. It isn?t just the capacity that Bono?s muse has to light up any room that she enters-it?s the empathy of which she?s capable, the composure that she shows, and the example that she gives to someone who by comparison feels flawed and impatient. ?I am not in any way at peace,? Bono states. ?I still think that the world is a really unfair and often wicked place and beauty is a consolation prize. And it?s not enough for me. It just isn?t. There?s always been a kind of rage in me and it does still bubble up.?



[This message has been edited by Lise (edited 04-19-2002).]

 

[follower]

Originally posted by dizzy:
The thing with U2 songs is you can get so many meanings, and yet build up part of the meanings yourself.

True. And don't expect to see or hear Bono explaining his lyrics...one of the few exceptions, for me, would be Stuck in a Moment.

doctorwho, about Big Girls Are Best...as I said before, you would need to see the landscape with your own eyes...or maybe Bono's eyes

. Just kidding. You made some good points on your last post, as usual.

I realised nobody mentioned If You Wear That Velvet Dress, how about that one?



[This message has been edited by follower (edited 04-19-2002).]

 

[dizzy]

Originally posted by follower:
True. And don't expect to see or hear Bono explaining his lyrics...one of the few exceptions, for me, would be Stuck in a Moment.

I read somewhere that Larry didn't think Bono should've allowed the publishing of the book "Into The Heart", bec. of the same reason (letting people interpret songs for themselves), which does makes sense, in a way.

 

[hasta la vista baby]

Hello everyone,

Here is a song that I think we have all forgotten "DROWNING MAN"
This is the song that Bono wrote for there engagement.
"take my hand you know I'll be there if you can I'll cross the sky for your love. For I have promist O to be with you tonight and for the time of my life.
what do you think?
Hasta la vista baby!!!

 

[Zooropa]

Originally posted by Desire4Bono:
Maybe I misread it, but I read that most songs on AB were about him going out into nighttown, then finding himself face down on the street (TTTYARRW) and crawling back to his wife (Ultraviolet) and Acrobat was how he felt and she felt about him once he was home, maybe because of the things you mentioned? I can't read his mind so I don't know what's true. Sometimes journalists speculate and write things for the truth that the artist never meant.

alright, I can go along with that. What you said does make sense, I just never really associated it with Ali. It's not nearly as obvious (if at all) that its a song about her.

------------------
Don't let the bastards grind you down.

Zooropa FTP

 

[Diamond The U2 Patriot]

Originally posted by doctorwho:
Just a quick question...

With Ali in the news so much lately, it made me wonder - how many songs has Bono written with Ali in mind?

I can think of the obvious ones:

• The Sweetest Thing
• Spanish Eyes
• Trying to Throw Your Arms around the World
• In a Little While
• Big Girls Are Best

Any others?

Am I missing something here?
Luminous Times?(Hold On To Love)?
I posted this earlier.
How could this SONG NOT be about ALLISON?
Thanks-
Diamond

help
me
out here
or choose
to
ignore
me
NO
MORE.
Thx-
Dave

 

[sharky]

Originally posted by hasta la vista baby:

Here is a song that I think we have all forgotten "DROWNING MAN"
This is the song that Bono wrote for there engagement.
"take my hand you know I'll be there if you can I'll cross the sky for your love. For I have promist O to be with you tonight and for the time of my life.
what do you think?

I would have to disagree with this one. Its not a song about love but desperation about trying to help someone that you are losing your grasp on. Like God speaking to someone who has turned his back on Him/Her. just my interpretation though.

 

[AliEnvy]

Drowning Man is most definitely about Ali, but not their engagement. They had just gotten married (...for I have promised oh to be with you tonight and for the time that will come...) when he had writer's block while preparing to go into the studio for War. There was a lot of pressure on him to produce lyrics, hence the title.

Ali was his inspiration out of the writing rut which is also referened in Ultraviolet...when I was all messed up and had opera in my head, your love was a lightbulb hanging over my bed...

DM is a beautiful love song so when I got married I wanted it for our first dance but I decided I didn't want to explain the title a hundred times, LOL!!!

Peace,
K

 

[Lilly]

Originally posted by Desire4Bono:

Ultraviolet
Acrobat

Uhm, I thought Ultraviolet had a lot of negativity in it. I mean, sometimes I can take the "lightbulb above my bed" line as a good thing, but most of the time I see it as a bother to the subject of the song.

Acrobat, I don't think it's about her. But hell, I'm not Bono, so I dunno.

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Come on wisdom tooth, don't fail me now!