GOYB lyrics Discussion

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I know the latest thing about GOYB is that it is about the global empowerment of women, still I have read a nice interpretation on another U2 board today while this forum was offline, and it was basically built around the idea that the song is about the relationship between Bono and his bandmates and about Bono's "two lives". In the song, he seems to be concentrating a lot on the joy and comfort of being in a band, making music, enjoying beauty, love, community, family, using music also as a form of escapism, as opposed to talking about politics, wars, bombs, violence. I think the "Let me in the sound" bit is the strongest indication for that. It's just one theory, I like it, the song has certainly different layers of meaning.

Btw, a line I like a lot is: Laughter is eternity if joy is real. I've been thinking a lot about that line and I really like it, there's a real truth to it.
 
I like all the interpretations really. Bono is a master of duality and contradiction...and always around the same themes.

The few little classic Edge echos in the middle are very intriguing.
 
Yes! Living in fear is defeat. Living life fully/joyfully is defiant. Tuning out is complacency ("you don't get it do you").

In the 80s Bono screamed for peace. In the 90s he begged for it. Now in the 2000s he's selling it (to a generation who tend to get what they want). :up:
 
IMO:

This song is a tribute.

"The future needs a big kiss" from women because "women are the future, hold the big relevations." These lyrics clearly prioritize the status of the feminine perspective and influence. Woman is depicted as merciful and kind, as per the imagery in the video. We see virgins, the Madonna We see Islamic women in birka, and African women with rings on their necks. We see the sexy, Western woman with the sexy boots. The woman literally blows away the desctruction of man.

Suddenly, "Let me hear the sound", fire and brimstone. This is man's world. The female imagery is gone. War and hate.

Just remember, how you mother loves you. She can love the world this much. Women want to get along. The best part, it is not sexualized. It may come across that way to make it digestable, but only to the untrained ear/eye.

The song and the video are hand in hand.

U2 has always aspired to pop. The early days were not a rebelliousness against it but an inability to attain it. They always claimed to want that hit but in the right way.

This song has the simplicity of pop. The complexity of content. A musical diversity that includes, led zeppelin, eastern melodies, shiny production, and bravado. Yet is deceptively acceptable to the common radio listener.

Whatever your expectations of U2 are, there is no denying that they have brought something very special to the marketplace. Typical pop depictions of the feminine include much ass grinding and loose sexuality, and what U2 has done is dressed up something as commercial product that has the depth of high art and/or consciousness.

Pop music is simple. the fact that they can say so much within the context of the artform blows my mind.

It's not about the "global empowerment of woman". This is a personal and human perspective. It's not about being politically correct or otherwise.

Bravo.
 
The future needs a big kiss
Winds blow with a twist
Never seen a moon like this
Can you see it too?
Night is falling everywhere
Rockets hit the fun fair
Satan loves a bomb scare
But he won't scare you

Hey...Sexy Boots
Get on your Boots
Yeah...

Free me from the dark dream
Candy floss, ice cream
All the kids are screaming but the ghosts aren't real
It's kind of surprising, but knowing something as minor as "candy floss" being slang for cotton candy really helps me see how these verses coalesce around the "rockets hit the fun fair" line. The one thing that still bugs is "the future needs a big kiss": a less offensive version of the dread "freedom has a scent" line that sticks out so awkwardly in Miracle Drug.

Laughter is eternity if joy is real
I refuse to buy into this at face value. Someone, at some point, had to have asked Bono what on earth this meant, and got a satisfying answer back.

Ive gotta submarine
You've got gasoline
I don't wanna talk about wars between nations
Not right now

Given that Bono evidently is talking about wars elsewhere on the album (White As Snow) I see this "Get On Your Boots" idea by Bono, the lyric writer, as written with a hint of sympathy and a dash of satire/ironic detachment for the different character whose urging us to just lace up and dance*. This sounds plausible to me given the repeated pre-release references to album characters that Bono has written for, and could be paralleled by the next track, Stand Up Comedy, whose singer pokes fun at Bono's short height and compares him to Napoleon.

(Does it bug anyone else when Bono later says "I don't wanna talk about the wars between the nations"? I know, I know, but those extra articles strike me like an 80 year old referring to "the Google" or "the Ebay" on "the internets". Gratuitous!)

* Also consider the lyric from Crazy Tonight (?), "every generation has a chance to change the world". Yes, we absolutely have to hear the whole album before drawing any strong conclusions, but that sentiment strikes me as the complete opposite of this song's aggressive pro-sexy boots platform.

Ok, so "the future needs a big kiss" and "Laughter is eternity if joy is real" could make a bit more sense, then. We know from "war between nations" that what Bono the character is singing here shouldn't always be taken straight, so what if these two lines are absurdities that he finds meaningful? Again, Bono's commenting on his own tendencies.

All of this, as always, is my opinion. Based on conjecture, sketchy reports, and 3 and a half minutes of a 53 minute album. Guaranteed wrong or your money back.
 
Ok, so "the future needs a big kiss" and "Laughter is eternity if joy is real" could make a bit more sense, then.

These are my two favourite lines in the song and they made perfect sense to me from the beginning. "Laughter is eternity if joy is real" is one of the best lines Bono has written in a long time. It's poetic and has a real truth, it's also very rhythmical, I love it.
 
IMO:

This song is a tribute.

---

It's not about the "global empowerment of woman". This is a personal and human perspective. It's not about being politically correct or otherwise.

Great ideas in your assessment. It's a tribute, it's personal and human.

I'm pretty convinced that it's also a call to action in a very political way. That is Bono's passion and purpose. The ONE wristbands positioned on fists like the columns of Rome in the video is a pretty compelling visual of that declaration.

He's recruiting an army born out of pop culture whose weapons include facebook and youtube...and ultimately it will be feminine power that saves us.
 
"Laughter is eternity if joy is real" is one of the best lines Bono has written in a long time.

It's funny, people seem to either love it or hate it. I love it too.

Speaks to the pursuit of happiness. True joy is unconditional love and is the key to eternity whether eternity is here and now or in the hereafter for those so inclined.
 
^ True. "If joy is real" may refer to superficial forms of entertainment. Bono says true and real joy can only be found in love and community. It's interesting because in the past he has talked a lot about how difficult it is for an artist to express joy, wheres sadness or despair are much easier to convey.
 
Interesting, I wonder if people who like/dislike that line felt the same way about "freedom has a scent"....:hmm:
 
Freedom is something we cherish and would give our lives to protect...like our children. Describing it as a baby's scent suggests that it's instinctual and part of our very nature. It figures that it sounds awkward coming from a dad lol.
 
Interesting, I wonder if people who like/dislike that line felt the same way about "freedom has a scent"....:hmm:

I wouldn't doubt it. Neither line is "cool," but both are well-thought poetry. :up:
 
In regards to the "laughter is eternity" line, Bono has talked about the effect of humor and comedy for years in interviews. He talked in the 90's about laughter being the best defense against facism. That comedy was connecting and communicating better than straight forward earnestness. That's part of what ZooTV was all about. The playfulness and poking fun got through to people where the earnestness of early U2 was being tuned out. But a lot of that laughter was born out of fear and nervousness. Black comedy keeps you sane in an insane world. There are many kinds of laughter but laughter that is born out of joy keeps you young and is healing hence "laughter is eternity if the joy is real."

Dana
 
Love the groove of GOYB, but what happened to Bono's lyric writing ability? Remember Love Rescue Me, Running to Stand Still, With or Without You, Please? It seems like lately it's either completely nonsensical (GOYB) or very cheesy (Miracle Drug).
Thoughts?

GOYB Isn't nonsensical, it just has a deeper meaning you actually have to THINK about.

And Miracle Drug is not cheesy, it's beautiful.
 
My favorite line is

"Here's where you gotta be.... love and community"

This song, like Bono and Edge said, is about women of the future holding the big revelations, ending war.. (Hillary is the new Sec.Of State) ect...fighting poverty, but to break it down even further, the boots in general are WORK boots. They are cheering us on to get to work in our communities. The grassroots. The ONE campaign reference is in the video. How many times has Bono said helping others is SEXY?

There is an obvious nod to the new moon, the new spiritual awakening happening in the world triggered and is perhaps most apparant with the new Obama administration (love and community) coming in to power.

Be the change you want to see in the world. ....it's sexy.:love:
 
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