Let the discussion begin.....

[Spectre]

Well, I really liked Bubba's suggestion of starting an organized discussion of the lyrics to the songs on the new single, and as no one has started one yet, I thought I might.

The lyrics to Always have intrigued me, so I thought I would start with it. While there are lines that have obviously been lifted from other U2 songs, I find the meaning behind it to be a bit elusive.

I tend to think that this is another song which is addressed to Ali. Maybe? And perhaps it's just about love and relationships in general.

"Here today
And gone tomorrow
Crack the bone, get to the marrow"

These lines refer perhaps to the petty arguments that couples have, and sometimes break up over, that are "here today, and gone tomorrow". "Crack the bone, get to the marrow" could refer to getting beyond these outward differences, these petty arguments, and remembering the love that brought the two people together.

"To be the bee
And the flower
before the sweetness turns to sour"

This line seems to refer to the give and take
that is necessary between a couple to make a relationship work.

"What we have we're gonna keep...Always
What we've lost we don't need...Always"

This, I feel, is when Bono is singing to Ali.
What they're gonna keep is the love that is between them, and all the time they've lost together, while Bono was touring or in the studio, they don't need because they have each other now.

Now the part from "Be the arrow..." through
"dream out loud", I am not quite sure about, as far as my present theory goes...so perhaps I'm not right about this.

The rest of the song seems to be Bono telling Ali that he's coming home and wait for him. "In a Little While" seems to have this same theme, and I suppose that's where this theory developed.

Anyway, what are all your thoughts on the song?




[This message has been edited by Spectre (edited 10-16-2000).]

 

[skyanin]

I don't look at it as Bono talking to Ali, but rather, like you said, about relationships in general.
I really like this song, and though I haven't looked at the lyrics too carefully, it seems to be about making honest connections with people.

I wonder if the first stanza is about a fleeting connection that is "here today / And gone tomorrow". Instead of "be[ing] uncool...awkward" and honest, you have to "crack the bone, [to] get to the marrow" (ie. break through all the falseness we surround ourselves with to get to the real us).
The relationship between a bee and a flower is usually looked at as fleeting and sexual with little depth. Therefore there is only a moment of "sweetness" and then the inevitable "sour".

So the singer wants to make this more than fleeting, sees potential in the relationship and offers advice.
The arrow and target lines could be linked to the bee and flower, but less sexual - another level.
Less disguises is what the next lines suggest.

The "Get down...Eternally" stanza continues the advice to finding a lasting happiness, one that does not have any of the masks that society often insists we wear.

Then comes the singer's desire...

The final stanza seems a little tricky with the "You" at the beginning. Is it the singer giving the advice here, or the receiver?

I'm going to stop here cause I don't know how strong of an analysis this is. Some of it feels right, but some of it doesn't. I'll wait to hear what others have to say in response before continuing or re-examining the lyrics from another angle.