One

[ozeeko]

I'm sure we've all heard the interpretation of "One". How it could be about the HIV afflicted gay son trying to patch up things with his disapproving father. The lyrics could have a number of different interpretations, but these select lines certainly correlate with the father/son theme:

You say love is a temple. Love the higher law.

This could be the son ridiculing his father for his stubborn ways. His father believes in God, and believes homosexuality is wrong. The son is trying to get through to him on a human level, but the father can't get past his own beliefs. The father believes the "higher law", which can mean God, frowns upon the son's lifestyle. God decides what is right and wrong, and the father can't get past God's laws against homosexuality. Therefore, the father can't bring himself to truly love his son based on God's laws. The higher law decides his son has strayed from love through his actions and won't be forgiven unless he changes his ways.

It could also be from the father's POV. He could be trying to digest his son's beliefs that the "higher law" is something beyond God, something that dishes out unconditional love, to anyone no matter what they have done.

You ask me to enter but then you make me crawl.

Maybe it's the father shamefully coming to terms with his son, and maybe it's the other way around. Maybe it's both.

Anywayz, what ya'll think?

 

[BVS]

This is one of those songs that everytime I hear it, or cover it, it takes on a new meaning.

At first glance it comes off as a simple almost hippyesque love song, but I really find some great layers in there.

I've heard all the different interpretations, yet not one has made complete 100% sense to me, they all have moments, but there's one line or so that won't make sense in that context.

And I actually like that...

 

[Ellay]

I've never interpreted it as a love song.

More like regret, guilt, shame, forgiveness, desperation - everything AB & zoo tv was good at.

 

[mackemlad]

It has been quoted that the whole of AB was recorded around the time of Edges Break up from his first wife.Hence the dark lyrical theme on certain tracks.

I remember reading (not sure where) Bono saying that he always found it strange to here of people dancing to One at there weddings as it was a song about seperation & divorce and all the emotions that brings.

 

[Earnie Shavers]

I've read, straight from Bono I think, that he was thinking of that father/son story when he wrote it, but it can be planted over virtually anything. Like so many of the songs on Achtung it's essentially about betrayal. One person is crawling back and the other is putting the word on them, basically. Sort of "No, you listen to me."

 

[JulianaHewson]

I know this interpretation, but for me is about the end of a relacionship... The woman broke up with him and now wants him back...

 

[annie_vox]

I've never interpreted it as a love song.

More like regret, guilt, shame, forgiveness, desperation - everything AB & zoo tv was good at.

Exactely... Someone said (I don't remember who but I can look for it) that it's ironic that many people chose this song to play at their wedding... The only reason I find is that probably english is not their language so they just play it because it seems to be romantic when you don't listen to the lyrics

 

[Varitek]

It's about a gay son coming out to his father. Bono has said so much in an interview, which at one point last year this time was linked from this forum in a similar thread...sorry I'm too lazy to find it.

 

[Molineux1980]

Hi, newbie here!

One is myall time favourite song. For me, I 1st heard it when i split with my g/f, and it always reminded me of our relationship. "Did I ask too much, more than a lot, you gave me nothing, now it's all i've got". It always gave me hope of reconcilliation though. "We get to carry each other". We have been back together nearly 2 years!

 

[hpdreamz]

Wow! About a gay son coming out to his father...I've never thought of it that way, but looking at the lyrics it could be seen in different ways. I find it so cool how the lyrics are so open to different interpretation. I've always though this song was about a broken relationship (which a lot of songs are, so its nice that it has hidden meaning) , mostly because I first heard the Mary J Blige feat U2 version, which is my favourite.

 

[last unicorn]

One is such a bitter, yet terribly beautiful song, and there are many ways you could interpret it.
Bono has said several times that he had a father/son and/or AIDS/gay story in mind when he wrote it.
But the fascinating thing with so many of the band's songs is that there are so many dimensions to them, so many different meanings. So I guess what people make of them is right.
But for me it has never been a "love" song and I find it disturbing that people would play it on a wedding.

 

[CKONE]

it so wants to be a love song and is in so many ways but it is a realistic love song about the pain and reality of love whether it be family love (father and son) or partner love. its beautiful in its pain and whoever allowed Mary J Blige to butcher it should be shot!

 

[powerhour24]

If it's a song bout love, and the pain it causes, it was inspired by the strain the Berlin sessions put on the band member's relationships with each other, recording it brought them together at any rate. But the lyrics themselves lend themselves to many a feeling and a cause, but it's definitely a bittersweet reflection on relationships. While it can be used for other interpretations you can tell in the original recording and hearing Bono talk of it that it's such a personal song that's why those idiots that love the Johnny Cash version (no offense to the man in black but cover music is evil haha) are so aggravating, and don't even get me started on MJB.

 

[annie_vox]

it so wants to be a love song and is in so many ways but it is a realistic love song about the pain and reality of love whether it be family love (father and son) or partner love. its beautiful in its pain and whoever allowed Mary J Blige to butcher it should be shot!

That's so true... I hate that version. and I put so much hate into it on the past that now I just ignore it

I agree that this song is very realistic, sometimes I think it's even depressing if you think too much about it...