Sleep Like A Baby Tonight - Song Discussion

[aMansAman]

"Sleep Like a Baby Tonight":
Musically and taking into account the meaning of the song ... this songs just gives me the chills on every listen. But in a positive way. Not that it is "joy" or "happiness" what I feel .. but SLABT drags me to hell .. but yet again in a positive way ... does that make sense?

Like no other song did since ... ages?

 

[standrums]

"Sleep Like a Baby Tonight":
Musically and taking into account the meaning of the song ... this songs just gives me the chills on every listen. But in a positive way. Not that it is "joy" or "happiness" what I feel .. but SLABT drags me to hell .. but yet again in a positive way ... does that make sense?

Like no other song did since ... ages?

This song is first class, just listened to it again in the car. I get the same feelings as you knowing the subject matter.

Totally brilliant!

 

[bedouin fire]

i've already praised this song here a few times, it is great on so many levels, but one thing that i'm note sure that has been highlighted is that this song bings back the genius of the edge at its highest level.

i think that on the last 3 albuns the edge relied mostly on his talent to produce nice guitar riffs and got lazy for everything else, but for me the best edge is the one that uses the guitar to provide depth, textures and sonic landscapes to the music as he did so well in the 80s and in the 90s. i think that this album brings that edge back and the song where that is more visible is sleep like a baby tonight.

 

[ndmaxfield]

This song has a desperate Mr. MacPhisto vibe to me. Love it.

 

[cybersyd]

This song is first class, just listened to it again in the car. I get the same feelings as you knowing the subject matter.

Totally brilliant!

Abuse is such a delicate matter and talking of abuse from the side of the guilty one is a smart move indeed.

It's so striking: the sweetness of the melody and a theme so sad...

I don't know why but it gives me the same bitter and sad taste of Christiane F. and the zoo station movie, when the girl goes to the Bowie gig and she tries heroin for the first time... ...a descent into hell...

Great tune

 

[jeevey]

I think the falsetto bit works really well in the song - any more falsetto would have been too much, but just those few little lines fits right in to the mood.

And I like the little glockenspiel bit underneath the gritty guitar sound.

This is just great.

I'm feeling the love for this one more and more--it's just pitch-perfect.
My album favorite so far.

 

[TheEnd]

I love Bono's (and Edges) sardonic and menacing tone. A lullaby being sung to a sexually abusing priest. Fuck.

 

[An Cat Gav]

What an absolutely gorgeous outro. Beautiful.

 

[owl]

What an absolutely gorgeous outro. Beautiful.

The outro to Sleep is a thing of wonder.

 

[U2girl]

Edge's solos really save the song. Not bad apart from cheesy 80's synth and that awkward falsetto verse...bad idea, Bono.

 

[partygirl43]

This song has a desperate Mr. MacPhisto vibe to me. Love it.

This.

 

[bedouin fire]

five minutes and one second of dirty heaven.

I just can't get enough.

 

[RobertWiscy]

five minutes and one second of dirty heaven.

I just can't get enough.

 

[Tyagu_Anaykus]

the last minute is absolute perfection. I miss this kind of vibe in U2 albums.
Danger Mouse was a great influence, congrats to him.

By the way, Brian Burton is Danger Mouse right? He's credited in almost every song as an additional musician.

 

[mikal]

Edge's solos really save the song. Not bad apart from cheesy 80's synth and that awkward falsetto verse...bad idea, Bono.

Wha......uh........huh?


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[trevgreg]

By the way, Brian Burton is Danger Mouse right? He's credited in almost every song as an additional musician.

Yup. Same guy.

 

[purpleoscar]

Lyrics are improving with each listen. It cuts like an exacto-knife.

 

[jeevey]

Wha......uh........huh?


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference

No kidding. The 80's synth is pure brilliance, imo.

 

[Moser]

This song has a desperate Mr. MacPhisto vibe to me. Love it.

Definitely feels more like a POP song. It could literally follow If You Wear That Velvet Dress.

 

[cseggleton]

WOW just WOW!!! Lyrically the U2 I love and Bono gives this the kind of vibe that makes your skin crawl with his voice. My fav song from them since POP.

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[Tommy WM]

The last minute of the song could easily have been on a Broken Bells or Gnarls Barkley record, however Danger Mouse and U2 make it sound like their own special thing. Thankfully he's another producer that implores straightforward drumming and bass guitar. I have yet to hear a Danger Mouse produced record that has an over-produced bass and drums.

 

[trevgreg]

The last minute of the song could easily have been on a Broken Bells or Gnarls Barkley record, however Danger Mouse and U2 make it sound like their own special thing. Thankfully he's another producer that implores straightforward drumming and bass guitar. I have yet to hear a Danger Mouse produced record that has an over-produced bass and drums.

He does have a minimalist feel on instrumentation, doesn't he? Not cluttered or anything along those lines. The outro here is no exception to that.

 

[RademR]

probably my favorite tune on this album! It's just perfect!

"Hope is where the door is
When the church is where the war is
Where no one can feel no one else’s pain"

The way this part is delivered is incredible.

 

[RobertWiscy]

He does have a minimalist feel on instrumentation, doesn't he? Not cluttered or anything along those lines. The outro here is no exception to that.

Adds to the haunting nature of the song which is already haunting enough with the lyrics and yes, the way they are delivered. As I revise my ranking of songs on this album Sleep may become No. 1 for good.

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[ultraviolet353]

Would be very much at home amidst the songs on Pop (my favorite album). This song has seeped into my bloodstream--sick. I will be disappointed if this is not played live...

 

[BGD75]

Truly haunting song. And his lyric is stunning:

"Dreams,
It’s a dirty business, dreaming
Where there is silence and not screaming"

this! I am obsessed with this song.... so haunting

 

[hillers]

I love how dark and creepy this is. The bass/drums kind of sound like tip-toeing, and I love the keyboards at the end - they sound like a music box.

 

[Hawkmoon269]

"Sleep Like a Baby Tonight":
Musically and taking into account the meaning of the song ... this songs just gives me the chills on every listen. But in a positive way. Not that it is "joy" or "happiness" what I feel .. but SLABT drags me to hell .. but yet again in a positive way ... does that make sense?

Like no other song did since ... ages?

I feel the same way!! Although I'm kinda worried that this song is stuck in my head

 

[corianderstem]

Huh ... was the Mojo review the only place we've seen a mention to the song being about abuse by the church? Was that backed up anywhere by the band, or in other articles? Or did this review's interpretation just stick within our brains?

U2's Songs Of Innocence: First Review! | MOJO

 

[MillyU2]

At first my favorite was The Troubles - and it still is the one that speaks to me the most - but I can't stop listening to Sleep whereas I feel like I've practically had enough of The Troubles.