Everything about Lemon is unbelievably amazing

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XHendrix24

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My favorite U2 song by FAR at the moment (and possibly of all time).

The drums :drool:

The bassline :drool:

The guitar laden with effects :drool:

The synth :drool:

Bono's vocals (especially the godly falsetto) :drool:

Brian Eno and Edge's backing vocals :drool:

THE LYRICS, MY GOD THE LYRICS :combust:

How is this song so perfect?
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I didn't like it at all at first, but when I watched the video it all clicked for me. It makes much more sense with MacPhisto singing it than Bono.

It rocks :up:
 
A man makes a picture
A moving picture
Through the light projected
He can see himself up close
A man captures colour
A man likes to stare
He turns his money into light
To look for her

And I feel
Like I'm drifting, drifting, drifting from the shore
And I feel
Like I'm swimming out to her


:drool:

And nice call on the video. One of U2's best, along with "Stay."
 
I love the ending

She is the dreamer
She's imagination (She wore lemon)
Through the light projected he can see himself up close

(Lemon)....
 
Great song, but it does lack...

Lyrically it's two songs merged and it's obvious, and Larry's drums are horrible...

Video is great though...
 
The falsetto killed it, IMO. It doesn't work as being sung throughout. More sparingly is better (i.e.: Dirty Day).
 
Awesome song. One of my favourites on Zooropa.

Now where's CTU2fan? :happy:
 
corianderstem said:
I like the countermelody Bono added during the chorus on the live version in '93.

That's really the only thing that bothers me slightly about the album version. I want to sing that countermelody every time the part comes up.

So great. It really made Zoo TV for me, as well. :drool:
 
The big problem with Lemon on ZooTV is that it segues into WOWY just after WOWY went from being one of the band's best live songs to one of the most bland.
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:
Great song, but it does lack...

Lyrically it's two songs merged and it's obvious, and Larry's drums are horrible...

Video is great though...

Where do you think the two lyrical splits are?
 
Earnie Shavers said:


Where do you think the two lyrical splits are?

Well, Edge's parts really have nothing to do with Bono's parts. I think that's what he means.

If it wasn't for Edge's parts, I'd probably hate the song.
 
Earnie Shavers said:


Where do you think the two lyrical splits are?

One part is apparently about his mother, "she wore lemon", and then there's whole entire other song that makes a social commentary about society with, "A man makes a picture..." and "Midnight is where the day begins" :huh:
 
Axver said:
The big problem with Lemon on ZooTV is that it segues into WOWY just after WOWY went from being one of the band's best live songs to one of the most bland.

It's not Lemon's fault WOWY sucks. It just does. :happy:
 
LemonMelon said:


It's not Lemon's fault WOWY sucks. It just does. :happy:

Lemon's stupid transition didn't give Edge enough time to change guitars.

And MacPhisto is evil: he changed the drumbeat.

Lemon :shakesfist:
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:


One part is apparently about his mother, "she wore lemon", and then there's whole entire other song that makes a social commentary about society with, "A man makes a picture..." and "Midnight is where the day begins" :huh:

The lemon represents society. It's pretty damn bitter.
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:
Great song, but it does lack...

Lyrically it's two songs merged and it's obvious, and Larry's drums are horrible...

Video is great though...


No way! :wink:

I think the drums are amazing. The simplicity of the drums fits right into the song. They should make a 1 hour version of the song, and I would love to listen to it. I can also play that song on the drums for hours and hours if I had the rest of the instruments going. :drool:
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:


Then why is Lemon "She is the dreamer, she’s imagination
She had heaven"?

Doesn't sound bitter...

:tsk: You're not looking deep enough into this. You need to keep looking harder and harder at it until the words lose all meaning and you stop caring. Then, and ONLY then, will you able to appreciate Lemon to its full capacity.
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:shifty: The same goes for most of REM's discography.
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:


Then why is Lemon "She is the dreamer, she’s imagination
She had heaven"?

Doesn't sound bitter...

The narrator's the bitter one. Despairing might be a better word, though.

He "turns his money into light to look for her," and everything he does, all of his accomplishments, are basically part of a subconscious journey for this woman in the "lemon" dress. Knowing that the song's about Bono's mother, it's more or less the realization that even one's finest achievements won't bring back a loved one (man melts the sand so he can see the world outside, etc.), showing that the simplest and most basic things like love can be more important to someone than all of those achievements could ever be.

Edit: Not the narrator, the protagonist, I guess you would say. You people know what I mean. :wink:
 
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LemonMelon said:


:tsk: You're not looking deep enough into this. You need to keep looking harder and harder at it until the words lose all meaning and you stop caring. Then, and ONLY then, will you able to appreciate Lemon to its full capacity.
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:shifty: The same goes for most of REM's discography.

Unlike you, I've been listening to Lemon since the day it came out. Now that is no attack on you, just a testament...

I like the song, but I noticed from day one is was two ideas... Even U2 acknowledge that.
 
"Lemon" has always been a favourite of mine. Great job by Adam and Larry in the rhythm section and by The Edge's distorted keybordish guitar sounds. From the very first second, you want to move, to dance. Bono's lyrics a fine as is his (then still high) voice. The band singing chorus is simply beautiful, then the "drifting from the shore...swimming out to her" part with the astonishing piano, counter singing, falsetto "midnight" part – and there we are in the heart of one of U2's gems. Unfortunately it didn't hit the setlists that often (*smile*) and unfortunately I don't see it return there with the so multi layeres sounds (the needs of backups) and especially the very demanding falsetto parts.
I wish I had witnessed this tune back then on my tour through Europe (fourteen years ago now, I'm getting old, friends). But at least there was a brief, a cappella snatch, I heard in Naples/Napoli on 9th July 1993 – I still freak about it, "Lemon"'s first outing ever.
When I then saw the real, full band performance I was didvided: The performance killed the slot of "Ultra Violet (Light My Way)" – which I still hold as one of ZOO TV's live masterpieces – and seemed somehow very artificial, very technical, very choreographed. It was fine, but didn't give me the shivers as the studio – until, just until Bono lost himself in the "midnight, midnight, midnight" opera like crescendo. A beautful addition to the tune. Less beautiful was not the transition to WOWY, but the effect it had on this tune. It had to be completely now MacPhisto's kingdom including the strange accent, slowed down singing and a cut down, shortened version – no Bono guitar anymore, no chance stretching the tune by snippets. WOWY becoming a standard in a crooner's repertoire, finding its new territory as a karaoke, mass sing along for the fans only. Musically it lost from there on (with a few exceptions on "Vertigo" though, take Melbourne 1st night ...).
 
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