The Wanderer said:
Now I've drifted a bit off topic, or have I?
Now you're beginning to sound like me! But seriously, that was very well put (okay, so you aren't sounding like me then). Anyway, what really impresses me about this song (lyrically as well as musically) is that it doesn't sound trite. You are right: no other band (or very few) could have ever pulled off a song such as this. Could you imagine the catastrophe if, say, Celine Dionne was given the opportunity? The fact that the title no longer sounds as cheesy as it should speaks volumes about this song. The fact that the chorus - despite sounding so cheesy out of context - sounds so dead on within context, speaks volumes for this song. It's really a master work, and I can't really explain why.
I think you are right, also, that Bono has been waiting to write this song for a very, very long time. This song, I think, will really canonize U2 in America (I'm not saying that's a good thing or bad thing - it's just a statement I'm making). The lyrics, as well as the delivery are so precise, the words chosen so carefully, so delicately. The subject matter demands it, and Bono really came through. I don't think U2 would have released a song like this any other way, because, ya' know, it's a big song, concerning such an integral part of Irish American history. It needs to be sensitive to that, and oh - is it sensitive: "...from diggin' in our pockets...for a reason, to say goodbye..." Yeah, the effort has been made to dig deep, really feel the dirt, the texture of the subject. It's not superficial. It's not generic.
I'm still blown away, actually. (Can you tell?
)
As for the lyrics of Zooropa and Pop, I completely agree with you. You can literally feel the universe exploding in a thousand directions when listening to those albums. I could never understand how even people who don't like Pop, musically, could not hear the incredible vision inside of the lyrics. Like Bono once said, Pop is really a dialogue of many converstations - some his, but mostly overheard conversations. I think that sheds such a light on the album, and I wish people could see it in that light.
Zooropa has such a sense of optimism, and hope within the words, within the music. One of my favourite moments - "It's cold outside, but brightly lit / skip the subway, let's go overground" Such a liberating view, and one that always gave me such empowerment. U2 never really changed in that respect, and I wonder how many people understand that.
By the way, say hi to the person I so very much respect. I think I know who you are talking about. I should send an e-mail that direction soon...
Thanks for sharing.