This is probably my favorite song of all time; I love it. It's so beautiful and sad; it always makes me want to cry. The thing I love about is that even though Bono wrote it about the Bloody Sunday attacks in Northern Ireland, it really could be about any tragic event in history. 9/11, Columbine, the Oklahoma City bombing, the London terrorist attack, you name it. The first line (I can't believe the news today, I can't close my eyes and make it go away) perfectly captures that feeling of shock and horror you feel when you hear about these events.

Paramore's version is the best
besides this one
and it definetly talks about the Ireland massacre

Yaya! Claim the vicory Jesus won! Bono is always talking about Jesus. :D

what about 'bloody sunday' in salma, alabama? couldn't it be about that? and when that happened, the blacks (and some whites(NOT TO BE RACIST)) were singing songs of freedom... 'how long must we sing this song' get it?

or what if it's about all of the 'bloody sunday's' that ever happened?

but that's just my opinion.

The song may have been written about Bloody Sunday in Northern Ireland, but it's also extended to the rest of the world and the state its in. I hadn't been much of a U2 fan before, but I've recently got into their songs and I love this song; their lyrics are beyond brilliant - especially combined with the somewhat upbeat melody, and I know this is rock music, but the fact that these lyrics drenched with meaning are sung with this type of tempo is significant to me. I mean, if you think about it, looking at war in a more general view, the melody and everything going in in the background while Bono is singing the lyrics emphasises that life goes on and the world goes on, too, despite the tragedies that happen. I mean, there's so much happening in the background, and Bono's voice sounds single when he's singing the verses. To me, that shows how one event, no matter how horrible or great, will not stop things moving on - because they are, in the background. It just seems like, the tragedy is the only thing that matters, but you have to move on with the music and life itself if you want to overcome it.

"I can't believe the news today
Oh, I can't close my eyes and make it go away
How long, how long must we sing this song?
How long, how long?
'Cause tonight
We can be as one tonight"

This, on the surface, is speaking for everyone who read the paper or saw the news on that fateful 30th of January. Through this, Bono is illustrating shock and disbelief that such a thing could have happened - it shows how unexpected and horrifying it is. He wants it to be a dream, a nightmare, where it'll "go away"; but the fact that he says he can't close his eyes shows that he's not in a terrible nightmare because you can't turn away from reality. "How long, how long must we sing this song?" could either mean one of two things:

1) Never-ending - Bono is conveying that these events and tragedies are happening all the time, and that they're seemingly never-ending. He's asking whether they'll stop; the lyric sounds almost weary, and the repetition of "how long" shows that it's been happening for a long time and that he wants all the war and terror and misery to stop.

2) Prayer. He's asking how long they have to keep praying before all of this just finishes. In a way, he's asking god how much longer this is going to go on. As in, 'How long must we pray before you heed our prayers?' With reference to Bloody Sunday, the fact that it's "this song" and not "these songs" show how united Northern Ireland's efforts were to overcome the tragedy, because it implies they were all praying for the same thing, singing the same song - the "song" being the prayer, obviously.

"Broken bottles under children's feet
Bodies strewn across the dead end street
But I won't heed the battle call
It puts my back up
Puts my back up against the wall"

The first two lines are conveying what shouldn't be. Broken bottles shouldn't be under children's feet, and bodies shouldn't be strewn across a street. I'm not sure about you, but "children's feet", to me, conveys bare children's feet. In my opinion, it's a reference to poverty because the bottles, assuming they're on the ground, are beneath the children's "feet" instead of "shoes". Bodies "strewn", carelessly thrown everywhere - it shows a lack of respect for humanity and mankind. "Dead end street" - no way forward but back and out. It's signifying how the world has to pick itself back up again and focus on rebuilding what they've broken. The third line is saying that he doesn't want to fight anymore, and the fourth and fifth are conveying a violent image. When someone's back is against the wall, they're defenceless to everything and helpless to do anything - so he's saying that all this fighting is going to leave the world helpless one day

"Sunday, bloody Sunday" - Reference to Bloody Sunday in Northern Ireland. But it's known as Bloody Sunday - and Bono hasn't capitalised the "b" in "bloody". Therefore, it opens the line up to other interpretations, too. I found a religious one - the fact that no one cares about religion anymore, "bloody" being a curse word which has been put with Sunday to signify this.

"And the battle's just begun
There's many lost, but tell me who has won
The trench is dug within our hearts
And mothers, children, brothers, sisters torn apart"

The first line contradicts Bono's desire for everything to finish - the fact that he knows it hasn't. He refers to many people dying, and then asks who's won this war - meaning that there's no point of this fighting. He's playing on the old phrase "it isn't the winning that counts, it's the taking part", showing that this isn't a game, yet despite this, no one's winning and everyone's carrying on fighting anyway. It shows how pointless all of the loss is if it's for nothing, if no one's coming out victorious in the end and having proven their point. The fourth line is a metaphor, and one of my favourite lines in the song. Trenches were dug in World War I initially as a defence mechanism against the Germans, which signifies that these trenches have been dug to defend the heart from pain and destruction and hinder the hurt.

The last line just shows how bad the effect of this war is - mothers, children, brothers and sisters are all family; family members have strong, natural, death-defying bonds, but the fact that they're being torn apart shows that this war is ruining everything natural, everything good. Also, the fact that a father hasn't been mentioned here signifies war, too, as fathers were traditionally called away to war to fight for their country, and the rest of the family would remain, praying that he returns and frightened for his life. A father is an important member of the family, and the fact that he's not there shows that a significant part of the family is missing - much like a significant part of everyone is missing because of the war and terror.

"Wipe the tears from your eyes
Wipe your tears away
Oh, wipe your tears away
Oh, wipe your tears away
Sunday, bloody Sunday
Oh, wipe your bloodshot eyes
Sunday, bloody Sunday"

This verse is basically emphasising how long everyone's been grieving, as is shown by the constant repetition of "wipe your tears" and "Sunday, bloody Sunday". It's saying that it's bad, but we have to be strong to get through it.

"And it's true we are immune
When fact is fiction and TV reality
And today the millions cry
We eat and drink while tomorrow they die"

This verse shows how no one realises how bad the war and its consequences are unless they get to experience it, too. Bono is basically saying that we don't realise the reality of the situation, and that we take fiction to be fact and everything on TV to be reality. The TV is where the news is presented to the public, and I think Bono's saying that it's reality is much worse than what is depicted in the news. The third line is emphasising just how many people are grieving and suffering, and fourth goes to add that we carry on as normal, not realising the enormity of the tragedies occurring, and unknowing of what is happening. It also suggests that unless we're affected, we don't really care, because eating and drinking are such natural things to do, and we're doing all of that while people are dying today and dying tomorrow.

"The real battle just begun
To claim the victory Jesus won
On
Yeah"

Bono is telling us here that this has to stop - that Jesus sacrificed his life for the sake of good, and that now it is our turn to do the same thing - "to claim the victory Jesus won". Of course, he doesn't mean we have to die in order to do so; he's just saying that we have to surrender, because the fighting isn't doing anyone any good, and does so by using Jesus as an example.

Obviously, that's my interpretation of the song. To be honest, though, Bono's lyrics are always quite open; there's his interpretation, and then many others which follow because of his word usage. I like it. It's what makes U2 so unique and amazing.

STOP FREAKIN STEALING FOR GOD'S SAKES AAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH OH MY GOD *spazzes and faints*

Drums are amazing in this song. LM Jnr is ver under rated

The famine is over. Why don't you go home?

The Pillar cover is pretty goooood.

Couldn't agree more ccammy. Only six counties of Ulster are currently British, but I know what you meant. The other three counties of Ulster are part of some republic. Of course, the day will come when they are united once more under the British crown. God save the Queen.

Wikipedia mentions the first Bloody Sunday as being in London in 1887. Not that Wikipedia is in anyway a definitive source. I'm sure there have been many Bloody Sundays, Mondays, Tuesdays etc, throughout history. All that matters is that right here, right now, Ulster is British. In some distant future, the underclass will breed us Brits out, and the north and south will unite as a third world country, one in which the peasants rot in their own personal hell. I'll be dead obviously, but happy days indeed.

I must apologize for my previous comment. i just googled it, and the original Bloody Sunday did occur in ireland. Logically, U2, being Irish, would sing about the Irish one, not the Russian one. I apologize for my stupidity and hypocracy.

You guys are ridiculous! this is about the Communist (Bolshevik) revolution in Russia in 1905! the Red Riots were beginning to break out in Russia at the time, and a large group of protestors met outside of the Tsar's winter Palace.The imperial guard fired i into the crowd, killing around 100 people, though some estimates count casualties into the thousands. This action caused the people to blame the current Tsar, Nicolas II, though he actually had nothing to do with the actions of the guards.

Either way. whether is was the British Paratroopers or the IRA, this song is about an end to terror and on both ends, and everywhere! All over rge world. I am an American Republican, and just beacuse I have repulbican beliefs does not mean that I believe in killing everyone. I hate that stereotype.

I had an idea that it could've been about the severe problems between the Protestants and the Catholics, which resulted in bloodshed. I Think it's also about how religion causes more harm than good when people don't respect othe beliefs or opinions. I also think it applies today as well (like the person above me said), cos it stills seems that the cycle of pain and violence go on unfortunately.

I understand the historical meaning of this song, but reading the lyrics it applies so much to today. How long must we sing this song? Iraq. Darfur. Myanmar. New Orleans. The Mid-East. And countless others...It's an on going war and the millions cry out for help and we just eat and drink while tomorrow they die. Its a song for the world today, not just a bloody Sunday that happened before. It's about everyday that's bloody for so many innocent people while some of us choose to look away

This is probably one of my favorite songs of all time. I heard it when I was 11. It's still incredible. Ignite did an incredible punk/hardcore cover. The Evergreen Terrace and Paramore versions are horrible though.

its about the way religion tore into Ireland, U2's home country, and the way religion tore into the band too. When Edge wrote the music to this he was considering giving up music because of his religion. AND on top of that he and Bono are were on opposite ends of the conflict...Bono is Catholic while Edge is Protestant.

"But I won't heed the battle call
It puts my back up
Puts my back up against the wall"

"But I won't heed the battle call"
14 of his fellow country men had been murdered. So Bono is saying he won't give into his rage or natural instinct to fight back. (Or joining the IRA, as so many prople did after Bloody Sunday)

"It puts my back up
Puts my back up against the wall"
I thnik conveys how he doesn't know how to react to what has just happened. Like above he probably feels like fighting back, but he knows that thats the wrong thing to do. Hence his back is against the wall.

"This is not a rebel song! This is Sunday, Bloody Sunday!"
-Bono

I think some people ought to heed the sentiment of the song rather than arguing over what actually happened (which is unlikely ever to be known). Anyone who kills innocent people should be condemned, and yes that includes the members of all the paramilitaries as well as the army and police who have innocent blood on their hands.
I can't see how people can kill (or support killing) in the name of a religion that has forgiveness and peace at its centre.
If everyone heeded this song and didn't take up the battle call then there would be far fewer children without their fathers and mothers.

ok um... I just thought it was about the russian massacre cuz that was called Bloody Sunday too, but whatever. Good song no matter what.

BTW...

"Yeah
Ummm, hmmm"

Brilliant opener Boner!!!!

RRAAAAAATTEEDDDDDD OOOOVVVVVEEERRRRAAAAAAAAAATTEDDDDDDD!!!

Bono's sunglasses smell like poop!!!

Oh, another interesting point is that: The song was released fifteen years before the Belfast agreement was signed, yet it is again linked to the song because of its relation to Easter Sunday.

And SOME of my bibliography is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunday_Bloody_Sunday_%28song%29

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Troubles

http://www.google.com.au (google definitions)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Friday

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Sunday_%281972%29

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bono#Personal_life

http://hem.bredband.net/steverud/U2MoL/War/sunday.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resurrection_of_Jesus

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14341a.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verse_(popular_music)#Verse

various questions on: www.ask.com

and ofcourse: www.songmeanings.net

and i've been listening to the song the whole time I have been researching.