See the sun rise over her skin
Don't change it
See the sun rise over her skin
Dawn changes everything
Everything
And the delta sun
Burns bright and violet

Mississippi and the cotton wool heat
Sixty-six a highway speaks
Of deserts dry
Of cool green valleys
Gold and silver veins
Of the shining cities

In this heartland
In this heartland soil
In this heartland
Heaven knows this is a heartland
Heartland...heartland

See the sun rise over her skin
She feels like water in my hand
Freeway like a river cuts through this land
Into the side of love
Like a burning spear
And the poison rain
Brings a flood of fear
Through the ghost-ranch hills
Death valley waters
In the towers of steel
Belief goes on and on

In this heartland
In this heartland soil
In this heartland
Heaven knows this is a heartland
Heartland...heaven knows this is a heartland
Heartland...heartland
Heartland...heaven's day here in the heartland
Heart...



Lyrics submitted by archmastermind

Track duration: 05:03

"Heartland" as written by Dave Evans Adam Clayton

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

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Heartland song meanings
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14 Comments

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  • -1
    Memory:This song played in my helmet headset as I was returning from a nightlong military mission over the North Pacific. It was one of those sorties where just about anything that could have gone wrong did go wrong. As the plane limped eastward, this song played just as the rising sun was lighting up the California coastline. There it was. USA. Home. Safe. Secure. Free. Made it. Bono nailed it with Heartland.
    Flag acmc87on April 05, 2011   Link
  • -1
    General Comment:"And the poison rain
    Brings a flood of fear
    Through the ghost ranch hills
    Death valley waters
    In the towers of steel
    Belief goes on and on..."

    For some odd reason, this line makes me think of 9/11, and the state of the country after the attacks. I know that sounds crazy, since this song was released 13 years before 9/11, but for some reason it makes me think of that. The poison rain (the attacks on the World Trade Center) brings a flood of fear to the U.S in general. Ghost ranch hills could be New York after the attacks. But despite of all this, belief goes on--belief in our country, the ideals it was founded on, and the power of her citizens to do great things. Just my thoughts.
    Flag Musicfan24on October 04, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This song and the whole Rattle & Hum album and Film inspired me to one day to travel extensively round the US, visiting some of the places in the film alongthe way. I used to play in a U2 tribute band when I was a teenager and we all dreamed of playing places like Sund Devil Stadium in Arizona.

    The band didn't make it but guess what, I've sold my house and am quitting work and going travelling next April 2009, starting off with a monster road trip in the US!
    Flag roberto74on June 06, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This song is so poetic and dreamy, gotta love these lyrics, among Bono's best. A really heartfelt (though idealized) celebration of America.
    Flag Marquezon August 16, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:prisz25, the particular tone range in the last heaaaart is bono's false tone... but awesome, none the less
    Flag dhatterikion May 15, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I think edge's echoing in the background accomodates the song brilliantly. A trully moving song, making up a near perfect album.
    Flag deankavanagh1234on April 11, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Awesome song. To think, this was the first song U2 attempted to record for The Joshua Tree, but it didn't end up on there. Thematically and sonically, it would have fit so well.
    Flag rager1969on March 01, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Watch the video version on the Rattle and Hum DVD, it adds more to the aura of an already great song.
    Flag BonoVox87on March 06, 2006   Link
  • +2
    General Comment:"Heartland" is by far my favorite U2 song. This one is absolutely beautiful. There is so much more to it than just the lyrics. In fact, this is a classic example of truly fantastic songwriting ability. Most of the beauty and meaning behind the song isn't conveyed in the lyrics but more so in the mood and tone behind the words. In it, you can tell that the lyricist (Bono) is fascinated with the land and you can almost imagine him jotting down haphazard notes from the window of the tour bus while cruising down Route 66. Mostly what I feel when I hear this song is that Bono was deeply homesick when he wrote it. He's experiencing a foreign land completely behind the glitz and glamour of what America is made out to be in the media. In the way he describes every curve and feature and the way "belief goes on and on", you can't help but wonder if he isn't really yearning for his own home after having been away for nearly two years.

    This song is extremely powerful because you can feel his emotions. You can feel that he's awestruck, he's tired, he's homesick, and he's lonely. Notice that the lyrics are very different from other U2 lyrics. This song stays on one track and doesn't waver. It isn't about anything in particular. He's using the land laid out before him as a palette to paint a picture of how he feels in that moment. It's almost as if he's reaching out toward something in this song. I love it because it conveys raw emotion. It's not about anything; it just is.
    Flag eirenightshadeon December 29, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This is such an amazing song until recently I have gone back to listen to it and I can't help but just smile and close my eyes to take in all that is being said. And MAN does Bono have a nice range in this song!!! Especially the last HEAART!!!!
    Flag prisz25on April 05, 2005   Link

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