Lyrics for Civil War as interpreted by mike

Civil War Lyrics
"What we've got here is failure to communicate.
Some men you just can't reach...
So, you get what we had here last week
Which is the way he wants it!
Well, he gets it!
N' I don't like it any more than you men."*
Look at your young men fighting
Look at your women crying
Look at your young men dying
The way they've always done before
Look at the hate we're breeding
Look at the fear we're feeding
Look at the lives we're leading
The way we've always done before
My hands are tied
The billions shift from side to side
And the wars go on with brainwashed pride
For the love of God and our human rights
And all these things are swept aside
By bloody hands time can't deny
And are washed away by your genocide
And history hides the lies of our civil wars
D'you wear a black armband
When they shot the man
Who said "Peace could last forever"
And in my first memories
They shot Kennedy
An I went numb when I learned to see
So I never fell for Vietnam
We got the wall of D.C. to remind us all
That you can't trust freedom
when it's not in your hands
When everybody's fightin'
for their promised land
And
I don't need your civil war
It feeds the rich while it buries the poor
Your power hungry sellin' soldiers
In a human grocery store
Ain't that fresh
I don't need your civil war
Look at the shoes you're filling
Look at the blood we're spilling
Look at the world we're killing
The way we've always done before
Look in the doubt we've wallowed
Look at the leaders we've followed
Look at the lies we've swallowed
And I don't want to hear no more
My hands are tied
For all I've seen has changed my mind
But still the wars go on as the years go by
With no love of God or human rights
'Cause all these dreams are swept aside
By bloody hands of the hypnotized
Who carry the cross of homicide
And history bears the scars of our civil wars
"We practice selective annihilation of mayors
and government officials
for example to create a vacuum
Then we fill that vacuum
as popular war advances.
Peace is closer"**
I don't need your civil war
It feeds the rich while it buries the poor
Your power hungry sellin' soldiers
In a human grocery store
Ain't that fresh
I don't need your civil war
I don't need your civil war
Your power hungry sellin' soldiers
In a human grocery store
Ain't that fresh
I don't need your civil war
I don't need one more war
I don't need one more war
Whaz so civil 'bout war anyway

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njrockstarbandit
05-30-2002

Rated 0 
an ass kicking song, that is about all the wars in the past and in the future, and how we are killing off the human race for a peice of land that doesn't even belong to us. peace would be much eaier o express. deffinately one of guns 'n' roses great songs. DEFFINATELY THEIR NUMBER 1.

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GNRTOM
06-04-2002

Rated 0 
i don't know if i'd name it no. 1, but definitely a killer song. personally i prefer don't damn me

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njrockstarbandit
06-06-2002

Rated 0 
yea, well, everyone has a different no 1 song of gnr. but hey we both agree that gnr kicks monster ass. right?

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seaked1
06-11-2002

Rated 0 
Agread starbandit, This song demonstrates our complete failure as a human race. We lived We suffered can't hide that. But than we die and nothing else matters cause what we think doesn't mean shit.

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nemisis58
09-28-2002

Rated +1 
My take on this song is that while the rich use wars to make themselves richer, the victims are those sent out to die. They are often led to believe that they are on a holy crusade, when all they are really doing is fighting to allow those in power to become more powerful. Their cause is never realized, and in the end, they die for nothing.

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slickvic
03-18-2003

Rated +1 
civil war is a metaphor , he sees the world as one not drivided into countrys, states, cities, and providences and all the wars and conflict that take place on planet earth, are a civil war

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slickvic
03-18-2003

Rated +2 
civil war is a metaphor , he sees the world as one not drivided into countrys, states, cities, and providences and all the wars and conflict that take place on planet earth, is a civil war

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WaZZgLE
03-20-2003

Rated 0 
In response to what nemisis58 said, the war right now (in Iraq) fills that description to a T. Bush is going in for obvious reasons of oil, and Dick Cheney's contracting company has the bid to rebuild Iraq after we destroy all the buildings. The rich get richer, and the poor.....die.

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bornonaugust10th
03-25-2003

Rated 0 
i honestly think this song is directed toward the era of the 60's when everybody down south * no pointing at anyone* was going to shoot every person who supported desegeration and unhaterd in the south thats what i think and i agree dont hafta agree upon the favorite song but its one hell of a band that we have in the great world!

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Pickles the I
04-14-2003

Rated 0 
Like many people have said, I believe it's a metaphor. I think Axl meant that the US uses war to improve their economy, making the rich richer and sending the poor to their death. By saying it's a "Civil War", not only is he referring to the American Civil War, but he is saying that the US tries to justify it's military actions and makes people believe that these actions are more 'civil' than the wars of the past. I know Axl was a mysogynistic pig most the time... but he's got some true meaning in some of his lyrics.

Oh yeah... and does anyone else realise that AXL ROSE is an anagram for ORAL SEX? His real name was William something...

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1 Reply
hattie
05-08-2003

Rated 0 
saucy! Have any of you guys seen him on sweet child o' mine vid? phwoar.

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jlbrpt
06-06-2003

Rated 0 
I think the meaning is pretty clear...an anti-war song, directed especially at, as the name states, civil wars. I find this all to ironic, since Axl Rose has done everything from bash a female neighbor over the head with a bottle, to co-writing an original G N' R song, "One In A Million" off the G n' R Lies CD, where the lyrics read: "Police and Niggers, that's right...get out of my way..."?? Does anyone find this hyporcrisy as ironic as I do??? Doesn't this (these statements) suggest that they contribute to the social displacement (racism, hatred, separatist ideas) that leads to civil wars? How hypocritical!!! Not to mention, these guys have had all sorts of problems with drug abuse. So what the message behind this song says to me is this: "we've screwed up our lives on drugs, and we preach lyrics about hating law enforcement and minorities, but take our advice on how to shape your views"...I don't think so.

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Mr Bojangles
06-26-2003

Rated 0 
this song is awesome right here. G 'N' R might be the best band ever. This song is definately kick ass. Axl Rose is god. G 'N' R 4 LIFE!

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dan fitz
04-12-2004

Rated 0 
*the quote from the start is from the movie "cool hand luke". a classic.

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gnr-acdc-eagles
05-27-2004

Rated 0 
Mr Bojangles (cool name btw) you sed
"G 'N' R might be the best band ever" can i correct you? if you dont mind:
"G 'N' R ARE the best band ever" sorry, but you had to be corrected. and no, axle rose isnt god, slash clearly is. no humanly life form could have hair as impressive as that.

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Regos the Sane
06-14-2004

Rated 0 
jlbrpt needs to listen to Don't Damn Me from UYI 1.

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Febod
11-10-2004

Rated 0 
Does anyone know who said "peace could last forever"?

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1 Reply
screamy_mimi
12-15-2004

Rated 0 
Febod: that's what i want to know

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screamy_mimi
12-15-2004

Rated 0 
Febod: that's what i want to know

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metallica_fan
12-29-2004

Rated 0 
i love this song!!! i love just sittin alone and playin it... especially hearing slash workin his guitar!

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poursomesugaronme
01-16-2005

Rated 0 
oi, Pickles the I, Axl's real name is William Bailey. when he found out his birth Father's last name was Rose, he changed his name to William Rose, u no, kinda like honouring his Father's name, but afta realising that Axl Rose could be rearranged to Oral sex, family honour went out the window. Most documents state his name as W. Axl Rose

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illusi0n
02-20-2005

Rated 0 
the film "farenheight 9/11 by michael moore gives a good exaple of what this song is about in a modern setting, by bush going to war to make millions of dollars in profit while he sends american soliders to their deaths for the $$$, GUNS N' FKN' ROSES 4LIFE!

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ShortStories
04-05-2005

Rated 0 
Too bad the people that really need to hear this message won't listen, and those that know the message ussually won't preach it.
What -is- so civil 'bout war anyways?
Hopefully more people will relise this.

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Popcorn_adler
05-04-2005

Rated 0 
Steven Adler put so much into this track...he was weak...couldnt control his drugs and they fuckin' fire him...*hint: he was REAL ill when he did this track...

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(V)%()ŁY
06-21-2005

Rated 0 
This song rules! I listen to it every day and never get bored of it. The guitar riffs are brilliant! Definetely one of GnRs best songs!

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