It's amusing but unsurprising that so many people find optimism in this song. The Stranglers' whole career is based on snark, after all, and I don't think this song is an exception, though perhaps exceptionally there some truly genuine warmth in it that almost eclipses the cynicism.
I'll make three points:
1) The sun is so far away from all the social ills mentioned in the lyrics. The fact that there is a sun out there everyday has absolutely no consequence on our very real problems down here.
2) This is a Cold War song (1986). Many of us had the feeling at the time that nuclear holocaust could happen in our lifetimes. We really thought the sun might not shine through Earth's fragile atmosphere much longer. "Always the sun" is ironic.
3) And of course "always the sun" is simply not true. We know that the sun will fade and die some day, long after we're gone.
If anything, the lyrics mock people who are optimistic about the future despite there not being any grounding in reality for that optimism. Looking at how the world turned out after this song was written, I have to agree -- which is why I love the Stranglers so much.
It's amusing but unsurprising that so many people find optimism in this song. The Stranglers' whole career is based on snark, after all, and I don't think this song is an exception, though perhaps exceptionally there some truly genuine warmth in it that almost eclipses the cynicism.
I'll make three points:
1) The sun is so far away from all the social ills mentioned in the lyrics. The fact that there is a sun out there everyday has absolutely no consequence on our very real problems down here.
2) This is a Cold War song (1986). Many of us had the feeling at the time that nuclear holocaust could happen in our lifetimes. We really thought the sun might not shine through Earth's fragile atmosphere much longer. "Always the sun" is ironic.
3) And of course "always the sun" is simply not true. We know that the sun will fade and die some day, long after we're gone.
If anything, the lyrics mock people who are optimistic about the future despite there not being any grounding in reality for that optimism. Looking at how the world turned out after this song was written, I have to agree -- which is why I love the Stranglers so much.
@ghostwheel. \r\n\r\nIt\'s a riposte to Dark Side Of The Moon
@ghostwheel. \r\n\r\nIt\'s a riposte to Dark Side Of The Moon