Bono has spoken about the writing of ‘Where The Streets Have No Name‘ and how he views the lyrics as unfinished.
U2 are currently celebrating the 30th anniversary of ‘The Joshua Tree‘, on which the song features.
Speaking to Beats 1’s Zane Lowe, he said: “Musically it’s great and the band deserve credit for that, but lyrically it’s just a sketch and I was going to go back and write it out.
“Half of it is an invocation, where you say to a crowd of people ‘Do you want to go to that place? That place of imagination, that place of soul? Do you want to go there, cos right now we can go there?’ To this day when I say those words you get hairs on the back of your neck stand up because you’re going to that place.”
The frontman of the Irish band revealed what producer Brian Eno told him to reassure him about the lyrics. “Brian said, ‘Incomplete thoughts are generous because they allow the listener to finish them’,” Bono revealed. “As a songwriter I have to realise that the greatest invitation is an invocation.”
He added: “‘Where The Streets Have No Name’ is not a great lyric. I just wouldn’t have rhymed ‘hide’ with ‘inside’.”
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Noel Gallagher, who is supporting the band on the European tour, said the ‘Joshua Tree’ tour is “the most fun” he’s ever had.
Speaking to the FC Barcelona website while visiting the Camp Nou stadium, he explained how much he was enjoying the tour. “I’ve been touring in one form or another for over 25 years and this is the most fun I’ve ever had,” he said.
“I’m only on stage for an hour. I’m off stage by eight o’clock, half eight. Have summat to eat, something to drink, watch U2, have two days off. We’re playing in all the great cities in Europe. My family are on the road with me [and] my friends. It’s been amazing. They’re been absolutely brilliant every night. They’re one of my favourite ever bands, ever.”