Chorus:
Banana Republic
Septic Isle
Screaming in the suffering sea
It sounds like crying
Everywhere I go
Everywhere I see
The black and blue uniforms
Police and priests

And I wonder do you wonder
While you're sleeping with your whore
That sharing beds with history
Is like a-licking running sores
Forty shades of green yeah
Sixty shades of red
Heroes going cheap these days
Price; a bullet in the head

repeat chorus

Take your hand and lead you
Up a garden path
Let me stand aside here
And watch you pass
Striking up a soldier's song
I know that tune
It begs too many questions
And answers to,

repeat chorus

The purple and the pinstripe
Mutely shake their heads
A silense shrieking volumes
A violence worse than the condemn
Stab you in the back yeah
Laughing in your face
Glad to see the place again
It's a pitty nothing's changed

repeat chorus

Overall Meaning

The Boomtown Rats's song Banana Republic is a powerful critique of the political, social, and economic situation in Ireland at the time. The lyrics highlight the corruption, violence, and hypocrisy of those in power, particularly the police and the priests, who are seen as promoting and protecting the interests of the ruling elite. The chorus is particularly evocative, with its repeated reference to the Banana Republic and the Septic Isle, which suggest a sense of decay, corruption and despair. The lyrics hint at the history of colonization, oppression and exploitation that has characterized Ireland for centuries, and suggest a need for change and transformation.

The verse about sharing beds with history is particularly poignant, as it suggests that the past is not something to be celebrated or revered, but rather a source of suffering and pain. The reference to the forty shades of green and the sixty shades of red highlight the complex and divisive nature of politics in Ireland, and the fact that there are no easy answers or solutions to the problems facing the country. The lyrics also criticize the lack of heroes and the fact that people are willing to accept violence and death as the price of political change.

Overall, the lyrics to Banana Republic are a powerful social commentary on the political, social and economic situation in Ireland at the time, and still resonate with audiences today as a critique of political and social corruption more broadly.

Line by Line Meaning

Banana Republic
A country that is run poorly and corruptly, usually by a dictator or small group of elites.

Septic Isle
A derogatory term for a country or nation that is diseased or corrupted, implying decay and decline.

Screaming in the suffering sea
The people of the Banana Republic are in agony and are crying out for help as if they are drowning in a sea of suffering.

It sounds like crying
The cries of the people are pitiful, indicating that their suffering is intense and long-lasting.

Everywhere I go
The despair and chaos of the Banana Republic are apparent in every place the artist visits.

Everywhere I see
The scars of the Banana Republic's history are visible everywhere, from the streets to the buildings and people.

The black and blue uniforms
The Banana Republic's police and military officers, who oppress and abuse the populace in the name of the regime.

Police and priests
Those who are supposed to protect the people, such as the police, and those who are supposed to guide them spiritually, like the priests, are the ones who benefit from the Banana Republic's system of oppression.

And I wonder do you wonder
The artist is questioning whether the people in power are aware of the atrocities they are committing against their own people.

While you're sleeping with your whore
While the elites indulge themselves in pleasure and excess, the people of the Banana Republic suffer under their rule.

That sharing beds with history
The idea that their actions are being recorded in history and will be judged by future generations, implying shame and disgrace.

Is like a-licking running sores
An unpleasant and painful image that suggests the Banana Republic's history is filled with corruption, violence, and exploitation.

Forty shades of green yeah
A reference to Ireland, indicating that the Banana Republic is reminiscent of other nations that suffered similarly under colonialism and authoritarianism.

Sixty shades of red
A metaphor for the violence, bloodshed, and sacrifice that the people of the Banana Republic have endured.

Heroes going cheap these days
The leaders and champions of the Banana Republic's struggle for freedom have been reduced to nothing, deeply devalued and forgotten.

Price; a bullet in the head
A violent and tragic image that suggests that the Banana Republic's heroes and resistance fighters have been killed and silenced.

Take your hand and lead you
The Banana Republic's leaders and elites are trying to deceive the people into following them down a false path of hope and change.

Up a garden path
A metaphor for leading the people to their ruin and destruction, much like how a garden path leads to a trap or a dead end.

Let me stand aside here
The singer is watching, implying that he/she is powerless to intervene or stop the Banana Republic's decline and demise.

And watch you pass
The artist is watching the people fall for the Banana Republic's lies and empty promises, knowing that they will soon be betrayed and disillusioned.

Striking up a soldier's song
A call to arms and a reminder of the Banana Republic's violent and oppressive past, when soldiers and dictators ruled with impunity.

I know that tune
The artist is well aware of the Banana Republic's bloody and turbulent history and the songs that arose from its resistance movements.

It begs too many questions
The soldier's song raises too many issues and uncertainties, leaving the Banana Republic's future uncertain and threatening.

The purple and the pinstripe
The politicians and the businessmen who support and benefit from the Banana Republic's regime, but who hide behind a facade of respectability and sophistication.

Mutely shake their heads
They are silently and secretly disapproving of the Banana Republic's regime but are unwilling or unable to take action against it.

A silence shrieking volumes
The silence of the Banana Republic's elites and powerful people is louder than any protest or criticism, indicating their complicity and indifference towards the people's suffering.

A violence worse than the condemn
The Banana Republic's regime is guilty of terrible injustices and abuses that are even worse than the crimes they condemn and punish in others.

Stab you in the back yeah
The Banana Republic's leaders and elites are deceitful and treacherous, willing to turn against their own people and betray their trust.

Laughing in your face
They openly mock and ridicule the people they are supposed to protect and lead, enjoying their power to oppress and exploit them.

Glad to see the place again
The Banana Republic's elites are happy to return to power and enjoy their privileges, even if it means the people will continue to suffer and die.

It's a pity nothing's changed
The Banana Republic remains stuck in the same cycle of corruption, violence, and oppression, and the singer laments that nothing has been done to break this vicious cycle.

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