The video had a belly dancing theme, which included distorted shots of Bono dancing, and other mystical images. It was filmed by Stephane Sednaoui in Morocco.
When played live on the Zoo TV Tour, this song featured a belly dancer on stage. The version played was extended, including a longer introduction with a piano part from The Edge. Also, a slide solo is featured after what was the end of the studio version of the song. Both the added intro and outro features added lyrics from Bono, much of which is sung in the falsetto. One of the dancers, Morleigh Steinberg, later married The Edge. It has been played on every tour since it debuted, appearing on every live video release since except for Elevation 2001: Live from Boston (although it was performed at the filmed concert). Edge has always used a Rickenbacker 330-12 for this song.
The song reached #9 on the Hot 100 (the previous single, "The Fly", had only managed to reach #61) making it one of the band's highest-charting singles in the U.S.; only three other U2 singles ("With or Without You", "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For", and "Desire") have reached higher positions. "Mysterious Ways" also topped both the Modern Rock Tracks chart and the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. It peaked at #8 on the Dutch Top 40.
Mysterious Ways
U2 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With your sister the moon
Let her pale light in
To fill up your room
You've been living underground
Eating from a can
You've been running away
From what you don't understand
She's slippy
You're sliding down
She'll be there when you hit the ground
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways, oh
Johnny, take a dive
With your sister in the rain
Let her talk about the things
You can't explain
To touch is to heal
To hurt is to steal
If you wanna kiss the sky
Better learn how to kneel (on your knees boy)
She's the wave
She turns the tide
She sees the man inside the child, yeah
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways, oh
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways
It's alright, it's alright, alright
Lift my days, light up my nights, oh
One day you'll look back and you'll see
Where you were held now by this love
While you could stand there
You could move on this moment
Follow this feeling
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways, oh
Move you, spirits move
Yeah, move
Lets you move you
Does it move you?
She moves with it
Lift my days, light up my nights, oh
The song "Mysterious Ways" by U2 is a powerful love song that speaks to the unexplainable nature of love. It opens with the advice to "Johnny" to "take a walk with your sister the moon," inviting him to let in her "pale light" to "fill up your room." Johnny represents a person who has been living underground and running away from things that he doesn't understand, but now Love has come to lift him up. The chorus repeats that "She moves in mysterious ways" but affirms that it's all right, suggesting that even though the mysterious nature of love can be confusing, it is ultimately good.
The second verse continues the metaphor of taking a dive with Johnny's sister in the rain, letting her talk about the things he can't explain. The ideas of touching and healing versus hurting and stealing suggest that love can be both a source of comfort and of pain. The line "if you wanna kiss the sky, better learn how to kneel" could refer to the idea of surrendering to Love and allowing it to lift you up.
The lyrics then end with the idea that one day Johnny will look back and see how Love has held him, and that he should follow the feeling and let it move him. Overall, the song is about the power of love and the way it can transform us, even if we don't entirely understand it.
Line by Line Meaning
Johnny, take a walk
Johnny, take a walk and clear your mind of all your troubles.
With your sister the moon
Walk with the moon by your side, as a guiding light.
Let her pale light in
Let the moon's light shine into your dark room and illuminate the secrets within.
To fill up your room
To brighten up your room and uplift your spirits.
You've been living underground
You have been living in isolation.
Eating from a can
Surviving on minimalistic resources.
You've been running away
You've been avoiding facing your uncertainties and fears.
From what you don't understand
From what you cannot comprehend or accept as reality.
She's slippy
The concept of love is unpredictable and difficult to entangle.
You're sliding down
You're getting caught up in love's unpredictability and feeling helpless and vulnerable.
She'll be there when you hit the ground
Love will be there to catch you when you fall.
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
Everything is going to be okay.
She moves in mysterious ways
Love has a way of defying logic and reason and can't be fully understood or explained.
Johnny, take a dive
Open up your mind and heart, and take a leap towards love.
With your sister in the rain
Let love immerse itself in the beauty and vulnerability of nature.
Let her talk about the things
Let love show you the beauty and complexity of the world.
You can't explain
Things that defy explanation, love included, are the most beautiful and worth pursuing.
To touch is to heal
Physical touch can heal one's emotional wounds.
To hurt is to steal
Hurtful actions can rob people of their joy and happiness.
If you wanna kiss the sky
If you want to reach new heights and experience pure bliss...
Better learn how to kneel (on your knees boy)
...you must learn to be humble and ask for help.
She's the wave
Love is like a wave, powerful and full of energy.
She turns the tide
Love changes everything and can take control of people's lives.
She sees the man inside the child, yeah
Love sees people's true selves and helps them mature and grow.
Lift my days, light up my nights, oh
Love makes life brighter and more fulfilling.
One day you'll look back and you'll see
One day, you will look back on your life and realize...
Where you were held now by this love
...where love has been an important part of your journey.
While you could stand there
While you were standing still...
You could move on this moment
...you had the opportunity to move forward and embrace love.
Follow this feeling
Embrace love and let it guide you.
Move you, spirits move
Love can awaken one's spirit and move them to action.
Yeah, move
Take action and embrace love.
Lets you move you
Love can inspire you to become the best version of yourself.
Does it move you?
Do you feel the power of love?
She moves with it
Love moves and inspires people to be their best selves.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Adam Clayton, Dave Evans, Paul David Hewson, Angelique Kidjo, Larry Mullen
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@kaah6162
""Johnny take a dive
With your sister in the rain
Let her talk about the things
You can't explain
To touch is to Heal
To hurt is to Steal
If you want kiss the sky
Better learn how to kneel ( On your knees boy!) ""
This is pure poetry.
@patrickstocks3986
Johnny take a walk
With your sister the moon
Let her pale light in
To fill up your room
You've been living underground
Eating from a can
You've been running away
From what you don't understand
Love
She's slippy
You're sliding down
She'll be there
When you hit the ground
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
Johnny take a dive
With your sister in the rain
Let her talk about the things
You can't explain
To touch is to heal
To hurt is to steal
If you want to kiss the sky
Better learn how to kneel (on your knees boy!)
She's the wave
She turns the tide
She sees the man inside the child, yeah
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
Lift my days, light up my nights
1 day you'll look back
And when you see
Where you were held
How by this love
While you could stand there
You could move on this moment
Follow this feeling
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways
It's alright, it's alright, it's alright
She moves in mysterious ways
Ah oh oh ah huh
Move, move, move, move
She moves with it
She moves me like
Lift my days and light up my nights
Love
@turc1656
That bass line is the stuff dreams are made of. Groovy as hell and wildly addictive.
@reneechristopher2121
I agree with you 💯%.
@chuckphelps6187
Even Bono has said that the band was built around Adam Clayton's bass line. An underrated musician.
@viciazzo
underrated... indeed!
@claudiapost-schultzke7216
True
@troyh7079
That was the 90s man... bass bass and more bass.
@jimmymurray6116
U2 was the most versatile bands in HISTORY: Rock, Pop, Rhythm, Indie. They could do it all with the same line up. Perfection!
@Angela-qr8wl
Same Line Up Yea!!!!
@skw0816
This song NEVER EVER gets old! Bono still has his moves too
@Macca-rb5ok
The 1990s belonged to U2 - this album and the subsequent tour took music into a new post-80s era. It's hard to describe how fresh and new this "sound" was at the time.