The lyrics take inspiration from the story of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, as well as from Bono's holidays as a child in Rush, Dublin. Bono has described the song as "comic megalomania".
The Ocean
U2 Lyrics
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Dorian Gray
Just me by the sea
And I felt like a star
I felt the world could go far
If they listened
To what I said, the sea
Washes my feet
Washes the feet
Splashes the soul of my shoes
The opening lines of "The Ocean" highlight U2's penchant for dense lyrical imagery. The "picture in grey" of Dorian Gray suggests a timeless portrait, perhaps pointing to the dangers of vanity or the pitfalls of fame. Bono's setting is "just me by the sea," framing himself as an anonymous figure standing at the edge of the world. This sense of isolation is furthered in the next line, where he expresses a grandiose feeling of stardom, for a moment imagining that the world could do great things if it would only listen to him.
But this sense of grandeur is tempered by the sea, which washes over the singer's feet and soul. The water's constant motion and vastness forms a contrast to the singer's narrow perspective, at once a humbling realization that there's much more to the world than ourselves as well as an opportunity to reflect on life's cyclical nature. Thus, by song's end, the singer's grand self-confidence has been reduced (or enlarged) to a humbled and purified soul.
Line by Line Meaning
A picture in grey
A dreary and dull image
Dorian Gray
A reference to the character from Oscar Wilde's novel who is perpetually youthful, but has a decaying portrait hidden in his attic
Just me by the sea
Being alone by the water
And I felt like a star
Feeling important and special
I felt the world could go far
Believing in the potential of humanity to achieve great things
If they listened
If people paid attention
To what I said, the sea
To the words spoken while surrounded by the ocean
Washes my feet
Cleanses and purifies the feet
Washes the feet
Cleanses and purifies the feet
Splashes the soul of my shoes
Gently and rhythmically touches the essence of the shoes, representing the connection between oneself and the earth
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ADAM CLAYTON, DAVE EVANS, LARRY MULLEN, PAUL HEWSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
A me
on eleven o' clock tick tock
And girls can make children but not like this one...so will just have to walk around with a painted face then...
LMewdowlark
on One
Baby, baby, baby, I know I'm not alone
Ha, ha, ha
Oh, it's not a hill it's a mountain
As you start out the climb
You see, for me, I've been shouting
Let's shout into the darkness, squeeze out sparks of light
You know we're gonna go crazy, you know we'll go crazy
You know we'll go crazy, if we don't go crazy tonight
Oh, slowly
Oh
Hold me slow
Again, these are the wrong lyrics. They are not the lyrics for 'One' but a different song. I pasted the correct lyrics in my other comment.
LMewdowlark
on One
And there's a part of you that wants me to riot
Everybody needs to cry or needs to spit
Every sweet-tooth needs just a little hit
Every beauty needs to go out with an idiot
How can you stand next to the truth and not see it?
Oh, change of heart comes slow
It's not a hill, it's a mountain
As you start out the climb
Do you believe me or are you doubting?
We're gonna make it all the way to the light
But I know I'll go crazy if I don't go crazy tonight
Every generation gets a chance to change the world
Pity the nation that won't listen to you boys and girls
Is the sweetest melody the one we haven't heard?
Is it true that perfect love drives out all fear?
The right to be ridiculous is something I hold dear
Oh, but change of heart comes slow
It's not a hill, it's a mountain
As you start out the climb
You see, for me, I've been shouting
But we're gonna make it all the way to the light
But I know I'll go crazy if I don't go crazy tonight
Is it getting better
Or do you feel the same?
Will it make it easier on you now
You got someone to blame?
You say, one love, one life
When it's one need in the night
One love, we get to share it
Leaves you, baby, if you don't care for it
Did I disappoint you
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without
Well, it's too late tonight
To drag the past out into the light
We're one, but we're not the same
We get to carry each other, carry each other
One
Have you come here for forgiveness?
Have you come to raise the dead?
Have you come here to play Jesus?
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much? More than a lot
You gave me nothing, now it's all I got
We're one but we're not the same
Well, we hurt each other then we do it again
You say love is a temple, love a higher law
Love is a temple, love the higher law
You ask me to enter but then you make me crawl
And I can't be holdin' on to what you got
When all you got is hurt
One love, one blood
One life, you got to do what you should
One life with each other
Sisters, brothers
One life but we're not the same
We get to carry each other, carry each other
One
One