'I've got you under my skin' lyrics by Bono and Frank Sinatra

'I've got you under my skin' lyrics by Bono and Frank Sinatra

A song with a pedigree of talent. Written by the great song writer Cole Porter and when first sung by Virginia Bruce it became an Oscar nominated song in 1936. 

Frank Sinatra made it his own in 1946. A re-recording in 1966 prove extremely popular an it became a standard to cover.

And then enters Bono.

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Bono and the Chairman of the Board recorded it was a duet in 1993 and released it as a double A-Side with the U2 single, Stay (Faraway, So Close) from the Grammy Award winning Zooropa album.

Bono mae a variant to the lyrics when he sang 'don't you know old blue eyes' - a reference to Sinatra himself.

The Four Seasons also had a round around with as has both Michael Buble and Bolton.

U2's I've got you under my skin song lyrics:

I have got you under my skin
I've got you deep in the heart of me
So deep in my heart you're really a part of me
I've got you under my skin

I have tried so not to give in
I have said to myself this affair, never gonna go so well
But why should I try to resist when baby, I know so well
That I've got you under my skin

I would sacrifice anything come what might
For the sake of holding you near
In spite of a warning voice comes in the night
And repeats, and it shout's in my ear

Bono

"Don't you know blue eyes, you never can win
Use your mentality, wake up to reality"
But each time I do just the thought of you
Makes me stop before I begin
Because I've got you under my skin

I'd sacrifice everything come what might
For the sake of having you near
Inspite of a warning voice that comes in the night
And repeats, and it shout's in my ear

"Don't you know you fool, you never can win
Use your mentality, wake up to reality"
But each time that I do just the thought of you
Makes me stop before I begin
'Cause I've got you under my skin
And I love you under my skin

U2 would later compose an original song for Frank Sinatra called Two Shots of Happy, One Shot of Sad.

The Real Meaning of 5 U2 Song Lyrics

The real meaning of 5 U2 Song Lyrics

A classic rock song, can say anything and mean everything.

Look at Oasis's Wonderwall lyrics for example. It's basically a love song but without really actually meaning or saying anything.

To my mind, a really good song is one which has hidden depths - and those depths can usually be found in the lyrics and often in U2 songs.

Here's 5 U2 song lyrics that have some real meaning, and some real bite to them.

God Part II

People often wonder why this song is called Pt II as they've never heard of a U2 song called God before. It's actually intended as a sequel to John Lennon's song called God.

Lennon's song refers to things he didn't believe in such as Hitler - Bono's version also refers to things that he also doesn't believe in but also goes on to refer to how pissed he was at the author Albert Goldman who wrote an unflattering biography of Lennon (and also a bio of Elvis, and given U2's love of Elvis, I'm not surprised Bono made the reference).

Sunday Bloody Sunday 

This one is a pretty obvious song, but newer U2 fans may not realise the historical context and meaning of this song.

It's an exploration of the conflict that can exist between the State, it's people and when religion gets thrown into the mix.

Inspired by two terrible occasions where soldiers shot civilians in Northen Ireland - the lyrics capture these moments crisply by invoking the cross fire that occurred between Ireland's conflicting religions and the military action that was taken - and by extension the State's role in the massacres.

Walk On

This is one of those songs that stray into the say anything, mean anything territory but U2 have put some real context around it to to ensure that it's lyrics are not misunderstood.

Dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi, this song is a freedom song, dedicated to the exponent of democracy and freedom in Mynamar.

Poignantly during the 360 degree tour, U2 played this song at every concert and had supporters of Amnesty International come out on to the stage to show their support for Aung San Suu Kyi and U2's support for the people of Mynammar and their efforts to become a truly democratic society.

Spanish Eyes

Despite stealing lyrics from "She's a rainbow" by the Rolling Stones, Spanish Eyes is a love song to Bono's wife Ali - and she is actually Irish thus confusing the heck out of many U2 fans.

However, it's often thought that Irish people do have eyes that have a hint of Spanish about them so perhaps that's want Bono's lyrics were trying to convey.

This b-side from The Joshua Tree era kind of complements The Sweetest Thing in the sense that it was also a b-side and also a love letter to Ali.

Zooropa

Zooropa is a really crazy song that opens the album of the same name.

Some fans have been confused by the lyrics of the song - they seem so mumble jumbled and make no sense.

The real meaning of the song can be determined when you realise the lyrics are a hodge podge of slogans from famous brands.

Zooropa's lyrics have a running theme of irony, tying in the "media overload" themes of the Zoo TV Tour into the context of a post-Berlin Wall Europe.

The song's lyrics touch on how modern technology can unite people as well as separates  them from each other.

Want more? Check out U2 lyrics that explore Jesus, Yahweh and The Good Book.

'Instrument Flying' song lyrics by U2

'Instrument Flying' song lyrics by U2 from the Songs of Experience album

This is a rumoured title for a new U2 track. Well it's not so much of a rumour, it exists as recorded song. This was confirmed by The Edge and Adam in a recent magazine article as being a thing. 

Is not however confirmed if the 'Instruments Flying' song will make the final cut and appear on U2's next album, Songs of Experience.

Other rumored new U2 songs include, Civilisation, Much More Better and the curiously titled The Little Things That Give You Away.

'Civilization' song lyrics by U2 from the Songs of Experience album

'Civilization' song lyrics by U2 from the Songs of Experience album

This is a rumoured title for a new U2 track. Well it's not so much of a rumour, it exists as recorded song. This was confirmed by The Edge and Adam in a recent magazine article. 

What is not confirmed is if 'Civilisation' will make the final cut and appear on U2's next album, Songs of Experience.

'Much More Better' song lyrics by U2

'Much More Better' song lyrics by U2 from the Songs of Experience album

This is now a confirmed title for a new U2 song from the SOE album.

Bono bicycle accident where he broke is arm is the inspiration for the song.

Edit: This song actually became  officially known as The Showman (Much More Better) and was released as such on Songs of Experience.

How many number ones has U2 had?

How many number one songs have U2 had?

The short version: UK 7 and US 2

The long version:

U2 have had all kinds of hits on the music charts but at the end of the day it’s the songs that made number one on those charts that are often the ones asked about as questions in pub quizzes.

So to help you out, here’s a list or two of U2 songs that have made number one.

There are various kinds of charts that track song popularity and they often revolve around rock, country and blues and are used to allow music that would never be mainstream get some air time. There’s even the itunes charts which for some unexplained reason people seem to think matters… but the truth is digital sales are the the only way sales of singles occur these days.

When was the last time you physically purchased a U2 single?

Two my mind there are only two charts that really count. Being ‘Top of the Pops’ in the UK means you are number one and crowning the Billboard 200 means you have the most popular song for the week in America.

And we’ll use those charts to show how many number on hits U2 have had.

First up is the America Billboard chart which shows the U2 have had two number one hits. Both hits were from The Joshua Tree and were With or Without You and I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For. Desire from Rattle and Hum made it as high as 3 and a couple of singles from Achtung Baby and Pop made the top 10 and that’s it.

So, U2 have only had 2 number one American hits.

It’s a better story for the UK chart where U2 have had a bit more success in terms of chart toppers.

Nothing from The Joshua Tree went to number one despite the album’s massive success so it was Desire that became U2’s first UK number one hit. It came from Rattle and Hum. In 1991 when The Fly flew off as the lead single from Achtung Baby it landed at number 1.

It was a long time between drinks when Discotheque dropped in 1997.

U2’s All That You Can’t Leave Behind had a string of popular singles but only Beautiful Day in 2000 managed the top spot.

A debatable number one is Take Me to the Clouds Above" by LMC vs. U2. Debatable as it was a song featuring samples from U2's With or Without You with a health splash of Whitney Houston thrown in. At the end of the day, the song has U2’s name in the space where the artist’s name goes so it counts as a number one.

How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb offered a notable double with both Vertigo and Sometimes You Can’t Make It on Your Own grabbing their time in the top position.

'No Line on the Horizon' suffered from a lack of hit singles. Such a shame, the album had some good songs.

This means U2 have had seven number one hits in the UK and two in the United States. Unsurprisingly, U2 are even more popular in their home country of Ireland and owned the number one place an awesome 21 times.

That's right in Ireland, U2 have had 21 number one singles.

U2 also seems to do fairly well in Canada.

A really interesting number one is The Joshua Tree's song, One Tree Hill. It was written in memory of Greg Carrol, a friend of U2 who died while working for them. Carrol was a New Zealander so U2 decided to release the single only in New Zealand where it went to one, become U2's first number one there.

When U2 play NZ, they play that song every time and rarely play it outside of NZ but they did for the 30th Anniversary of the The Joshua Tree.

List of U2’s UK number one songs:

• Desire
• The Fly
• Discotheque
• Beautiful Day
• Take Me to the Clouds Above
• Vertigo
• Sometimes You Can’t Make it On Your Own

And if you're still with us, here's a list of U2's number one albums.

The Joshua Tree album lyrics by U2

The Joshua Tree album lyrics

The follow up to the well received The Unforgettable Fire made U2 globally famous and delivered some of the best songs that the 80's could muster.

The Joshua Tree's lyrics delved into the politics of the US Government, heroin addition, love, spirituality and other social issues.

Can you believe it's been thirty years since the album was released?

The Joshua Tree lyrics:

1. "Where the Streets Have No Name"
2. "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"
3. "With or Without You"
4. "Bullet the Blue Sky"
5. "Running to Stand Still"
6. "Red Hill Mining Town"
7. "In God's Country"
8. "Trip Through Your Wires"
9. "One Tree Hill"
10. "Exit"
11. "Mothers of the Disappeared"

The Joshua Tree sold over 30 million albums and the songs With Or Without and Where the Streets Have No Name are played at every single concert as the fans have been known to riot if they are not played!

The Joshua Tree recording sessions also produced some pretty sweet B-sides such as Silver and Gold and Sweetest Thing (The Single Mix).

Fun (sad) fact: One Tree Hill is only ever really played in NZ as a tribute to Greg Caroll, a friend of U2 who as killed while employed by U2.

When U2 played it in Auckland in 2010 it was dedicated to the miners of  the Pike River Mine Disaster.