Em 1970, John Lennon lançou a música “God“, no célebre álbum “Plastic Ono Band”, e 18 anos depois o U2 lançaria “God Part II“, no álbum “Rattle and Hum”, uma continuação-resposta de Bono Vox e sua banda às crenças de Lennon. Ambas as letras tem uma estrutura que lista várias coisas em que não acreditam, mas enquanto o ex-beatle diz mais solenemente que “Deus é um conceito pela qual medimos nossa dor” e que, no fim, “só acreditava em si mesmo”, a letra do U2 é mais argumentativa e possui um refrão onde Bono repete que “acredita no amor”.
Abaixo, as duas letras com vídeos para ouvir (nenhuma delas possui clipe oficial):
John Lennon, “God” (do álbum “Plastic Ono Band”):
God is a concept,
By which we measure
Our pain.
I’ll say it again.
God is a concept,
By which we measure
Our pain.
I don’t believe in magic
I don’t believe in I-Ching
I don’t believe in Bible
I don’t believe in Tarot
I don’t believe in Hitler
I don’t believe in Jesus
I don’t believe in Kennedy
I don’t believe in Buddha
I don’t believe in Mantra
I don’t believe in Gita
I don’t believe in Yoga
I don’t believe in Kings
I don’t believe in Elvis
I don’t believe in Zimmerman
I don’t believe in Beatles
I just believe in me
Yoko and me
And that’s reality.
The dream is over,
What can I say?
The dream is over
Yesterday
I was the dreamweaver,
But now I’m reborn.
I was the walrus,
But now I’m John.
And so dear friends,
You just have to carry on
The dream is over.
U2, “God Part II” (do álbum “Rattle and Hum”):
Don’t believe the devil
I don’t believe his book
But the truth is not the same
Without the lies he made up.
Don’t believe in excess
Success is to give
Don’t believe in riches
But you should see where I live.
I, I believe in love.
Don’t believe in forced entry
Don’t believe in rape
But every time she passes by
Wild thoughts escape.
Don’t believe in Death Row
Skid row or the gangs.
Don’t believe in the Uzi
It just went off in my hands.
I, I believe in love.
Don’t believe in cocaine
Got a speedball in my head
I could cut and crack you open
Did you hear what I said?
Don’t believe them when they tell me
There ain’t no cure.
The rich stay healthy
The sick stay poor.
I, I believe in love.
Don’t believe in Goldman
His type like a curse
Instant karma’s gonna get him
If I don’t get him first.
Don’t believe that Rock ‘n’ Roll
Can really change the world
As it spins in revolution
Yeah, it spirals and turns.
I, I believe in love.
Don’t believe in the sixties
The golden age of pop
You glorify the past
When the future dries up.
Heard a singer on the radio
Late last night
Says he’s gonna kick the darkness
Till it bleeds daylight.
I, I believe in love.
Feel like I’m fallin’
I’m spinnin’ on a wheel
It always stops beside a name
A presence I can feel.
I believe in love.
Stop!
Amo John Lennon pela sinceridade e coragem de nadar contra todas as correntes poderosas dos mitos da atual sociedade ocidental. Lutou pela Paz e pela não hipocrisia. Por isso foi assassinado.
Amo Bono Vox por ser um visionário apaixonado pela humanidade e trazer-nos sua poesia de uma maneira tão inteligente e sempre vanguardista.