Invisible Sun Lyrics
Looking at the barrel of an armalite
I don't want to spend the rest of my days
Keeping out of trouble like the soldiers say
I don't want to spend my time in hell
Looking at the walls of a prison cell
I don't even want to play the part
Of a statistic on a government chart
It gives it's heat to everyone
There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done
Factory smoke and acetylene light
I face the day with my head caved in
Looking like something that the cat dragged in
It gives it's heat to everyone
There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done
By killing everybody in the human race
And they would kill me for a cigarette
But I don't even want to die just yet
It gives it's heat to everyone
There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done
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For those who disagree about this song being about Northern Ireland, I present this:
"I don't want to spend the rest of my life Looking at the barrel of an Armalite"
For those not familiar: an Armalite is an assault rifle which gained prominence because of the IRA's extensive use of it.
The idea of the invisible sun being God actually sounds plausible to me, since the conflict in Northern Ireland had religious reasons (Catholics vs. Protestants). To me, it's like the person from whose perspective Sting is singing from is saying in the chorus "I don't buy that God hates Catholics or Protestants. God is all-loving and doesn't care how you worship him."
Just my two cents.
@Mikeofreak I don't think there is any doubt this song is about the strife in Northern Ireland. Thanks for your posting.
@Mikeofreak I don't think there is any doubt this song is about the strife in Northern Ireland. Thanks for your posting.
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This is my favourite Police song and it is definitely about Northern Ireland. When he sings "There has to be an invisible sun It gives it's heat to everyone" I think he is talking about the Catholic - Protestant divide.
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And then again, the extra production actually works fine on some of the tracks. There's no way the band could have inserted all that creepiness and near-gothic majesty into a song like 'Invisible Sun' three years ago. It may deal with the problems of Northern Ireland, of course, but you wouldn't really know that without a special education problem - basically, it's just a violent social rant from Stingie. Wait... violent? It's as stern and becalmed as anything, and that gives the song an extra edge. That unnerving countdown of one... two... three... four... five... six... at the beginning, the robotic dum-dum-dum of the main synthline, Andy's solid repetitive riff, the menacing whoah-whoah harmonies, and above all, Sting's vocal manner the likes of which he'd never assumed before: immobile and dark, without the usual whiny or screechy overtones, like he's the Lord Jesus or something. Yeah yeah I know what you're thinking about, but believe me, it really works - even in the somewhat 'brighter' chorus section, which contrasts with the dark verses in a way that doesn't please everyone (I think I see the obvious seam, too), but which you eventually get used to. 'Invisible Sun' is, IMHO, the best song on here, but in no way does it overshadow the rest - as is the usual trick, EVERY song on here has at least something going on for it. [George Starostin]
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I've read that Sting was thinking in particular of an IRA prisoner hunger strike which was still underway at about the time he wrote the song.
Much as I enjoy the more poetic and imaginative interpretations of the title, I admit that it seems most likely that the Invisible Sun represents God (a choice influenced by Occam's Razor perhaps). The representation of a universally life-giving entity is reminiscent of Talmudic sayings which (though also metaphorical) refer to G-d. Granted I have no reason to believe Mr. Sumner is familiar with Judaica, but he is evidently well-read (Paul Bowles, Koestler, Jung etc.)
@foreverdrone Hunger strikes sound funny to me after I discovered the powers of fasting. If everyone fasted at least 2 days in their lives, everyone would do it more often.
@foreverdrone Hunger strikes sound funny to me after I discovered the powers of fasting. If everyone fasted at least 2 days in their lives, everyone would do it more often.
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This is my favorite song from the Police.
Hey that's today two years ago...
Hey that's today two years ago...
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I think the invisible sun is God. It could also be anything you need to believe in to get through a tough or meaningless life
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Its about the troubles in northern Ireland
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I don't see the indications that the song is specifically about Northern Ireland. It is certainly talking about a place where the government oppresses the people and industrial jobs make things even bleaker, but that could be any Orwellian society. It could have just as well been about East Germany or the USSR, couldn't it? In fact, was Northern Ireland at any point in the 20th century really as bad as the place this song describes?
The lines "they're only going to change this place by killing everybody in the human race", if taken literally, indicate that the song is not about one country or another but a fictional one-world government -- certainly to change Northern Ireland, or even the USSR, you wouldn't have to kill everybody in the human race. You wouldn't even have to have killed all the citizens of Northern Ireland.
The invisible sun is something the speaker imagines that could get one hope despite the bleakness of life in this society. It is powerfully ambiguous to say "there has to be..." He may be saying that such a thing does already exist, or else people would not be able to endure the way they do. Or he may be saying that things are too bleak and that such a thing is needed, but hasn't come along yet.
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to "rikdad"'s question about whether or not northern ireland was really that bad any time in the 20th cetury the answer is yes definately yes; there is no more to say to you. However while this song is written about Northern Ireland it can really apply to the problems of the world as a whole and how if people stopped and looked at them long and hard they would lose all hope. But since people do have inexplicable hope, there has to be some psycological reason, personified here by the invisible sun. A few people have metioned a religious fealing to the song, but I truthfully dont see that at all it seems more like a cynical but realist assessment of the world.
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this is about the troubles of northern ireland. I thought the version they performed at the conspiracy of hope tour really asserted this fact as they performed it with bono of u2.
It was also good to see basically the greatest band on earth passin on the title to a new act.
excellent song.
@deankavanagh1234 Well I dont think the Police were ever the 'greatest band on earth', but they were certainly among the most popular, for a few years. But the police and U2 still sound like a fitting pairing, for that era. They were also both on the bill at Live Aid (tho not side by side), and co-artists with the "Do They Know it's Christmas" charity single.
@deankavanagh1234 Well I dont think the Police were ever the 'greatest band on earth', but they were certainly among the most popular, for a few years. But the police and U2 still sound like a fitting pairing, for that era. They were also both on the bill at Live Aid (tho not side by side), and co-artists with the "Do They Know it's Christmas" charity single.