trip through your wires harmonica

Song Meanings and Facts

Trip Through Your Wires by U2 Lyrics Meaning – Unraveling the Emotional Labyrinth

by SMF AI · Published January 24, 2024 · Updated April 26, 2024

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The Siren’s Call: A Melody Wrapped in Mystery

Salvation in a bare embrace: when love heals and harms, duality of desire: thirst and fulfillment in one breath, the waterless well: a metaphor for exhaustion and renewal, memorable lines: ‘she saw me coming ’round’.

Still shaking Still in pain You put me back together again I was cold and you clothed me honey I was down and you lifted me honey

Angel Angel or devil I was thirsty And you wet my lips

You, I’m waiting for you You, you set my desire I trip through your wires

I was broken, bent out of shape I was naked in the clothes you made Lips were dry, throat like rust You gave me shelter from the heat and the dust No more water in the well No more water, water

All I need All I need All I need All I need All I need All I need All I need, yeah yeah

Full Lyrics

U2’s ‘Trip Through Your Wires’ has long stood as a testament to the band’s ability to weave together intricately-layered tracks that tackle the complexities of human emotion and connection. This song, from U2’s seminal album ‘The Joshua Tree’, may not have attained the chart-topping acclaim of some of its siblings, but it harbors a quiet intensity that is both compelling and confounding.

With its harmonica-infused melody and Bono’s raw vocal delivery, ‘Trip Through Your Wires’ is often perceived as a love song at its surface. However, a deeper lyrical dive reveals a rich tapestry of symbolism and allusion, painting a picture that oscillates between salvation and dependence, eros and agape.

The opening lines of ‘Trip Through Your Wires’ immediately set a scene of yearning and pursuit. The ‘she’ who is witnessing the protagonist’s approach binds the song in a narrative that feels both intimate and distant. This duality is the thread that runs through the song’s fabric, suggesting a relationship that is salvationary in its closeness yet still shrouded in enigma.

The music also plays a fundamental role in driving this dichotomy. It is a sonic journey starting from the bare, earthy strumming of a guitar, building up with the plaintive wail of a harmonica, and culminating in a full-band crescendo that mirrors the emotional volatility present in the lyrics.

U2 doesn’t shy away from religious references, and ‘Trip Through Your Wires’ seems to balance on the knife-edge between earthly love and spiritual salvation. ‘You put me back together again’ speaks volumes of a love that heals, while ‘I was naked in the clothes you made’ implies a vulnerability that is clothed not just physically but emotionally.

Is the song’s subject an ‘Angel’ or ‘devil,’ a force of good that quenches thirst, or one that fosters an addictive dependency? Here lies the crux of the song’s tension—an exploration of a relationship where the line between helping and hindering is beautifully blurred.

There is an undeniable erotic charge to ‘Trip Through Your Wires.’ The thirst needing quenching and the lips wetting speak explicitly to desire, a longing not just for physicality but for a connection that satiates the deeper emotional caverns.

U2 channels this desire as a force that binds and propels, the idea that in waiting for another, one can trip over their complexities and intricacies. To trip through someone’s wires is to navigate the unpredictable and potentially perilous pathways of intimacy.

‘No more water in the well’—this line, stark and desolate, evokes an emotional drought, a state of depletion where the narrator is in dire need of replenishment. U2 paints a picture of someone who has reached their limits, physically and emotionally, standing on the edge of resilience.

Yet, even from this desiccation, there is the anticipation of rain—a rejuvenation that only the subject of the song can provide. This raincloud in the desert sky symbolizes hope and the possibility of transformation, suggesting that even in the direst landscapes of the heart, there remains a sliver of potential for revival.

An epitaph to the journey this song encapsulates, ‘She saw me coming ’round’ is not just a recollection of being seen but also a testament to the cyclical nature of the narrator’s struggle. It is a return to the beginning, an echo that ripples through the song, suggesting that the trip through these wires is a loop of sorts—a struggle that is continuous and, perhaps, eternal.

The dualities of assuredness and ambiguity, presence and absence, resonate in this line, emblematic of a track that is as much about the pitfalls of fervent desire as it is about the redemptive power of a profound and personal connection.

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Trip Through Your Wires (Live from Boston, MA, Sep. 18, 1987)

Song lyrics:.

Yo All right

She says She saw me coming ‘round I was calling out I was calling out

Still shaking, still in pain She put me back together again I was cold and you clothed me, honey I was down and you lifted me, honey

Angel Angel or devil I was thirsty And you wet my lips

You, I’m waiting for you You, you set my desire I trip through your wires

I think my harmonica playing sounds even better When it isn’t through the microphone You know what I mean?

I was broken, bent out of shape I was naked in the clothes you made Lips are dry, throat like rust You give me shelter from the heat and the dust No more water in the well No more water, water

You, I’m waiting for you You, you set my desire I trip through your wires, hey!

All I need, all I need All I need, all I need All I need, all I need Love is all I need, yeah

Thunder, thunder on the mountain There’s a rain cloud in the desert sky In the distance, she saw me coming ‘round I was calling out, I was calling out, hey

Trip Through Your Wires : From which show?

I've heard a version of "Trip through your wires" that begins with bono saying: "This is a song we originally wrote for Frank Sinatra, but then we found out he didn't know how to play the harmonica." Which version is this, and what bootleg is it from? Also: I've noticed that when it comes to practically all not VERY popular bootleg song versions on U2start, it says that there's for example "two versions of this song", even if the song has been played hundreds of times. Why is this?

Originally posted by carlibengarli I've heard a version of "Trip through your wires" that begins with bono saying: "This is a song we originally wrote for Frank Sinatra, but then we found out he didn't know how to play the harmonica." Which version is this, and what bootleg is it from? [..]

Originally posted by carlibengarli Also: I've noticed that when it comes to practically all not VERY popular bootleg song versions on U2start, it says that there's for example "two versions of this song", even if the song has been played hundreds of times. Why is this?

Yes it is supposed to, but it should NOT state that "there ARE two versions of this song", when there are in fact a whole LOT more. Furthermore, I don't care whether or not it's showmanship, and I'm only looking for the version in which he states EXACTLY those words (when he dedicated certain songs to his father he made different expressions practically each time). To add another pointer however, I might add that the version was of high quality (at least four stars). If you have any ideas or even guesses as to what version I might be referring to, please tell me. Thank you in advance!

Originally posted by carlibengarli Yes it is supposed to, but it should NOT state that "there ARE two versions of this song", when there are in fact a whole LOT more.

I think its Denver 11-7-87.

I thought so too, but it turns out that bootleg's version of the song has no such introduction.

Originally posted by carlibengarli I've heard a version of "Trip through your wires" that begins with bono saying: "This is a song we originally wrote for Frank Sinatra, but then we found out he didn't know how to play the harmonica." Which version is this, and what bootleg is it from? Also: I've noticed that when it comes to practically all not VERY popular bootleg song versions on U2start, it says that there's for example "two versions of this song", even if the song has been played hundreds of times. Why is this?

Originally posted by carlibengarli Yes it is supposed to, but it should NOT state that "there ARE two versions of this song", when there are in fact a whole LOT more. [...]

Mountains in a blue sky? How am I supposed to know exactly what bootleg that is? :S Any assistance decryptifying this code would be appreciated. Thanks!

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U2 Plays the Blues on ‘Trip Through Your Wires’: The Story Behind Every ‘ Joshua Tree’ Song

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In the early stages of creating what would become The Joshua Tree , U2 were creating batches of songs that were meant to go together. Bono became adamant that “ With or Without You ” didn’t truly make sense without the context of “Luminous Times” and “Walk to the Water.” He felt similarly about “Trip Through Your Wires” when removed from the counter-balance of “Sweetest Thing.”

Although the U2 frontman would make the case for a double-LP version of The Joshua Tree that would include everything, he was outvoted by his bandmates. “With or Without You” and “Trip Through Your Wires” made the 11-track album. The rest became b-sides.

So what split the difference between “Wires” and “Sweetest Thing”? Both were about love – one song about being enticed, the other about being apologetic. But part of it had to do with each song’s musical identity. Although each song was based in American musical styles (blues for “Wires,” R&B for “Sweetest”), the former had the rougher, rootsy approach that better-suited the entirety of the album.

“We definitely were falling into the arms of America in the sense that, as a band, punk rock was so much about establishing a unique form of music not inspired or influenced by American music,” the Edge told Rolling Stone . “ The Joshua Tree  was the first album where we consciously went, ‘OK, we spent like four albums thinking about Europe, Ireland, but let’s take a look at the roots of this form that we are inevitably a part of.’ And those were all American. So we looked at American [music]. We looked at the blues.”

“Trip Through Your Wires” was initially a bit more bluesy, as evidenced by an early performance of the tune on Dublin’s RTE TV program in 1986. It was a crude, but not misleading, preview of what was coming next for U2. Edge plays a rustic, jangly guitar and Bono honks on his harmonica as Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. lurch through the familiar rhythm.

Watch U2 Perform "Trip Through Your Wires" in 1986

Yes, the rhythm might be familiar, but most of the words are not – with the exception of play on words in the lyrical hook. Bono’s braying about “this town” would be replaced by the desert imagery that soon became a common thread on Joshua Tree songs (see “ Where the Streets Have No Name ” and “ In God’s Country ”). Although its bluesy gait would remain, the song would gain polish under the tutelage of the album’s co-producers Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois .

“I really like that one, though it probably has less of a melody than the other songs on the album,” Lanois recalled to Hot Press .

It’s ironic that, although “Trip Through Your Wires” made the album and “Sweetest Thing” did not, the latter is now the better-known U2 song. “Wires” was promptly put away after the ’87 tour, while “Sweetest” eventually gained new life in a rerecorded version that became a radio hit in Ireland, the U.K. and, to a lesser extent, the U.S. in 1999.

Read More About 'Joshua Tree' Songs

" Where the Streets Have No Name "

" I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For "

" With or Without You "

" Bullet the Blue Sky "

" Running to Stand Still "

" Red Hill Mining Town "

" In God's Country "

" One Tree Hill "

" Exit "

" Mothers of the Disappeared "

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U2 Harmonica Songs

• Thread starter 04072511
• Start date Jun 19, 2007
• Jun 19, 2007

Not sure if this is the right place to post this but Im looking for a list of all U2 songs ever recorded in which a harmonica was used! So far I can only think of 4: Running To Stand Still Trip Through Your Wires Desire Love Rescue Me Could anyone tell me what ones Im missing? Thanks  

phillyfan26

Blue crack supplier.

Angel of Harlem live on the Vertigo Tour.  

redhotswami

Blue crack addict.

Are you just interested in recordings? For example, Bono played the harmonica in a live performance of Angel of Harlem  

Yeh mainly just recordings  

phillyfan26 said: Angel of Harlem live on the Vertigo Tour. Click to expand...

there was harmonica played by bongo at the end of Exit, leading into In Gods Country, in a live performance on The Whistle Test (BBC2 music prog) in 1987, just as The Joshua Tree was released.  

Slow Dancing the Willie version had harmonica, but it wasn't Bono playing...  

Rock n' Roll Doggie VIP PASS

Bono played harmonica on the last performance of In God's Country, I believe.  

The_acrobat

WOMANFISH!!!!!  

ZOOTVTOURist

On Melissa Etheridge's "Brave And Crazy" (1989) Bono played great harmonica on the track "Royal Station 4/16" ...  

ZOOTVTOURist said: On Melissa Etheridge's "Brave And Crazy" (1989) Bono played great harmonica on the track "Royal Station 4/16" ... Click to expand...

LyricalDrug

Rock n' roll doggie.

The_acrobat said: WOMANFISH!!!!! Click to expand...

crumbs from your table  

t8thgr8 said: crumbs from your table Click to expand...

• Jun 21, 2007

Rock n' Roll Doggie ALL ACCESS

mine  

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Trip Through Your Wires by U2

• In the distance She saw me coming 'round I was calling out I was calling out Still shaking Still in pain You put me back together again I was cold and you clothed me honey I was down and you lifted me honey Angel Angel or devil I was thirsty And you wet my lips You, I'm waiting for you You, you set my desire I trip through your wires I was broken, bent out of shape I was naked in the clothes you made Lips were dry, throat like rust You gave me shelter from the heat and the dust No more water in the well No more water, water Angel Angel or devil I was thirsty And you wet my lips You, I'm waiting for you You, you set my desire I trip through your wires All I need All I need All I need All I need All I need All I need All I need, yeah yeah Thunder, thunder on the mountain There's a rain cloud in the desert sky In the distance she saw me coming 'round I was calling out I was calling out Writer/s: Adam Clayton, Dave Evans, Larry Mullen, Paul Hewson Publisher: Universal Music Publishing Group Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind
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Comments: 7

• Francisco Javier from Tudela De Duero, Spain Maybe the songs tells the history of the polemic relationship between Jesuscrhist and Maria Magdalena: "..Angel or devil, i was thirsty and you wet my lips"-Maria givin´ water to Jesus after crucifixion. "you set my desire, i trip throguh your wires"
• Miles from Vancouver, Canada Somehow, I've thought this song sounded like it was influenced by Led Zeppelin. Bono's harmonica sounds almost like that of Robert Plant.
• Ben from Gosford, Australia It's a very sexy-sounding song. I love the line "Still shaking, still in pain, you put me back together again."
• Curtis from Cornwall On Hudson , Ny I used to have a version they did on live TV, perhaps the one mentioned above but it had different lyrics and was about a city, presumably Dublin. On the same show they did a song called Womanfish which I have never heard anywhere else. I strongly suspect that at least Bono was drunk of his a**.
• Cole from Bucks County, Pa I always thought this song was about an artist embracing his muse/art. When I met the first woman I loved, this song meant something more.
• Anthony from Dalles, Tx what is the song about?
• Ash from Charleston, Wv This is one of those tunes that used to just send me into a frenzy of pure unadulterated joy!! Know what I'm sayin'?

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Trip Through Your Wires

20 comments.

Lyrics submitted by slickboot

Trip Through Your Wires Lyrics as written by Dave Evans Adam Clayton

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

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Absolutely one of my favorite songs on the Joshua Tree, I love the gritty desert mirage feel to this song. It's one of the only U2 songs to paint a very clear image in the mind's eye. It's not only a great song to have sex to, it's a wonderful song for any mood. :)

I don't think it's religious per se, but I think Bono's definately going somewhere with the whole angel/devil scenario. You get the impression of someone who is desperately in need of food, shelter, clothes, water, etc. and then, finally someone shows him mercy and it doesn't really matter to him if his saviour is an angel or a devil, because, as he says: "I was thirsty and you wet my lips."

Perhaps this song is about how easy it is for people to be swayed to the dark side when the "devil" can appear just as attractive and kind as an angel. When I think of "Trip", I think of a man who is lost and dying out in the desert and the first person he sees; the first person who shows him mercy, is really the devil in disguise. This song sort of demonstrates how easily humanity can be tricked and corrupted. How a human being's willingness to see only the good in other people can be their ultimate downfall.

The man didn't really care if his saviour was an angel or a devil, and thus is born the title of the song "Trip through your wires,". When I hear this song, I always think of a man making a deal with the devil.

Just a thought...

• No Replies Log in to reply

I can't believe anyone's not commented on this song. I love it! Sure, it's not the best musically on JT, but it's still fabulous.

So first of all, U2 is a Christian band guys, come on. This song is about sin and how much people crave it. "you" is referring to sin (possibly an addiction) It starts and ends with the same thing because he is calling out to his "angel" per-say, but he falls back into sin. then the whole thunder, rain part at the end means that he is seeing the truth that whatever he is doing is not right so now he is going to quench his thirst with truth. Yay for knowing what genre bands really are! =P peace, love, robots.

• 1 Reply Log in to reply

I think alistrine 13 is right about the sin aspect, I sense there is a real two way temptation. Maybe they are both married, or at least, she is. She obviously cares for him by clothing him, and he obviously wants more water, but it can only go so far. I see something slightly different in the thunderstorm metaphor though. There is a storm coming, might shake things up, meaning maybe she will get a divorce. So, the raincloud represents the possibility that he will eventually get the water he wants. But, I suppose it could be the water of truth as well.

Matthew 25:35-36 Just my 2 cents

This seems like a not-so-deep song IMHO...a guy hasn't seen a woman in a while,she "wets his lips"(heh)and he's been dry(heh heh)so long he don't care if she's good or bad;by the end of the song("in the distance,she saw me coming 'round,I was calling out,I was calling out")he's either already moved on to the next one after another "dry" spell(for a man this could be only a few days or hours)or back to his old girlfriend-thingy etc etc...

This is a little strange, but this is my favorite song from the JT. I'm not sure it has anything to with the lyrics. I am probably way off, but it seems like the song is about a respite of a soul.

Strange that there are only two comments. I'm with claudiathefish, this is my favorite song on the album.

So does Bono get his satisfaction or not?

@_ellie You know, he never really gets what he's looking for. ;)

One thing I noticed in the lyrics of the song is that it has both a "you" and a "she"....perhaps the you is the devil and the she is the angel..she is the 'rain cloud' in the desert sky that gives him water and who sees him coming home...

I think maybe the narrator feels that he or she doesn't deserve to helped or saved, and so that maybe the narrator is asking a question: "Angel, angel or devil?" And then "I was thirsty, and you wet my lips." So he has been helped, but did he deserve it or need it? Is the person who helped him good for being kind and compassionate enough to help someone or a devil for giving someone something they don't need or deserve, only making something worse.

But that's probably far off, I just always thought this because "Angel or devil" for some reason always stuck out to me as a question, though it may not be.

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Trip Through Your Wires

About Trip Through Your Wires

"Trip Through Your Wires" is a song by Irish rock band U2 and the eighth track on their 1987 album, The Joshua Tree. The song has a bluesy rhythm and features lead singer Bono on harmonica. In 1986 an early version of this song, containing different lyrics was performed on the RTÉ programme TV GAGA. During the song's recording, producer Daniel Lanois played the Omnichord, an electronic autoharp. He plugged it into the equipment of guitarist the Edge, using his delay effect units and guitar amplifier. Lanois said it sounded like an organ "jangling in the background". The song was released as a promotional single in Australia, with only 500 hand-numbered copies released. The single included the B-sides "Luminous Times (Hold on to Love)", "Spanish Eyes" and "Silver and Gold". "Trip Through Your Wires" was consistently played live throughout the Joshua Tree Tour, but wasn't played again until The Joshua Tree Tour 2017 during the set where the album is played in its entirety. According to The Edge, the song was meant to be heard in the context of another song that never made it on the album, "The Sweetest Thing", which was later released as the B-side of "Where the Streets Have No Name". "The Sweetest Thing" was re-recorded and released as a single for the 1998 compilation album The Best of 1980–1990.   more »

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U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono (vocals and guitar), The Edge (guitar, keyboards, and vocals), Adam Clayton (bass guitar), and Larry Mullen, Jr. (drums and percussion). U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music. Throughout the group's musical pursuits, they have maintained a sound built on melodic instrumentals, highlighted by The Edge's timbrally varied guitar sounds and Bono's expressive vocals. Their lyrics, often embellished with spiritual imagery, focus on personal themes and sociopolitical concerns. more »

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Written by: ADAM CLAYTON, DAVE EVANS, LARRY MULLEN, PAUL HEWSON

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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"Trip Through Your Wires Lyrics." Lyrics.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 30 Apr. 2024. < https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/34038074/U2/Trip+Through+Your+Wires >.

Missing lyrics by U2?

Know any other songs by u2 don't keep it to yourself, image credit, the web's largest resource for, music, songs & lyrics, a member of the stands4 network, watch the song video, more tracks from the album, the joshua tree [30th anniversary deluxe edition].

• #3 With or Without You
• #4 Bullet the Blue Sky
• #6 Red Hill Mining Town
• #7 In God's Country
• #8 Trip Through Your Wires
• #9 One Tree Hill
• #11 Mothers of the Disappeared
• #14 Trip Through Your Wires [Live]
• #17 Bullet the Blue Sky [Live]
• #19 In God's Country [Live]
• #24 Pride (In the Name of Love) [Live]
• #25 With or Without You [Live]

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