One of the most iconic political protest songs in history, U2’s 1983 classic “Sunday Bloody Sunday” helped cement the Irish band as a titanic rock and roll act who transcended music to become a global force. Bono sings the song from the perspective of an observer of the 1972 Bloody Sunday massacre during the Troubles in Northern Ireland, where British troops shot unarmed civil rights protesters and killed 14 people. The song’s opening lyrics became a rallying cry for war torn populations:
“I can’t believe the news today, I can’t close my eyes and make it go away. How long, how long myst we sing this song? Til it’s too late, too late. Cause tonight, we can be as one, Tonight!”
Today, on the 50th anniversary of the Bloody Sunday massacre, U2 released an acoustic version of the song. Posted to the band’s social media accounts, it features only Bono and The Edge in a modest studio performing the song in black and white. The Edge is on an acoustic guitar and he joins Bono on backing vocals to punctuate the song’s high points. Midway through the clip, footage of the 1972 event are spliced in. The video’s caption reads simply “30 January 2022 – With love, Bono & Edge”
It’s a timely reminder that “Sunday Bloody Sunday” isn’t just famous as the opening track to War, the band’s first platinum album, but also a reminder of how many nations could feel the pain and emotions that Bono and the band laid out many years ago.