"Zombie" is about the ethno-political conflict in Ireland. This is obvious if you know anything of the singer (Dolores O'Riordan)'s Irish heritage and understood the "1916" Easter Rising reference.
"Another head hangs lowly
Child is slowly taken
And the violence caused such silence
Who are we mistaken
-
Another mother's breaking
Heart is taking over"
Laments the Warrington bomb attacks in which two children were fatally injured on March 23rd, 1993. Twelve year old Tim Parry was taken off life support with permission from his mother after five days in the hospital, virtually braindead.
"But you see it's not me
It's not my family"
References how people who are not directly involved with the violence feel about it. They are "zombies" without sympathy who refuse to take action while others suffer.
I was raised in the ruins, mama, 'till I was thirteen
Every day I heard the radio
Every night I had the same old dream
To sing a song, oh, baby, to watch my name in lights
If you want to see your dream come true
Honeychild, you gotta get right down and fight
Well I sailed cross the ocean, girl, I felt so all alone
Many times I thought about goin' right back home
But the Joy I found in song gave me the will to carry on
Live your life the way you want to
Don't let fools lead you astray
Live you dreams so you hold on to
All you need along the way
I was payin' my dues right here in the land of the free
All the time I learned to sing along
I could not speak and I could barely see
Still all the while I knew where I was at
But the people that believed in me
Lord, I could count them all in seconds flat
Well, someday I would be, I knew it all along
A gentleman of leisure, girl, right or wrong
And though my dream has come and gone
There's plenty more where those came from
[Chorus]
Every day I heard the radio
Every night I had the same old dream
To sing a song, oh, baby, to watch my name in lights
If you want to see your dream come true
Honeychild, you gotta get right down and fight
Well I sailed cross the ocean, girl, I felt so all alone
Many times I thought about goin' right back home
But the Joy I found in song gave me the will to carry on
Live your life the way you want to
Don't let fools lead you astray
Live you dreams so you hold on to
All you need along the way
I was payin' my dues right here in the land of the free
All the time I learned to sing along
I could not speak and I could barely see
Still all the while I knew where I was at
But the people that believed in me
Lord, I could count them all in seconds flat
Well, someday I would be, I knew it all along
A gentleman of leisure, girl, right or wrong
And though my dream has come and gone
There's plenty more where those came from
[Chorus]
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@Kahiara Actually I think the husband passed away,
"She sang for you last night
She heard you were calling"
Many people say they have felt, heard, or seen their loved ones after they have passed.
"Don't be scared now
Close your eyes
She holds guard tonight
Go on forward no remorse
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This is said to the late husband by a third part (never named), who encourages him to pass on. Because life will eventually continue. The phrase "holds guard" refers to the ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… ) which is a Christian ceremony held after someone dies. Now it is usually held right after the funeral, but in most celtiic countries the wake is held before the funeral.
"She danced with you last night so you will remember
All you have shared, a lifetime."
This sentence feels as if the only thing it wants to convey is their history together, namely, husband and wife. For the rest it just refers back to the first verse.
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The man has pseudo-friends who constantly criticize his actions. They moralize him, "teach" him and advise him to make a significant change in his life, because the way he is and what he does is not what they say it should be. They may find his life lame or immoral. They hold themselves up as role models. The man replies that he will make his own choices and decisions and he does not agree to unconditionally make himself under the influence of questionable quality advice. He justifies this by saying that there is always someone for whom he will be important, no matter what he does and no matter what he is. Although it is not said directly, I read it as meaning that he will always be important to himself in every way and he will always have his own support.
"Everyone is different and maybe that's a good thing, but you exceeded that mark 1000 times" - I remember very well how sad the words I once heard (from my peers and it was in negative context) at school made me feel.
Up 2020
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