First off, apparently there is a book called Native Son, about a black man in 1930's Chicago that accidentally kills a white woman. This may have had an influence on the song.
The lyrics are about someone who is wrongly accused of murder (maybe an associate of a gangmember?):
Bullets start to fly
He’s hurt, he’s in the dirt
On my word
I did not take his life
The protaganist tries to run away, but is cornered by the law and tries to explain or talk his way out of being killed or arrested:
On the run
Officer put down the gun
I never wanted to own one
All of us want to be someone
Is it so hard for a native son to be free
When I hear Bono singing this song, I feel like he's writing a companion to Creedence Clearwater Revival's Fortunate Son, which U2 covered as a B-side to Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses.
Whereas Fortunate Son is about a kid avoiding Vietnam because of his rich dad's influence, Native Son could be about a kid forced into combat and then accused of killing a fellow soldier or a civilian.
Also note that the original working title of this song was Full Metal Jacket, which lends credence (no pun intended) to the military scenario.
Pretty close, the lyrics are about Leonard Peltier. A Native American convicted of murdering 2 FBI agents in the 70s. He was there protecting some elders with other members of AIM (American Indian Movement) when a huge shootout erupted on the reservation. Peltier was not given a fair trial and much of the evidence was fabricated by FBI.
Pretty close, the lyrics are about Leonard Peltier. A Native American convicted of murdering 2 FBI agents in the 70s. He was there protecting some elders with other members of AIM (American Indian Movement) when a huge shootout erupted on the reservation. Peltier was not given a fair trial and much of the evidence was fabricated by FBI.
First off, apparently there is a book called Native Son, about a black man in 1930's Chicago that accidentally kills a white woman. This may have had an influence on the song.
The lyrics are about someone who is wrongly accused of murder (maybe an associate of a gangmember?):
Bullets start to fly He’s hurt, he’s in the dirt On my word I did not take his life
The protaganist tries to run away, but is cornered by the law and tries to explain or talk his way out of being killed or arrested:
On the run Officer put down the gun I never wanted to own one All of us want to be someone Is it so hard for a native son to be free
When I hear Bono singing this song, I feel like he's writing a companion to Creedence Clearwater Revival's Fortunate Son, which U2 covered as a B-side to Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses.
Whereas Fortunate Son is about a kid avoiding Vietnam because of his rich dad's influence, Native Son could be about a kid forced into combat and then accused of killing a fellow soldier or a civilian.
Also note that the original working title of this song was Full Metal Jacket, which lends credence (no pun intended) to the military scenario.
Pretty close, the lyrics are about Leonard Peltier. A Native American convicted of murdering 2 FBI agents in the 70s. He was there protecting some elders with other members of AIM (American Indian Movement) when a huge shootout erupted on the reservation. Peltier was not given a fair trial and much of the evidence was fabricated by FBI.
Pretty close, the lyrics are about Leonard Peltier. A Native American convicted of murdering 2 FBI agents in the 70s. He was there protecting some elders with other members of AIM (American Indian Movement) when a huge shootout erupted on the reservation. Peltier was not given a fair trial and much of the evidence was fabricated by FBI.