The start of the song is a lament for the pollution and the “hole in the sky” (destruction of the ozone layer) “We’re all gonna burn” relates to that too. The 5-6-7 phrases at the end express a hierarchy of spiritual development:
Human beings (5) are caught between temptation/evil (6) and divine enlightenment (7). 6 however, is closer (more accessible) to 5 than 7.
This part of the song symbolizes the struggle of man to rise above the material/evil (6) and reach spiritual enlightenment/nirvana (7).
Essentially Francis saying “this monkey’s gone to heaven” means man was too stupid to create a good thing on earth, so maybe he’ll find it in the next world. Morrissey wrote “Love peace and harmony? Maybe in the next world.” At this same time. The Zeitgeist of the musical underground at the time was that boomers had sold out and that uber-consumerism was ruining everything. - They weren’t wrong.
The start of the song is a lament for the pollution and the “hole in the sky” (destruction of the ozone layer) “We’re all gonna burn” relates to that too. The 5-6-7 phrases at the end express a hierarchy of spiritual development: Human beings (5) are caught between temptation/evil (6) and divine enlightenment (7). 6 however, is closer (more accessible) to 5 than 7. This part of the song symbolizes the struggle of man to rise above the material/evil (6) and reach spiritual enlightenment/nirvana (7). Essentially Francis saying “this monkey’s gone to heaven” means man was too stupid to create a good thing on earth, so maybe he’ll find it in the next world. Morrissey wrote “Love peace and harmony? Maybe in the next world.” At this same time. The Zeitgeist of the musical underground at the time was that boomers had sold out and that uber-consumerism was ruining everything. - They weren’t wrong.