U2- Until the End of the World- NYC Yankee Stadium 1992

Reportedly the #1-selling book in Ireland in 1991 was by Irish poet/literature professor Brendan Kennelly, the same year that U2 wrote and recorded the Achtung Baby   album containing the song “Until the End of the World”. Entitled Where Would We Be Without Judas?,  the book proposes that the dawn of Truth must follow the darkness of Sin like two different sides of the same coin. In our In the Studio classic rock interview about the making of Achtung Baby,  U2 guitarist/songwriter the Edge admits that U2 lyricist Bono, in particular, was intrigued by Kennelly’s assertion that, “To serve the Age, you must betray it”, finding in Judas Iscariot’s  worldly politicking and ultimate betrayal a notorious yet absolutely necessary role in the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy by the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

To truly appreciate the lyrical dialogue that runs throughout “Until the End of the World”, it is imperative that the listener understand that the singers’ (plural) perspectives change every time the stanzas do. The singer in the first stanza, singing in the first person, is Jesus; the singer in the second stanza, with a decidedly second person perspective, is Judas; and in the final stanza, it’s you and me.- Redbeard