This week's song of the week is "Until the End of the World" from the band's Achtung Baby album. Originally written for the Wim Wenders film of the same name, the song portrays a conversation between Jesus Christ and Judas Iscariot. Niall Stokes writes:

"It was in the air. The Edge’s marriage was falling apart. So was Guggi's. There was tension in the band. Now that they were working with rhythm loops, Larry wasn't even sure what his place was anymore. There was that morning where the others had succeeded in leaving him stranded. Larry had spent hours languishing in his East German hotel. When he got in to Hansa, in the end, he was furious and he let everyone know it. Betrayal. 

...Judas Iscariot was a remarkable character. The more you thought about him the more enigmatic he became. The redemption couldn't have happened without him. So was he the ultimate insider? It was interesting how he betrayed Jesus: with a kiss! What had been going on between them anyway? 

Written for Wim Wenders, ‘Until the End of the World’ is about an encounter in which sex is high on the agenda. There’s a hint that only men were involved. There's also a strong suggestion of prostitution. And there is an unmistakable reference to oral sex: “Surrounding me, going down on me/spilling over the brim.” But it doesn’t stop there. “In waves of regret, waves of joy,” Bono sings, “I reached out for the one I tried to destroy.” And you know that he must be thinking of an orgasm that's drenched in feelings of guilt."

Though not released as a single, the track quickly became a fan favorite and critical success live. Reviewers and fans note that Bono and The Edge frequently engage in a mock battle where Bono plays a charging bull (often making horns with his fingers) while The Edge acts as the matador, using his guitar in place of a cape.

"Moments later, as his bandmates pounded out "Until the End of the World," the singer approached a video camera filming the performance, kissed its lens and then yanked it down to his crotch. An audience of 15,000 in the Miami Arena watched on a dozen video screens and roared its approval.” (From Larry Rother's ZooTV concert review for the New York Times).

Over the years, the band has allowed the song to take on various political dimensions: such as Bono's pleas for peace in the Middle East on the 360 Tour and the references to Russia in his memoir "Surrender", where a drawing of Gorbachev is used as the song's illustration (see a list of links at the bottom of the page for some notable live versions):

"Until the end of the world. Where Edge and I take a train into a subway/bomb shelter in the capital of Ukraine and Mikhail Gorbachev once leader of the ‘unfree world’ knocks on our door in Dublin to offer a teddy bear for a picnic. Line drawing of Gorbachev holding a teddy bear while standing next to a sign post labeled 'end of world.' The sign is pointing off to the right." (Surrender).

...

Lyrics

"Haven't seen you in quite a while
I was down the hold, just passing time.
Last time we met it was a low-lit room
We were as close together as a bride and groom.
We ate the food, we drank the wine
Everybody having a good time except you.
You were talking about the end of the world."

The song opens with an Enoesque vocal sonic flourish which tight, driving drums come out of. In comes the image of the Last Supper not as a sacred sacrament, but as a tense reunion between estranged partners. Perhaps in a night club just as well as in the scene famously portrayed by Da Vinci's painting. Bono establishes the intimacy immediately, placing Judas and Jesus "as close together as a bride and groom," setting up the erotic subtext that drives the rest of the song.

Because we only hear Judas's side of the conversation, dramatic irony takes over. When Jesus prophesies his own death and the betrayal of his disciples, Bono doesn't quote him; instead, he shows Judas rolling his eyes. The cosmic stakes ("the end of the world") are reduced to Judas viewing Jesus as the killjoy at the party. Judas is the detached bourgeois cynic, wondering why Judas can't just have a good time.

" I took the money, I spiked your drink
You miss too much these days if you stop to think.
You led me on with those innocent eyes
And you know I love the element of surprise.
In the garden I was playing the tart
I kissed your lips and broke your heart.
You, you were acting like it was the end of the world."

This verse portrays the myth of the Garden of Gethsemane, in which it is said that Judas fulfilled Jesus's prophecy by kissing him in exchange for money from pharisees. The song adds a Freudian, playful edge. "Innocent eyes", "playing the tart", and the (first of two) possible references to oral sex, "kissed your lips". There is a sense in which these sexual images become both aesthetic ornaments for our imagination, as well as humanistic psychological layers to the original Biblical story.

"In my dream, I was drowning my sorrows
But my sorrows they'd learned to swim
Surrounding me, going down on me
Spilling over the brim
Waves of regret and waves of joy.
I reached out for the one I tried to destroy.
You, you said you'd wait till the end of the world."

The first round of "Love love love"s precedes the final verse, which speaks of intense regret and a feeling of moral failure. It is unknown, as pointed out in many writings on the subject, whether Judas would have been condemned to hell, whether he would have repented in this way, and what the Lord's reaction might have been. This is the most straightforward way of taking the verse. It is a continuation of the Biblical story, again grounded in and elevated by the use of everyday imagery.

However, I can't quite get out of my head Bono's continued assertion that the song is a "conversation" between Jesus and Judas.

"The lyric was written very quickly in Wexford in my father-in-law's house. I woke up one morning and it was in my head, a conversation between Jesus and Judas. 'That'll be a hit!' Ali thought to herself. It is not the usual pop fare." (Bono in U2 by U2)

It is quite plausible that this is reconciled by the imagery invoked in concert, where it appears that the Edge (or his guitar) is the figure that Bono "reaches out" to. Or simply the "You were acting like it was the end of the world", alone, represents Jesus. I have wondered though if it is possible that the last verse actually represents Jesus on the cross. When he questions the lord, "Why hast thou forsaken me?", perhaps this is better heard addressed to Judas. Jesus, drowning in his own blood and pitifully served wine, reaches out for his Earth-bound lover-- chastened by the cross.

"Love, love, love, love, love
Love, love, love
Love, love, love, love
..."

"All of these elements are in there, of course, but the song is about betrayal and it's written from the point of view of Judas Iscariot. The line “In the garden | was playing the tart/| kissed your lips and broke your heart” refers to the scene in the Garden of Gethsemane, and there’s no mistaking the implication of a homoerotic bond between Jesus and Judas. 

On the other hand, there’s a sense that Bono is writing about himself and his own capacity for betrayal. Or could it be about someone Bono felt had betrayed him? In truth it is about all the betrayals that were so central to U2 at the time." (Stokes)

...

"“Until the End of the World” was never a single, but you seem to play it every tour. What about that song makes it work in any context in your live show?

That’s a very good question. I think it’s an amazing song live because it really showcases everything the band does best. In terms of its visceral energy and impact, it’s one of those songs that’s hard to beat. In the context of these Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience shows, it fits thematically perfectly. It’s got references to mortality, to all the big questions. It’s been a bit like “Where the Streets Have No Name” in that it’s found its way into most of our shows since it was first played live." (The Edge in Rolling Stone 2018)

Sources:

U2.com
U2songs.com
U2gigs.com
U2 By U2
U2: Into the Heart by Niall Stokes
Rolling Stone 2018: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/the-edge-on-u2s-experience-tour-this-is-for-our-committed-fans-628392/
NYT 1992: https://web.archive.org/web/20140807201323/https://www.nytimes.com/1992/03/15/arts/pop-music-a-chastened-u2-comes-down-to-earth.html
Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story by Bono

LIVE:

1993 ZooTV Live in Syndey
1992 ZooTV (remastered 2021)
U22: 360 Tour Live from Mexico City
2001: Elevation Tour Live from Boston

See also: Music video directed by Richie Smyth
Soundtrack version with film clips from Wenders's film

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