I remember my first listen-through of Songs of Innocence. After the amazing opening combo of “The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)” and “Every Breaking Wave”, I was already in love with the album. When I heard the opening refrain of “California (There is No End to Love)”, with its obvious Beach Boys reference, though, I didn’t know what to think. Truth be told, I wasn’t immediately impressed. Over time, though, “California” has become one of my favorite tracks on the album, and if it were left up to me, it would likely be my choice for the record’s third single.

My reason for that is simply that the song is a perfect little gem of a pop-rock masterpiece, with a solid gold sing-along hook and a sunny, upbeat personality befitting the song’s title. “California” is also home to one of my favorite guitar parts of the whole album, with Edge’s great solo exploding out of the sedate middle eight like the first rays of the rising sun shining over the horizon after a long dark night of despair. Of course, the song is no simple fluff lyrically, with a deeper message that references, once again, the untimely death of Iris Hewson, Bono’s mother.

The crux of the song’s lyrics deals with the idea that even after great sorrow, great loss, love continues on. I believe that Bono is drawing upon his experience with his mother’s death here, reasoning that just like the pain of his loss never completely fades away, neither does his love for his mother. “I’ve seen for myself there’s no end to grief, that’s how I know… there is no end to love.” I think that Bono takes some comfort in that knowledge, which brings us to a common theme of U2’s music: that of making the best of a bad situation. I love the reference near the end of the first verse to the sunrise. “At the dawn you thought would never come, bit it did, like it always does.” When terrible things happen, as they will, hold on to the fact that dark days won’t last forever. Everything in life is cyclical, and as sure as the sunrise comes every morning, so too will things get better.

With several dates in California, it’s a pretty sure bet that “No End to Love” will be making frequent appearances on the upcoming tour. I predict that it’ll appear near the top of the setlist, as an early high-energy sing along that helps to cement that relationship that the band members seek to build with their audiences. I think that the song will be a great success in the live setting, and I look forward to singing along with the rest of you, “there is no end to love”.