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Kelcie Connors

Prof. Leonard

ENG 1201.511

17 February 2022

Zombie

‘’Zombie’’ by The Cranberries and another interpretation of ‘’Zombie’’ by Bad Wolves

use a similar set of lyrics with a few significant word changes to compel two versions of the

song. The Cranberries version of the song released in 1994 was a contribution to the death of two

young children who were killed in an IRA bombing in England. Bad Wolves’ version of the

song, released in 2018, was a tribute to the death of Dolores O’Riordan, The Cranberries lyricist

and lead vocalist of the original version, as well as conveying the message of the original song

with a few changes to the lyrics. ''Zombie'' by The Cranberries and the remake of the song by

Bad Wolves both have the purpose to make the claim that innocent people are suffering death,

loss, and heartbreak due to fighting and violence. The rendition of the song and video puts a very

emotional and modernized twist on the original and compels a similar audience.

Although both songs use a similar but not identical set of lyrics, they both get the

message across that innocent people are suffering death and heartache due to political dismay

and brutality. The first set of lyrics for both songs address this claim. The lyrics are as follows:

Another head hands lowly,

Child is slowly taken,

And the violence, caused such silence,

Who are we mistaken?

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The lyrics in this verse are the same for both songs, and mention the fact that children endure the

effects of violence. The song was very controversial due to the political disagreement between

Ireland and England at the time. The music video for the song depicts images of soldiers with

guns along with children. It also depicted a lady painted in gold standing in front of a large cross

with children sitting around her in gold. The main characters for the first video include the

soldier, children, and the gold woman. These images depict the fact that children were

witnessing the violence of society’s inhumanity. The significance of using these props is that the

lady and children in gold could represent heaven and how some innocent kids did suffer death

due to this violence.

The two versions of the song also exhibit small but consequential lyrical differences.

These minor but notable changes in the rendition of the song help to modernize the message they

are trying to get across. One difference is in this verse:

But you see, it’s not me,

It’s not my family,

In your head, in your head, they are fighting,

With their tanks, and their bombs,

And their bombs, and their guns,

In your head, in your head they are crying,

This verse was changed in the second version of the song by one word, and that was the change

from guns to drones. This one simple word change put a twist on the song released almost 24

years later. The use of the word, drone, makes the song much more modernized and relates to

modern day society better since technological advancements have allowed for the use of drones
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now. Another example of a lyrical change in the song is used when talking about dates. Another

difference is in this verse:

It’s the same old theme,

Since nineteen-sixteen,

In your head, in your head, they’re still fighting,

These lyrics are relating to the fact that this violence has persisted since 1916, and nothing has

changed. The rendition of the song changes these lyrics from ‘’since nineteen-sixteen’’ to ‘’in

two thousand eighteen.’’ This difference also contributes to the modernization of the song as

well. In the second version of lyrics it is saying that this violence is still occuring in 2018. The

second version of the song was released just two over decades after the original version was

released, and these minor but major changes in the lyrics really help showcase the significance in

the time between. It also supports the claim of the first original video that these innocent people

are still suffering the effects of violence and war.

Although the lyrics alter the meaning of the song slightly, they both appeal to a similar

audience. The similar elements of the songs including the melody, tempo, and dynamics of the

sounds accompany the context and lyrics of the two versions. The song has a dark tone and

heavy feeling to it which reflect the themes of war, violence, and suffering. The song uses pathos

by mentioning dying children and using children in the first music video. This would appeal to

people’s emotions because children are seen as innocent and they are suffering heavily. They

both get the main claim of each song across effectively, and therefore they both appeal to a

similar audience which is people who feel the effects of the violence, especially people in war

prone areas of the world right now, and want it to end.

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Works Cited

The Cranberries. ‘’Zombie (Official Video)’’ Youtube, uploaded by The CranberriesTV, 2009,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ejga4kJUts. Accessed on 2-16-22.

Bad Wolves. ‘’Zombie (Official Video)’’ Youtube, uploaded by Better Noise Music, 2018,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XaS93WMRQQ. Accessed on 2-16-22.