A child is born on a battlefield,
A soldier boy falls to his knees,
And a woman cries in joy and pain,
When will we all live in peace again?
A child is born where the wild wind blows,
In a country torn from the south to the north,
And a family runs from day to day,
When will we see our home again?
When will we see the simple truth,
That the only thing that's worth a damn,
The life of a child is more than a forest,
The life of a child is more than a border,
Could ever be;
A child is born in the desert sun,
A tiny life has just begun,
And a mother cries for her hungry babe,
When will I feed my boy again?
A child is born to an ordinary home,
East or west, it could be anyone,
But we all want to know,
Will my child survive to see the day,
When we will be secure again?
When will we see the simple truth,
That the only thing that's worth a damn,
The life of a child is more than a forest,
The life of a child is more than a border,
The life of a child is more than a region,
The life of a child is only a heartbeat from eternity,
We must believe, for the sake of humanity,
We must believe...
For the sake of humanity, we must believe.
"Funnily enough, every time I listen to this now each verse applies to something. The fourth verse, for example, is about Gorbachov and Reagan, the second verse is about young Bob (Geldof) over in Ethiopia, the third is probably about the Northern Ireland situation - although it could have been Korea, or any civil war situation - and the opening verse is about any strife that involves breaking up people's homes and families."
The Getaway Gazette, June 1990
Albums
"The Simple Truth (A Child Is Born)" appears on the following albums:
