The Hands That Built America

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"The Hands That Built America"

Song by U2
from the album Gangs of New York: Music from the Miramax Motion Picture
Released	December 17, 2002
Genre	Rock
Length	4:35 (soundtrack mix)
Label	Interscope
Writer(s)	U2
Producer(s)	The Edge

from the album The Best of 1990-2000
Length	4:57 (studio mix)
Label	Island
Chronology
"Until the End of the World" (10)	"The Hands That Built America" (11)	"Discothèque" (12)

"The Hands That Built America" is a song by U2, released on the soundtrack to the film Gangs of New York and on their The Best of 1990-2000 compilation. It was nominated for Best Original Song at the 75th Academy Awards, however it ultimately lost to Eminem's "Lose Yourself."

Its lyrics make a reference to the September 11, 2001 attacks, as below:

It’s early fall, there’s a cloud on the New York skyline

Innocence dragged across a yellow line

The soundtrack mix of the song features Andrea and Sharon Corr of The Corrs.

The title of the song was inspired by Horslips title track to their album "The Man Who Built America" with the full blessing of Horslips singer and bass player Barry Devlin, who had also produced a number of U2 videos.

U2 performed this song at the opening of the Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 2004; a handwritten version of the lyrics appears in an exhibit at the library.