American Songwriter has revisited a little-known piece of rock history: U2's 1988 track "God Part II", a deliberate sequel to John Lennon's 1970 song "God" from his Plastic Ono Band album. The connection matters because it shows one of the era's biggest bands directly engaging with Lennon's legacy nearly two decades on, using his own lyrical structure to make a pointed statement of their own rather than simply paying tribute through cover or homage.

Lennon's original "God" featured him declaring "I don't believe in…" over a sparse piano arrangement, famously renouncing The Beatles and urging listeners toward self-reliance. U2 borrowed this "I don't believe in…" device for "God Part II", included on their 1988 album Rattle and Hum, but set it to a bass-and-drum-driven sound built by Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. Bono used the song partly to defend Lennon's reputation against Albert Goldman's unflattering 1988 biography The Lives of John Lennon, taking direct aim at Goldman in the lyrics and referencing Lennon's own "Instant Karma" in the process.