Songfacts®:

• The "269" in the title refers to the number of mixes they tried before getting it right in the studio - that number does not appear in the lyrics. The origin of "Hawkmoon" is less clear: The Edge once said that Hawkmoon is a town in North Dakota U2 passed through in 1986 on the Conspiracy Of Hope tour for Amnesty International, leading Bono to use it as a title, but there is no such town in either of the Dakotas. More likely, Bono got the idea from a collection of short stories by Sam Shepard called Hawk Moon, originally published in 1973.
• U2 were recording at Sunset Sound studios in Hollywood when Bono came up with the lyrics for this song. Running 6:22, it's a story of desire and desperation. Bono was enjoying the nightlife in the area and was influenced by the seedy scenes in Los Angeles. He was also influenced by his hangover, which is why he came up with lines like:
  
  When the night has no end
  And the day yet to begin
  As the room spins around
  I need your love
  
  Bono spends much of the song repeating the line, "I need your love."
• Bob Dylan played the Hammond organ on this track. The band connected with Dylan during their Joshua Tree tour when he joined them on stage at a show in Los Angeles. Dylan also co-wrote a song with the band called "Love Rescue Me," which like "Hawkmoon 269," appears on Rattle And Hum.