The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
Every night before I go to sleep
Find a ticket, win a lottery
Scoop the pearls up from the sea
Cash them in and buy you all the things you need
Every night before I rest my head
See those dollar bills go swirling 'round my bed
I know they're stolen, but I don't feel bad
I take that money, buy you things you never had
Oh, baby, it would mean so much to me
Oh, baby, to buy you all the things you need for free
I'll buy you a jet plane, baby, get you on a higher plane to a jet stream
And take you through the stratosphere
And check out the planets there and then take you down deep
Where it's hot, hot in Arabia, baby, then cool, cold fields of snow
And we'll roll, dream, roll, dream, roll, roll, dream, dream
When we dream it, when we dream it, when we dream it
We'll dream it, dream it for free, free money
Free money, free money, free money, free money, free money
Free money
Every night before I go to sleep
Find a ticket, win a lottery
Every night before I rest my head
See those dollar bills go swirling 'round my bed
Oh, baby, it would mean so much to me
Baby, I know our troubles will be gone
Oh, I know our troubles will be gone, goin', gone
If we dream, dream, dream for free
And when we dream it, when we dream it, when we dream it
Let's dream it, we'll dream it for free, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money, money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money, free
Find a ticket, win a lottery
Scoop the pearls up from the sea
Cash them in and buy you all the things you need
Every night before I rest my head
See those dollar bills go swirling 'round my bed
I know they're stolen, but I don't feel bad
I take that money, buy you things you never had
Oh, baby, it would mean so much to me
Oh, baby, to buy you all the things you need for free
I'll buy you a jet plane, baby, get you on a higher plane to a jet stream
And take you through the stratosphere
And check out the planets there and then take you down deep
Where it's hot, hot in Arabia, baby, then cool, cold fields of snow
And we'll roll, dream, roll, dream, roll, roll, dream, dream
When we dream it, when we dream it, when we dream it
We'll dream it, dream it for free, free money
Free money, free money, free money, free money, free money
Free money
Every night before I go to sleep
Find a ticket, win a lottery
Every night before I rest my head
See those dollar bills go swirling 'round my bed
Oh, baby, it would mean so much to me
Baby, I know our troubles will be gone
Oh, I know our troubles will be gone, goin', gone
If we dream, dream, dream for free
And when we dream it, when we dream it, when we dream it
Let's dream it, we'll dream it for free, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money, money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money, free
Lyrics submitted by lahesperia
Free Money Lyrics as written by Patti Smith Leonard J Kaye
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
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Hayalperest
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
i was kind of thinking that this song could mean that when you go to sleep, you can dream of having all the money and everything you want,so by dreaming that you have money it's sort of like winning a lottery everytime you go to sleep. i'm going to guess that maybe when she says that she knows it's stolen but she doesn't feel she means she doesn't know in the dream how she got the money or where it came from but she is just enjoying that she has it.