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.
I count the corpses on my left, I find I'm not so tidy
So I better get away, better make it today
I've cut twenty-three down since Friday
But I can't control it, my face is drawn
My instinct still emotes it
I slash them cold, I kill them dead
I broke the gooks, I cracked their heads
I'll bomb them out from under the beds
But now I've got the running gun blues
It seems the peacefuls stopped the war
Left generals squashed and stifled
But I'll slip out again tonight
'Cause they haven't taken back my rifle
For I promote oblivion
And I'll plug a few civilians
I'll slash them cold, I'll kill them dead
I'll break them gooks, I'll crack their heads
I'll slice them till they're running red
But now I've got the running gun blues
I'll slash them cold, I'll kill them dead
I'll break them gooks, I'll crack their heads
I'll slice them till they're running red
But now I've got the running gun blues
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
So I better get away, better make it today
I've cut twenty-three down since Friday
But I can't control it, my face is drawn
My instinct still emotes it
I slash them cold, I kill them dead
I broke the gooks, I cracked their heads
I'll bomb them out from under the beds
But now I've got the running gun blues
It seems the peacefuls stopped the war
Left generals squashed and stifled
But I'll slip out again tonight
'Cause they haven't taken back my rifle
For I promote oblivion
And I'll plug a few civilians
I'll slash them cold, I'll kill them dead
I'll break them gooks, I'll crack their heads
I'll slice them till they're running red
But now I've got the running gun blues
I'll slash them cold, I'll kill them dead
I'll break them gooks, I'll crack their heads
I'll slice them till they're running red
But now I've got the running gun blues
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Lyrics submitted by scottathon1
Running Gun Blues Lyrics as written by David Bowie
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
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David Bowie rocks my everything.
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Oh Bowie, you're such a freak! This song makes me laugh every time. What is also odd is that this song comes after 'After All' on 'The Man Who Sold The World' - this song, 'Running Gun Blues', is about murdering people, yetb is somehow less creepy as 'After All'. Go figure. : )
how bout dat? I don't think people were going on killing sprees until the 90's. Quite the visionary.
His voice is os high-pitched and amusing on this song, to begin with anyway. Awesome stuff.
Perhaps the main character is someone suffering from shell shock. He keeps reliving the stuff he did and its giving him the blues. However the interpretation of someone who can't stop killing or enjoys killing after the war ends is valid too.
The main character definitely is suffering from shell-shock. He's obsessed with killing the Vietnamese and getting his fair share of kills for the day. Sounds like a trigger-happy person, to me.
I saw a documntary in the 80's on how the US Military sent special forces on brain-washing camps. The active exercises where that you were captured by Oriental looking serving US solders and put thru interrogation, torture and humiliation techniques. As one of the interviewed 'Vets' said 'you ended up hating anyone oriental looking and just wanted to kill them' - programmed for Nam. The documentary met up with a group of Vets of the Nam war who were living in a forest in the US who were afraid to integrate with the community as they were afraid of their anger - that may cause them to kill the civilians now they we back from the war. As they said - they were programmed by the Goverment and then just left with no rehab. The Rambo character was probably seeded from these sort of guys. Running Gun Blues was written in the time of that war and before Rambo. I wander how those guys are today - hopfully time heals.....
a vetran of a war can't stop killing when he comes back
i like the line i promote oblivian