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.
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory, now
Call all your friends
And tell them you're never coming back
Cause this is the end
Pretend that you want it
Don't react
The damage is done
The police are coming too slow now
I would have died
I would have loved you all my life
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory, now
Where have you gone,
The beach is so cold in winter here
And where have I gone,
I wake in Montauk with you near
Remember the day
Cause this is what dreams should always be
I just want to stay
I just want to keep this dream in me
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory
Wake up, it's time, little girl, wake up
All the best of what we've done is yet to come
Wake up, it's time, little girl, wake up
Just remember who I am in the morning
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory, now
Call all your friends
And tell them you're never coming back
Cause this is the end
Pretend that you want it
Don't react
The damage is done
The police are coming too slow now
I would have died
I would have loved you all my life
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory, now
Where have you gone,
The beach is so cold in winter here
And where have I gone,
I wake in Montauk with you near
Remember the day
Cause this is what dreams should always be
I just want to stay
I just want to keep this dream in me
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory
Wake up, it's time, little girl, wake up
All the best of what we've done is yet to come
Wake up, it's time, little girl, wake up
Just remember who I am in the morning
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory now
You're losing your memory
You're losing your memory now
Lyrics submitted by nknh, edited by Junius, Axxie, CaitieRose707
Losing Your Memory Lyrics as written by Ryan Kulchinsky
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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So, when I first started trying to figure out what this song means, the only thing that came to mind was that it was about a person losing their memory in a dementia/Alzheimer’s way, but that didn't make much sense to me, mostly because of the line "Wake up, it's time, little girl." Little girls do NOT get Alzheimer's. So I found this site and formulated a better interpretation after reading everybody else's. "Call all your friends Tell them I'm never coming back 'Cause this is the end Pretend that you want it, don't react" The song is about a guy and a girl who are in a relationship. They have a HUGE fight and break up, the girl leaving, driving off into this huge thunder/lightning/wind/rain storm.
"The damage is done The police are coming too slow now I would have died I would have loved you all my life" The girl ended up crashing her car. Maybe the guy finds out or goes after her or gets there before the police and it seems to be taking forever for them to get there. Or maybe the police and ambulance get there too slowly because of the storm and she doesn't get medical help soon enough, so she's worse off than she could have been. The guy is really upset and feels that it's his fault that she ended up crashing the car and is in this condition. He wants to take back all that he said. He wishes that it was him instead of her in the accident.
"You're losing your memory now You're losing your memory now You're losing your memory now You're losing your memory now" Because of the accident, the girl has suffered some sort of brain trauma that's left her with amnesia.
"Where have you gone? The beach is so cold in winter here And where have I gone? I wake in Montauk with you near" The guy tries to help her regain her memory, but it's just not working. The line "where have you gone?" reflects how she isn't herself anymore. The guy goes to some place that was really special to them, aka the beach, except it's winter, to kind of think and just get away from it all. He falls asleep and has a dream about her and the 'good ol' days' before she lost her memory.
"Remember the day 'Cause this is what dreams should always be I just want to stay I just want to keep this dream in me" The guy wants to remember the day or days that he dreamed of. It's all he has left; the girl is gone, in a way. He doesn't want to lose her in his memories, too.
"Wake up, it's time, little girl, wake up All the best of what we've done is yet to come Wake up, it's time, little girl, wake up Just remember who I am in the morning" He wants the girl to "wake up," or regain her memory. They have their whole lives ahead of them and she needs to remember so that they can live them to the fullest. And, of course, he wants her to remember who he is and everything else.
Does she ever regain her memory? Do their lives ever go back to normal? Who knows?