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 keep playing me like a fruit machine
Puttin' in change systematically
Winning streak that you had over me
It's turned into your broken tragedy
Turn your pockets out onto the street
Now you see you've spent it all on me!
You see my true colors out of sync
Now your skin is a pair of sympathies
You've hit the bottom one hundred times before
Now feel the fever as I leave you wanting more
You thought you could turn and walk away
Taking chances that weren't yours to take
Well I don't think so my foolish boy
Watch the next one taking all the joy
Hold me, nudge me, spinning me around
Where's the money?
Can't hear the clinking round.
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
You keep playing me like a fruit machine
Overstretch your generosity
For our band, it's leading you astray
The little we had
You've thrown it all away!
Go! Go! Go! (Yeah you're on a role)
Go! Go! Go! (Yeah you're on a low)
Go! Go! Go!
You find it hard to stop it yeah
You're running like a steam train
Oh I like the way that you do that
Where's the money?
Can't hear the clinking round.
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Go!
You-keep-play-ing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine
You-keep-play-ing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine
You-keep-play-ing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine
You-keep-play-ing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine
Ker-ching, Ker-ching, oh!
Ker-ching, Ker-ching
Ker-ching, Ker-ching
Oh, you find it hard to stop it yeah
You're running like a steam train
Ker-ching, Ker-ching
Ker-ching, Ker-ching
You-keep-playing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine!
Puttin' in change systematically
Winning streak that you had over me
It's turned into your broken tragedy
Turn your pockets out onto the street
Now you see you've spent it all on me!
You see my true colors out of sync
Now your skin is a pair of sympathies
You've hit the bottom one hundred times before
Now feel the fever as I leave you wanting more
You thought you could turn and walk away
Taking chances that weren't yours to take
Well I don't think so my foolish boy
Watch the next one taking all the joy
Hold me, nudge me, spinning me around
Where's the money?
Can't hear the clinking round.
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
You keep playing me like a fruit machine
Overstretch your generosity
For our band, it's leading you astray
The little we had
You've thrown it all away!
Go! Go! Go! (Yeah you're on a role)
Go! Go! Go! (Yeah you're on a low)
Go! Go! Go!
You find it hard to stop it yeah
You're running like a steam train
Oh I like the way that you do that
Where's the money?
Can't hear the clinking round.
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Ka-ching, Ka-ching
Go!
You-keep-play-ing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine
You-keep-play-ing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine
You-keep-play-ing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine
You-keep-play-ing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine
Ker-ching, Ker-ching, oh!
Ker-ching, Ker-ching
Ker-ching, Ker-ching
Oh, you find it hard to stop it yeah
You're running like a steam train
Ker-ching, Ker-ching
Ker-ching, Ker-ching
You-keep-playing-me-like-a-fruit-mach-ine!
Lyrics submitted by greynostalgia
Fruit Machine Lyrics as written by Jules De Martino Katie White
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Great version of a great song,
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Rock on Ting Tings.
Will someone please tell me what the hell a Fruit Machine is?
Will someone please tell me what the hell a Fruit Machine is?
good song. i wish they would've left out the ka-ching parts out, they kill me in the worst way.
I know what you mean, I feel the same way.
These lyrics are definetly not right. A fruit machine is one of those gambling machines - you put in a coin, pull a crank and three things spin, and if they all come up the same you win money. I have a kind of vague idea about this song - maybe about a boy he's been trying to buy his way into a girl's pants.
Yeah that is what came to mind when I first heard the song.
I think this song is about a girl who's treated badly by her boyfriend, like he doesn't pay attention to her, or spend time with her, cheating on her, etc ("You thought you could turn and walk away/Taking chances that weren’t yours to take") and to make up for it, he buys her presents and things ("Putting in change systematically"). "Winning streak that you had over me" shows how she would always fall for it and forgive him. Now though, she's caught on and is either milking it for all its worth ("Where’s the money? Can’t hear that clinking") and possibly keeps threatening to leave him just so that she can a) get more stuff and b) get her revenge. I'm thinking it might be about gambling too, since theres the line "Thought of bandits leading you astray" and a fruit machine is also known as a One-Armed Bandit. So either its a reference to him taking a gamble by being so reckless with their relationship, or he actually has a gambling problem that has "led him astray". But these are all just ideas. XD Sorry I wrote so much, I just kept thinking of more D:
agree with seachelle, guess fruit machine was just metaphore, the boy was just playing with their relation ship, "Thought of bandits leading you astray The little we had, you’ve thrown it all away" feels like the guy wanna be a bandit and he risk their The "little we had, you’ve thrown it all awayrelation even "tough
It's about a girl who strings her supposed boyfriend along for whatever goodies/cash he can give her, making him promises she's got no intention of delivering on. Basically she's singing about a minor-league golddigger
This song is about homosexuals. A "fruit machine" is slang for a machine used to measure whether you were homosexual or not. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fruit_machine .
No, you idiot. A fruit machine is known as a SLOT machine in America.
It's probably about their record company seeing as how half the album is about that same subject.