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.
Did you think that your feet had been bound
By what gravity brings to the ground?
Did you feel you were tricked
By the future you picked?
Well, come on down
All these rules don't apply
When you're high in the sky
So come on down
Come on down
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow up on the mountains
We've got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
To hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
Did you think you'd escaped from routine
By changing the script and the scene?
Despite all you made of it
You're always afraid of the change
You've got a lot on your chest
Well, you can come as my guest
So come on down
Come on down
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow up on the mountains
We've got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
We'll hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
Like the fish in the ocean
We felt at home in the sea
We learned to live off the good land
We learned to climb up a tree
Then we got up on two legs
But we wanted to fly
Oh, when we messed up our homeland
And set sail for the sky
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow upon the mountains
We got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
We'll hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
We're coming down
Comin' down to earth
Like babies at birth
Comin' down to earth
Redefine your priorities
These are extraordinary qualities
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow upon the mountains
We've got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
We'll hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow upon the mountains
We've got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
We'll hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
Redefine your priorities
These are extraordinary qualities
To find on earth
Comin' down, comin' down
Comin' down, comin' down
Comin' down, comin' down
Comin' down, comin' down
By what gravity brings to the ground?
Did you feel you were tricked
By the future you picked?
Well, come on down
All these rules don't apply
When you're high in the sky
So come on down
Come on down
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow up on the mountains
We've got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
To hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
Did you think you'd escaped from routine
By changing the script and the scene?
Despite all you made of it
You're always afraid of the change
You've got a lot on your chest
Well, you can come as my guest
So come on down
Come on down
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow up on the mountains
We've got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
We'll hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
Like the fish in the ocean
We felt at home in the sea
We learned to live off the good land
We learned to climb up a tree
Then we got up on two legs
But we wanted to fly
Oh, when we messed up our homeland
And set sail for the sky
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow upon the mountains
We got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
We'll hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
We're coming down
Comin' down to earth
Like babies at birth
Comin' down to earth
Redefine your priorities
These are extraordinary qualities
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow upon the mountains
We've got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
We'll hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
We're coming down to the ground
There's no better place to go
We've got snow upon the mountains
We've got rivers down below
We're coming down to the ground
We'll hear the birds sing in the trees
And the land will be looked after
We send the seeds out in the breeze
Redefine your priorities
These are extraordinary qualities
To find on earth
Comin' down, comin' down
Comin' down, comin' down
Comin' down, comin' down
Comin' down, comin' down
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My thoughts are pretty much the same as all of y'alls, but I had an amazing thought. Wouldn't it be cool to go skydiving while listening to this song?
Beautiful song, and so appropriate in its context!
was this made for wall e?
yes, it was made for wall-e
Yes, it fits the context perfectly, I love it.
Amazing how Disney hires top-notch folks like this for their tunes. It started with "When You Wish Upon a Star" and hasn't stopped.
Well, to qualify a bit, remember this is pretty much Pixar, funded by Disney, with I suppose some staffing by Disney.
Anyway, it's a fine lyric that strikes a good balance. It alludes to the movie's main theme about humankind finding itself after being Lost in Two Spaces--the spacial and virtual--and this could make for a cold lyric. Yet Gabriel manages to keep it spiritual, and that's great.
I did a quick check on the IMDb, and the composer, Thomas Newman, is who I thought it was; a guy with a very impressive resume; some of my (and no doubt your) fave movie music of all time (check him out at imdb.com/name/nm0002353/ , and be sure to eyeball his impressive filmography). He seems to specialize in a kind of light, pop polymodalism that gives the films a "hip" modern sound. I have a particular fondness for his turn in The Player. His music helps give the films a mythic feel, while not upstaging. You leave the theatre with a sense of having seen something grander and bigger, perhaps not realizing that the music leant some of that feel.
Anyway, it's cool to think of him and Gabriel sitting around working up this tune. Or maybe they did it remotely from each other; it's possible, eh?
Love this!
Very much true, does fit the film perfectly.
I hope everyone will realize how bad we are doing to our Earth, and not wait until it's too late.
Love this!
Very much true, does fit the film perfectly.
I hope everyone will realize how bad we are doing to our Earth, and not wait until it's too late.
It makes me cry :(
I know that the song is in reference to the movie, I'm just curious if it is referring to drugs, or more so, stopping the use of drugs??
@peach's No I don't think it is about drugs