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.
Off with your head
Dance 'til you're dead
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
On the floor
Glitter on the wet streets
Silver over everything
The river's all wet
You're all chrome
Dripping with alchemy
Shiver, stop shivering
The glitter's all wet
You're all chrome
The men cry out, the girls cry out
The men cry out, the girls cry out
The men cry out, oh no
The men cry out, the girls cry out
The men cry out, the girls cry out
The men cry out, oh no
Oh, ah
Oh, ah
Off, off with your head
Dance, dance 'til you're dead
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
On the floor
Looking glass
Take the past
Shut your eyes
Mirror lies
Looking glass
Take the past
Shut your eyes
Mirror lies
Glitter on the wet streets
Silver over everything
The glitter's all wet
You're all chrome
You're all chrome
Oh, ah
Oh
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Dance 'til you're dead
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
On the floor
Glitter on the wet streets
Silver over everything
The river's all wet
You're all chrome
Dripping with alchemy
Shiver, stop shivering
The glitter's all wet
You're all chrome
The men cry out, the girls cry out
The men cry out, the girls cry out
The men cry out, oh no
The men cry out, the girls cry out
The men cry out, the girls cry out
The men cry out, oh no
Oh, ah
Oh, ah
Off, off with your head
Dance, dance 'til you're dead
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
On the floor
Looking glass
Take the past
Shut your eyes
Mirror lies
Looking glass
Take the past
Shut your eyes
Mirror lies
Glitter on the wet streets
Silver over everything
The glitter's all wet
You're all chrome
You're all chrome
Oh, ah
Oh
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Off, off, off with your head
Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead
Lyrics submitted by dustybreeze, edited by MrPister, Chaicov
Heads Will Roll Lyrics as written by Karen Lee Orzolek Brian Chase
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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to me this is an alice in wonderland fantasy disco party. just the lines "off with your head" and "looking glass/ take the past.." get my mind hung up on alice in wonderland. then the imagery: "glitter on the wet streets/ silver over everything/ glitters all wet/ youre all chrome" screams dance party. not to mention the ever so dancable beat.
It's funny you mention that, cause this song was used on a promo commercial for the Alice miniseries on Sci-Fi.<br /> <br /> Great song. It's one of those songs that you just can't resist dancing to.
wow this goes so well with the book "Looking Glass Wars" :o [it's a different version of alice in wonderland] Pretty much the very first dialogue of the book says "Off with their heads!" lol And the verses "Looking glass Take the past Shut your eyes Mirror lies " go along with it very well too! O_O
it make sense interperting it as alice and wonderland and ecstacy because theirs actually a connection between the two. i'm pretty sure the writer of alice in wonderland was actually on some sort of ecstacy related drug if not, ecstacy itself. thats why that movies so trippy and scary in a different level of scary. like whoa. so it could be about both. or at least i think..
What a great, new, danceable direction! LOVES IT.
I think it's about losing yourself by dancing. Embracing life to that extreme point where you figuratively lose your head.
"You're all cold" & "You're all chrome" means that you're metallic, lifeless. The singer rejects stagnation and projects an alternative, a violent kind of liveliness. Get yourself caught up in a frenzy. Off with your head. Forget your past and the mirror lies and just move.
I think this song is about "putting your all" into a show but the audience just sits there lifeless.
Much better than Shiny Toy Guns.
coachella?
haha. okay so i might just be a tweaker. and i'm just like coming down and crashing hard but is it just me or does this song seem like it's hella about thizz??
i so hope you're from the bay too hahahaha. but yes it hella does!
well, i just have a hint that it relates to Michael Jackson. After seeing the video it is totally obvious they are paying a sort of tribute to him. i think it shows his dancing skill and how well he is while the crowd sits there and doesn't appreciate it. like how the whole molestation thing in court went down. after that whole scene not many people looked up to him. so perhaps yyys are saying he deserved the credit of his skill and as a human and the people were wrong in judging him (so they deserved to die ha). and michael jackson DID dance til he died.
not sure how i wrote it made sense, but it made more sense in my head.
I'm pretty sure this song is about "The Crucible" &/or the Salem Witch Trails.
"Off with your head, heads will roll" refering to the condemed people who were killed off for "being a witch."
"dance till your dead" refering to the girls who started the witch hunt when they were caught dancing in the woods.
All the shivering and cold refering to all the girls in the trialls who would suddenly turn cold, or shake uncontrollable at "the presence of a witch"
"the man cried out, the girls cried out, the man cried out, oh no" refering to the book in which Procter tries to prove that the girl's accusations are false, but they turn on him & call him the devil himself.
"shut your eyes, mirror lies" refering to all the guilty girls, who think nothing of stopping it, & just keep doing what the others do.
Just my opinion. I also like the Alice idea... But this really hit me after having to read the Crucible in school.
Hm okay going to borrow some thoughts here, definitely seeing the Alice theme. Going to venture that Karen is an entertainer for the 'kingdom,' as is the wolf aka MJ. Notice her outfit resembles that of the Queen of Hearts, all red, as is the wolf's shoes. They're part of the same kingdom/music industry. The wolf in particular is their key entertainer, king of kings in the music industry = Michael Jackson.
And this mystical world is painted in "glitter" and "silver", seems very nice and dandy at first. However when she says "the glitter's all wet" and the "river's all wet", it sounds like, it's all wet from blood or..it's all mucked up, because later on in the video the glitter which was originally silver (on the drums) becomes red when the people get chopped up. Meaning this world is all dirty, it's a lie. "You're all cold/you're all chrome" suggesting you're hard on the outside and empty/lifeless on the inside. She repeats this lyric twice this toward the end and it sounds like she's accusing the people "you're all dead."
"The men cry out, the girls cry" cheering for the entertainer or replacement saviour, as we often idolize stars more than we do real religious figures. Than Karen as one of the entertainers, yells "off with your head!" And instructs the masses to "dance till your dead", just loose control on the dance floor and use up all your energy for that one purpose till you die. Seemingly, forgetting at the same time the concealed truth about this fantasy place.
"Looking glass, take the past" I suppose look at yourself in the mirror see what you've become and accept the past. "Shut your eyes" because "the mirror lies" - deny that you're a robot of the masses.
My own thoughts at the end of the video is that MJ reaches a breaking point when the light shines on him/full moon and he just looses it. Goes crazy on the music industry, the masses and just kills everyone. It's understood that when there's a full moon people are crazier than usual. This does seem to be the case for MJ in his career, as he was termed Wacko Jacko, accused of molestation among other things, everything just went downhill for him. RIP MJ.