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.
Screen falling off the door, door hanging off the hinges
My feet are still sore my back's on the fringes
We tore up the walls we slept on couches
We lifted this house, we lifted this house
Firecrackers in the east my car parked south
Your hands on my cheeks, your shoulder in my mouth
I was up against the wall on the west mezzanine
We rattle this town, we rattle this scene
Oh, Anna Sun
Oh, Anna Sun
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
This house is falling apart
Screen falling off the door, door hanging off the hinges
My feet are still sore my back's on the fringes
We were up against the wall on the west mezzanine
We rattle this town, we rattle this scene
Oh, Anna Sun
Oh, Anna Sun
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
This house is falling apart
This house is falling apart
Live my life without
Station wagon rides
Fumbling around the back
Not one seat belt on
Wait for summertime
Coming up for air
Now it's all a wash
Now it's all a wash
(Screen falling off the door)
(Door hanging off the hinges) Live my life without
(My feet are still)
(Sore my back's on the fringes) coming up for air
(We tore up the walls)
(We slept on couches) now it's all a wash
(We lifted this house)
(We lifted this house) I want everyone
(Firecrackers in the east)
(My car parked south) racing down the hill
(Your hands on my cheeks)
(Your shoulder in my mouth) I am faster than you
(I was up against the wall)
(On the west mezzanine) wait for summertime
(We rattle this town) wait for summertime
Oh, Anna Sun
Oh, Anna Sun, Sun
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
This house is falling apart
This house is falling apart
This house is falling apart
(We lifted this house)
(We lifted this house)
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
This house is falling apart
This house is falling apart
My feet are still sore my back's on the fringes
We tore up the walls we slept on couches
We lifted this house, we lifted this house
Firecrackers in the east my car parked south
Your hands on my cheeks, your shoulder in my mouth
I was up against the wall on the west mezzanine
We rattle this town, we rattle this scene
Oh, Anna Sun
Oh, Anna Sun
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
This house is falling apart
Screen falling off the door, door hanging off the hinges
My feet are still sore my back's on the fringes
We were up against the wall on the west mezzanine
We rattle this town, we rattle this scene
Oh, Anna Sun
Oh, Anna Sun
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
This house is falling apart
This house is falling apart
Live my life without
Station wagon rides
Fumbling around the back
Not one seat belt on
Wait for summertime
Coming up for air
Now it's all a wash
Now it's all a wash
(Screen falling off the door)
(Door hanging off the hinges) Live my life without
(My feet are still)
(Sore my back's on the fringes) coming up for air
(We tore up the walls)
(We slept on couches) now it's all a wash
(We lifted this house)
(We lifted this house) I want everyone
(Firecrackers in the east)
(My car parked south) racing down the hill
(Your hands on my cheeks)
(Your shoulder in my mouth) I am faster than you
(I was up against the wall)
(On the west mezzanine) wait for summertime
(We rattle this town) wait for summertime
Oh, Anna Sun
Oh, Anna Sun, Sun
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
What do you know? This house is falling apart
What can I say? This house is falling apart
We got no money, but we got heart
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
This house is falling apart
This house is falling apart
This house is falling apart
(We lifted this house)
(We lifted this house)
We're gonna rattle this ghost town
This house is falling apart
This house is falling apart
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Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
Van Halen
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
I watched a video of them play this song acoustically and before hand one of the band members said they named the son "Anna Sun" because it was the name of one of their professors at Kenyon and they simply liked the name. Nick followed up by saying that the name of the song is appropriate because it's mainly about college and youth and stuff like that.
Read this somewhere, too. "The song is named after Petricca's professor from Kenyon College and is meant to symbolize youth. 'It's about college, about maintaining that little bit of being a kid,' Petricca said. 'Don't be afraid to play.'