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.
Traveling in circles,
The world's a sinking oyster,
And my bed's become unfathomably white.
Oh, workin' workin' workin' workin'
Dream about the cloister,
And occasionally get out to see the sun shine
Oh, then I see him at a distance,
He is devilishly handsome.
He is charming and impeccably dressed.
He has a little black bag with him,
And what's in it isn't certain,
But I'm going to take an educated guess.
Oh, I'm starting to feel faint,
Like a lady in a movie.
Oh, someone fetch ammonia and some towels.
Oh, but it needs to be administered
By a fella who is registered...
Is there a doctor in the house?
Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz,
Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz,
Show me how they treat you in the South.
You call this arctic bullshit summer?
It's a sad excuse for weather,
And I want to crawl and live inside the couch.
Oh, but despite the bitter chills,
And the difficultly breathing,
There's a fire in my stomach and it won't go out
Until I'm traveling in circles,
And the world's a sinking oyster,
and my bed's become unfathomably white.
Oh, workin' workin' workin' workin'
Dream about the cloister
And occasionally get out to see the sun shine
Could it be an illness
I've contracted from the business?
And could it be transmittable by mouth?
Oh, you my friends are witness,
As I try to kick the sickness,
Is there a doctor in the house?
Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz,
Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz
Show me how you do it...
In the South.
The world's a sinking oyster,
And my bed's become unfathomably white.
Oh, workin' workin' workin' workin'
Dream about the cloister,
And occasionally get out to see the sun shine
Oh, then I see him at a distance,
He is devilishly handsome.
He is charming and impeccably dressed.
He has a little black bag with him,
And what's in it isn't certain,
But I'm going to take an educated guess.
Oh, I'm starting to feel faint,
Like a lady in a movie.
Oh, someone fetch ammonia and some towels.
Oh, but it needs to be administered
By a fella who is registered...
Is there a doctor in the house?
Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz,
Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz,
Show me how they treat you in the South.
You call this arctic bullshit summer?
It's a sad excuse for weather,
And I want to crawl and live inside the couch.
Oh, but despite the bitter chills,
And the difficultly breathing,
There's a fire in my stomach and it won't go out
Until I'm traveling in circles,
And the world's a sinking oyster,
and my bed's become unfathomably white.
Oh, workin' workin' workin' workin'
Dream about the cloister
And occasionally get out to see the sun shine
Could it be an illness
I've contracted from the business?
And could it be transmittable by mouth?
Oh, you my friends are witness,
As I try to kick the sickness,
Is there a doctor in the house?
Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz,
Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz, Doctor Oz
Show me how you do it...
In the South.
Lyrics submitted by kumasmash
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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"
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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"
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Any Australians care to take a stab at the references here? This is on the Australian album, and the references to travel and weather are presumably about her experience, but I don't have any more background or other cultural specifics.
Per an interview at TheVine.au, Amanda says of this song:<br /> <br /> "That was actually written in Scotland about a crush I had on an Aussie from Melbourne. The song makes a whole different kind of sense if you realise that I wrote it while abroad, obsessing over an Australian guy."<br /> <br /> Personally, I am left wondering if it's about Tom Dickins of The Jane Austen Argument, given that she also states on the album that she and he met at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh.
Thanks! That was very helpful.