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.
Backlash? Jack said it would happen to me
That is what he said to me
Tremors cause the weak to flee
So choose your friends and choose wisely
Don't touch the stuff i think once is enough
His ears think the sounds
He dreams what he has found
Backlash? Jack said it'd happen to me
Again he warned me of what I'd see
When praises come too easily
Pay for lip, backlash is free
The first to abandon formed the band wagon
The first rat off the ship
Is the first to be too hip
That is what he said to me
Tremors cause the weak to flee
So choose your friends and choose wisely
Don't touch the stuff i think once is enough
His ears think the sounds
He dreams what he has found
Backlash? Jack said it'd happen to me
Again he warned me of what I'd see
When praises come too easily
Pay for lip, backlash is free
The first to abandon formed the band wagon
The first rat off the ship
Is the first to be too hip
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
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Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
About conformity in the punk rock community. About achieving a level of success and the fans who supported you then calling you a "sell out"
‘Don’t touch the stuff, I think once is enough, his ears think the sounds, he dreams what he has found.’ Heroin, pure and simple. Latin Kings have a straight pipeline from Mexico to Chicago, and beyond. Why do people become junkies? Because, for some, it’s how they get through life. It works for them. I’ve personally met a few that just nursed their habits along for years, occasionally coming down but not to clean up; their tolerance had gotten too high, so they went through the withdrawals on their own, like a reset. One guy (who’d just shot up in his car ten minutes before) told me ‘if you don’t think you know any heroin addicts you’re wrong.’ But not to sound like a dick, he was just stating a fact. Then some chemist in Mexico started making Fentanyl and addicts started dropping like flies. This guy I knew was one of them, and he ODed and died. But addicts went crazy for that shit- they wanted that harder hit. I got hurt, couldn’t work, went on opioids. Funneled down to Morphine and Percocet for about a decade, until they stopped working. Withdrawing was insanity, literally. Banging my head on the wall, not showering because I couldn’t stand the thought of water hitting my skin, it was like going through a bad car accident about 15 times. Backlash Jack said it would happen to me. He wasn’t wrong.