Crash and burn
All the stars explode tonight
How'd you get so desperate?
How'd you stay alive?

Help me, please
Burn the sorrow from your eyes
Oh, come on be alive again
Don't lay down and die!

Hey, hey
You know what to do
Oh, baby, drive away from Malibu

Get well soon
Please don't go any higher
How are you so burnt when
You're barely on fire?

Cry to the angels
I'm gonna rescue you
I'm gonna set you free tonight, baby
Pour over me

Hey, hey
We're all watching you
Oh, baby, fly away to Malibu
Cry to the angels
And let them swallow you
Go and part the sea, yeah, in Malibu

And the sun goes down
I watch you slip away
And the sun goes down
I walk into the waves
And the sun goes down
I watch you slip away
And I would

And I knew
Love would tear you apart
Oh, and I knew
The darkest secret of your heart

Hey, hey
I'm gonna follow you
Oh baby, fly away, yeah, to Malibu
Oceans of angels
Oceans of stars
Down by the sea is where you
Drown your scars

I can't be near you
The light just radiates
I can't be near you
The light just radiates


Lyrics submitted by Nelly, edited by scottdoesntknow628

Malibu Lyrics as written by Courtney M Love William Patrick Corgan

Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Malibu song meanings
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  • +7
    General Comment

    i love this woman. i hate that so many of you can't respect her for what she's done. kurt's dead. he shot himself. courtney did not kill him. it's amazing that so many people can fall for internet rumors like this! in her biography it says, "This wasn't Celebrity Skin, it wasn't really about Kurt (after the eerie prescience of the lyrics on Live Through This, that seemed pointless), and it was most definitely a post-movie-star record." so, this isn't just about him! yes, i think best sunday dress is about him, but no, she's had other relationships since kurt cobain, other things have happened in her life, and yes, kurt's death was a major factor in her life, but come on! how many years has it been? yes, i love nirvana, yes i love kurt cobain, but jesus christ, every song by every 90's band isn't about him!! and to the people who say, "kurt wrote everything she did," that's such fucking bullshit! THEY WERE TWO MUSICIANS LIVING IN THE SAME GOD DAMNED HOUSE! OF COURSE THEY WERE GOING TO SHARE IDEAS!!! jesus! do you think that when they'd get creative they'd lock themselves in sound-proof booths? i love this song so much, and i have no idea what it means, but i don't think i'll ever know, because it's rare on a site with anything hole-related on it, all people say is, "duhhh courtney killed kurt!" GET OVER HIM! he killed himself for christ's sake! can you just not accept that your idol killed himself, so you had to create a story for his death so you can still worship him and blame it on someone other than him? do you hate her for marrying him? that you didn't get to him first? fuck you all.

    bruisevioleton August 28, 2005   Link
  • +4
    General Comment

    I think this song is a sort of tribute to Kurt, mourning his loss. When she says "How'd you get so desperate? How'd you stay alive? Help me please, burn the sorrow from your eyes" it sounds to me like she is asking him why he had to kill himself and it reminds me of Kurt's big baby blues. The line "how are you so burnt when you're barely on fire?" I believe is a reference to Kurt's suicide note ("It's better to burn out than to fade away") and I think she is saying there how is he "burnt out" when he has no enthusiasm for life anymore? Allusions to Kurt, I find, are consistent throughout the song as she talks about angels and the sun going down. Maybe Malibu is standing as a metaphor for heaven, an escape. I think when she says "And I knew love would tear you apart. Oh, and I knew the darkest secret of your heart. Hey, hey I'm gonna follow you...I can't be near you, the light just radiates" she is expressing her attempt to restrain herself from following his path. RIP Kurt!! Props to Courtney for this album.

    Teen Spirit 87on July 08, 2003   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    aff... come on, her life was not only based on Kurt Cobain, i'm a nirvana fan, i think she killed him but give her some credit... My opinion is that this song is about getting over someone by fleeing, in that case going to the beach... it's the same thing then drink to forget

    obs.: Spliphstar kurt problably helped her writing her songs the same way she helped him... there's some influence of courtney in In Utero if you don't know...

    Miraxon June 15, 2002   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    I really like this song. It's got great lyrics and is one of Hole's best.

    allenegirlon May 25, 2004   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    No, it's about recovery. About healing and how you want the best for someone who's in a situation that needs to heal. "Fly away...to Malibu" I used to think it was about being against superficiality, but really I'm pretty sure it's about Kurt and his time at rehab in Malibu [I'm not one of those people who say every single Hole song is about Kurt either! This one is though, trust me.]

    Also, this song does not "rip off" Love Will Tear us Apart, it mentions the song name in it...it REFERENCES it. I like that actually...it's like a shout-out to one of the good songs of the '80s.

    hotlipson February 13, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    exactly, they were together for a long time and u cant expect 2 writers like that not to have an influence on eachother, she said it herself that kurt had some influence on live through this. and courtney was writing songs long before she met kurt. i agree with mainstreet on the meaning of the song, i think its about kurt and the way he retreated into himself

    Angel99on June 16, 2002   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Courtney has never gotten the credit she deserves.

    I'm so tired of people like gl0ws in the dark and Mirax. They really need to get over themselves.

    Disketteson May 24, 2004   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    I love the lyrics to this song, it has a really Summery feel to it. It doesn't even sound depressing like a lot of Hole's songs. I'm a big Hole fan and this is one of their best, in my opinion. I can relate to some lines but i'm not sure what the song was written about. I guess you can make up your own meanings, in a way. To me this is about getting away...not just to somewhere hot and sunny like Malibu, but of course, maybe that too. But just getting away from something holding you back.

    Licion October 13, 2004   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    This song is about an experience in rehab that court had, In Malibu there are several rehab centers the stars go to, the song is about fighting addiction all of the questions are ones that people ask "How'd you get so desperate?" and the others are for motivation "Get well soon . . . " "And I knew love would tear you apart . . . " Is someone talking down to another person. Crash and Burn is clearly a line about drugs. And for the record every Hole song is not about Kurt and Courtney is a very good song writer this song screams desperation, you can hear it in her voice when she sings. COURTNEY LOVE ROCKS

    kenyanawooon December 23, 2004   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    its a great song, acoustic is awesome 2

    robot16on May 31, 2006   Link

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