Somebody once told me the world is gonna roll me
I ain't the sharpest tool in the shed
She was looking kind of dumb with her finger and her thumb
In the shape of an "L" on her forehead

Well the years start coming and they don't stop coming
Fed to the rules and I hit the ground running
Didn't make sense not to live for fun
Your brain gets smart but your head gets dumb
So much to do, so much to see
So what's wrong with taking the back streets?
You'll never know if you don't go
You'll never shine if you don't glow

Hey now, you're an all-star, get your game on, go play
Hey now, you're a rock star, get the show on, get paid
And all that glitters is gold
Only shooting stars break the mold

It's a cool place and they say it gets colder
You're bundled up now, wait 'til you get older
But the meteor men beg to differ
Judging by the hole in the satellite picture
The ice we skate is getting pretty thin
The water's getting warm so you might as well swim
My world's on fire, how about yours?
That's the way I like it and I'll never get bored

Hey now, you're an all-star, get your game on, go play
Hey now, you're a rock star, get the show on, get paid
All that glitters is gold
Only shooting stars break the mold

(Go for the moon)
(Go for the moon)
(Go for the moon)
(Go, go, go for the moon)

Hey now, you're an all-star, get your game on, go play
Hey now, you're a rock star, get the show, on get paid
And all that glitters is gold
Only shooting stars

Somebody once asked could I spare some change for gas?
I need to get myself away from this place
I said, "Yup" what a concept
I could use a little fuel myself
And we could all use a little change

Well, the years start coming and they don't stop coming
Fed to the rules and I hit the ground running
Didn't make sense not to live for fun
Your brain gets smart but your head gets dumb
So much to do, so much to see
So what's wrong with taking the back streets?
You'll never know if you don't go (go!)
You'll never shine if you don't glow

Hey now, you're an all-star, get your game on, go play
Hey now, you're a rock star, get the show on, get paid
And all that glitters is gold
Only shooting stars break the mold

And all that glitters is gold
Only shooting stars break the mold


Lyrics submitted by rom

All Star Lyrics as written by Gregory Dean Camp

Lyrics © MUSIC SALES CORPORATION, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

All Star song meanings
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73 Comments

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  • +4
    General Comment

    this song is my favorite and i have been lucky enough to see them live

    scar2010on October 20, 2009   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    i just lost faith in people after reading this. tools.

    allofmylove68on July 12, 2005   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    i first heard this song on shrek and sat through all the credits to see who it was by

    alienravenon April 30, 2003   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    I think this song is about thinking outside of the box, seeing things differently and a willingness to push for change if they think its for the better. Especially in the current society we live in, where in the near future, people will have to face problems like global warming (The ice we skate is getting pretty thin, The waters getting warm so you might as well swim), the loss of our ozone layer (Judging by the hole in thesatellite picture), but will you, the listener just listen to what everyone else tells you "Somebody once told me the world is gonna roll me I ain't the sharpest tool in the shed) or are you gonna have the foresight to see beyond the discouraging advice you are given by other people who are closeminded assholes (She was looking kind of dumb with her finger and her thumb In the shape of an "L" on her forehead) because they don't like the type of different perspective you perceive? Will you sit around and let somebody tell you what you 'need' to know, or go find yourself out there in the world (Your brain gets smart but your head gets dumb) and get some street smarts on your own? The part about the fellow who comes up to ask for the change shows the epiphany that can occur to one if they are willing to interpret things in other ways than face value, he totally misunderstands the guy but its because of his ambition (I could use a little fuel myself) to think of new ways to solve problems (We all could use a little change) because, after all, Only shooting stars (the only 'stars' that we see moving on their own in the night as opposed to the static stars that have stayed in the same places, unchanged for billions of years) break the mold. I'm sorry if I creep you out, but thats what I get from this song, and even with the overplaying with it, I still appreciate the meaning I perceive from it.

    slayerabon July 14, 2007   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    this song is from a long long time ago, when you could use spare change for gas

    dado507on August 14, 2008   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    This song I am certain has something to do with environmentalism. The lyrics mention peak oil, the ozone layer hole, and global warming. Yet it also has this nice beat to it, and some other subjects in it so it is debatable what this song is about. It is interesting.

    Roadcruiser1on June 12, 2012   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    It's sort of a dorky popular song that was on the soundtrack for so many movies, but I still like the song now that it's been out of the main loop long enough to listen to without getting sick of it again.

    It seems like a simple song in meaning. It seems to me that it's just about how as you get older people keep telling you how rough the world can be and how people get more cynical and bitter about the world as they age.

    But as he says a couple times "Didn't make sense not to live for fun" And the line "Your brain gets smart but your head gets dumb" he's saying how it doesn't make sense to focus on all the bad shit in the world and stop enjoying life. So don't let the world get you down, enjoy life no matter what.

    SlightlyShinobion September 10, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    I want this song to be played at my funeral.

    Samboion May 14, 2009   Link
  • +1
    My Interpretation

    This is a song about being a vampire. It may even be a song by a vampire to other vampires.

    You see we are warned that choosing to become a vampire will ruin our lives and making such a choice would be foolish. ("Somebody once told me..." and "I ain't the sharpest tool...") Sure enough the world judges us but we know we made the right choice. ("She was looking kinda dumb with her finger and her thumb...")

    "The years start coming and they don't stop coming" is just about living forever as a vampire. "Fed to the rules..." is about making the best of the cursed life. "...live for fun.." is the same. "Brain gets smart..." is about how intelligent you become as a vampire and yet do foolish things. "So much to do..." is pretty self explanatory "...Taking the back streets" is going hunting. "You'll never know..." is about how you don't know the vampire life until you choose it. "You'll never shine..." is about how great it is being a vampire.

    The chorus is just about what you can do as a vampire like become a rock star and become immensely wealthy. So do it.

    The global warming verse is warning vampires about the dangers of the onset of climate change and the hell that awaits them in the hereafter as well. But being a vampire rules all the same.

    The gas verse is about feeding on that beggar.

    This is a song about being a vampire. Perhaps from a vampire to other vampires. Thanks for reading.

    Batiliskon August 01, 2019   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    wow what can i say? the first time i heard this song was about a month ago, on the soundtrack of the film "rat race", and from then it rapidly grew in my estimation, and it has now settled at my 5th favourite song ever, and that's facing a lot of competition. i have never heard a song like this, even by smashmouth themselves, and i just wanted to share my appreciation of what i know is an amazing song. i especially like the line "all that glitters is gold, only shooting stars break the mould". for me this song is about how someone realising that they're not perfect, but learning to appreciate life anyway, even though it has many flaws. if anyone disagrees i'd love to hear your ideas. Lou xxx "Giving money and power to Government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys." -- P.J. O'Rourke

    rainbow8711on April 15, 2002   Link

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