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.
Five a.m. Friday morning Thursday night far from sleep
I'm still up and driving can't go home obviously
So I'll just change direction 'cause they'll soon know where I live
And I want to live
Got a full tank and some chips
It was me
And a gun
And a man
On my back
And I sang Holly Holy as he buttoned down his pants
You can laugh
It's kind of funny
Things you think
Times like these
Like I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
Yes I wore a slinky red thing
Does that mean I should spread for you, your friends
Your father, Mr. Ed
It was me
And a gun
And a man
On my back
But I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
And I know what this means
Me and Jesus a few years back used to hang
And he said it's your choice babe just remember
I don't think you'll be back in three days time so you choose well
Tell me what's right
Is it my right to be on my stomach of Fred's Seville
It was me
And a gun
And a man
On my back
But I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
And do you know Carolina
Where the biscuits are soft and sweet
These things go through your head when there's a man on your back
And you're pushed flat on your stomach it's not a classic Cadillac
It was me
And a gun
And a man
On my back
But I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
I'm still up and driving can't go home obviously
So I'll just change direction 'cause they'll soon know where I live
And I want to live
Got a full tank and some chips
It was me
And a gun
And a man
On my back
And I sang Holly Holy as he buttoned down his pants
You can laugh
It's kind of funny
Things you think
Times like these
Like I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
Yes I wore a slinky red thing
Does that mean I should spread for you, your friends
Your father, Mr. Ed
It was me
And a gun
And a man
On my back
But I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
And I know what this means
Me and Jesus a few years back used to hang
And he said it's your choice babe just remember
I don't think you'll be back in three days time so you choose well
Tell me what's right
Is it my right to be on my stomach of Fred's Seville
It was me
And a gun
And a man
On my back
But I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
And do you know Carolina
Where the biscuits are soft and sweet
These things go through your head when there's a man on your back
And you're pushed flat on your stomach it's not a classic Cadillac
It was me
And a gun
And a man
On my back
But I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
I haven't seen Barbados so I must get out of this
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“5am Friday morning Thursday night Far from sleep I'm still up and driving Can't go home Obviously So I'll just change direction Cause they'll soon know where I live And I wanna live”
She starts the song the morning after the incident. Regardless of the lack of sleep, she keeps driving in order to lose the rapists, even though they may be at home, or driving home. Her driving around in order to lose the rapists isn’t literal; rather, she is still running away from this incident in her mind. She cannot just forget about it, and physically trying to get away as far as possible is one coping mechanism and natural reaction. Fight or flight-obviously she lost the fight, so she is flying away in order to stay safe. Paranoia plays a role here. Although the rapists are not seeking out 5am Friday morning to rape her again, she cannot help but feel it may happen again. If they did it again, she would not be able to cope, and therefore may resort to suicide as a way out.
“Got a full tank and some chips It was me and a gun And a man on my back And I sang "holy holy" as he buttoned down his pants You can laugh It's kind of funny, things you think At times like these Like I haven't seen Barbados So I must get out of this”
She can drive for hours and hours, as long as she can get away from them. The gun can be seen as both literal and figurative. If they rape her again, she’ll kill them or herself. Also, the gun can be seen as a phallic symbol, a symbol of power the man had over her, destroying her spirit during the violent act. Her mind wanders to Barbados, a place she has never been to. Yet anywhere is better than being raped, so Barbados serves as the place she must escape to so she can be free.
“Yes I wore a slinky red thing Does that mean I should spread For you, your friends, your father, Mr. Ed”
Thinking that her sex appeal was the trigger for the rape is normal for people who are victims of rape; they tend to think it was their fault for a time. Since she is singing about this the morning after, she knows that it wasn’t, but at the time, she may have regretted wearing that red dress.
”Me and a gun And a man On my back But I haven't seen Barbados So I must get out of this”
Escape equals freedom.
”Me and Jesus a few years back Used to hang and he said "It's your choice babe just remember I don't think you'll be back in 3 days time So you choose well" Tell me what's right Is it my right to be on my stomach of Fred's Seville”
The irony in this situation is that she never did have a choice. What he said was a mockery.
”Me and a gun And a man On my back But I haven't seen Barbados So I must get out of this”
”And do you know Carolina Where the biscuits are soft and sweet These things go through you head When there's a man on your back And you're pushed flat on your stomach It's not a classic cadillac”
Again, her mind wanders to better things. This is a normal reaction when enduring a traumatic experience. The biscuits mentioned above echo comfort, something familiar, unlike the man on her back.
”Me and a gun and a man On my back But I haven't seen Barbados So I must get out of this”