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.
I held the book so tightly in my hands,
I saw your picture, heard you call my name
There was something strange, I could not look away
I wanted to be there, I wanted to go
You gave me no warning
You gave no reason
But I was with you
Right by your side
Just give me the strength, and I will help you
And they can try their hardest, cos they don't frighten me
It is written in the book
It is hotter than I've known before, but I feel so cold, and I don't
know why
But if the fire within your heart can beat the storm
Then I really believe, you could make it right
Ooh the time has come now
We must show our feelings
But I'm looking right through you
And your heart is empty
Whatever happened to you it's too late to change now
There's nowhere you can run to, no place to hide
Ah you let me down!
...but wait a minute, I don't understand
It's getting stronger, so grab my hand
Don't wanna leave you, don't wanna go
But I'm losing all control
Can't you see me? I'm slipping away
I can only stay if you've the will to keep me here
It is written in the book
Oh so many times since I've read those words
Just waiting to see you, can you see me?
I saw your picture, heard you call my name
There was something strange, I could not look away
I wanted to be there, I wanted to go
You gave me no warning
You gave no reason
But I was with you
Right by your side
Just give me the strength, and I will help you
And they can try their hardest, cos they don't frighten me
It is written in the book
It is hotter than I've known before, but I feel so cold, and I don't
know why
But if the fire within your heart can beat the storm
Then I really believe, you could make it right
Ooh the time has come now
We must show our feelings
But I'm looking right through you
And your heart is empty
Whatever happened to you it's too late to change now
There's nowhere you can run to, no place to hide
Ah you let me down!
...but wait a minute, I don't understand
It's getting stronger, so grab my hand
Don't wanna leave you, don't wanna go
But I'm losing all control
Can't you see me? I'm slipping away
I can only stay if you've the will to keep me here
It is written in the book
Oh so many times since I've read those words
Just waiting to see you, can you see me?
Lyrics submitted by Demau Senae
Behind the Lines Lyrics as written by Phil Collins Michael Rutherford
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Light Up The Sky
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Fast Car
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"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
No Surprises
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Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
It's about the Book of Love. The friend met in the lovestory looks empty and true persons are Behind the lines.
But the Story grabs you unasked. Will is the key to stay in the story and the story is Written in the book, meaning it is both powerful and deliberate to open, to an extend.
Wooh! How about that? I have known the song for 20-something years and thought likewise, it to be impossible to explain on interpret. But see above, it is there. Comments?
I always interpreted this song as about a failed marriage/relationship.
The singer is looking through a wedding album/scrap book and seeing the "Forever"/"Love you always", etc. type of lines and wondering what went wrong. He's calling out that there was a commitment/promise "written in the book".
There's then memories of trying to reconcile and work through the issues, not really understanding where the disconnect happened but realizing that there was some sort of serious misstep. He comes back to find her "heart is empty" and he eventually realizes that reconciliation isn't possible.
The last verse is a final plea and the overall song is a realization that there were conditions "Behind the lines" that he didn't account for.
In the context of the whole album, the next song, "Duchess" is about a performer who lives for the performance and lets the rest of her life turn to crap. Then "Guide Vocal" is a whole "I stood by you, supported you and you took it for granted" that could be the other party from "Behind the lines".
I may be reading more into it than was intended, but I see a pretty clear story of someone who chose career over relationship and regretted the consequences.
This is only speculation, but Phil wrote this as his marriage was on the rocks, largely due to the demands of his music career. It seems to be about the heavy realization that the relationship has reached a tipping point, one where no "talk" is going to be the antidote.
I think the "book" is the collection of memories of earlier, happier days, when the relationship was full of promise, when commitment was easy, because life was good.
And isn't it an ancient story that when one's relationship is on the rocks, that he transports back to those sublime days, to that 'Book of Love,' of lovelier, less complicated times, before returning again to wondering what went wrong?
When I first read the song title, "Behind the Lines," I first thought of war, meaning the "battle lines," meaning, what others cannot see looking superficially from the outside in.
It might also refer to the "lines" in the "book" referenced in the song. If their earlier scrapbook of their honeymoon phase contained love notes and photos and and sweet yet superficial overtures, then what is "behind the lines" is a more complicated story of 'life getting in the way," a spotlight shone on the realities of relationships post-honeymoon.
Now this one is a puzzle to me; if anyone can help, please do.
From what I understand, it could be a kid reading some fairytale, wanting to join in the actual story (kinda like neverending story style) but the rest just wards me off from that idea...
Ill keep searching for info on this one
No idea what the song is all about ... Great song, thou, as a live opener ... Great double drums, tempo shifts, then Phil came out from behind his kit and stepped upfront to sing ...
"Behind The Lines" is a point on a logical circle.
"All is fair in love and war." --> The book of love --> (To read) between the lines --> Behind the lines (war reference) --> [repeat logic]
Is anyone getting the possibility of a God vibe from this?
Hence "written in the book"?
and the discussed person is never revealed to be female or even a love interest
For starters, and as I understand it, Collins didn't write the lyrics for this, Rutherford did. So any idea that they are autobiographical should be shelved. Also, they have to be understood as part of the Duke Suite - the story of Albert. I think we have to read this as being spoken by Albert in relation to Duchess. I must admit, I don't really fully understand this part, as I have read more than once that the basic story goes like this: Albert meets Duchess, becomes her manager/svengali, her career takes off and crashes back down, they go their separate ways and he ends up a delusional depressive with only the television for company. I think the key to understanding might lie in Guide Vocal. I think there are two voices speaking in that song. The first stanza is Albert. The second is Duchess. It's also possible that different parts of BtL take place at different times. The first part is about how they come together. The rest belongs alongside Guide Vocal, at the disintegration of their relationship. Does their relationship disintegrate before her career nosedives? Not clear. Could be, though, that we're all reading too much into this and the reason they decided not to. present the whole thing as a suite was that it wasn't eribly coherent, lyrically.
*terribly coherent, that should say.