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.
Baby, I've been
Breaking glass in your room again
Listen
Don't look at the carpet
I drew something awful on it
See
You're such a wonderful person
But you got problems, oh-oh-oh-oh
I'll never touch you
Breaking glass in your room again
Listen
Don't look at the carpet
I drew something awful on it
See
You're such a wonderful person
But you got problems, oh-oh-oh-oh
I'll never touch you
Lyrics submitted by saturnine, edited by reverendayglow
Breaking Glass Lyrics as written by Dennis Davis David Bowie
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
Van Halen
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
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.
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
My understanding, is Breaking Glass was written during Bowie's residence in Berlin (the "Low" album on which it appears being one of the three albums written & produced there - Station to Station, Low & Heroes. Three of Bowie's most introspective albums, sometimes referred to as "The Berlin Trilogy" ), during which time, it is well documented, Bowie developed a fascination with fascism. "The Night of Breaking Glass" was a turning point for Hitler's Nazi party (not in their ideology), rather in their process - it was sudden, brutal and, at that point, for the first time demonstrated to the German people. I believe, rether than drug references, etc, it's a reference to a sudden, dramatic & demonstrative change in how Bowie was behaving.
@Sparticjs774 The Berlin Trilogy is actually Low, Heroes, and Lodger. Very interesting period when Bowie was trying to break some bad habits. <br /> Station to Station, although it has some of my favorite tracks, was before he decided to kick the drugs (or try to anyway, he had many relapses) In fact in interviews he has stated that he doesn't even remember recording most of the album. I find it interesting that he was able to pump out that caliber of material in that state. I feel that the Station to Station era was the closest we came to losing him the way we had lost many great musicians to drugs. Berlin was a new beginning for him and I feel that is why the "trilogy" sound very experimental.
@Sparticjs774 The 'Berlin Trilogy' is a mythmaking misnomer for records that weren't even fully made/recorded in Berlin at all. The Eno association is another myth that needs amending [but won't] - sure he was there for a time, but his influence is overstated to the unwanted use of hyperbole