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.
The sirens woke me up again
I know they're coming for me someday, just a matter of when
Count to twenty-five and yawn
Touch the clock and turn my back against the dawn
And hope for that one dream
Of hardware stores with checkered floors
And buckets full of nails
Or floating, effortless
Over the apartments in a boat
And rowing past the office windows
Mother, mother, may I cry
Father, will you teach me how to die the right way someday
I don't want a second chance
To turn my stuttering reluctance into romance
With these documents
And kindergarten anthems with my drunken liturgies
Tune the FM into static and pretend that it's the sea
But four words fumble for the microphone
You should have known
You should have known
I know they're coming for me someday, just a matter of when
Count to twenty-five and yawn
Touch the clock and turn my back against the dawn
And hope for that one dream
Of hardware stores with checkered floors
And buckets full of nails
Or floating, effortless
Over the apartments in a boat
And rowing past the office windows
Mother, mother, may I cry
Father, will you teach me how to die the right way someday
I don't want a second chance
To turn my stuttering reluctance into romance
With these documents
And kindergarten anthems with my drunken liturgies
Tune the FM into static and pretend that it's the sea
But four words fumble for the microphone
You should have known
You should have known
Lyrics submitted by lakeoffire23
The Prescience of Dawn Lyrics as written by John Paul Sutton John K Samson
Lyrics © CCS RIGHTS MANAGEMENT CORP
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Ok, then i will start. It seems to be about that time when you're lying in bed, trying to sleep but unable to ("count to 35 and yawn") , and thinking all those existential thoughts that come to you when you're waiting for sleep, such as the idea of death.
Perhaps it's just because of my own nighttime death thoughts, but it seems as though this song has a lot of thinking about death in it, and the fear or reluctance to die.
The part I don't get is the end, starting at "with the documents and kindergarten anthems..." up till the end. I don't quite get the meaning of it or how it relates to the line preceding it. And I'm obsessive about this kind of stuff, so if anyone could help me out, i would appreciate it.
"I don't want a second chance to turn my stuttering reluctance into romance, with these documents and kindergarten anthems, with my drunken liturgies."<br /> <br /> This isn't about looking forward, it's about recounting the past. It's about the rituals associated with death, and celebrating the lives of lost loved ones. The "stuttering reluctance" with which a relationship begins, in retrospect, turns into a dashing romance. Documents (e.g., personal letters, diplomas, birth certificates, childhood memorabilia) get collected up to organize thoughts about the life being remembered and celebrated. I'm not sure about "kindergarten anthems"; maybe it refers to remembering and sharing songs that the person liked as a child, or maybe it's using the saccharine, optimistic nature of children's songs (think Barney the Dinosaur) as an analogy to the unrealistically positive way we spin the lives of lost loved ones (I love you, you love me, we're a happy family"). "Drunken liturgies" is a return to one of the themes of the album, interpreting quasi-secular rituals (eulogies and general commiseration) in sacred terms.
Just popped into my head, but on the theme of death, kindergarten anthems are often very dark, traditional songs -- e.g., "ring around the rosey, pocket full of posey, ashes, ashes, we all fall down!"