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.
Today I saw my hero fall apart
The one who taught me to be strong
On the outside I look fine
But on the inside I am dying
My strength is overcome by pain
My love for you remains the same
The loneliness is setting in
I have no one to free my sins
It's never too late
To live your life
The time is now
It's do or die
[Chorus]
It's never too late
To live your life
The time is now
It's yours and mine
Now it's my time to help you out
Cause you were there when I was down
It's hard for me to see you this way
Losing all your sanity
You helped me keep my dreams alive
Without you how will I survive
It's time for me to be a man
Now I finally understand
It's never too late
To live your life
The time is now
It's do or die
[Chorus: x2]
Not gonna run anymore [Repeat: x3]
Today I saw my hero fall apart
The one who taught me to be strong
On the outside I look fine
But on the inside I am dying
It's never too late
To live your life
The time is now
It's do or die
[Chorus: x3]
Not gonna run anymore [Repeat: x4]
Yeah
The one who taught me to be strong
On the outside I look fine
But on the inside I am dying
My strength is overcome by pain
My love for you remains the same
The loneliness is setting in
I have no one to free my sins
It's never too late
To live your life
The time is now
It's do or die
[Chorus]
It's never too late
To live your life
The time is now
It's yours and mine
Now it's my time to help you out
Cause you were there when I was down
It's hard for me to see you this way
Losing all your sanity
You helped me keep my dreams alive
Without you how will I survive
It's time for me to be a man
Now I finally understand
It's never too late
To live your life
The time is now
It's do or die
[Chorus: x2]
Not gonna run anymore [Repeat: x3]
Today I saw my hero fall apart
The one who taught me to be strong
On the outside I look fine
But on the inside I am dying
It's never too late
To live your life
The time is now
It's do or die
[Chorus: x3]
Not gonna run anymore [Repeat: x4]
Yeah
Lyrics submitted by prayingmantis84
Do or Die Lyrics as written by Gerald Tuso
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Reservoir Media Management, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
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This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
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Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
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This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
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This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
for me this song is like a kick in the ass to get me moving...my moms younger brother died not long ago and listening to this song made me remember all the times she get home from work and would just sit in her car and cry. I scared the shit out of me because my mom was always the strong one and now i had to be...whether the kick in the ass Will get me moving Idk. been2hellnback
Very different sound than most songs on the "Getting Away With Muder" album... but very good none the less!
This song just truly rocks. It has such an epic and emotional feel. This song kind of speaks for itself but I definitely get a really nice imagery from the combination of feeling and the lyrics.
You have to listen to this!
I see a person who looked up to someone else all his life. His hero was always there for him, always backing him up when he felt so alone, always reaching out for him.
But now this world can be toxic and the strong can become weak within the snap of a finger.
Now his hero has fallen. He is losing his ground. He is falling a part.
Now this kid has become a man and he's ready to give back to his hero. To help him out because it hurts him so to see his hero sitting there with his head in his hands, slowly losing his insanity.
This song is just so incredible.
hmm...........
like this song, tis v good
I could listen to this song ten times in a row, it just gets you hooked
It's great, if everyone could just live their life by this song (especially the girl i'm trying to get with who won't take a chance on me! lol)....but yer, it's about that sudden intake of breath when someone propositions you and you think "hell, why not, what have i got to lose"... that's what it means to me
To me, it means exactly what chino said....
The world would be great if the ones you look up to were perfect, but they aren't. The probably also have someone they look or looked up to, and even though they seem to know everything, they know nothing when they are with their own "hero".
Eh, screw it, I'mo stop acting smart and just say this:
What chino69 said.
ummm a little correction here: It's hard for me to seel this way
it is "It's hard for me to see you this way"
sorry but i love this album and im kinda a perfectionist when it comes to the lyrics sorry again
To me, and this is purely just my opinion, it is about how someone another person looked up to either ditched them, or passed on. Or, anoter thought, how someone loved another, then lost them somehow or another