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.
Well my daddy always said, son youll have fun
When youre drinkin with your friends and everyone
takes for granted these are the best years of your life
You know high school sure seemed like a joke
But when I got to college I was on my own
Tryin to find the best drink specials every night
And after many nights with the San Marcus federales
Well I finally figured out that I should probably
keep my mouth shut instead of tellin em what I thought
You know I paid the county for many months,
Hell I even think I paid their Christmas bonuses once
That's how I learned what student loans were all about
CHORUS:
And it's taco bell for breakfast and for lunch its keystone light
I'll be outta bed by sundown, make the party just on time
Probation in the morning, herbal tea will do me right
Look what I learned in my college life
Well I decided to major in country music
That's when I found out that I couldn't use
the 30 hours that I managed to log last year
And anthropology sure seemed cool to me
but it wasn't included in my degree,
that's when I decided to study domestic beer
Shiner boch, it was good to me
It treated me better than history
or that little blonde I met in science lab
And fraternity life was a change of pace
It taught me how to get shitfaced
and break my failing grades to good old dad
CHORUS
Well one of these days will come graduation
I sure hope I won't be mistaken
That everything I learned won't be in vain
You know, sure I failed a test or three
but that doesn't make a lesser man of me
There's more to life than a one point GPA
CHORUS
When youre drinkin with your friends and everyone
takes for granted these are the best years of your life
You know high school sure seemed like a joke
But when I got to college I was on my own
Tryin to find the best drink specials every night
And after many nights with the San Marcus federales
Well I finally figured out that I should probably
keep my mouth shut instead of tellin em what I thought
You know I paid the county for many months,
Hell I even think I paid their Christmas bonuses once
That's how I learned what student loans were all about
CHORUS:
And it's taco bell for breakfast and for lunch its keystone light
I'll be outta bed by sundown, make the party just on time
Probation in the morning, herbal tea will do me right
Look what I learned in my college life
Well I decided to major in country music
That's when I found out that I couldn't use
the 30 hours that I managed to log last year
And anthropology sure seemed cool to me
but it wasn't included in my degree,
that's when I decided to study domestic beer
Shiner boch, it was good to me
It treated me better than history
or that little blonde I met in science lab
And fraternity life was a change of pace
It taught me how to get shitfaced
and break my failing grades to good old dad
CHORUS
Well one of these days will come graduation
I sure hope I won't be mistaken
That everything I learned won't be in vain
You know, sure I failed a test or three
but that doesn't make a lesser man of me
There's more to life than a one point GPA
CHORUS
Lyrics submitted by emoguitar131
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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 one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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