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.
My days of wishful thinking
Soldiers of sorrow sinking
Words dance, beginning riddle
And in the end, and in the middle
Deep will I dig, I
Here's a nickel for your time and a dollar for your dime
Just another night of laying low
I see a shovel in the hand of a wild-eyed man
With a mission and a goal below
But I don't want to, you don't want to
We don't want to know
And forgotten are the cross, and the naked and the lost
And the lover of the tired and cold
I've learned of this religion
But I've lost my peaceful vision
Girl ghost is in the stairway
She likes it when I rub my eyes
Deep will I dig, I
So give a smile and a cringe to the lunatic fringe
I'm a little tired of saying so
See the spin and the whirl of a wide-eyed girl
Still digging for an honest soul
But I don't want to, you don't want to
We don't want to know
And dying on the cross for the sick and the lost
Is the lover that I long to know
Useless and empty, is it?
World stupid, loveless limits
With immune-deficient fathers
Sick sons and dying daughters
Deep will I dig, I
Soldiers of sorrow sinking
Words dance, beginning riddle
And in the end, and in the middle
Deep will I dig, I
Here's a nickel for your time and a dollar for your dime
Just another night of laying low
I see a shovel in the hand of a wild-eyed man
With a mission and a goal below
But I don't want to, you don't want to
We don't want to know
And forgotten are the cross, and the naked and the lost
And the lover of the tired and cold
I've learned of this religion
But I've lost my peaceful vision
Girl ghost is in the stairway
She likes it when I rub my eyes
Deep will I dig, I
So give a smile and a cringe to the lunatic fringe
I'm a little tired of saying so
See the spin and the whirl of a wide-eyed girl
Still digging for an honest soul
But I don't want to, you don't want to
We don't want to know
And dying on the cross for the sick and the lost
Is the lover that I long to know
Useless and empty, is it?
World stupid, loveless limits
With immune-deficient fathers
Sick sons and dying daughters
Deep will I dig, I
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More Featured Meanings
Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
Van Halen
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
"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.
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
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,
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
This song is all about putting faith in theology. The title, 'Deep', refers to digging deeper into the Bible for answers, looking for more profound truths, but neglecting the simple truths that are so apperent on the surface.
The first verse sets the stage. 'Wishful thinking' is the human ideas that occur to us that attempt to put God's truth into some kind of logical structure we can understand. The 'words dance' line implies using logical rhetoric to make the Bible say what we think it 'should' say. I think 'Soldiers of Sorrow' refers to those that create additional rules and regulations on top of the simple commandments that God has given us.
The first chorus starts by demonstrating how a clever turn of phrase can lead to something that doesn't make practical sense ('dollar for your dime'). The wild-eyed man is the one looking for deeper truths, literally, with a shovel. But forgotten on the cross are the naked and the lost. The simple truths, and simple needs, are ignored. The 'I don't want to, you don't want to, we don't want to know' probably refers to the collective blindness to the needs around us.
Second verse uses the term 'religion' to give a name to this. Religion, in this case, refers to the rules and structure, rather than the faith. Losing the peaceful vision implies a lack of peace with the religion (i.e. a religion without faith). I think the girl ghost in the hallway refers to the Holy Spirit, which prefers when we "walk by faith and not by sight" 'when I rub my eyes'. It could also be a reference to clearing the eyes to remove that which is preventing clear sight. Although the image that comes to my mind is of a student studying late at night who pauses to rub his eyes because he has been staring at his book for too long.
The next chorus is some great word-smithing. The 'lunatic fringe' represents those that are more concerned with theology than faith, more concerned with religion than relationship with Jesus. The wide-eyed girl refers back to the first chorus, with the man becoming a girl for strictly lyrical reasons. And of course, the line about dying on the cross is a lover that I long to know refers to the need for a personal relationship with Christ, rather than dry facts of theology.
The final verse describes the world with only theology and without a living faith and real relationship with Jesus; Useless, Empty, and Stupid. The 'loveless limits' refers rules and requirements that are man-made and not God ordained. And the results? Immune-deficient fathers, sick sons and dying daughters. But I will keep digging, because the answer has to be down there somewhere, despite the fact that it's staring us in the face.