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.
This damn machine, this damn machine, this broken head doesn't work.
So they're selling it off again.
These crooked legs, these twisted arms, these tired feet lost their worth.
Soon they'll dismantle them.
But we're all just part of some giant grand machine.
Too big to really understand.
But we'll do our jobs till we break down and fall.
Now we just sleepwalk. We drift through the week.
A dead procession always dragging its feet. Well, come on.
Our hands are swollen. We all need to sleep.
But there's no time, just stitch us up so we'll keep.
We're all just part of someone's elaborate plan.
Chess pieces in some grandiose scheme.
But we'll do our jobs till we break down and fall.
So they're selling it off again.
These crooked legs, these twisted arms, these tired feet lost their worth.
Soon they'll dismantle them.
But we're all just part of some giant grand machine.
Too big to really understand.
But we'll do our jobs till we break down and fall.
Now we just sleepwalk. We drift through the week.
A dead procession always dragging its feet. Well, come on.
Our hands are swollen. We all need to sleep.
But there's no time, just stitch us up so we'll keep.
We're all just part of someone's elaborate plan.
Chess pieces in some grandiose scheme.
But we'll do our jobs till we break down and fall.
Lyrics submitted by dulcitablue
Grand Machine No. 12 Lyrics as written by Benjamin P Cooper Alexander P Kane
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
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
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
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
"Some and now none of you"
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"
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.
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/
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.
i think its just describing americans as a whole we are all workaholics and just live to work and in that sense we arent really living life to the fullest like we should be. we arent experiencing everything to be experienced because all we are worried about is our damn blue collar job
thats the literal meaning i get from it
im not deep enough to figure out any analogies haha
S/T is an album with a strong theme around a very controlled, drone-like society, and this is one of the songs where this theme is most evident. The "Grand Machine" referenced is the society created by an all powerful goverment, or ruling force.
The first verse, talking about "this damn machine (that) dosent work" is talking about possibly some aspect of the society that is failing, and the way that the government is dismantling and reconstructing it coldly, as if it was a lifeless machine, not made of people.
The chorus goes "We are all just part of some giant grand machine, Too big to really understand. But we'll do our jobs till we break down and fall." This insinuates a sense of being a small part of something huge, controlled by someone else, with no freedom, only the job to do that you have been given by the mysterious force that controls the machine. The people have been trained to just do their jobs like obedient robots until they die, with no hopes or dreams other than to help power the machine.
The second verse shows the true extent of the brainwashing that these people have endured, "sleepwalking through the streets", only acknowledging their pain because it may make them physically unable to do their jobs. It also brings to light the evil of the government, the "controllers of the machine", as they let their people work themselves to the bone, and make them keep working ceaselessly, even though they desperately need sleep.
The second chorus ends the song with a taste of the complete passivity and defeat of the people in the society. They know that they are just being used for someone else's good. And they are letting themselves be, because they don't care about anything anymore than doing their jobs like they've been told.
Overall, I think that this song is also about the susceptibility of man to the words of others. These people are treated like machines, so they start thinking of themselves that way, accept it as a fact and live their lives that way instead of questioning it. Anyway, amazing song, amazing lyrics.
I havent really taken the time to understand the lyrics, but the song is absolutley awesome.
yeah i agree with sealedfate, this song sounds as if it's mocking they way most middle class people live. too worried about their job and money to really care about living life properly.
yet another cool song from Alex Kane and Ben Cooper.
It means to me that being an individual is important, otherwise we all just become "chess pieces in some grandiose scheme."
vids.myspace.com/index.cfm
i love this video. watch it :]
sorry it didnt all fit...
vids.myspace.com/index.cfm ids.individual&videoid=1854343552
I really like this song... It was on The O.C. =P ... I need the line "We all need to sleep" ... Like he says "We're tired of this life" ... But then he says "But there's no time", which is a little sad... But after all, great song.
Sorry ... It was "I LIKE the line" XD
this is such an amazingly beautiful song. I think the lyrics talk about the uselessness of just one person. The machine breaks without peace, and without everyone working together.