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.
Yesterday by the paper stand
I felt the power of another religion
Rebels with a cause came out of the sun
And spoke the only language they'd been given
Creepers tapping out the beat as I felt the heat
Man, they sure looked neat
Well, tonight for sure
You could feel the same as me
We didn't have to fight
On the other side of town
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
In the day we use machines or brains
'cause we need hard cash for living
And later between tracks and raps with friends
We'll find some time for loving
Stratocasters strafe the sky
As Disco Johnny hustles by
Man, those feet can fly, high
Well, tonight let's dance and risk romance
Baby, let's take a chance
We'll make it in a single bound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
I feel it in the air and I know that you're there
We won't let you down
The phantoms of the underground
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Racing wild with the radios blasting
Out ready, steady, go
As we rip through the charts
Crashing like angles
At the end of rocks rainbow
Electricity runs in my blood like Gods
Man, if you could see it
By tonight for sure you'd be the same as me
A junkie needing more
Our feet burning up the ground
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Yeah, we're burning up the ground
Where the rockabilly beat pounds
With the ska rhythm pressing down
Where the skinhead moon stomp pounds
Where the heavy metal comes down
When the punk rockers are round
Yeah, you and I are found
Yeah, you and I are found
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
I felt the power of another religion
Rebels with a cause came out of the sun
And spoke the only language they'd been given
Creepers tapping out the beat as I felt the heat
Man, they sure looked neat
Well, tonight for sure
You could feel the same as me
We didn't have to fight
On the other side of town
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
In the day we use machines or brains
'cause we need hard cash for living
And later between tracks and raps with friends
We'll find some time for loving
Stratocasters strafe the sky
As Disco Johnny hustles by
Man, those feet can fly, high
Well, tonight let's dance and risk romance
Baby, let's take a chance
We'll make it in a single bound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
I feel it in the air and I know that you're there
We won't let you down
The phantoms of the underground
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Racing wild with the radios blasting
Out ready, steady, go
As we rip through the charts
Crashing like angles
At the end of rocks rainbow
Electricity runs in my blood like Gods
Man, if you could see it
By tonight for sure you'd be the same as me
A junkie needing more
Our feet burning up the ground
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Yeah, we're burning up the ground
Where the rockabilly beat pounds
With the ska rhythm pressing down
Where the skinhead moon stomp pounds
Where the heavy metal comes down
When the punk rockers are round
Yeah, you and I are found
Yeah, you and I are found
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Running with the boss sound
Lyrics submitted by geekthegirl
Running With the Boss Sound Lyrics as written by Robert Ian Andrews Billy Idol
Lyrics © RUBBERCHEESE MUSIC, BMG Rights Management
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"
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
I read somewhere this was supposed to be about the Sex Pistols, but it always given me the impressiion as being about Idol seeing a group of Punks and the vibe he got from them or about experiencing Punks on the street in general. Easily the best track on their 2nd LP and one of the best things they ever did.