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.
I didn't cry the day you moved away
I didn't think that I could feel this pain
Until I saw the stranger that was you
Whatever happened to our innocence
And the somethin' that you said about being friends
Tell me how
Help me say the words out loud
Could it be
That nothings gonna change
Cause time has got a way of taking back
Everything you thought you had
Can you see
The girl you used to be
The one I lost when I let go of you
Oh whatever happened to
Mary Jane
Ooh ooh
Ooh ooh
I need to wake up from this state of mind
The situation is the same kind
I gotta get your memory out of my head
Would you catch me if I had to fall
Would you even find the time for that at all
Tell me how
Help me say the words out loud
Could it be
That nothings gonna change
Time has got a way of taking back
Everything you thought you had
Can you see
The girl you used to be
The one I lost when I let go of you
Oh whatever happened to
Mary Jane
Ooh ooh
Ooh ooh
Cause time has taken back
Everything I thought we had
Mary Jane
Could it be
Nothings gonna change
Cause time has got a way of taking back
Everything you thought you had
Can you see
The girl you used to be
The one I lost when I let go of you
Oh whatever happened to
Mary Jane
Ooh ooh
Oh whatever happened to
Ooh ooh
Mary Jane
I didn't think that I could feel this pain
Until I saw the stranger that was you
Whatever happened to our innocence
And the somethin' that you said about being friends
Tell me how
Help me say the words out loud
Could it be
That nothings gonna change
Cause time has got a way of taking back
Everything you thought you had
Can you see
The girl you used to be
The one I lost when I let go of you
Oh whatever happened to
Mary Jane
Ooh ooh
Ooh ooh
I need to wake up from this state of mind
The situation is the same kind
I gotta get your memory out of my head
Would you catch me if I had to fall
Would you even find the time for that at all
Tell me how
Help me say the words out loud
Could it be
That nothings gonna change
Time has got a way of taking back
Everything you thought you had
Can you see
The girl you used to be
The one I lost when I let go of you
Oh whatever happened to
Mary Jane
Ooh ooh
Ooh ooh
Cause time has taken back
Everything I thought we had
Mary Jane
Could it be
Nothings gonna change
Cause time has got a way of taking back
Everything you thought you had
Can you see
The girl you used to be
The one I lost when I let go of you
Oh whatever happened to
Mary Jane
Ooh ooh
Oh whatever happened to
Ooh ooh
Mary Jane
Lyrics submitted by iheartyoubaby
Mary Jane Lyrics as written by Lisa Greene Andreas Carlsson
Lyrics © Songtrust Ave, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
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"
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
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.
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.
This song is simply wonderful! It reminds me of the past, times when you look back and start wondering whatever happened to your ex-girlfriend, and why is it that she doesn't seem like the same person anymore.