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.
With my toes dangling into the sea,
Into a fog, into a lonely drink
Don't lift me up,
I'm a wreck, I know
Still, I've got miles to walk from the cape along the coast
And we'll play helicopter in the sand
And bite our thumbs at the acquaintances,
And make it known we're on par for the evening,
And take the butcher's knife through my words again
Then, in walk, the mannered men
With their smoke-screened eyes
And the sequined girls
With their skirts hemmed high
And you will know from this
That it's all to start.
Our glasses clink,
And our plastic swords stab our olive hearts
All night like a friendly ghost
We haunt the ins and outs of this house of our gracious host
And give thanks, but not much helps.
And so here is where we give the toast:
Cheers to the wives of the drunks
Cheers to the husbands that tag along for good luck
Cheers to the miles it took to get here
Cheers to the the nerve it takes to forget who we are
Then, in walk, the mannered men
With their smoke-screened eyes
And the sequined girls
With their skirts hemmed high
And you will know from this
That it's all to start.
Our glasses clink,
And our plastic swords stab our olive hearts
Into a fog, into a lonely drink
Don't lift me up,
I'm a wreck, I know
Still, I've got miles to walk from the cape along the coast
And we'll play helicopter in the sand
And bite our thumbs at the acquaintances,
And make it known we're on par for the evening,
And take the butcher's knife through my words again
Then, in walk, the mannered men
With their smoke-screened eyes
And the sequined girls
With their skirts hemmed high
And you will know from this
That it's all to start.
Our glasses clink,
And our plastic swords stab our olive hearts
All night like a friendly ghost
We haunt the ins and outs of this house of our gracious host
And give thanks, but not much helps.
And so here is where we give the toast:
Cheers to the wives of the drunks
Cheers to the husbands that tag along for good luck
Cheers to the miles it took to get here
Cheers to the the nerve it takes to forget who we are
Then, in walk, the mannered men
With their smoke-screened eyes
And the sequined girls
With their skirts hemmed high
And you will know from this
That it's all to start.
Our glasses clink,
And our plastic swords stab our olive hearts
Lyrics submitted by rafik
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Mountain Song
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Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
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Sounds like a day being drunk and gambling in Atlantic City. "Then, in walk, the mannered men With their smoke-screened eyes" are the high-rollers walking in accompanied by sexy women. "Our glasses clink, And our plastic swords stab our olive hearts" is the sound of people bumping their martini glasses with olives. "We haunt the ins and outs of this house of our gracious host" is walking around inside the casino making offerings to the slots and tables ("And give thanks, but not much helps."). "Cheers to the husbands that tag along for good luck" are the husbands following their wives around as the wives are gambling.
Bowerbirds are amazing. look at these lyrics! I'll be spending a long time now trying to decypher every line in this song.
by the way, I think it's "smokescreen eyes". I don't know... it's hard to hear that word.
Well I'm not really sure what each line means... but I get the feeling (obviously) this is song is about drinking. It has a sad, lonely feeling, kinda like the singer(s) are having a 'party' with alcohol, but it's "to forget who we are". And olive hearts.... well the only thing way I see olive relating is like an olive in a martini? Like an olive martini, maybe their hearts are drowning in alcohol?
this song sounds like growing up through struggles and the temptations of the world "mannered men with thier smoke-screened eyes" could be drug dealers, "sequened girls" societies low morals
and theres a theme of having your family and friends around you however. but we need to get through our own personal problems so we can progress
To me, this song is sort of about good and evil, and I can see the moral thing that chuckles is talking about. Basically, olive branches are signs of peace and the plastic swords are a sign of war. Peace is usually associated with good and war is usually associated with evil. So, the fact that the sword is stabbing the olive and they are drinking their drinks seems to represent that they are right on the verge and trying to "forget" themselves or maybe find themselves amidst all the chaos of good and evil. Drinking is the obvious theme, but it also makes sense with the way the music speeds up and slows down that it alternates between innocence "playing helicopter in the sand" and slow, mellow music, with fast-paced raucous almost war-like march music as the verse descends into debauchery and drinking. It almost seems as if the risk-taking side prevails. That's just my interpretation of it.
I think it is about being somewhere foreign, and trying to fit in. Of course it has to to with drinking as well. It is also about being abroad, feeling vulnerable, and ignoring a feeling of homesickness by just blending in with the life you have at the moment to not feel so isolated.
The first lines seem to set up the character, the narrator of the story. They remind me of a man depressed about something in his life, I assumed that some choices he made in his life are not working out for him. Personally I equate this to my choice of being an actor professionally which is not working very well. "Still I've got miles to walk from the cape along the coast" There's still lots of time left in his life, he's still very young and he has to live a long time with the consequences of this decision. "And we'll play helicopter in the sand ... And take the butcher's knife through my words again" We'll stop growing up for a second, let's get our minds off of aging and have a little bit of fun before we can't anymore. Then the chorus is the party, the men with the smoke-screened eyes could probably be high. The sequined girls are partiers. I like the idea that the character's heart is with the olive at the bottom of the martini, that really works with the character I have in mind. The next verse is most likely the realization that they're out of place. They try not to show it but they still feel like friendly ghosts. Because they couldn't entirely escape their lives, when they cheer they cheer for slightly sadder things. But the next chorus comes and once again the party begins.
Possibly.
"Olive hearts" are the olives in drinks.....the "plastic swords" are the toothpicks/straws/sticks in drinks used to eat those olives........I don't think any part of an olive is called a "heart" so I assume he's saying that his heart is truly at the bottom of a drink.