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.
Down where I was born was heaven on earth
The Flint River washes that red Georgia dirt
The sun sets slow and the stars shine bright
We raised cotton, corn, a little cane, and kids
You either lived on a farm or wish you did
Jesus always walked close by our side
Where I grew up, we rode in trucks
There's a lot about life we learned on the bus,
How to lie, how to fight, how to kiss, how to cuss
The closer we sat to the back, the smarter we got
We were poor, we were ugly, we were all best friends
White-eyed, baptized, and still wantin' to sin
Thank God we get more than just one shot
Where I grew up, we rode in trucks
That's us, haulin' hay in the field with the radio on
That's us, headin' straight into town when the work is done
In my mind, I can still see us now,
Ridin' down Buck Island Road
It wasn't that long ago
We thought tobacco and beer in a can
Was all it would take to be like our old man
But I saw how it made my momma cry
It was huntin' and fishin' and football games
Then it was girls, and everything changed
Fallin' in and out of love, we rode in trucks
That's us with our tailgates down in the parking lot
That's us with mud on our tires when it rained a lot
In my mind, I can still see us now
Ridin' down Buck Island Road
It wasn't that long ago
It's apart of my soul, yeah
It's apart of my soul
Down where I was born, it was heaven on earth
The Flint River washes that red Georgia dirt
The sun sets slow and the stars shine bright
Where I grew up
We rode in trucks
The Flint River washes that red Georgia dirt
The sun sets slow and the stars shine bright
We raised cotton, corn, a little cane, and kids
You either lived on a farm or wish you did
Jesus always walked close by our side
Where I grew up, we rode in trucks
There's a lot about life we learned on the bus,
How to lie, how to fight, how to kiss, how to cuss
The closer we sat to the back, the smarter we got
We were poor, we were ugly, we were all best friends
White-eyed, baptized, and still wantin' to sin
Thank God we get more than just one shot
Where I grew up, we rode in trucks
That's us, haulin' hay in the field with the radio on
That's us, headin' straight into town when the work is done
In my mind, I can still see us now,
Ridin' down Buck Island Road
It wasn't that long ago
We thought tobacco and beer in a can
Was all it would take to be like our old man
But I saw how it made my momma cry
It was huntin' and fishin' and football games
Then it was girls, and everything changed
Fallin' in and out of love, we rode in trucks
That's us with our tailgates down in the parking lot
That's us with mud on our tires when it rained a lot
In my mind, I can still see us now
Ridin' down Buck Island Road
It wasn't that long ago
It's apart of my soul, yeah
It's apart of my soul
Down where I was born, it was heaven on earth
The Flint River washes that red Georgia dirt
The sun sets slow and the stars shine bright
Where I grew up
We rode in trucks
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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.
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I love this song so much! It's such a high school song, you know? About growing up and innocence of it all...
this is an absolute amazing song. it just makes you feel so free when you listen to it like you can have anything in the world that you want. its just about growing up and in the small town that i live in everything in the song is what we do every week. its the way we live our lives. especially the falling in and out of love part. this song just makes you not want to grow up.
His second best song that I've heard. It's great.