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.
Everybody up
Let me introduce to you,
A man that herd of and you thought you knew,
Well give me a couple of seconds just to prove to you,
You never did, but let me give you a chance too,
I use to swear everybody had it in for me
People only wanted to talk to spit on me
So I'd, paint pictures, draw a little bit
And every time I'd was pissed off at some kid I’d,
Get home, draw a little sketch
Of any kid I hated with a knife in the neck
A pencil in the eye and a hole in the back,
I had a back pack of six sketches like that,
And over time people started to see,
The pictures that I made, made a lot of scence to me,
But, it never ready made much of a difference,
They still talk shit, but not at close distance,
And that sucked because all I wanted to have
Was a little attention weather good or bad,
But over time I got sick of tryin
And kept makin them pictures and kept re-drawin lines
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
Everybody up
Let me tell the truth to you
I never thought id be anyone you wished you knew,
And just thought id end up a stain on the wall,
Something you want to fix because you've seen it all,
Anyway back a few years in time
I had a class with this smart mouth friend of mine,
And we would sit in the back, the two of us combine,
We'd make fun of everybody just to pass the time,
Now we did it quietly so no one heard,
A couple of nerds sentence full of pictures and words
Until this kid heard we were callin him names and decided to get tough,
I remember he came up to me that day in front of half my friends
And talk shit so loud people couldn't pretend they didn't hear him,
Sayin he would beat my ass and i laughed
But he was serious and pushed me back,
At this point I was pretty confused,
This little BITCH was all ampt so what could I do?
I should have come back at him for all to see,
But instead I just told him that, it wasn't me
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
It’s like flat liners, see that flick,
People dyin, comin back seeing crazy shit,
People that they did wrong come back to attack them
And everyone that they hurt comes back for revenge,
Well if that was ever going to happen to me,
I'd petentially would be attacked constently
But then again for all the pain in my pass
There'd be alot of people that had better watch there ass
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
Let me introduce to you,
A man that herd of and you thought you knew,
Well give me a couple of seconds just to prove to you,
You never did, but let me give you a chance too,
I use to swear everybody had it in for me
People only wanted to talk to spit on me
So I'd, paint pictures, draw a little bit
And every time I'd was pissed off at some kid I’d,
Get home, draw a little sketch
Of any kid I hated with a knife in the neck
A pencil in the eye and a hole in the back,
I had a back pack of six sketches like that,
And over time people started to see,
The pictures that I made, made a lot of scence to me,
But, it never ready made much of a difference,
They still talk shit, but not at close distance,
And that sucked because all I wanted to have
Was a little attention weather good or bad,
But over time I got sick of tryin
And kept makin them pictures and kept re-drawin lines
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
Everybody up
Let me tell the truth to you
I never thought id be anyone you wished you knew,
And just thought id end up a stain on the wall,
Something you want to fix because you've seen it all,
Anyway back a few years in time
I had a class with this smart mouth friend of mine,
And we would sit in the back, the two of us combine,
We'd make fun of everybody just to pass the time,
Now we did it quietly so no one heard,
A couple of nerds sentence full of pictures and words
Until this kid heard we were callin him names and decided to get tough,
I remember he came up to me that day in front of half my friends
And talk shit so loud people couldn't pretend they didn't hear him,
Sayin he would beat my ass and i laughed
But he was serious and pushed me back,
At this point I was pretty confused,
This little BITCH was all ampt so what could I do?
I should have come back at him for all to see,
But instead I just told him that, it wasn't me
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
It’s like flat liners, see that flick,
People dyin, comin back seeing crazy shit,
People that they did wrong come back to attack them
And everyone that they hurt comes back for revenge,
Well if that was ever going to happen to me,
I'd petentially would be attacked constently
But then again for all the pain in my pass
There'd be alot of people that had better watch there ass
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
I don’t know where I’m going with this
I’m just reminiscin and tellin the story of this
Sit back and take in the story of the kid,
As I look back at the strange things I did
Lyrics submitted by TheEmceeKing
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
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[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
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
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."
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.
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
Man, no one's commented on this. It didn't make the Fort Minor album, but this is such a great song and I can totally relate to it. The meaning is obvious, about growin' up as an outcast and lookin' back when you've gotten older and reflecting over things you did and things you should've done.
yeah i know its suck a great song, and it was the first Fort Minor song he made