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.
Missy got off the bus one day
In a crowd of people, downtown LA
She looked around as if to say, 'I'm home'
But I'm home
I find someone to love
And some place to drink
And some time when I can just sit and think
And I don't mind if I catch the stink of these drones
Lord, of these drones
Just as long as I'm never alone
She had eyes as big as porcelain plates
And skin as thin as paper drapes
And she loved the Lord the way an apostate loves songs
And she'd sing to him before she went to sleep:
"I pray to you, my soul to keep
You're shepherd, then I'll be your sheep
Until dawn, oh until dawn
Well I'd follow you, even if it was wrong"
I met her one night at the coffee shop
Her face so bright, my heart just stopped
Hello my dear, I fear I'm not what I seem
Not what I seem
I should've become a better man
I should be more deserving than
The beggar, thief and courtesan I've been
Oh, that I've been
But I swear, I lie, I curse all of my dreams
But I swear there's still some good in me
And I think if you stuck around you'd see
All the honest attempts at integrity, I was had
Maybe if you helped me, I'd get it right
I lie awake every night, staring at the ceiling
Wondering why I feel so bad, why I feel so bad
But I swear, I swear, I swear I'll never get sad
In a crowd of people, downtown LA
She looked around as if to say, 'I'm home'
But I'm home
I find someone to love
And some place to drink
And some time when I can just sit and think
And I don't mind if I catch the stink of these drones
Lord, of these drones
Just as long as I'm never alone
She had eyes as big as porcelain plates
And skin as thin as paper drapes
And she loved the Lord the way an apostate loves songs
And she'd sing to him before she went to sleep:
"I pray to you, my soul to keep
You're shepherd, then I'll be your sheep
Until dawn, oh until dawn
Well I'd follow you, even if it was wrong"
I met her one night at the coffee shop
Her face so bright, my heart just stopped
Hello my dear, I fear I'm not what I seem
Not what I seem
I should've become a better man
I should be more deserving than
The beggar, thief and courtesan I've been
Oh, that I've been
But I swear, I lie, I curse all of my dreams
But I swear there's still some good in me
And I think if you stuck around you'd see
All the honest attempts at integrity, I was had
Maybe if you helped me, I'd get it right
I lie awake every night, staring at the ceiling
Wondering why I feel so bad, why I feel so bad
But I swear, I swear, I swear I'll never get sad
Lyrics submitted by shrodes, edited by ameerhamid89, kylethewelch
Missy Lyrics as written by Mikel Frans Jollett
Lyrics © 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
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
Thursday
In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
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"
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.
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
I think it's written in admiration for this... "Missy." Written in awe for how strong-willed and dedicated to her faith she remains, despite living in a place as ungodly and tempting as downtown Los Angeles. Missy has inspired him, and he begins to plead his case theoretically to her, but in reality to himself and his own conscious. And just as the song sparks our interest, it drops us in a cliffhanger, leaving it open for us to imagine whether or not he fulfilled his desire to start to become a better person.
I didn't do any digging, obviously. Just what I take from the lyrics.
agreed.