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.
If I fall or trip back into love I'm gonna bring a ladder and gloves,
So I can climb right back out if there is even a shred of doubt.
I'm gonna bring a flashlight too and leave a trail and stick to the plan,
You can get real lost down there if you're not sure,
Of foreign territory there are times when the path gets blurry and the wrong turn feels right.
But who would want me anyways?
I'm a lush with broken parts of paper mache.
I have nothing left to give, I don't think I ever did.
There are times when I wish that someone would help me fin the person I was,
Or give me a detailed map of the streets spelling out the traffic patterns in beeps.
I am finding safety in lines, they are painted so they can guide.
Empty tanks and broken wheels take me home.
Right now I find myself dangling on the edge trying not to fall in back where I came from.
I dove in way too deep with rocks tied to me,
I should have had a plan cause now these ropes won't come free.
I do not have faith if I did then I would feel safe.
I would wait here for fate but it's conveniently late.
The bottom is a place that I know too well.
So who would want me anyway? I'm a lush with broken parts and I'll never change.
I have nothing left to give,
I don't think I ever did. I wish that I could find the person that I was,
I always thought that I'd be happy if I was loved,
But I have nothing left to give I don't think I ever did.
So I can climb right back out if there is even a shred of doubt.
I'm gonna bring a flashlight too and leave a trail and stick to the plan,
You can get real lost down there if you're not sure,
Of foreign territory there are times when the path gets blurry and the wrong turn feels right.
But who would want me anyways?
I'm a lush with broken parts of paper mache.
I have nothing left to give, I don't think I ever did.
There are times when I wish that someone would help me fin the person I was,
Or give me a detailed map of the streets spelling out the traffic patterns in beeps.
I am finding safety in lines, they are painted so they can guide.
Empty tanks and broken wheels take me home.
Right now I find myself dangling on the edge trying not to fall in back where I came from.
I dove in way too deep with rocks tied to me,
I should have had a plan cause now these ropes won't come free.
I do not have faith if I did then I would feel safe.
I would wait here for fate but it's conveniently late.
The bottom is a place that I know too well.
So who would want me anyway? I'm a lush with broken parts and I'll never change.
I have nothing left to give,
I don't think I ever did. I wish that I could find the person that I was,
I always thought that I'd be happy if I was loved,
But I have nothing left to give I don't think I ever did.
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"
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.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental 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 quiet easy to understand if you get the whole "finding yourself" idea of the album.
Think of yourself standing around a big metaphorical hole, and that is the hole of depression that you have been struggling with for years and years, just like buddy has.
He has finally gotten out of that hole, and he says if he will fall back into depression, well hes got the ladder and gloves to get right back on top. He knows what he did wrong and how not to do it again. He has started to figure out he doesn't need love to feel fulfilled. He has got much of what he needed to be happy. He may not know what to do now, because he has been depressed for so long, but anything is better than being in that hole.
He is just going to go with the flow, and see what happens...
I agree with most of that, except the hole is a metaphor for love. He says "If I fall or trip back into love..", which sets up the whole metaphor of the hole and being able to climb out (end the relationship) if there's any bit of doubt.
yea i agree.. i think this is one of the best on the album
Great song.
this song is pretty self explanitory, Its about being prepared for the next time,,,i actually think he is specifically referring to a relationship, but when he says
"I wish I could find the person that I was I always thought that I’d be happy if I was loved But I have nothing left to give I don’t think I ever did"
i really think that hes talking about all aspects of love in his life (mother, father, girlfriend, friends,) and that he thought that if he had that love he figured he had been missing all along then he would be able to fix himself, but he realizes that he has to love himself before that can even happen, which he obviously is stateing that he doesnt because hes a drunk....
hes just gotta fix himself but if it ever happens again hes gonna be more than ready.
it has to be about buddy's love life he wont be looking for love but if it finds him he is giong to be cautious
what im getting from this song is that buddy is finally getting out of a hole of depression oviously caused by falling in love. he realizes what caused the depression and is looking back at what caused it and where he went wrong. he is saying that he wont let it happen again, and if he slipped up, he would know what to do to get out of it. buddy clearly doesnt plan on falling in love again anytime soon.
he is also talking about how since he got out of this dark hole, he doesnt know what to do with himself. he wishes that someone would show him how to live because he is lost ("give me a detailed map of the streets")
this song is gorgeous but it's sad at the same time. all the metaphors are about him, balancing on the edge of something delicate. he's just put himself back together, but he's making sure not to fall back into his old patterns and ruin himself again. he doesn't have very much high self esteem and is avoiding love, because he thinks that all he can do is let people down.
lol leave the critical thinking to the men.