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.
October's got those orange eyes
But somehow I still lost sight
When you lifted the lid off of my pumpkin head
And kissed me goodnight
Should it be a thorn in my side
We never quite broke that horse
She slept in the cul-de-sac rye
Seven miles from my front porch
Bundle up and come with me now
Down the road where to the burnt down barn
We could make a blanket of coats
And breathe our souls into the neighbours front lawn
But oh god that look in your eye
Trouble that does not search words
It sprung from the biblical vine
And are waiting to return to the dirt
The stitches in your winter clothes
Your cello bows
We stole your hair to make them
We're sorry for the iron shoes
We nailed to you
And stuck you in the rain
And then you sprinted away
Sprinted away to where I don't know
God's moving in your bloodstream
Where the cross beats aren't so slow
You swept all the red from my cheeks
I didn't hear you come back inside
And light up the gas in the den
And stand there in the thin winter light
But oh god that curve in your spine
A question mark
A doctor sign was framed by the windowsill
And you saw something I did not in the night
You saw something I did not in the night
The stitches in your winter clothes
Your cello bows
We stole your hair to make them
We're sorry for the iron shoes
We nailed to you
And stuck you in the rain
And then you sprinted away
Sprinted away to where I don't know
God's moving in your bloodstream
Where the cross beats aren't so slow
But somehow I still lost sight
When you lifted the lid off of my pumpkin head
And kissed me goodnight
Should it be a thorn in my side
We never quite broke that horse
She slept in the cul-de-sac rye
Seven miles from my front porch
Bundle up and come with me now
Down the road where to the burnt down barn
We could make a blanket of coats
And breathe our souls into the neighbours front lawn
But oh god that look in your eye
Trouble that does not search words
It sprung from the biblical vine
And are waiting to return to the dirt
The stitches in your winter clothes
Your cello bows
We stole your hair to make them
We're sorry for the iron shoes
We nailed to you
And stuck you in the rain
And then you sprinted away
Sprinted away to where I don't know
God's moving in your bloodstream
Where the cross beats aren't so slow
You swept all the red from my cheeks
I didn't hear you come back inside
And light up the gas in the den
And stand there in the thin winter light
But oh god that curve in your spine
A question mark
A doctor sign was framed by the windowsill
And you saw something I did not in the night
You saw something I did not in the night
The stitches in your winter clothes
Your cello bows
We stole your hair to make them
We're sorry for the iron shoes
We nailed to you
And stuck you in the rain
And then you sprinted away
Sprinted away to where I don't know
God's moving in your bloodstream
Where the cross beats aren't so slow
Lyrics submitted by WinterLungs
Broken Horse Lyrics as written by Judah Dadone
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Great version of a great song,
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the individual images make some sense but i can't put it all together and form one meaning
from what i understand of the concept behind the album, most of the interactions take place in dreams. it's a love story between a boy and a ghost, that he has either created or possibly actually exists. at any rate, if he is interacting with his love in his dreams it makes sense that the lyrics wouldn't always make linear sense...
so maybe try listing to the album when you're in a liminal state between sleep and consciousness and you can only process one image at a time and then it makes perfect sense. or at least it seemed to for me. this song was profoundly, albeit illogically, tragic. what with all the trouble in the eyes and returning to dirt and sprinting away etc.
Ok, so I've listened to this whole ablum about 10 times through and through in the past 5 days or so, and one of the times I was asleep.<br /> <br /> And I had a dream that a small girl's ghost was haunting me, and playing all of the songs on the album. It was rather scary, until I woke up and realized it was just because I fell asleep with my headphones on.<br /> <br /> but at the time, I had no prior knowledge of the concept about the boy being in love with a ghost. I love Freelance Whales <3
OK, this seemed pretty obvious to me, but only one other person seems to have gotten close. I think that it is a man apologizing to a horse for trying to "break" it. To break a horse is to tame it. The horse was probably wild at one time, and kept in a barn "in the cul-de-sac rye seven miles from my[his] front porch" The barn burnt down and the horse ran off."Down the road to the burnt down barn" and "You sprinted away, sprinted away, to where I don't know. God's moving in your bloodstream where the cross beats aren't so slow" This is saying that the horse ran off and that it wanted to get away so badly that it seemed to have the power of God. The horse escaped to a place where life isn't so dull, where it can be fre, or where the cross-beats aren't so slow. He apologizes for keeping it in poor conditions "The stitches in your winter clothes" and "stuck you in the rain alone" and for taking its hair "Your cello bows, we stole your hair to make them" and for putting horseshoes on it, even though it was wild. "We're sorry for the iron shoes we nailed to you" He wants the horse to be free, as a wild stallion is a symbol of freedom. The only part that doesn't fit with this theory is the 4th stanza. That's my two cents.
i agree completely.
Could he possibly have seen the horse again/the horse wandered back, he's so shocked he doesn't remember lighting up the gas for illumination, and he's alarmed at how the horse is now older (and possibly ill), with a curved spine and a haunted look in its eyes? That doesn't make much sense, now I read it... <br /> But this is still one of my favourite songs on the album.
Beautiful song, I love it.
I don't know but to me, this is about two people who made love and almost immediately felt bad about it. A guilty feeling, maybe that is the "trouble that does not search words" that "sprung from the biblical vine." Later the girl thinks she's pregnant, but she's not sure and goes to see a doctor. She finds out she is when she see's something that "did not end that night." Those are just a few idea's anyway. I haven't listened to any of the other songs on the album though, I could be way off.
I'd agree with jprogers and would argue that the horse imagery probably stems from the notion of conservative religion as a form of entrapment. The motif of guilt runs through the song,as does the theme of religion. He likens the girl to a horse whose constitutive parts have been used and whose feet are essentially weighed down. The use of the words "nailed" and "cross" suggest that the girl had felt the weight of religion/sin on her shoulders. <br /> <br /> I'd also agree with the pregnancy imagery and would suggest that this released her from her fear of sin, and through her child she experienced a miracle which transcended the burdensome knowledge she had previously been accustomed to. Through the imagery of the shackled horse to one sprinting away, we gain a sense of her liberation.
I don't think you're on the right path with the sexual and pregnancy inferences.<br /> <br /> I think that this song is creating an allegory representing the love of a young man for a girl, ghost, dream, or in this case; a horse embodying all of the above. The entire album is seemingly a phantasmagoria of nostalgic feeling with roots of regret, emotional oppression and everlasting will-o'-the-wisp.<br /> <br /> It seems as though the imagery used to describe the horse provides proof that his love actually did exist at one point in time, as he is apologetic for stealing her hair (taking advantage of her?), nailing her feet (grounding her?), leaving her out in the rain (neglect?) and ultimately leading her to some sort of literal or metaphorical death-- where, God is moving through her bloodstream and the cross beats aren't as slow. Perhaps this is representational of her ascension to heaven- a good transition for her, but ultimately transforming her into a ghost in which the man can no longer humanly attain.<br /> <br /> BRILLIANT SONG!<br /> <br /> Also, I love the dialogue on this website -- especially discussing the brilliance of this album!
i absolutely love this song.. and personally i think this song is about a couple who's child has run away. and it seems to be reminissing about how it all started and what led to the dissagreement. it sounds like the care a worry a parent has for a child. waiting up all night. "gods moving in ur bloodstream where the crossbeats arent so slow" its ur blood line running away because the blind faith in convictions that kids usually have. "sorry for the iron shoes we nailed to you" alot of times parents feel a burden that they didnt set their kids up for success. sometimes young parents feel they arent good enough to have a child. and kids are born into "rain". i dunno. . . lol im not a parent or anything but thats just what i think =]
well it's based off the story of the headless horseman, obviously their version. "october's got those orange eyes." and especially "lifted the lid of my pumpkin head" reveal the headless horseman tale. i personally believe it appears as though it is the story of the man who first saw the headless horseman, but from the headless horseman's viewpoint. the horseman is often referring to his own horse as well. that's just my take.
oh golly! i got the horse reference and figured it was a metaphor, but i didn't make the connection with the pumpkin line! kudos (:
i also think when it says "God's moving through your bloodstream", it is speaking of conviction.
The entire album is a love story between a man and a femme ghost; a ghost of the past- one whom he knew in his human life. The love story also takes place between shallow reality and a deep-sleep dream.<br /> <br /> The first half of the song is reminiscing about their love together<br /> <br /> Bundle up and come with me now / Down the road where to the burnt down barn / We could make a blanket of coats / And breathe our souls into the neighbours front lawn<br /> <br /> But as said in the beginning of the song, they never broke 'that horse' which I think represents the fact that they never made it as a couple.<br /> <br /> The second half is the 'break up;' whether due to her death (which I personally think) or that they just faded away. <br /> <br /> We're sorry for the iron shoes / We nailed to you / And stuck you in the rain<br /> And then you sprinted away<br /> Sprinted away to where I don't know<br /> **God's moving in your bloodstream<br /> <br /> I think this sequence represents the man driving his love (embodied by the horse) away, to the point of death. I think 'to where I don't know' means that the horse is forever gone -- in a place where 'God's moving in [her] bloodstream,' representing Heaven.<br /> <br /> I think this is the recount of how his love was transformed into the ghost, in which he is obsessed with throughout the album. <br /> <br /> I think this song is his story of regret.
I'm pretty sure it's: "God's moving in your bloodstream where the cross-beats haunt so slow."
lyrical eloquence at its finest. such a beautiful song.
Stunning.
This song is obviously about a horse named October. 'We never quite broke that horse She slept in the cul-de-sac rye Seven miles from my front porch' the horse slept in a barn 7 miles from their home. 'Your cello bows We stole your hair to make them' cello bows are made out of horse hair 'We're sorry for the iron shoes We nailed to you' horse shoes are iron 'And stuck you in the rain alone You sprinted away, sprinted away' the horse ran away...
such a beautiful song, fell in love the first time I played it.