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.
you fell in love with the sunshine
and you took a walk with a boy
you spent half a year on the verge of tears
just because nothing ever feels like it did before
so now i understand if you're bitter
frankly sometimes i do feel the same
it's amazing how in your own homes how the comfort and the pain
well they just grow
this is the field where i realized i loved you
and they just grow
this is the diner where we learned that people die before their time sometimes
the impermanence of it all
don't you let it make you feel too very small
we saw new constellations with each observation
the night sky grows bigger it seems
but under our ceilings is much more revealing
you'll find what we found in our dreams
and i dreamt that all my old friends got together again
and potluck is something somewhere that we've never been
and we settle and it's so strange
the way that people in situations change
you got caught up in some crazy current
now it seems as though we speak a completely different language
but you'll always be as beautiful as the moment that we met
and so i tried to write a song for my father
san francisco bus ride that take way too long
he said "you're coming back home boy,
don't feel so alone
love yourself and you'll do no wrong."
but the interstate and life go on and on
and on and on and on and on
and i wrote my dad a nice blackbox recording
just to hear what people say
when they realize what's coming
about a second or so away
he said, "it starts with 'oh shit' and it ends with 'im sorry'"
and it plays in his head all the time
and i'm not oh and it's so crazy
the ways we all sabotage our very own peace of mind
and you took a walk with a boy
you spent half a year on the verge of tears
just because nothing ever feels like it did before
so now i understand if you're bitter
frankly sometimes i do feel the same
it's amazing how in your own homes how the comfort and the pain
well they just grow
this is the field where i realized i loved you
and they just grow
this is the diner where we learned that people die before their time sometimes
the impermanence of it all
don't you let it make you feel too very small
we saw new constellations with each observation
the night sky grows bigger it seems
but under our ceilings is much more revealing
you'll find what we found in our dreams
and i dreamt that all my old friends got together again
and potluck is something somewhere that we've never been
and we settle and it's so strange
the way that people in situations change
you got caught up in some crazy current
now it seems as though we speak a completely different language
but you'll always be as beautiful as the moment that we met
and so i tried to write a song for my father
san francisco bus ride that take way too long
he said "you're coming back home boy,
don't feel so alone
love yourself and you'll do no wrong."
but the interstate and life go on and on
and on and on and on and on
and i wrote my dad a nice blackbox recording
just to hear what people say
when they realize what's coming
about a second or so away
he said, "it starts with 'oh shit' and it ends with 'im sorry'"
and it plays in his head all the time
and i'm not oh and it's so crazy
the ways we all sabotage our very own peace of mind
Lyrics submitted by equivalence
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This bothers me because it's wrong everywhere I see it... "And potluck is something somewhere that we've never been" is pretty clearly "At a potluck or something, somewhere that we've never been." It sounds like that and it just makes way more sense.