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.
Yesterday, forget it
Tomorrow is, nada
The present is, right here, through the breath, watch it
Atheist Jesus piece, hangin' on a cross
We sit and discuss God on lawn chairs
About how we got here,
What it is, what it isn't, shit
Fate versus faith, scrimmagin' with coincidence
Leave out the market and hold up on the business end
Focus on the genuine, with everything else, you can shed the skin
I was a couple moves away from being dead
In that ER overdosin', eyes bleedin' red
I fell in love, made an album, got a buzz
Lost it all, sobered up and guess what?
Now we meet again
And I'm back, finally just laughin'
Expectations are resentments waiting to happen
Studying the dharma, karma of Vipassana practice
Bahá'u'lláh, Buddha, God, to the mountaintop and I'm traveling
Learnin', yes, reflectin' on what matters
People, permanence, lack of attachments
It's space and time, a couple man-made distractions
The measure of a spirit that no human can ever capture
Church, this booth is my Vatican
I don't control life, but I can control how I react to it
Student of the breath, brick beats and balancin'
Desire versus truth until I finally find happiness
I was put here to do something before I'm lyin' in that casket
I'd be lyin' on the beat if I said I didn't know what that is
The world's a stage and we play a character, I found him
It took me 20 something years and a bunch of shitty sound checks
I'm not gonna be content, until I find gratitude
Regardless of my sales or the record deals they're handin' you
If the next generation takes our legacy and samples you
We'll have a bunch of mp3's and misled kids to pass 'em to
I use my veins to create the color I paint from
Delve into something 'til my heart becomes my paint brush
I told my mama I'm not stoppin' 'til my name's up
Thinkin' those comments on that blog is gonna save us
Searchin' for everything but Gods and validation
Get insecure and then we start blamin' the haters
Used to look to women to fill a part of me that was vacant
Truth, the only thing that I ever used in moderation
So I stare into this paper instead of sitting at a cubicle
Take all ugly shit inside and try to make it beautiful
Use the cement from rock bottom and make it musical
So the people can relate to where I've been,
Where I'm going, what I've seen, what I've heard
From the guts, fuck the glory
Just a person on a porch putting it all into recording
Many in my past and many that came before me
I just keep walkin' my path and blessed to share my story
Tomorrow is, nada
The present is, right here, through the breath, watch it
Atheist Jesus piece, hangin' on a cross
We sit and discuss God on lawn chairs
About how we got here,
What it is, what it isn't, shit
Fate versus faith, scrimmagin' with coincidence
Leave out the market and hold up on the business end
Focus on the genuine, with everything else, you can shed the skin
I was a couple moves away from being dead
In that ER overdosin', eyes bleedin' red
I fell in love, made an album, got a buzz
Lost it all, sobered up and guess what?
Now we meet again
And I'm back, finally just laughin'
Expectations are resentments waiting to happen
Studying the dharma, karma of Vipassana practice
Bahá'u'lláh, Buddha, God, to the mountaintop and I'm traveling
Learnin', yes, reflectin' on what matters
People, permanence, lack of attachments
It's space and time, a couple man-made distractions
The measure of a spirit that no human can ever capture
Church, this booth is my Vatican
I don't control life, but I can control how I react to it
Student of the breath, brick beats and balancin'
Desire versus truth until I finally find happiness
I was put here to do something before I'm lyin' in that casket
I'd be lyin' on the beat if I said I didn't know what that is
The world's a stage and we play a character, I found him
It took me 20 something years and a bunch of shitty sound checks
I'm not gonna be content, until I find gratitude
Regardless of my sales or the record deals they're handin' you
If the next generation takes our legacy and samples you
We'll have a bunch of mp3's and misled kids to pass 'em to
I use my veins to create the color I paint from
Delve into something 'til my heart becomes my paint brush
I told my mama I'm not stoppin' 'til my name's up
Thinkin' those comments on that blog is gonna save us
Searchin' for everything but Gods and validation
Get insecure and then we start blamin' the haters
Used to look to women to fill a part of me that was vacant
Truth, the only thing that I ever used in moderation
So I stare into this paper instead of sitting at a cubicle
Take all ugly shit inside and try to make it beautiful
Use the cement from rock bottom and make it musical
So the people can relate to where I've been,
Where I'm going, what I've seen, what I've heard
From the guts, fuck the glory
Just a person on a porch putting it all into recording
Many in my past and many that came before me
I just keep walkin' my path and blessed to share my story
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There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
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This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
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Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
American Town
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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.
I absolutely love this, and the lyrics are amazing, they really speak to you. I really hope this guy gets more popular, he's one of the only real rappers out there
And now he is more popular. Hopefully people dig deep into his cataglog and not just listen to thrift shop all the time.