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.
Walking up to me expecting
Walking up to me
Expecting words
It happens all the time
Present company excepted
Present company
Accept the worst
It happens every night
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Excluded every time
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
The best that you can find
Talking like a jerk
Except you are an actual jerk
And living proof
That sometimes friends are mean
Present company expect it
Present company
Just laugh it off
It's better than it seems
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Excluded in every way
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Makes me wanna stay
Killing it with close inspection
Killing it can only make it worse
It sort of makes it breathe
Present company accepting
Presently we all expect the worst
It works just like a need
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Excluded in the night
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Included in the fight
Ah-ah
Ah-ah
Ah, ah-ah
Don't you want for me to wake up?
Then give me just a bit of your time
Arguments are made for make outs
So give it just a little more time
We've got to bring our resources
I wanna play it 'til the time comes
Forget your string of divorces
Just go and throw your little hands up
It's late
Oh
Honey, it's late
Oh
I miss the way the night comes
With friends who always make it feel good
This basement has a cold glow
Though it's better than a bunch of others
So go and dance yourself clean
Go and dance yourself clean, yeah
You're blowing Marxism to pieces
Baby, their arguments to pieces
It's your show
It's your show
It's your show
It's your show
It's your show
Put your little feet down
I'm hiding out
Every night's a different story
It's a thirty car pile-up with you
Everybody's getting younger
It's the end of an era, it's true
And you go
Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop
Break me into bigger pieces
So some of me is home with you
But wait until the weekend
And we can make our bad dreams come true
And it's a-go
Yeah, it's a-go
And if we wait until the weekend
We can miss the best things to do
You go and dance yourself clean
Gotta dance yourself clean, yeah
And blow the Marxism to pieces
Their little arguments to pieces
Oh
Wish you'd try a little harder
In the tedious march of the few
Every day's a different warning
There's a part of me hoping it's true
Walking up to me
Expecting words
It happens all the time
Present company excepted
Present company
Accept the worst
It happens every night
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Excluded every time
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
The best that you can find
Talking like a jerk
Except you are an actual jerk
And living proof
That sometimes friends are mean
Present company expect it
Present company
Just laugh it off
It's better than it seems
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Excluded in every way
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Makes me wanna stay
Killing it with close inspection
Killing it can only make it worse
It sort of makes it breathe
Present company accepting
Presently we all expect the worst
It works just like a need
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Excluded in the night
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Present company
Included in the fight
Ah-ah
Ah-ah
Ah, ah-ah
Don't you want for me to wake up?
Then give me just a bit of your time
Arguments are made for make outs
So give it just a little more time
We've got to bring our resources
I wanna play it 'til the time comes
Forget your string of divorces
Just go and throw your little hands up
It's late
Oh
Honey, it's late
Oh
I miss the way the night comes
With friends who always make it feel good
This basement has a cold glow
Though it's better than a bunch of others
So go and dance yourself clean
Go and dance yourself clean, yeah
You're blowing Marxism to pieces
Baby, their arguments to pieces
It's your show
It's your show
It's your show
It's your show
It's your show
Put your little feet down
I'm hiding out
Every night's a different story
It's a thirty car pile-up with you
Everybody's getting younger
It's the end of an era, it's true
And you go
Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop
Break me into bigger pieces
So some of me is home with you
But wait until the weekend
And we can make our bad dreams come true
And it's a-go
Yeah, it's a-go
And if we wait until the weekend
We can miss the best things to do
You go and dance yourself clean
Gotta dance yourself clean, yeah
And blow the Marxism to pieces
Their little arguments to pieces
Oh
Wish you'd try a little harder
In the tedious march of the few
Every day's a different warning
There's a part of me hoping it's true
Lyrics submitted by _hideandseek, edited by kidcharlamegne, NZfishboy, pikoliu
Dance Yrself Clean Lyrics as written by James Jeremiah Murphy
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Are these official somehow? Cause I'm hearing some different things.
Such as:
"Present company EXCLUDED every time"
"Present company EXPECT IT" (rather than "expected", makes more sense.)
"You're throwing marks into pieces" is wrong, but I don't know what it is. That just doesn't have enough syllables.
"It sort of makes it BREED" (less sense, I know, but there's definitely a hard "d" there.)
"But THERE'S a string of divorces" (Or something like that. It's definitely not "like".)
"This BASEMENT has a cold glow Though it's better than a bunch of OTHERS"
"IT'S YOUR SHOW" x4
What's the extended word after "Work a little bit"? "AND YOU GO" (followed by "Stop" repeatedly)
"It's as though he's home with you" is wrong, but again, I don't know what it is.
Also, the first "Present company accepted" should be "excepted", it's a saying.
Other than that, thanks! This song is fantastic.
Far from official. I just figured that since I had nothing else to do today, I would put the lyrics up so some speculation on what James Murphy might actually be saying could be done.<br /> <br /> Thanks for your suggestions. Editing them in now.<br /> <br /> Also, I agree, this song is one of my favourites, but I honestly got halfway through it, and was like, "...I might have understood four words so far," hahaha.
i think it's "present company excepted" like, every time. <br /> <br /> ????<br /> <br /> this song is good.