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.
It started with a stop
There is no road back
These needles pricking skins
How thick is yours?
Red ink spilt across my palms
Drenched in the toxins, the talent, The tantrums.
Trying to vanish the vision of the rarest of them all
Through faulting and twisting
Precious perceptions withdraw
Your grasp from me
Sliding out of my grip into another's missing piece,
Bitterness and venom shoot from my jaw,
I wish it would sink into something more awful
Softly blowing on the backs of necks
The words are trickling down spines;
'As good as gold but still disposed'
Helpless as the victim and the villain
A slapped wrist for thoughtless dilemmas,
Denied of a pardon for this ordeal
The sickening blow is punishment enough
Ripped flesh pasted onto something uncontrollable,
Hideous and ugly
A taste of loyalty
Calm down
I'm calmed down,
Its keeping me grounded,
There was no risk assessment,
I was wide eyed at foreign things
Ignoring the choices for fear of the chance
Clean your ears so you can hear what I'm listening to;
Craves of my aesthetic will guide me tonight
But its making me weak
Leave it alone
Leave us alone
Let's branch up and rise
What are the words i was supposed to have written?
As good as gold but still disposed
Faithful and Faithless
Crawl back to phase one
I'll let myself out gracefully
I can not keep but smile
I'm fading out
There is no road back
These needles pricking skins
How thick is yours?
Red ink spilt across my palms
Drenched in the toxins, the talent, The tantrums.
Trying to vanish the vision of the rarest of them all
Through faulting and twisting
Precious perceptions withdraw
Your grasp from me
Sliding out of my grip into another's missing piece,
Bitterness and venom shoot from my jaw,
I wish it would sink into something more awful
Softly blowing on the backs of necks
The words are trickling down spines;
'As good as gold but still disposed'
Helpless as the victim and the villain
A slapped wrist for thoughtless dilemmas,
Denied of a pardon for this ordeal
The sickening blow is punishment enough
Ripped flesh pasted onto something uncontrollable,
Hideous and ugly
A taste of loyalty
Calm down
I'm calmed down,
Its keeping me grounded,
There was no risk assessment,
I was wide eyed at foreign things
Ignoring the choices for fear of the chance
Clean your ears so you can hear what I'm listening to;
Craves of my aesthetic will guide me tonight
But its making me weak
Leave it alone
Leave us alone
Let's branch up and rise
What are the words i was supposed to have written?
As good as gold but still disposed
Faithful and Faithless
Crawl back to phase one
I'll let myself out gracefully
I can not keep but smile
I'm fading out
Lyrics submitted by apocalyptan
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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Great version of a great song,
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