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.
We walked on glass all day long, with eyes rolled back.
It came with smiles, it came with gestures, and it came with motives.
Investing flowers in one hand and a blade in the other,
This is between me and this blade, and my heart.
Distributing rusty knives in these countless attractive letters,
With a directional diagram of a guilty heart.
"Insert knife here."
Lack of thought on this subject has attested catastrophic.
Come one, come all, introduce knife to heart.
With our eyes rolled back.
It came with smiles, it came with gestures, and it came with motives.
Investing flowers in one hand and a blade in the other,
This is between me and this blade, and my heart.
Distributing rusty knives in these countless attractive letters,
With a directional diagram of a guilty heart.
"Insert knife here."
Lack of thought on this subject has attested catastrophic.
Come one, come all, introduce knife to heart.
With our eyes rolled back.
Lyrics submitted by I Heart Thursday
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
Van Halen
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
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.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
thats fuckin crap!!! i turned this song in before i heart thursday... screw that! hmmm anywho i love this song even though i posted it first... what the fuck?
This song is about a guy allowing people to hurt him because he would rather get betrayed by a friend and know about it then to get stabbed in the back. Love this song im a big fan. "This is between me and this blade" great Lyric.
i rly like this song i don't give a shit about what it means but, on behalf of my friend... he says he's supposed to be asking for forgiveness... wtv
(pink floyd rocks btw...)
turn a cross upside down and it sorta looks like a knife. eh? eh? that and there's a passage from the bible, i don't remember which, where it refers to the word as a sword. "introduce knife to heart" sorta has a different meaning if you think of it that way.
Knives don't have hilts or a guard. Also they have single edges. So it would be more accurate if you said sword or dagger. I hope I don't come off sounding like a jerk.<br />
" We walked on glass all day long, with eyes rolled back." -I think this means that we walk all day in a life that could just break and fall apart, and we walk like this blind. A life without Christ is like walking blind on glass.
"This is between me and this blade, and my heart." -Like Shiz85 said, there is a passage from the bible that says the word of the Lord is like a sword. I think that the writer is struggling with something, maybe betweeen living in the world or for the Lord, and the struggle is just between him and what the Lord says."
"Come one, come all, introduce knife to heart." -I think hes finally conquered his struggle and now wants everybody to ask for forgiveness. He wants to inroduce the word of the Lord to thier hearts.
I agree with the two posts above me.. this guys are not really good musicians but they're ok, good band.
Dude these guys are great musicians, I don't how you could even remotely say that ther not. Anyway, I don't agree with the messege of the lyrics they intended, but I love the riffs, especially the riff in the chorus.
I love this song, as you can see from my s/n. I thin NoSecondKnife is right about the meaning NORMA JEAN ROCKS!
Norma Jean = Pure Fucking Bliss! But, alot of people say this song is about being fucked over but personally I think its about people butting into your personal life. I think its saying no matter how much a friend wants to help you out durning tough times, or no matter how much you seek help, in the end you still have to resolve the problem yourself. Either that or its saying you can either bitch all you want about a problem you've caused, or you can do something about it and try and make it better. I came up with that one from the stanza "We walked on glass all day long, with eyes rolled back. It came with smiles, it came with gestures, and it came with motives.
Investing flowers in one hand and a blade in the other, This is between me and this blade, and my heart. Distributing rusty knives in these countless attractive letters, With a directional diagram of a guilty heart. "Insert knife here."
I dunno those are my two guess. But honestly I don't care to much what it means because norma jean is just that awesome to where as it doesnt even matter
Shiz85, it's in Eph. 5, when Paul describes the armor of God. I think proven_guitarist hit it on the head with the meaning.