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.
I knew a man once, very long ago.
They say that he was born in Buffalo,
but I don’t believe it:
Buffalo was never sufficiently
gilded and pearled.
And this man turned out to be
the playboy of the Western world.
Oh, he was elegant past all dreaming;
he made seeming seem like the real McCoy.
All the sheiks of Araby, all the shahs of Persia
couldn’t hold a candle to this boy.
When he walked through a room
it looked as handsome as Napoleon’s tomb,
and the Ford he rode
could have been Mercedes-Benz à la mode.
When he took me out I didn’t doubt
that we were going to the Astor
or the Sherry-Netherland.
Spring seemed to linger
in the little bunch of flowers
he pressed into my hand -
Little bunch of flowers, didn’t cost a dime;
picked them in the park in their prime.
He went around with his heart unfurled:
the one and only playboy of the Western world.
You could fall in love with everyone you’d meet
when you walked with him down the street.
Playboys die young; this one did too,
all worn out making dreams come true.
And the world was grim again, without him again,
without him -
For he was elegant past all dreaming;
he made seeming seem like the real McCoy.
All the sheiks of Araby, all the shahs of Persia
couldn’t hold a candle to this boy.
When they took him out, oh, I didn’t doubt
that he was going to Miami
or some other wonderland.
Spring seemed to linger
in the little bunch of flowers
I pressed into his hand -
Little bunch of flowers, didn’t cost a dime;
picked them in the park in their prime.
He went around with his heart unfurled:
the one and only playboy of the Western world.
He was the playboy of the Western world,
the playboy of the Western world.
They say that he was born in Buffalo,
but I don’t believe it:
Buffalo was never sufficiently
gilded and pearled.
And this man turned out to be
the playboy of the Western world.
Oh, he was elegant past all dreaming;
he made seeming seem like the real McCoy.
All the sheiks of Araby, all the shahs of Persia
couldn’t hold a candle to this boy.
When he walked through a room
it looked as handsome as Napoleon’s tomb,
and the Ford he rode
could have been Mercedes-Benz à la mode.
When he took me out I didn’t doubt
that we were going to the Astor
or the Sherry-Netherland.
Spring seemed to linger
in the little bunch of flowers
he pressed into my hand -
Little bunch of flowers, didn’t cost a dime;
picked them in the park in their prime.
He went around with his heart unfurled:
the one and only playboy of the Western world.
You could fall in love with everyone you’d meet
when you walked with him down the street.
Playboys die young; this one did too,
all worn out making dreams come true.
And the world was grim again, without him again,
without him -
For he was elegant past all dreaming;
he made seeming seem like the real McCoy.
All the sheiks of Araby, all the shahs of Persia
couldn’t hold a candle to this boy.
When they took him out, oh, I didn’t doubt
that he was going to Miami
or some other wonderland.
Spring seemed to linger
in the little bunch of flowers
I pressed into his hand -
Little bunch of flowers, didn’t cost a dime;
picked them in the park in their prime.
He went around with his heart unfurled:
the one and only playboy of the Western world.
He was the playboy of the Western world,
the playboy of the Western world.
Lyrics submitted by jacksy
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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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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.
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Such a great song... The beginning is a bit tortured, but once that verse guitar kicks in it's pure magic.
It took me a while to realise it, but I think the narrator is returning the flowers to him in the end in his casket, after he dies. That's my read of it anyway. Brilliant.
@schnitzi - thank you for your insights, I concur.
What is this really about?
According to accounts from her family and friends, Connie was VERY private about her personal life and seemed to have no romantic life to speak of. I wonder if this song is based on a relationship she had or even just based on someone she knew personally. It seems too specific and tender to simply be a story she invented, but then again she was quite a skilled and imaginative storyteller.
Or is there perhaps a literary/pop culture reference (other than the play of the same name) that I'm missing here?
Beyond the speculation, I find this song so beautiful and dream-like. The lusciousness of her guitar playing always astounds me.