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.
All the pictures on the wall
The sand lying on the floor
The bed upstairs, still unmade
The dust float in the light
The people just left
All laughter and mess
Forgetting this and that
And rushing back
The front door open
The music still playing in one room
Down the hall
And towels on the floor
And then it's quiet
Just the bees and birds
The summer haze
Of the trees, and the air
Feeds it all, feeds it all
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
The day before we went to war
The day before we went to war
We can all feel it
All the parasols and kids at play
The sea so still and calm
Blue as the cloudless sky
Just the gentle hum
Of the summer's goings on
Broken by the sudden rush
Of two planes
Flying low and fast
Into the sun, into the sun
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
The day before we went to war
The day before we went to war
We can all feel it
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
The day before we went to war
The day before we went to war
The day before we went to war
The sand lying on the floor
The bed upstairs, still unmade
The dust float in the light
The people just left
All laughter and mess
Forgetting this and that
And rushing back
The front door open
The music still playing in one room
Down the hall
And towels on the floor
And then it's quiet
Just the bees and birds
The summer haze
Of the trees, and the air
Feeds it all, feeds it all
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
The day before we went to war
The day before we went to war
We can all feel it
All the parasols and kids at play
The sea so still and calm
Blue as the cloudless sky
Just the gentle hum
Of the summer's goings on
Broken by the sudden rush
Of two planes
Flying low and fast
Into the sun, into the sun
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
The day before we went to war
The day before we went to war
We can all feel it
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
We can all feel it
Like a light hand on your back
Welcoming you
The day before we went to war
The day before we went to war
The day before we went to war
Lyrics submitted by SongMeanings
Day Before We Went to War Lyrics as written by Dido Armstrong Brian Eno
Lyrics © Royalty Network, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Has she ever discussed in an interview what this song was written about, was it a specific war or any military conflicts in general? I've heard people mention 9/11 but also Hiroshima & Nagasaki the atom bombs, both tragedies involved two planes and took place fairly near to summer (Sept. and August, respectively). just curious thanks!