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.
You should write a song where the concept is
You're basically writing like a love letter, or like a piece of advice
To your mother, when she was your age
I don't know
Maybe I would write you a happy ending
I would rearrange the pieces to your sad beginning
I would put you far away from the decaying roots that bore you
And let you experience all the ways that happiness could bloom before you
Or maybe I'm naïve
Maybe I'm just a kid who thought that if she could plant a seed
It would somehow grow inside you
Spent so much of my time wishing you were different
But reality is that with life can't never be provision
But if I could wish for one thing, I'd go back and I'd fix it
I'd tackle all your obstacles and kill 'em with precision
And better the intentions of every single person
Who'd play a part in you learning exactly what your worth is
I'd shower you with purpose, I'd wipe hate off the surface
I'd reshape all your pain and make it fucking worth it
No more feeling worthless, no more fucking searching
No more of that fraud shit, nobody else could hurt you
Yeah, said nobody else could hurt you
And if they ever tried too I'd wipe 'em from the Earth too
'Cause I know that you hurting baby, I know that you tired too
I know that you been running from everything that's behind you
I know you've been burying everything deep inside you
I can see it killing you, wish that I could revive you
But I'm stuck sitting in this time frame
Struggling with my demons and playing these stupid mind game
One day it could get better, maybe it could get better
Maybe we could change shit, no more inclement weather
Know you hated your mom, know it went through your mind
You were just like me, wish that you had more time
To see life from a different angle, wrestle with a different angel
Wouldn't lose your wings and fall from heaven like a cliffhanger
Everything is different now, nothing is the same
And nowadays I swear it feels like you don't know my name
But I look at the mirror and I see you every day
I'm you in every way, every hue and every shade
And maybe you should know, it's the last thing that I wanted
'Cause what I hate about you makes me feel like I'm haunted
And I don't wanna spend the rest of my time on the run and-
So I'm just gonna confront it, yeah I'm just gonna confront it
And tell you that I love you for everything you made me
And that you need to hear this even if it makes you angry
God lives inside you, you've already found him
The Devil lives in memories and you just let him hound you
And I despise your church for every fucking thing they taught you
It's just a fucking stain that I wish I could wipe off you
That I wish I could wipe off you
And I forgive you for doing everything that it cost you
Everything that it caused price I wish it didn't cost you
Losing a part of me that would follow you to Hell
Follow you to hatred, or follow you to jail
Followed you to patterns that I could never get out of
Now I realize that I could never make it with that love
Now I realize that shit is the alternative outcome
Never wanted you to save me, I just wish I count some
I just wish that you grew up with someone you could count on
I wish you knew that you could never make it without love
For your goddamn self, and that you never ever find it in anybody else
'Cause I would help you find you
And if I saw it killing you I swear I would revive you
And if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy end in peace
Because, you are such a special thing
You're not just my mom, but you're the reason I exist
And the best life that you could've had for yourself without making a mistake
Would have meant I woulda had a nicer childhood
And even though my childhood wasn't perfect and I still love you
I just want you to know that if I could go back and do one thing for you
Or be one person for you
I would make sure, not just for my sake, but so that you could've had a nicer life
And a nicer childhood, that you know
You would not have made the mistakes that put us all in this bad situation
And not have the strength to leave
But just so that you would have been happier and stronger
Even if I didn't exist, even it meant that I was never born
That's what I would have wanted for you
Yeah, and if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy ending
'Cause I know that you hurting baby, I know that you tired too
I know you've been running from everything that's behind you
I know that you've been burying everything deep inside you
I can see it killing you, wish that I could revive you
And if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy ending
And if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy ending
And if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy ending
I don't know
Maybe I would write you a happy ending
I would rearrange the pieces to your sad beginning
I would put you far away from the decaying roots that bore you
And let you experience all the ways that happiness could bloom before you
Or maybe I'm naïve
Maybe I'm just a kid who thought that if she could plant a seed
It would somehow grow inside you
And that I could hide you from the rain
So that it could be easier for happiness to find you
Or maybe I'm still a kid who's caught in a dream
I'm the heir to the throne of a princess who's still trying to be queen
Or maybe we're all just caught in the winds of a massacre
The blackened leaves of dying, black dahlias
You're basically writing like a love letter, or like a piece of advice
To your mother, when she was your age
I don't know
Maybe I would write you a happy ending
I would rearrange the pieces to your sad beginning
I would put you far away from the decaying roots that bore you
And let you experience all the ways that happiness could bloom before you
Or maybe I'm naïve
Maybe I'm just a kid who thought that if she could plant a seed
It would somehow grow inside you
Spent so much of my time wishing you were different
But reality is that with life can't never be provision
But if I could wish for one thing, I'd go back and I'd fix it
I'd tackle all your obstacles and kill 'em with precision
And better the intentions of every single person
Who'd play a part in you learning exactly what your worth is
I'd shower you with purpose, I'd wipe hate off the surface
I'd reshape all your pain and make it fucking worth it
No more feeling worthless, no more fucking searching
No more of that fraud shit, nobody else could hurt you
Yeah, said nobody else could hurt you
And if they ever tried too I'd wipe 'em from the Earth too
'Cause I know that you hurting baby, I know that you tired too
I know that you been running from everything that's behind you
I know you've been burying everything deep inside you
I can see it killing you, wish that I could revive you
But I'm stuck sitting in this time frame
Struggling with my demons and playing these stupid mind game
One day it could get better, maybe it could get better
Maybe we could change shit, no more inclement weather
Know you hated your mom, know it went through your mind
You were just like me, wish that you had more time
To see life from a different angle, wrestle with a different angel
Wouldn't lose your wings and fall from heaven like a cliffhanger
Everything is different now, nothing is the same
And nowadays I swear it feels like you don't know my name
But I look at the mirror and I see you every day
I'm you in every way, every hue and every shade
And maybe you should know, it's the last thing that I wanted
'Cause what I hate about you makes me feel like I'm haunted
And I don't wanna spend the rest of my time on the run and-
So I'm just gonna confront it, yeah I'm just gonna confront it
And tell you that I love you for everything you made me
And that you need to hear this even if it makes you angry
God lives inside you, you've already found him
The Devil lives in memories and you just let him hound you
And I despise your church for every fucking thing they taught you
It's just a fucking stain that I wish I could wipe off you
That I wish I could wipe off you
And I forgive you for doing everything that it cost you
Everything that it caused price I wish it didn't cost you
Losing a part of me that would follow you to Hell
Follow you to hatred, or follow you to jail
Followed you to patterns that I could never get out of
Now I realize that I could never make it with that love
Now I realize that shit is the alternative outcome
Never wanted you to save me, I just wish I count some
I just wish that you grew up with someone you could count on
I wish you knew that you could never make it without love
For your goddamn self, and that you never ever find it in anybody else
'Cause I would help you find you
And if I saw it killing you I swear I would revive you
And if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy end in peace
Because, you are such a special thing
You're not just my mom, but you're the reason I exist
And the best life that you could've had for yourself without making a mistake
Would have meant I woulda had a nicer childhood
And even though my childhood wasn't perfect and I still love you
I just want you to know that if I could go back and do one thing for you
Or be one person for you
I would make sure, not just for my sake, but so that you could've had a nicer life
And a nicer childhood, that you know
You would not have made the mistakes that put us all in this bad situation
And not have the strength to leave
But just so that you would have been happier and stronger
Even if I didn't exist, even it meant that I was never born
That's what I would have wanted for you
Yeah, and if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy ending
'Cause I know that you hurting baby, I know that you tired too
I know you've been running from everything that's behind you
I know that you've been burying everything deep inside you
I can see it killing you, wish that I could revive you
And if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy ending
And if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy ending
And if that meant the end of me
I'd do it all for you so you could have your happy ending
I don't know
Maybe I would write you a happy ending
I would rearrange the pieces to your sad beginning
I would put you far away from the decaying roots that bore you
And let you experience all the ways that happiness could bloom before you
Or maybe I'm naïve
Maybe I'm just a kid who thought that if she could plant a seed
It would somehow grow inside you
And that I could hide you from the rain
So that it could be easier for happiness to find you
Or maybe I'm still a kid who's caught in a dream
I'm the heir to the throne of a princess who's still trying to be queen
Or maybe we're all just caught in the winds of a massacre
The blackened leaves of dying, black dahlias
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