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.
Oliver Paul, twenty years old
Thick head of hair, worries he's going bald
Wakes up at quarter past nine
Fare-evades his way down the 96 tram line
Breakfast on the run again, he's well aware
He's dropping soy linseed Vegemite crumbs everywhere
Feeling sick at the sight of his computer
He dodges his way through the Swanston commuters
Rips off his tie, hands it to a homeless man
Sleeping in the corner of a metro bus stand and he screams
I'm not going to work today
Going to count the minutes that the trains run late
Sit on the grass building pyramids out of Coke cans
Headphone wielding to the Nicholas building
He trips on a pothole that's not been filled in
He waits for an elevator, one to nine
A lady walks in and waits by his side
Her heels are high and her bag is snakeskin
Hair pulled so tight you can see her skeleton
Vickers perfume on her breath
A tortoise shell necklace between her breasts
She looks him up and down with a botox frown
He's well used to that look by now
The elevator dings and they awkwardly step in
Their fingers touch on the rooftop button
Don't jump little boy, don't jump off that roof
You've got your whole life ahead of you, you're still in your youth
I'd give anything to have skin like you
He said, I think you're projecting the way that you're feeling
I'm not suicidal, just idling insignificantly
I come up here for perception and clarity
I like to imagine I'm playing SimCity
All the people look like ants from up here
And the wind's the only traffic you can hear
He said All I ever wanted to be
Was an elevator operator, can you help me please?
Don't jump little boy, don't jump off that roof
You've got your whole life ahead of you, you're still in your youth
I'd give anything to have skin like you
Don't jump little boy, don't jump off that roof
You've got your whole life ahead of you, you're still in your youth
I'd give anything to have skin like you
Thick head of hair, worries he's going bald
Wakes up at quarter past nine
Fare-evades his way down the 96 tram line
Breakfast on the run again, he's well aware
He's dropping soy linseed Vegemite crumbs everywhere
Feeling sick at the sight of his computer
He dodges his way through the Swanston commuters
Rips off his tie, hands it to a homeless man
Sleeping in the corner of a metro bus stand and he screams
I'm not going to work today
Going to count the minutes that the trains run late
Sit on the grass building pyramids out of Coke cans
Headphone wielding to the Nicholas building
He trips on a pothole that's not been filled in
He waits for an elevator, one to nine
A lady walks in and waits by his side
Her heels are high and her bag is snakeskin
Hair pulled so tight you can see her skeleton
Vickers perfume on her breath
A tortoise shell necklace between her breasts
She looks him up and down with a botox frown
He's well used to that look by now
The elevator dings and they awkwardly step in
Their fingers touch on the rooftop button
Don't jump little boy, don't jump off that roof
You've got your whole life ahead of you, you're still in your youth
I'd give anything to have skin like you
He said, I think you're projecting the way that you're feeling
I'm not suicidal, just idling insignificantly
I come up here for perception and clarity
I like to imagine I'm playing SimCity
All the people look like ants from up here
And the wind's the only traffic you can hear
He said All I ever wanted to be
Was an elevator operator, can you help me please?
Don't jump little boy, don't jump off that roof
You've got your whole life ahead of you, you're still in your youth
I'd give anything to have skin like you
Don't jump little boy, don't jump off that roof
You've got your whole life ahead of you, you're still in your youth
I'd give anything to have skin like you
Lyrics submitted by fredinvisible, edited by goonerfan, mjmlabs
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It's a fun song about a guy who's frustrated with his life. When he feels particularly stressed he likes to go to the top of a very tall building and just meditate at the sight of everything below. One day, while riding the elevator, he meets a wealthy, stuck-up woman who assumes he must be suicidal. As the song says, she is probably just "projecting."
Though the main character is poor and frustrated, he's also found an escape that brings him peace. The woman, in contrast, still seems anxious despite her wealth. The chorus line "I'd give anything to have skin like you" is revealing. She is coveting how nice the fellow's skin is, despite the fact that she has presumably already spent a lot of money making herself look beautiful. She has to assume that the poor person has a worse life than herself in order to make herself feel better with her own lot.
FWIW, for any non-Aussies (like myself) unfamiliar with "Vickers" -- it's THE brand of gin in Australia. So that's the "perfume on her breath."
Also, it should be "FARE-evades his way ...," as in subway turnstile-jumping. Just sayin'.
Just one typo - I'm pretty sure the second line should say "worries he's going bald", not bold.
According to Barnett, the song is about something that happened to a friend of hers. Like in the song, he went up to the top of a building to enjoy the view, and a woman in the elevator thought he was going to kill himself.
I do hope, by the way, that her friend's name isn't actually Oliver Paul, otherwise ticket inspectors will be hassling him for the rest of his life. ;)