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.
Summer time and the wind is blowing outside
In lower Chelsea and I don't know
What I'm doing in this city
The sun is always in my eyes
It crashes through the windows
And I'm sleeping on the couch
When I came to visit you
That's when I knew I could never have you
I knew that before you did
Still I'm the one who's stupid
And there's this burning
Like there's always been
I've never been so alone
And I've never been so alive
Visions of you on a motorcycle drive by
The cigarette ash flies in your eyes
And you don't mind, you smile
And say the world it doesn't fit with you
I don't believe you, you're so serene
Careening through the universe
Your axis on a tilt, you're guiltless and free
I hope you take a piece of me with you
And there's things I would like to do
That you don't believe in
I would like to build something
But you never see it happen
And there's this burning
Like there's always been
I've never been so alone
And I've, I've never been so alive
And there's this burning
There was this burning
Where's the soul I want to know
New York City is evil
The surface is everything but I could never do that
Someone would see through that
And this is our last time
We'll be friends again
I'll get over you, you'll wonder who I am
And there's this burning
Just like there's always been
I've never been so alone, alone
And I, and I've, I've never been so alive, so alive
I go home to the coast
It starts to rain I paddle out on the water alone
Taste the salt and taste the pain
I'm not thinking of you again
Summer dies and swells rise
The sun goes down in my eyes
See this rolling wave
Darkly coming to take me home
And I've never been so alone
And I've never been so alive
In lower Chelsea and I don't know
What I'm doing in this city
The sun is always in my eyes
It crashes through the windows
And I'm sleeping on the couch
When I came to visit you
That's when I knew I could never have you
I knew that before you did
Still I'm the one who's stupid
And there's this burning
Like there's always been
I've never been so alone
And I've never been so alive
Visions of you on a motorcycle drive by
The cigarette ash flies in your eyes
And you don't mind, you smile
And say the world it doesn't fit with you
I don't believe you, you're so serene
Careening through the universe
Your axis on a tilt, you're guiltless and free
I hope you take a piece of me with you
And there's things I would like to do
That you don't believe in
I would like to build something
But you never see it happen
And there's this burning
Like there's always been
I've never been so alone
And I've, I've never been so alive
And there's this burning
There was this burning
Where's the soul I want to know
New York City is evil
The surface is everything but I could never do that
Someone would see through that
And this is our last time
We'll be friends again
I'll get over you, you'll wonder who I am
And there's this burning
Just like there's always been
I've never been so alone, alone
And I, and I've, I've never been so alive, so alive
I go home to the coast
It starts to rain I paddle out on the water alone
Taste the salt and taste the pain
I'm not thinking of you again
Summer dies and swells rise
The sun goes down in my eyes
See this rolling wave
Darkly coming to take me home
And I've never been so alone
And I've never been so alive
Lyrics submitted by weezerific:cutlery, edited by hotsoup, jasonz0rz, Ahourstory
Motorcycle Drive By Lyrics as written by Stephan Jenkins
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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The song is about a guy and a girl who are just friends - but the guy wants more. He knows that she thinks it will never happen and that they are better as friends. Whenever he is with her he "has never been so alive" because he is able to spend time with her but also he "has never been so alone" because he can't be intimate with her, a feeling that is killing him.
I assume they both live in NYC. She loves it but he hates it. The only reason he still stays there is because he thinks there is still a chance they will end up together.
"And this is our last time We'll be friends again" most likely means that he puts it all out on the line. He tells her how he feels, and she turns him down (as he expected she would).
The last few verses is about him getting over her and moving on with his life.
@levere19 actually he’s clearly despondent at the end of the song. He paddles out in the water too deep. It’s late. The sun is going down in his eyes, which is a metaphor similar to the wave that’s coming to take him home. He commits suicide by drowning. It’s implied by both those lines, and just the general mood of the song as well.
@levere19 Good. Better to never have loved at all.