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.
Oh, oh
What I got, you got to give it to your mama
What I got, you've got to give it to your papa
What I got, you got to give it to your daughter
You do a little dance and then you drink a little water
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
Reeling with the feeling, don't stop, continue
I realize I don't wanna be a miser
Confide with sly you'll be the wiser
Young blood is the lovin' upriser
How come everybody wanna keep it like the Kaiser?
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
I can't tell if I'm a kingpin or a pauper
Greedy little people in a sea of distress
Keep your more to receive your less
Unimpressed by material excess
Love is free, love me, say, "Hell yes"
Low brow but I rock a little know how
No time for the piggies or the hoosegow
Get smart, get down with the pow wow
Never been a better time than right now
Bob Marley, poet and a prophet
Bob Marley, taught me how to off it
Bob Marley walkin' like he talk it
Goodness me, can't you see I'm gonna cough it?
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Oh, oh yeah
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
I can't tell if I'm a kingpin or a pauper
Lucky me swimmin' in my ability
Dancin' down on life with agility
Come and drink it up from my fertility
Blessed with a bucket of lucky mobility
My mom, I love her 'cause she love me
Long gone are the times when she scrub me
Feelin' good, my brother gonna hug me
Drinkin' my juice, young love chug-a-lug me
Ah, there's a river born to be a giver
Keep you warm won't let you shiver
His heart is never gonna wither
Come on, everybody, time to deliver
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
I can't tell if I'm a kingpin or a pauper
What I got, you got to give it to your mama
What I got, you've got to give it to your papa
What I got, you got to give it to your daughter
You do a little dance and then you drink a little water
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
Reeling with the feeling, don't stop, continue
I realize I don't wanna be a miser
Confide with sly you'll be the wiser
Young blood is the lovin' upriser
How come everybody wanna keep it like the Kaiser?
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
What I got, you got to give it to your mama
What I got, you've got to give it to your papa
What I got, you got to give it to your daughter
You do a little dance and then you drink a little water
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
Reeling with the feeling, don't stop, continue
I realize I don't wanna be a miser
Confide with sly you'll be the wiser
Young blood is the lovin' upriser
How come everybody wanna keep it like the Kaiser?
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
I can't tell if I'm a kingpin or a pauper
Greedy little people in a sea of distress
Keep your more to receive your less
Unimpressed by material excess
Love is free, love me, say, "Hell yes"
Low brow but I rock a little know how
No time for the piggies or the hoosegow
Get smart, get down with the pow wow
Never been a better time than right now
Bob Marley, poet and a prophet
Bob Marley, taught me how to off it
Bob Marley walkin' like he talk it
Goodness me, can't you see I'm gonna cough it?
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Oh, oh yeah
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
I can't tell if I'm a kingpin or a pauper
Lucky me swimmin' in my ability
Dancin' down on life with agility
Come and drink it up from my fertility
Blessed with a bucket of lucky mobility
My mom, I love her 'cause she love me
Long gone are the times when she scrub me
Feelin' good, my brother gonna hug me
Drinkin' my juice, young love chug-a-lug me
Ah, there's a river born to be a giver
Keep you warm won't let you shiver
His heart is never gonna wither
Come on, everybody, time to deliver
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
I can't tell if I'm a kingpin or a pauper
What I got, you got to give it to your mama
What I got, you've got to give it to your papa
What I got, you got to give it to your daughter
You do a little dance and then you drink a little water
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
What I got, you gotta get it put it in you
Reeling with the feeling, don't stop, continue
I realize I don't wanna be a miser
Confide with sly you'll be the wiser
Young blood is the lovin' upriser
How come everybody wanna keep it like the Kaiser?
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Give it away now
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
Van Halen
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
this song is about love in all forms. donating money is an act of love adn kindness, love for family, the the kiedis infamous love that has gotten 98 percent of the female population in the world