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.
It's not hard to reach back to the day
Underneath an Iowa sun
Running to the tower of Waterloo
Looking for the Sullivan train to come
His five boys would run to the top
And salute him as he went by
First we'd wave hello
Then we'd wave goodbye
Goodbye
It's not hard to reach back to the days
After the attack on Pearl
Overnight my buddies turned into men
Running out of time for games and girls
The Sullivan boys were not overlooked
Uncle Sam calling each by name
The very next day they left on a mystery train
Say goodbye, bye, bye, Mrs. Sullivan
Don't you cry, cry, cry, cry, cry
We regret to inform you
The Navy is taking your sons away
All five, five, five, five
So put your blue star in the window
It's not hard to reach back to her smile
When she received their letters
The letters, they sounded generally the same
They said they couldn't come home
At least they were together
On a mighty fighting battleship
Somewhere in the South Pacific
The letters never got much more specific
Say goodbye, bye, bye, Mrs. Sullivan
And don't you cry, cry, cry, cry, cry
We regret to inform you
The Navy is keeping you sons away
All five, five, five, five
So keep your blue star in the window
In the window
It's not hard to reach back to the day
When the war finally came home
Uncle Sam, he'll send you a telegram
So he doesn't have to tell you over the phone
I heard she cracked up
When they found out what the war had cost
And all five of her boys were lost
They were
They were
They were
Oh, say goodbye, bye, bye, Mrs. Sullivan
Go ahead and cry, cry, cry, cry, cry
We regret to inform you
That all your sons have passed away
All five, five, five, five
So change your blue star to gold
Blue star to gold
Blue star to gold
Blue stars, change them to gold
Underneath an Iowa sun
Running to the tower of Waterloo
Looking for the Sullivan train to come
His five boys would run to the top
And salute him as he went by
First we'd wave hello
Then we'd wave goodbye
Goodbye
It's not hard to reach back to the days
After the attack on Pearl
Overnight my buddies turned into men
Running out of time for games and girls
The Sullivan boys were not overlooked
Uncle Sam calling each by name
The very next day they left on a mystery train
Say goodbye, bye, bye, Mrs. Sullivan
Don't you cry, cry, cry, cry, cry
We regret to inform you
The Navy is taking your sons away
All five, five, five, five
So put your blue star in the window
It's not hard to reach back to her smile
When she received their letters
The letters, they sounded generally the same
They said they couldn't come home
At least they were together
On a mighty fighting battleship
Somewhere in the South Pacific
The letters never got much more specific
Say goodbye, bye, bye, Mrs. Sullivan
And don't you cry, cry, cry, cry, cry
We regret to inform you
The Navy is keeping you sons away
All five, five, five, five
So keep your blue star in the window
In the window
It's not hard to reach back to the day
When the war finally came home
Uncle Sam, he'll send you a telegram
So he doesn't have to tell you over the phone
I heard she cracked up
When they found out what the war had cost
And all five of her boys were lost
They were
They were
They were
Oh, say goodbye, bye, bye, Mrs. Sullivan
Go ahead and cry, cry, cry, cry, cry
We regret to inform you
That all your sons have passed away
All five, five, five, five
So change your blue star to gold
Blue star to gold
Blue star to gold
Blue stars, change them to gold
Lyrics submitted by ShiverForMe
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Actually endisforever412 this song is NOT the basis for Saving Private Ryan. Saving Private Ryan was based on the Niland brothers in WWII. 2 of them lived through the war. The Sullivans were portrayed in the movie "The Fighting Sullivans".