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.
Think I'll bag that trip for two
Pack it up to kakadu
Honey, it's not for the weather
Or the lack of loving you
I got all this in between
Something I did not forsee
All the deals I made don't matter
If I can't just let you be
Gone again
Gone again
There ain't no way
That I'm gonna let this heart mend
Gone again
I walked in king's cross for awhile
Gave a junkie girl a smile
We both traded in for danger
Or the company of strangers
She said all her family
Was at the welfare agency
Then she swindled my last twenty
For a kiss and some poetry
Gone again
Gone again
'cause there ain't no way
That I'm gonna let this heart mend
Gone again
If I don't make kakadu
I'll be at the rainbow room
And I'll be courting some disaster
With the melbourne wrecking crew
Honey all this is to say
That every dog don't got it's day
If we take the love we're given
(take the love)
And we throw it all away
It's gone again
It's gone again
'cause there ain't no way
That I'm gonna let this heart mend
It's gone again
It's gone again
'cause there ain't no way
That I'm gonna let this heart mend
Gone again
Pack it up to kakadu
Honey, it's not for the weather
Or the lack of loving you
I got all this in between
Something I did not forsee
All the deals I made don't matter
If I can't just let you be
Gone again
Gone again
There ain't no way
That I'm gonna let this heart mend
Gone again
I walked in king's cross for awhile
Gave a junkie girl a smile
We both traded in for danger
Or the company of strangers
She said all her family
Was at the welfare agency
Then she swindled my last twenty
For a kiss and some poetry
Gone again
Gone again
'cause there ain't no way
That I'm gonna let this heart mend
Gone again
If I don't make kakadu
I'll be at the rainbow room
And I'll be courting some disaster
With the melbourne wrecking crew
Honey all this is to say
That every dog don't got it's day
If we take the love we're given
(take the love)
And we throw it all away
It's gone again
It's gone again
'cause there ain't no way
That I'm gonna let this heart mend
It's gone again
It's gone again
'cause there ain't no way
That I'm gonna let this heart mend
Gone again
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
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
She writes about her tendency to throw away one relationship after another in her perpetually unsuccessful search of something better. So regardless of her situation, she simply never lets her heart mend. She gives two examples. In the first she attempts to find love with a "junkie girl", a sure recipe for disaster. The girl of course, takes her money and gives almost nothing in return (a kiss, a sob story and poetry). In the second, she is in the Rainbow Room again "courting some disaster". She realizes that emotionally things will never work out (even for dog) if we always discard our relationships.
This theme resonates with many people