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.
kid i held you with these arms that felt so hard
you kept your chin up and i held my guard
made a prison bed from a life i never led
let me correct these mistakes you delight in
god i hope i get it right / i've been practicing
kid i hope it holds some fraction of its feeling
if you keep believing then i'll keep on being
a ghost in his prison bed short sheeted and shook dead
looking at love he still hasn't made yet
that i couldn't make to you / baby, i can barely move
kid you were wrong / that wasn't me in that song
you write the lie you'd like to be
when your life feels like a book you wouldn't read
kid i've lived through others i made myself so small
i lived through a record one summer last fall
the singer said something i could only feel
i saw him this morning he still looked real real
god i need him here tonight
i just know he'd get this right
kid i'm a mess
if it looked good you're seeing things i guess
i changed my mind so many times / i'm a strobe light
flickering freak. the baby of the week.
i'm starting to see someone i could never be
kid what went wrong? / we had it all now it's all gone
i blew my mind out / now it's your turn to find out
what we all need
what we all mean
i'm starting to see someone i don't want to be
you kept your chin up and i held my guard
made a prison bed from a life i never led
let me correct these mistakes you delight in
god i hope i get it right / i've been practicing
kid i hope it holds some fraction of its feeling
if you keep believing then i'll keep on being
a ghost in his prison bed short sheeted and shook dead
looking at love he still hasn't made yet
that i couldn't make to you / baby, i can barely move
kid you were wrong / that wasn't me in that song
you write the lie you'd like to be
when your life feels like a book you wouldn't read
kid i've lived through others i made myself so small
i lived through a record one summer last fall
the singer said something i could only feel
i saw him this morning he still looked real real
god i need him here tonight
i just know he'd get this right
kid i'm a mess
if it looked good you're seeing things i guess
i changed my mind so many times / i'm a strobe light
flickering freak. the baby of the week.
i'm starting to see someone i could never be
kid what went wrong? / we had it all now it's all gone
i blew my mind out / now it's your turn to find out
what we all need
what we all mean
i'm starting to see someone i don't want to be
Lyrics submitted by typo
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
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That makes perfect sense, and I couldn't have said it better myself.