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.
Have you seen?
Have not will travel
Have I missed the big reveal?
Do my eyes,
Do my eyes seem empty?
I've forgotten how this feels.
I've been high
I've climbed so high
But life sometimes
It washes over me.
Have you been?
Have done will travel
I fell down on me knees
Was I wrong?
I don't know, don't answer.
I just needed to believe.
I've been high
I've climbed so high
But life sometimes
It washes over me.
So I dive into a pool.
So cool and deep,
That when I sink I sink,
And when I swim I fly, so high
What I want
What I really want is
Just to live my life on high.
And I know
I know you want the same
I can see it in your eyes.
I've been high
I've climbed so high
But life sometimes
It washes over me.
Washes over me
Close my eyes
So I can see
Make my make-believe,
Believe in me.
Have not will travel
Have I missed the big reveal?
Do my eyes,
Do my eyes seem empty?
I've forgotten how this feels.
I've been high
I've climbed so high
But life sometimes
It washes over me.
Have you been?
Have done will travel
I fell down on me knees
Was I wrong?
I don't know, don't answer.
I just needed to believe.
I've been high
I've climbed so high
But life sometimes
It washes over me.
So I dive into a pool.
So cool and deep,
That when I sink I sink,
And when I swim I fly, so high
What I want
What I really want is
Just to live my life on high.
And I know
I know you want the same
I can see it in your eyes.
I've been high
I've climbed so high
But life sometimes
It washes over me.
Washes over me
Close my eyes
So I can see
Make my make-believe,
Believe in me.
Lyrics submitted by xpankfrisst, edited by JadedMe
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I have a different interpretation of what this song means, based of course on my own life experience.
I love this song . . . it's one of my favorite REM songs (and I have several).
The first time I heard this was during the 2004 presidential elections, and I felt myself tearing up. It just reminded me so strongly of how much belief in the promise of the world had been in my youth and how that belief was being constantly challenged and beaten down by the news and "real life" each day.
So, in that context, I saw someone who was naturally optimistic and gracious in their approach to life but who has grown disillusioned. They desperately want to understand what they missed . . . how they could have been so wrong. "Life washes over me," in that context isn't a good thing. It's the forces of the real world drowning their faith. They want to escape that by letting go - letting it wash them away or by soaring away from it, whatever escape they can find.
In the end, what they really want - what they really want (as the song says ;) - is to live life on high, to be able to hold onto that once strong faith in the goodness of life and carry it with them, and to see it in other people, they way they once did. In this song, they are taking a big leap of opening up to themselves - and someone else - about their heartfelt desire because they see something in that other person they hope means they feel the same.
That's how I interpret it anyhow.
Of final note, the last line is what always chokes me up after the build-up from the previous thoughts. A good friend of mine once observed that I lived my life via "pictures" - images of how life is, or should be. Perhaps we all do to some degree, but with me it was a vital part of how I coped with life. It's what keeps me going, and is the source of the optimism I do possess.<br /> <br /> The friend didn't mean it in a judgmental way, just an observation to help me understand myself better.<br /> <br /> So the last line - "close my eyes so I can see, make my make believe believe in me" - possesses a lot of power for me. It captures perfectly how I feel when I need to stop whatever destructive or damaging or merely distracting path I have stumbled upon and remember the voice in my head, the images in my consciousness, that help guide me towards what is truly important in life.