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.
Wasted and wounded, erased with the night
One man's conviction is another man's lie
I said you could find me where the nighthawks fly
And I'll be there a while, yes I'll be there a while.
Dustpaper coupons, there's a guy by the door
He said: "What makes me quit makes you go back for more".
This place isn't real man, this girl is a whore
Watch me fall to the floor, but I'll go back for more.
Sometimes I wander
So I finally found you, and I lost you to love
No it sure wasn't this I was... thinkin' of
Put your silhouette on me and your sweetness above
And I can't get enough, no I can't get enough.
Wasted and wounded, this ain't no way to die
One man's cold turkey is another man's high
I said you could find me where the nighthawks fly
And I'll be there a while, yes I'll be there a while.
Sometimes I wander
Down on the floor, got a closer look at hell
You see, somebody pushed me, I just pretended that I fell.
I said that I adored you, but I could never tell
For all that I know I'll be gone when you go.
Music went through you and took you to a place
There ain't no doubt you'll find a welcoming embrace
I said that I loved you, another hawk in space
And you'll be there for a while and I'll be there for a while
Finding my own inarticulate prose
Weirding out strangers and laughing at those
Jaundiced and jaded postured and posed
Not that we're special, it's just that we're
Closing in on a place where we might get to be
Living real people regularly
Send you some stuff and be good like you asked
Must promise remember the sixth and the last
Thanks for anonymous invisible
Take us away
One man's conviction is another man's lie
I said you could find me where the nighthawks fly
And I'll be there a while, yes I'll be there a while.
Dustpaper coupons, there's a guy by the door
He said: "What makes me quit makes you go back for more".
This place isn't real man, this girl is a whore
Watch me fall to the floor, but I'll go back for more.
Sometimes I wander
So I finally found you, and I lost you to love
No it sure wasn't this I was... thinkin' of
Put your silhouette on me and your sweetness above
And I can't get enough, no I can't get enough.
Wasted and wounded, this ain't no way to die
One man's cold turkey is another man's high
I said you could find me where the nighthawks fly
And I'll be there a while, yes I'll be there a while.
Sometimes I wander
Down on the floor, got a closer look at hell
You see, somebody pushed me, I just pretended that I fell.
I said that I adored you, but I could never tell
For all that I know I'll be gone when you go.
Music went through you and took you to a place
There ain't no doubt you'll find a welcoming embrace
I said that I loved you, another hawk in space
And you'll be there for a while and I'll be there for a while
Finding my own inarticulate prose
Weirding out strangers and laughing at those
Jaundiced and jaded postured and posed
Not that we're special, it's just that we're
Closing in on a place where we might get to be
Living real people regularly
Send you some stuff and be good like you asked
Must promise remember the sixth and the last
Thanks for anonymous invisible
Take us away
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
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
Thursday
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.
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.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
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.
a top song. all of dEUS' songs are masterpieces actually. what is this about?
I love this song, but I can't quitte figure out what it's about eighter. Especially the part "Must promise remember the sixth and the last" makes me think it's one of their more personal songs.<br /> <br /> I love the metaphores like "Down on the floor, got a closer look at hell You see, somebody pushed me, I just pretended that I fell."
I really can't find any clear meaning to it, it feels more like the confused stuff you remember from a dream...
Beautiful musically and also textually. Look at the rhyme-scheme: AAAA BBBB c DDDD EEEE c FFFF GGGG and an outro.
Really great song!
As to the meaning: I wouldn't know. Appears to be some sort of love song but it's too cryptical to figure out.
So dEUS is currently touring and playing "The Ideal Crash" from beginning to end ;) I saw them in Luxemburg a couple days ago and Tom Barman said a few words before they played this song. (from my memory, and translated from french) "This song is about... when love is not going too well for you, and so you go out to find... other places... and other persons... but you don't always find them"
So basically I'd say it's the unclear thoughts and feeling of someone who is somewhat depressed, going out and drinking too much and associating with the wrong persons and doing stupid things... in hope of feeling better.