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.
A boy is born in hard time Mississippi
Surrounded by four walls that ain't so pretty
His parents give him love and affection
To keep him strong moving in the right direction
Living just enough, just enough for the city
His father works some days for fourteen hours
And you can bet he barely makes a dollar
His mother goes to scrub the floors for many
And you'd best believe she hardly gets a penny
Living just enough, just enough for the city, yeah
His sister's black but she is sho' 'nuff pretty
Her skirt is short but Lord her legs are sturdy
To walk to school she's got to get up early
Her clothes are old but never are they dirty
Living just enough, just enough for the city
Mm, her brother's smart he's got more sense than many
His patience's long but soon he won't have any
To find a job is like a haystack needle
'Cause where he lives they don't use colored people
Living just enough, just enough for the city, yeah
Living just enough for the city
Living for the city, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
Ain't nothin' for the city
Oh, living just enough for the city
Living for the city, yeah, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
The lessons of the city
Oh, living just enough for the city
Living for the city, yeah, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
The funky, cruddy city
Oh, living just enough for the city
I'm living for the city, yeah, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
For a nothing, nothing, city
Oh, living just enough for the city
Every body clap your hand, it's going down
Oh, living just enough for the city
Mm-hmm, for the city, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
Hmm, for the city, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
For the city, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
For the city
"Bus going to New York City"
"Hey, bus driver I'm getting on there, hold it"
"Thanks a lot"
"Wow
New York, just like I pictured it
God straightened everything"
"Psst, hey, hey, brother
Hey, come here flick
Yeah, you look, you look hip man
Hey you wanna make your self five bucks man?"
"Yeah brother I just came into town"
"Look here, run this across the street for me right quick, okay?
Run it across the street for me"
"Hey, what?
Huh? I didn't know
What? I'm just going across the street
"Shut your mouth"
"Oh no, what I do?"
"Okay turn around, turn around
Put your hands behind your back lets go, lets go"
"A jury of your peers having found you guilty ten years"
"What?"
"Come on, come on, get in that cell nigger"
"My God, no"
His hair is long, his feet are hard and gritty
He spends his life walking the streets of New York City
He's almost dead from breathing in air pollution
He tried to vote but to him there's no solution
Living just enough, just enough for the city yeah, yeah, yeah
I hope you hear inside my voice of sorrow
And that it motivates you to make a better tomorrow
This place is cruel no where could be much colder
If we don't change the world will soon be over
Living just enough, stop giving just enough for the city
Surrounded by four walls that ain't so pretty
His parents give him love and affection
To keep him strong moving in the right direction
Living just enough, just enough for the city
His father works some days for fourteen hours
And you can bet he barely makes a dollar
His mother goes to scrub the floors for many
And you'd best believe she hardly gets a penny
Living just enough, just enough for the city, yeah
His sister's black but she is sho' 'nuff pretty
Her skirt is short but Lord her legs are sturdy
To walk to school she's got to get up early
Her clothes are old but never are they dirty
Living just enough, just enough for the city
Mm, her brother's smart he's got more sense than many
His patience's long but soon he won't have any
To find a job is like a haystack needle
'Cause where he lives they don't use colored people
Living just enough, just enough for the city, yeah
Living just enough for the city
Living for the city, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
Ain't nothin' for the city
Oh, living just enough for the city
Living for the city, yeah, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
The lessons of the city
Oh, living just enough for the city
Living for the city, yeah, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
The funky, cruddy city
Oh, living just enough for the city
I'm living for the city, yeah, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
For a nothing, nothing, city
Oh, living just enough for the city
Every body clap your hand, it's going down
Oh, living just enough for the city
Mm-hmm, for the city, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
Hmm, for the city, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
For the city, yeah
Oh, living just enough for the city
For the city
"Bus going to New York City"
"Hey, bus driver I'm getting on there, hold it"
"Thanks a lot"
"Wow
New York, just like I pictured it
God straightened everything"
"Psst, hey, hey, brother
Hey, come here flick
Yeah, you look, you look hip man
Hey you wanna make your self five bucks man?"
"Yeah brother I just came into town"
"Look here, run this across the street for me right quick, okay?
Run it across the street for me"
"Hey, what?
Huh? I didn't know
What? I'm just going across the street
"Shut your mouth"
"Oh no, what I do?"
"Okay turn around, turn around
Put your hands behind your back lets go, lets go"
"A jury of your peers having found you guilty ten years"
"What?"
"Come on, come on, get in that cell nigger"
"My God, no"
His hair is long, his feet are hard and gritty
He spends his life walking the streets of New York City
He's almost dead from breathing in air pollution
He tried to vote but to him there's no solution
Living just enough, just enough for the city yeah, yeah, yeah
I hope you hear inside my voice of sorrow
And that it motivates you to make a better tomorrow
This place is cruel no where could be much colder
If we don't change the world will soon be over
Living just enough, stop giving just enough for the city
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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.
The Night We Met
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Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
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This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
whoa, heavy duty song.... every time I hear it it's a new and enlightening experience. and in response to mikeholliday and born to run, I think that "living for the city", in the most literal sense, is basically working hard to earn enough money to make the move to the city. In a sense you're living the lifestyle you are in order to go there, so in effect you're "living for the city."
Seriously, this man is a legend and this is one of his finest songs. Comment people!
A song about one boy in a good family growing up amongst injustice. Perhaps a hint that he turns to crime at the end. Social commentry, and Stevie expressing his desire for change at the end.
wow that was deep my brother.....lol im onli lik 12 and this song is my fav!!!
One of the best, if not THE best soul song ever.
"Soul SongS"
Really great song, there is a longer version with a little scene in the middle that isnt mentioned here.
I dont exactly understand what "Living just enough for the city" is though?
I think he means that he's giving all he has for the benefit of the rest of the city while being able to keep nothing for himself. As in, the city demands everything from him.
As real and hard as this song's meaning is, i still feel it's a special and profound gift from Stevie Wonder.
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This a song about capitalist exploitation, injustice and racism. Stevie talks about the people who are not being able to enjoy life and do the things they want, not being able to be who they are, they´re just surviving, being part of the system, and they role it´s to be exploited to mantain that system and the status quo. Living, but not really. Just enough for the city.