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.
Allie woke up 8AM
Graduation day.
Got into a car,
And crashed along the way.
When we arrived late to the wake,
Stole the urn while they
Looked away,
And drove to the beach
'Cause I knew you'd want it
That way.
And you were standing
On the hood of the car
Singing out loud
When the sun came up.
And I know I wasn't right,
But it felt so good.
And your mother didn't mind,
Like I thought she would.
And that REM song was playing
In my mind.
And three and a half minutes
Felt like a lifetime
It felt like a lifetime
And you move like water
I could drown in you.
And I fell so deep once,
Till you pulled me through
You would tell me
"No one is allowed to be so proud
They never reach out
When they're giving up."
And I know I wasn't right,
But it felt so good.
And your mother didn't mind,
Like I thought she would.
And that REM song was playing
In my mind.
And three and a half minutes
Felt like a lifetime
Are you sitting in the lights?
Or combing your hair again,
And talking in rhymes?
Are you sitting in the lights?
When I got home, heard the phone,
Your parents had arrived.
And your dad set his jaw
Your mom just smiled and sighed.
But they left soon
And I went to my room.
Played that disc that you'd given me,
And I shut my eyes
Swear I could hear the sea.
When we were standing
On the hood of your car
Singing out loud when the sun came up.
And I know I wasn't right,
But it felt so good.
And your mother didn't mind,
Like I thought she would.
And that REM song was playing
In my mind.
And three and a half minutes,
Three and a half minutes,
Felt like a lifetime.
Graduation day.
Got into a car,
And crashed along the way.
When we arrived late to the wake,
Stole the urn while they
Looked away,
And drove to the beach
'Cause I knew you'd want it
That way.
And you were standing
On the hood of the car
Singing out loud
When the sun came up.
And I know I wasn't right,
But it felt so good.
And your mother didn't mind,
Like I thought she would.
And that REM song was playing
In my mind.
And three and a half minutes
Felt like a lifetime
It felt like a lifetime
And you move like water
I could drown in you.
And I fell so deep once,
Till you pulled me through
You would tell me
"No one is allowed to be so proud
They never reach out
When they're giving up."
And I know I wasn't right,
But it felt so good.
And your mother didn't mind,
Like I thought she would.
And that REM song was playing
In my mind.
And three and a half minutes
Felt like a lifetime
Are you sitting in the lights?
Or combing your hair again,
And talking in rhymes?
Are you sitting in the lights?
When I got home, heard the phone,
Your parents had arrived.
And your dad set his jaw
Your mom just smiled and sighed.
But they left soon
And I went to my room.
Played that disc that you'd given me,
And I shut my eyes
Swear I could hear the sea.
When we were standing
On the hood of your car
Singing out loud when the sun came up.
And I know I wasn't right,
But it felt so good.
And your mother didn't mind,
Like I thought she would.
And that REM song was playing
In my mind.
And three and a half minutes,
Three and a half minutes,
Felt like a lifetime.
Lyrics submitted by Xine
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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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This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
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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,
I absolutly love this song, Better than Ezra is one of my favorite bands and I've been seeing them here in Baton Rouge forever. In my opinion, this song is about being forced to grow up too fast and two friends rebelling from the norm. When a close friend dies people are often forced to act solemn and grieve, but these two people go out to celebrate the life of their friend. They are refusing to grow up, and that's what makes this song.
ok, it's time for an Ezralite to set the record straight. We've been discussing this song for about 4 years now on the BTE message borads, so here is a combination to answer your questions. 1.) The REM song IS "Talk about the passion." Kevin obsessed over REM, and so would his group of friends in HS. it is also that old of a song. Kevin started the band in college in 1989, so a song like "everybody hurts" would be too new. Plus it is 3:23. 2.) the cast of characters includes - Allie; Parents; KEvin and one or two other friends (we arrived late to the wake).
3.) Allie is not the main focus of the song. This song was written around 10 years after this happened. It is a way for Kevin to cope with the loss and to remember her. It was a hard subject till this song came out and is bing toated as the new single because it is such an important and honest homage to allie and the times around her death.
4.)get the new BTE CD on April 12th to hear the new version of this song. it is amazing even compared to the "closer" version. Better Than Ezra - "Before The Robots" April 12th ok hope that helps.
if you like better than ezra you gotta love this songs. my favorite from their new cd 'closer'. the title track is great as well.
does anyone know what this song is about, it confuses me...
i think it's pretty much telling a story. it's fairly detailed and self-explainatory. sad song i must say
basically about a friend of theirs died and they are tring to preserve their memory and make their soul as happy as possible....
beautifully written song...
yes, this is most definitely a beautiful song. I cried quite hard the first time I heard it, and still do sometimes. Well, it's obvious what this song is about, so I won't go into that, heh heh. And yes, I realize that it's written around a character named Allie which is most commenly a female name, but do you guys think he's singing about a girl or a guy? I always liked to think it was a guy, so at least one great song would be non-sexual. But, really, whaddya think?
i think this song is about a girl named allie, to answer your question Black. But i don't think the narrator of the song and allie had a sexual relationship. To me it seems like they had grown up together and were very close friends.
i LOVE this song so much it's such a sad song and i don't know anyone who doesn't like it once they've heard it...it's so beautiful and so sad...it makes me think of dying though, since the girl (or guy) allie dies...but it's still so beautiful