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.
Mott the Hoople and the Game of Life, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Andy Kaufman in the wrestling match, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Monopoly, twenty-one, checkers, and chess, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Fred Blassie in a breakfast mess, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Let's play Twister, let's play Risk, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
I'll see you in heaven if you make the list yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now, Andy, did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Andy, are you goofing on Elvis?
Hey baby, are we losing touch?
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
Moses went walking with the staff of wood, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Newton got beaned by the apple good, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Egypt was troubled by the horrible asp, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Charles Darwin had the gall to ask, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now, Andy, did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Hey Andy, are you goofing on Elvis?
Hey baby, are you having fun?
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
Here's a little agit for the never-believer, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Here's a little ghost for the offering, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Here's a truck stop instead of Saint Peter's, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Andy Kaufman's gone wrestling, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now, Andy, did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Hey Andy, are you goofing on Elvis?
Hey baby, are we losing touch?
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believed there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believed there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
Andy Kaufman in the wrestling match, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Monopoly, twenty-one, checkers, and chess, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Fred Blassie in a breakfast mess, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Let's play Twister, let's play Risk, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
I'll see you in heaven if you make the list yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now, Andy, did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Andy, are you goofing on Elvis?
Hey baby, are we losing touch?
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
Moses went walking with the staff of wood, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Newton got beaned by the apple good, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Egypt was troubled by the horrible asp, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Charles Darwin had the gall to ask, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now, Andy, did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Hey Andy, are you goofing on Elvis?
Hey baby, are you having fun?
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
Here's a little agit for the never-believer, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Here's a little ghost for the offering, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Here's a truck stop instead of Saint Peter's, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Andy Kaufman's gone wrestling, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now, Andy, did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Hey Andy, are you goofing on Elvis?
Hey baby, are we losing touch?
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believed there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believed there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
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Light Up The Sky
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The Night We Met
Lord Huron
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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"
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
I believe this very fine song is about appearance (and it's guises so to speak) and how in a sense all we have is appearance. It is directly about Andy, even mentions his name, interestingly. Andy's act was about presentation/story/image/appearance, games if you will. One never knew when Andy was 'on' or 'off'. He always made you ask 'is it real' or is it a game or act?' When Andy brought the audience into 'the act' he reached a transcendent genius where the viewer and the subject are one big presentation. I belive stype saw and understood this genius and thus the inspired honorific song for Andy.
This I believe is the significance of stype's copious references to games such as 21 risk monopoly and the like. He also associates in the same context as these games, common stories, or myths, such as moses and staff, egypt and the snake, and newton and the proverbial apple, and of course, the man on the moon - which ultimately is a story or image for us since none of can BEGIN to experience this directly. I recall some interesting movie in the 80's where the premise was that the moon experience was all trumped up and contrived...
In the same way that andy could manipulate the breakfast with blassie, maybe there will be a truck stop instead of st peter's.
These are some initial impressions of the song. I did have a question on what stype meant by 'never believers'. 'Belief' in my analysis sketched here would be tantamount to knowing appearance, or a set of self consistant premises and propositions such as in a game like monopoly or in a wrestling match (not 'knowledge' or 'reality').
In new york they built a skyscraper on stilts above St Peter's catholic church. The building houses some parcel delivery company. Truck stop.
What are you talking about!!
Andy Kaufman died young, of lung cancer. I always thought the song was about being short-changed. Science is capable of some incredible things, like putting 5 million pounds of explosive fuel behind a few men and blasting them to another body in our solar system. But curing cancer, sorry, that's too hard.
The alternating lines of religion and science (Moses / Newton / Egypt / Darwin) reflect the conflict between faith and fact. The second line of the refrain (up my sleeve / nothing is cool) points out that without some mystery, the march of progress does little to inspire wonder. The never-believer is you.
Anxiously awaiting my jetpack, universal translator, and a cure for cancer... Ooh look, 5 channels of home shopping network! Yeah, this is the future we wanted. Do you feel short-changed?
@Myself248 You so right! Why not just try continuing to fool us rather than actually do something constructive in this world (like as you said, cure cancer)? Because they couldn't oppress something if it has already been known to man. Curing illnesses will never happen as long as someone is profiting from them.<br /> <br /> ~ Josh
@Myself248 <br /> I'm with you <br /> But we should have SIX SHOPPING CHANNELS
It's about Andy being misunderstood. As much as I liked him, comparing him to Moses, Darwin and Newton wasn't exactly on the mark, but that's what it is about. Genious isn't always understood.
By the way, the first line of the final stanzay is "Here's a little legend for the never-believer." It's about the theory that he faked his death (truck-stop instead of Saint Peter's.)
That would make the Elvis reference make sense too.That would make the Elvis reference make sense too.
I believe the lyrics are, "here's a little adjit for the never believer" rather than "legend"<br /> <br /> adjit is a verb being to "shake-up" or "stir" so what you are saying still makes sense.
I think that the REM guys must have been big admirers of Andy Kaufman and decided to write a song about him. The film is ok, there are some any tapped questions though.
It's clearly about Andy Kaufman and how you shouldn't believe everything you're told, like andy didn't. he was original and wanted to do something different. the movie gets into some detail about it. he didn't want to do a sitcom but was made to believe if he didn't he'd become nothing. he was always playing a game with people. he would do elaborate things even though only he thought it was funny. he was always doing things people thought wouldn't work. you can't get lung cancer if you don't smoke, well andy did. the latter part of the song i think is questioning what happens when we die. how come when andy died, instead of going to st. peter he went to a truck stop (andy would have felt fine at one, he worked at a restaurant at the height of his career) and instead of going to the tradition belief of what heaven is (angels flying), he infact just gets to wrestle all the time. it makes sense because andy's favorite thing to do was wrestle. he just enjoyed it. when he died they found uncashed checks from wrestling stints he did. which lead many to believe he just did it for the fun of it. so maybe andy didn't go to heaven, he just went wrestling.
The song is about three ways of looking at the world:
1) religious
Moses / Egypt / St. Peter's
2) scientific, maybe "flat" reality
Newton / Darwin, maybe the truck stop
3) Stipe's preference; Kaufmaneque irony--the game--goofin' on Elvis
We know that men landed on the moon & that Elvis & Andy are dead. But it's sometimes fun to pretend they aren't. Kinda like pro wrestling, no?
I dont´t know for sure what this song is really about. I mean, yes, i saw the movie and stuff, but i would like to know everything about Andy and the song (verse by verse). If someone knows something more than the people that already wrote in here, please share your knowledge. Thanx.
I don't know about the whole song, (that's why I was reading here) but as far as the truck stop/St peter's line goes, I think Mike's speaking about Andy. St. Peter's, is seen as one of art and architectures greatest achievments, whereas a truckstop... well, some people think of Andy as an amazing comic genius, others think he was just insane. I know Mike's a big fan of Andy's, but I'm not sure if he believes he's insane or a genius. The line "are we losing touch?" may be asking if Andy is insane. Also, I'll never understand why people decide to make a comment like- "THIS SONG SUCKS, I HATE IT!" Get a life, you have to much time on your hands, if you're posting on all the songs you hate.
The song is about questioning. Andy Kaufman built his career on people never knowing whether he was being sincere or putting them on. Many people think Andy's death was an elaborate hoax. Many of the other things mentioned in the songs are also believed to be hoaxes, to some the moon landing, to some religion, and there are many who say the apple never hit Newton.
The "truck stop instead of st peters" refers to Andys death..did he fake it and go to a truck stop, or did he die and meet st peter? Then the answer.. Mr Andy Kaufman is off wrestling somewhere.. at least he is to the people who were never-believers, who never believed he was being serious. There is even a message to Andy. Have you heard about this? Is he still making fun of Elvis? Is he having fun (still being alive)?
I think the biggest hint is in the first line... Mott The Hoople and the game of life. Get that right and the rest falls into place. Mott The Hoople were the first rock band to sell out a weeks shows on Broadway in 1974. They were set to be the "next big thing"... the next Rolling Stones. Then at the height of their fame they broke up. It's about the uncertainty of life, how lives are cut short, Andy, Elvis etc.... about the risks of playing the game of life, what's real, what's not, who's sure about anything... Did they land on the moon? Did Darwin dare say we were descended from apes? Every day is as certain as monopoly, 21, checkers or chess.