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.
Throwing candy out to the crowd
Dragging down the main
The helpless little thing with the dirty mouth
Who's always got something to say
You're sitting around at home now
Waiting for your brother to call
I saw him down in the alley
Having had enough of it all
Said, "You can do what you want to
Whenever you want to
You can do what you want to
There's no one to stop you"
All spit and spite, you're up all night
And down every day
A tired man with only hours to go
Just waiting to be taken away
Getting into the back of a car
For candy from some stranger
Watching the parade with pinpoint eyes
Full of smoldering anger
You can do what you want to
Whenever you want to
You can do what you want to
There's no one to stop you
Now, you can do what you want to
Whenever you want to (oh, yeah)
Do what you want to
Whenever you want to (oh, yeah)
Do what you want to
Whenever you want to
Though it doesn't mean a thing
Big nothing
Dragging down the main
The helpless little thing with the dirty mouth
Who's always got something to say
You're sitting around at home now
Waiting for your brother to call
I saw him down in the alley
Having had enough of it all
Said, "You can do what you want to
Whenever you want to
You can do what you want to
There's no one to stop you"
All spit and spite, you're up all night
And down every day
A tired man with only hours to go
Just waiting to be taken away
Getting into the back of a car
For candy from some stranger
Watching the parade with pinpoint eyes
Full of smoldering anger
You can do what you want to
Whenever you want to
You can do what you want to
There's no one to stop you
Now, you can do what you want to
Whenever you want to (oh, yeah)
Do what you want to
Whenever you want to (oh, yeah)
Do what you want to
Whenever you want to
Though it doesn't mean a thing
Big nothing
Lyrics submitted by EnjOy IncUbus, edited by Jate
Ballad of Big Nothing Lyrics as written by Steven Paul Smith
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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ernt. wrong. you make your own decisions but the song is about drugs.
"all spit and spite you're up all night and down every day" -you're up all night from coke and down every day from heroin
"a tired man with only hours to go just waiting to be taken away " -tired from being up all night from the coke and hes waiting to be taken away by the stranger who is a drug dealer. he is waiting for his fix.
"getting in to the back of a car for candy from some stranger " -candy is cocaine. it is referred to as nose candy and you will take your fix from anybody hence the stranger.
"watching the parade with pinpoint eyes full of smoldering anger" -you get pinpoint eyes from heroin. they become pindrops.
"you can do what you want to whenever you want to you can do what you want to there's no one to stop you" -its your choice to do the drugs. no one can stop you from doing it but yourself
"Candy" is cocaine. "Car" is slang for crack! "You can do whatever you want to" is slang for shooting up behind a Papa Murphy's while your friends watch and laugh. "Nothing" means the white stain left on your mother's blouse when I left her house last night.
@the green eyes I know for many ppl drug is a topic commonly taken as literarly in most Elliot's songs. And don't get me wrong, probably they actually are. <br /> <br /> The problem with almost always relate Elliot's lyrics to drugs is that it becomes quite a sordid, dull and plain common place. I mean you did this comment almost 20 years ago on 2004, so I don't expect your answer anyway... <br /> <br /> But I think USA always have been fked up with the drug consume issue and is quite terrible that horrible problem just have become a "normal" thing to quote, when it is not. Feel sorry for ppl in dependency situation hope they get out from that hell. Elliott apparently couldn't and that always has seemed so sad about his story. <br /> <br /> I think you can also relate this song not to drugs but to insomnia for example or any other sleep disorder or even anxiety disorder YK. Not everything has to be related to the fkn drugs. <br /> <br />
@bluesbegger123 Was the "stain" rude comment necesary?? <br /> <br /> What an idt. You are an absolute twt. <br /> <br /> Behave kind with others who share beautiful Elliot's music, you 2009 troll...
Centers around the oft-heard innocent phrase "you can do whatever you want to." But the innocent phrase of optimism is skewed by the reality that shapes Elliot's life. He thinks he has gone too far away, seen too many things, screwed up too many times and is angry and afraid. Could be about the desire to kick a drug habit - with the second use of "candy" - but not knowing the first thing about how to do it. All that Elliot sees is a patterned cycle that he doesn't know how to escape, so he just keeps on keeping on and becomes bitter at those who live with wide-eyed innocence.
"Throwing candy out to the crowd Dragging down the main"
"The helpless little thing with the dirty mouth Who's always got something to say"
"You're sitting at home now Waiting for your brother to call I saw him down at the alley Having had enough of it all Said you can do what you want to whenever you want to You can do what you want to, there's no one to stop you"
"All spit and spite, you're up all night And down every day"
"A tired man with only hours to go Just waiting to be taken away"
"Getting into the back of a car For candy from some stranger watching the parade with pinpoint eyes Full of smoldering anger"
"You can do what you want to whenever you want to You can do what you want to, there's no one to stop you Now you can do what you want to whenever you want to Do what you want to whenever you want to Do what you want to whenever you want to Though it doesn't mean a thing Big nothing"
this all just guesswork and how i view the song, but thought i'd throw it out there.
You get pinpoint pupils when you take opiates.<br /> <br /> That whole sections is about meeting someone for drugs, taking them and sitting watching the rest of the world pass you by. The anger could be directed at himself for ending up in the situation he's in or it could be the resentment he feels towards the people in 'the parade' for being able to get on with things (breeze through life as if its a parade). Probably a bit of both. No doubt the people in this parade have contributed to his problems and are blissfully unaware.<br /> <br /> I could be superimposing my own outlook onto the message here of course?<br /> <br /> One of the reasons I love Elliott is because he had a great way of summing up complex situations or circumstances with two or three short lines.
Also, it's kind of ironic: it sounds like freedom 'I can do what I want to, there's no one to stop me' but in this context it's the freedom to self-destruct, and of course addiction is the opposite of freedom - you are ruled by the drug, not free at all.
Definitely about drugs, specifically opiates/heroin.
Candy = drugs, etc, blah blah blah, getting into the back of a car = drug deal., etc, I'm sure 50 other comments explain it. I wrote a full analysis and then the site "went terribly wrong" in its own words and I lost the whole things, so I'll just focus on:
Why is it about Heroin and not some other drug?
"Watching the parade with pinpoint eyes full of smoldering anger"
That line.
Pinpoint eyes -- opiates/heroin are one of the only drugs which cause pupils to constrict. This is known as eyes being "pinpoint" or "pinned out".
Full of smoldering anger -- extreme irritability, agitation, and rage are common side effects of Heroin/Opiate use. Anyone who is close with someone who does this type of drug, or has done it will know exactly what Smith is referring to here.
With this one line it's insane to think this song isn't (at least partially) about dope.
Obvious opiate reference.
There you have it.
@mabzie55 BTW I want to add that obviously it's more complex than "just drugs", but opiates are undeniably part of it.
yeah, what he said
"said you can do what you want to whenever you want to"
the melody in this line is great.
you are free no matter what you do or what people do to you.
i think maybe that this is talking about himself and his family, his sister i think...how he does all these things to worry them and they try to just stop careing but they cant and he just makes it worse and worse on them. by his actions and he doesnt think he means anything to anyone, but his family still worries about him. "candy" means sex. at least thats what i got from it...it could mean anything.
"all spit and spite you're up all night and down every day"
I think that's more like, you're up all night on amphetamines and pretty much just feel like crap the next day.