His mother played songs by Frank Sinatra to him as a child, and he later became a fan of Motown and other R&B/soul music. He took piano lessons as a child, but he did not like them. He would skip the lessons and ride his bicycle across the bridge from his grandfather's farm over to the heart of the black "Chicken Hill" ghetto, where he could just listen and absorb the music.
In the 1960s, Hall attended Temple University, but did not graduate, preferring instead to spend his time singing on the street corners and play with various musicians and groups. At that time, Daryl Hohl (as he was called then) sang backup for different bands. He eventually changed his last name to Hall. Daryl Hall idolized the Temptations and began to perform session work as a singer. He first met John Oates at a band competition.
After John transferred to a different school, Daryl joined the band Gulliver, which released one eponymous album in 1969 before being dropped from their label.
Daryl is the host of the wildly popular online show entitled "Live From Daryl's House", where Daryl and the band collaborate with artists from various musical genres on the 15th of each month. The first episode aired in 2007, and it's still going strong. Best of all, it's free to watch.
Borderline
Daryl Hall Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yea we've had some fun
Don't you agree?
Now that we have come this far
Time to stop the game, and make a start
I want you to take this seriously
But all you do is show inhumanity
Baby don't you know I've got more heart than that
I can't hide the way I feel
Help me please, baby please help me
We've reached the borderline
Nowhere to go but down
We can't turn our world around
We've reached the borderline
Maybe it's not too late
Only we can choose our fate
I tried but I can't loose this crazy pain
I wish that it would go, so I can live again
You may or may not know that I'm beside myself
Oh you know there's only you and no one else, whoa
I can't hide, it's sad you see
Something that could feel so good
May never be
We've reached the borderline
Nowhere to go but down
If we can't turn our love around
We've reached the borderline
Got everything to gain
If only we can stop the pain
The sky is falling
Falling again, hey
We've reached the borderline
Nowhere to go but down
If we can't turn our world around
We've reached the borderline
Got everything to gain
If only we can stop the pain
You've reached the boderline
Keep on reaching, keep believing
Keep on reaching, keep believing
Keep on reaching, keep believing
...
The song Borderline by Daryl Hall is about a relationship that has hit its breaking point. The opening lines of the song "Just look at you and me, Yea we've had some fun, Don't you agree?" hints at a relationship that started out fun and playful. However, as the song progresses, the lyrics reveal that things have taken a turn for the worse. The singer acknowledges that they have come a long way in the relationship, but it is time to stop playing games and make a serious commitment to each other.
The singer begs the other person to take the relationship seriously, but all they seem to do is show inhumanity. The other person has hurt the singer, but the singer cannot bring themselves to hurt them back. This is an indication that the singer has more feelings for the other person than they may want to admit. The chorus "We've reached the borderline, Nowhere to go but down, We can't turn our world around" suggests that the relationship has hit a point of no return, and there is nowhere else to go but down. The final lines of the song "Keep on reaching, keep believing" are an attempt to salvage what is left of the relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Just look at you and me
Let's take a good look at where we are right now.
Yea we've had some fun
We've enjoyed ourselves.
Don't you agree?
Do you feel the same way?
Now that we have come this far
After everything we've been through.
Time to stop the game, and make a start
It's time to be serious and start a real relationship.
I want you to take this seriously
I need you to understand that this is important to me.
But all you do is show inhumanity
You are being cold and unfeeling.
You hurt me oh, but I can't hurt you back
I'm not going to stoop to your level and hurt you.
Baby don't you know I've got more heart than that
I'm a better person than that.
I can't hide the way I feel
I can't keep my feelings bottled up any longer.
Help me please, baby please help me
I need your help to work things out between us.
We've reached the borderline
Our relationship is at a critical point.
Nowhere to go but down
Things will only get worse from here if we don't do something.
We can't turn our world around
We can't pretend that everything is okay.
Maybe it's not too late
We can still save our relationship if we act now.
Only we can choose our fate
It's up to us to decide what happens next.
I tried but I can't loose this crazy pain
I've tried to forget about my pain, but I can't.
I wish that it would go, so I can live again
I wish I could move on from this and be happy again.
You may or may not know that I'm beside myself
You might not realize how much this is affecting me.
Oh you know there's only you and no one else, whoa
I'm still in love with you and no one else compares to you.
It's sad you see
It's unfortunate, but true.
Something that could feel so good
Our relationship had a lot of potential to be great.
May never be
But it might not work out.
Got everything to gain
If we work together, we can make things better.
If only we can stop the pain
If we can figure out how to fix things, we'll be happy again.
The sky is falling
Everything feels like it's falling apart.
Keep on reaching, keep believing
We need to keep trying and not give up.
...
The song ends here.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Reginald Grant Lucas
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Harold Chernofsky
on Rich Girl - Remastered 2003
amazing group