Run for the Roses [Dennis DeYoung]

Run for the Roses 
Written by Dennis DeYoung
Lead Vocals by Dennis DeYoung

Seems like everyone I know
Longs for the good life
The smell of sweet success
That they call happiness
We keep our score with notches
On our silver belts
But torn and tattered sleeves
Can hide nobilities

But it's the people that we treasure
The moments we define
That gives us every reason
To cross the finish line

Every day we run for the roses
Every passing hour we reach for victory
But when we count up all the gold
Well it's the same old story told
On the last page we will find our legacy
Oh oh we run for the roses

Every day I rise
To hear the voices telling me
Don't be the runner up
Go claim the loving cup
So I keep on moving on
The only way I know
Charging straight ahead
Just like a thoroughbred

But it's the riches that we share
With family and friends
The love that flows between us
That matters in the end

Every day we run for the roses
Every passing hour we reach for victory
But when the final vote is cast
And we see ourselves at last
We pray we like the portrait that we see
Oh oh we run for the roses
Oh oh we run

I knew a man whose only goal
Was fame and fortune
There in the spotlight's glow
He sacrificed his soul
So he found himself alone
Without what matters most
And that's the love he sought
Not the battles fought

Somewhere east of Eden

Seems like everyone I know
Longs for the good life
The smell of sweet success
That they call happiness
We keep our score with notches
On our silver belts
But torn and tattered sleeves
Can hide nobilities

But it's the people that we treasure
The moments we define
That gives us every reason
To cross the finish line

Every day we run for the roses
Every passing hour we reach for victory
But when we count up all the gold
Well it's the same old story told
On the last page we will find our legacy
Oh oh we run for the roses

Every day I rise
To hear the voices telling me
Don't be the runner up
Go claim the loving cup
So I keep on moving on
The only way I know
Charging straight ahead
Just like a thoroughbred

But it's the riches that we share
With family and friends
The love that flows between us
That matters in the end

Every day we run for the roses
Every passing hour we reach for victory
But when the final vote is cast
And we see ourselves at last
We pray we like the portrait that we see
Oh oh we run for the roses
Oh oh we run

I knew a man whose only goal
Was fame and fortune
There in the spotlight's glow
He sacrificed his soul
So he found himself alone
Without what matters most
And that's the love he sought
Not the battles fought

Somewhere east of Eden
There at journey's end
It's love alone that saves us
I promise you my friend

Every day we run for the roses
Every passing hour we reach for victory
Into this world we're tossed
Till the final bridge is crossed
Where it all remains the greatest mystery
Oh oh still we run for the roses

Oh oh we run
Oh oh we run for the roses
Oh oh we run
Oh oh we run for the roses

We run

There at journey's end
It's love alone that saves us
I promise you my friend

Every day we run for the roses
Every passing hour we reach for victory
Into this world we're tossed
Till the final bridge is crossed
Where it all remains the greatest mystery
Oh oh still we run for the roses

Oh oh we run
Oh oh we run for the roses
Oh oh we run
Oh oh we run for the roses
We run

Interpretation

Just like the Kentucky Derby, which is known as the "run for the roses" because the winning horse and jockey are awarded a blanket of roses in the winners circle, we run like a thoroughbred horse to the finish line in life. If you focus on pursuing fame and fortune but miss out on love and relationships, you will end up lonely and miss out on the true victory in life. The end of life here is symbolically referred to as east of Eden, which in the Bible was where Adam and Eve were exiled after their act of disobedience, which cut them off from the Tree of Life (Genesis 3). The final bridge we cross, into the afterlife, is a mystery that we will finally understand when we die.