Dim the lights, take off your apron
Are you ready to let go?
Then turn the key and lock the diner
And I'll pick you up in my old Ford
We're heading west to find what we're looking for

Just you & me and California sunshine
I can almost smell the salty air
Don't anybody wake us if we're dreamin'
'Cause I can hardly wait until we're there

You came running to my Chevy
Stood in silence for a while
I said: "I borrowed it from Frankie
To cruise the Boulevard in style"
Heading West, but it's a long road up ahead

Just you & me and California sunshine
I can almost smell the salty air
Don't anybody wake us if we're dreamin'
'Cause I can hardly wait until we're there

And we'll just let the warm wind
Blow all the darkness in our hearts away
Today

You know people said we had it coming
But I still recall the things I've said
Stronger than reason was the longing
Should have seen the trouble ahead
Busted for driving a stolen car
We were stopped dead in our tracks in Georgia
The Judge spoke: "Son, let this be a lesson to ya
And don't ever pretend to be better than you are"
I was wrong, but the dream's still burning strong

Just you & me and California sunshine
I can almost smell the salty air
Only you & me and California sunshine
I can almost smell the salty air
But it's just another rainy night in Georgia
And I'm sitting all alone here in my cell
It's just another California Hell

Written on …. Bass guitar, actually. Erwin came up with the main riff, when writing a bridge for another song. We scrapped the whole song and ended up writing a new one around the bass-riff. Our first true three-piece collaboration. We started with the three piece harmony for the chorus. That sunny sound led to the California dreaming idea. Not being from California, we decided to add a sad little twist to the story "Thelma and Louise" style. So it's about a dream turning into a nightmare. The main character dreams about heading off to California with his girlfriend, leaving everything behind and starting all over. The dream turns sour when the car he's driving turns out to be stolen (either by him or "Frankie") and he gets thrown in jail. So never pretend to be better then you are …