The song Don't Wait Up by Colin Hay is about a relationship that is falling apart. The narrator is telling his partner not to wait up for him because he knows she won't be coming home. He advises her to sleep until it's light outside and not to worry about him. The song centers around a restless heart and a relationship it is trying to escape. The narrator's partner wants more out of life than what he can offer her. She feels confined in their relationship and wants to experience new things. The narrator senses this and knows that she will eventually leave him. The chorus repeats the same message, advising his partner not to wait up for him. The dogs scratching at the door symbolize the end of the relationship and the impending departure of the narrator's partner. Towards the end of the song, the lyrics suggest that the narrator's jealousy and insecurities have contributed to the relationship's downfall. He recognizes that his partner has paid the man and sailed away, leaving him with his own incompleteness. Overall, Don't Wait Up is a song about a relationship that is coming to an end due to the restless heart of one partner craving more out of life, and the other's jealousy and insecurity.
