" Every time I look in the mirror, all these lines on my face are getting clearer"

It means he's getting older and the days are going by. It's obvious when he refers to the lines getting clearer when he looks at his face.

" The past is gone, it went by like dust to dawn"

It means that the days are going by just like that and he's missing all of his opportunities in life.

" isn't that the way? Everybody's got their dues in life to pay"

I think he's refering to his drug problem in here. Because I've read somewhere that he started doing drugs in his teenage years.

" I know what nobody knows, where it comes and where it goes"

He means that he knows more than average people, since he probably wrote this song at a time when he was thinking about life.

" You gotta lose to know how to win"

You have to make mistakes in order to learn from them.

" Half my life's in books, written pages. Live and learned from fools and from sages"

He's saying that he has talked to many people, from fools and from sages. Again, he's refering to the fact that he knows more stuff than a normal person.

" You know it's true, everything comes back to you"

He's talking about life, karma, and how at the end, you will always and only get what you deserve.

" Sing with me, sing for the years, sing for the laughs and sing for the tears"

If we presume that by singing, he means 'thinking' or 'remembering'. Then he's talking about remembering all the things that have happened in his life, from the best things that made him smile and laugh, to the worst things that brought tears to his eyes and made him cry.

" Sing with me, if it's just for today. Maybe tomorrow the good lord will take you away"

He's saying that you must think about life and do it everyday. Because you might die tomorrow. And that's what he means by saying " The good lord will take you away".

"Dream on, dream on, dream until your dream comes true"

Keep on dreaming until it is realized.

"Dream on, dream on, dream until your comes true.

See how much he insists that you must "dream on"?

"Dream on, dream on, dream on, dream on"

He keeps on saying it because he knows how important it is to not to give up.

" DREAM ON, DREAM ON, DREAM ON, DREAM ON ! "

He really really insists that you must dream on, and keep on thinking and dreaming.

Conclusions:

This is a song that makes you think about the past, present, and future. It's a song about hope. It's a song that tells you no matter how good you think the past was, and/or how bad you think the present is, you must never give up and always dream on.

Tyler truly has written a masterpiece with great lyrics, awesome chords, and a brilliant meaning.