King's major success began in the 1960s when she and her first husband, Gerry Goffin, wrote more than two dozen chart hits, many of which have become standards, for numerous artists. She has continued writing for other artists since then. King's success as a performer in her own right did not come until the 1970s, when she sang her own songs, accompanying herself on the piano, in a series of albums and concerts. After experiencing commercial disappointment with her debut album Writer, King scored her breakthrough with the album Tapestry, which topped the U.S. album chart for 15 weeks in 1971 and remained on the charts for more than six years.
King has made 25 solo albums, the most successful being Tapestry, which held the record for most weeks at No. 1 by a female artist for more than 20 years. Her record sales were estimated at more than 75 million copies worldwide. She has won four Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. She has been inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a performer and songwriter. She is the recipient of the 2013 Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, the first woman to be so honored. She is also a 2015 Kennedy Center Honoree.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carole_King
Studio albums
Writer (1970)
Tapestry (1971)
Music (1971)
Rhymes & Reasons (1972)
Fantasy (1973)
Wrap Around Joy (1974)
Thoroughbred (1976)
Simple Things (1977)
Welcome Home (1978)
Touch the Sky (1979)
Pearls: Songs of Goffin and King (1980)
One to One (1982)
Speeding Time (1983)
City Streets (1989)
Colour of Your Dreams (1993)
Love Makes the World (2001)
A Holiday Carole (2011)
It's Too Late
Carole King Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's somethin' wrong here, there can be no denyin'
One of us is changin', or maybe we've just stopped tryin'
And it's too late, baby, now it's too late
Though we really did try to make it
Somethin' inside has died
And I can't hide and I just can't fake it
Oh, no, no, no, no, no
(No, no, no, no)
It used to be so easy, livin' here with you
You were light and breezy, and I knew just what to do
Now you look so unhappy and I feel like a fool
And it's too late, baby, now it's too late
Though we really did try to make it
Somethin' inside has died
And I can't hide and I just can't fake it
Oh, no, no
There'll be good times again for me and you
But we just can't stay together, don't you feel it, too?
Still I'm glad for what we had and how I once loved you
But it's too late, baby, now it's too late
Though we really did try to make it
Somethin' inside has died
And I can't hide and I just can't fake it
Oh, no, no, no, no, no
It's too late, baby
It's too late now, darling
It's too late
Carole King's song "It's Too Late" is a heartbreaking portrayal of a deteriorating relationship. The lyrics depict two people who were once in love but now find themselves on different wavelengths. The opening lines "Stayed in bed all mornin' just to pass the time / There's somethin' wrong here, there can be no denyin'" set the tone for the whole song. The singer is hiding in bed from reality, and there is a palpable sense of sadness and resignation. The second verse, "It used to be so easy, livin' here with you / You were light and breezy, and I knew just what to do / Now you look so unhappy and I feel like a fool," highlights how the love has faded away, and both partners are now struggling to find happiness.
The chorus of the song, "And it's too late, baby, now it's too late / Though we really did try to make it / Somethin' inside has died / And I can't hide and I just can't fake it / Oh, no, no, no, no, no," is repeated throughout the song, with a growing emotional intensity. The chorus is the realization that the relationship is over, despite attempts to save it. The bridge, "There'll be good times again for me and you / But we just can't stay together, don't you feel it, too? / Still I'm glad for what we had and how I once loved you," suggests there is hope for the future, but it is too late to save the relationship.
Overall, "It's Too Late" is a poignant song that speaks to anyone who has ever experienced a failed relationship. It captures the emotions of heartbreak, disappointment, and resignation that come with the end of a love affair.
Line by Line Meaning
Stayed in bed all mornin' just to pass the time
I spent the morning in bed because I didn't know what else to do with myself
There's somethin' wrong here, there can be no denyin'
I can feel that things are not right between us; it's impossible to ignore
One of us is changin', or maybe we've just stopped tryin'
Either one of us has changed, or we both stopped trying to keep things the way they were.
And it's too late, baby, now it's too late
It's too late to fix things between us; there's no going back now
Though we really did try to make it
We put in a lot of effort to try to make things work
Somethin' inside has died
We've lost the spark that used to keep us together
And I can't hide and I just can't fake it
I can't pretend that everything is okay when it's not
Oh, no, no, no, no, no
I am really upset about the situation
It used to be so easy, livin' here with you
Things were so much simpler when we were both happy and content
You were light and breezy, and I knew just what to do
You used to be carefree and easy to be around, and I knew how to make you happy
Now you look so unhappy and I feel like a fool
Seeing you unhappy makes me feel like I failed you in some way
There'll be good times again for me and you
Even though things are bad now, I know we'll both be happy again someday
But we just can't stay together, don't you feel it, too?
We have to accept that staying together is not the best thing for us; you feel it too, don't you?
Still I'm glad for what we had and how I once loved you
Even though things didn't work out between us, I'm still grateful for the love we had and the memories we shared
It's too late, baby, now it's too late
It's too late to make things right between us; we missed our chance
Though we really did try to make it
We put in a lot of effort to try to make things work
Somethin' inside has died
We've lost the spark that used to keep us together
And I can't hide and I just can't fake it
I can't pretend that everything is okay when it's not
Oh, no, no, no, no, no
I am really upset about the situation
It's too late, baby
We missed our chance to make things work between us
It's too late now, darling
It's too late to salvage our relationship now
It's too late
We've reached the end; there's no turning back
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Carole King, Toni Stern
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind