I'm not ready to love
I'm not ready for peace
I'm giving up the dove to the beast
I'm not ready to surrender to another glove murderer

I'm not ready to love
I'm not ready to to fly
I'm giving up belief in the sky
So you can take my sin in up above on high, say goodbye

I'm not ready to love
I'm not ready to love
(Not ready to love, not ready to love, not ready to love
Not ready to love, not ready to love)

I'm not ready to love until I'm ready to love you the way you should be loved
Until I'm ready to hold you the way you should be held (not ready to love)
You should be held, but I'm not ready to
(Not ready to love)

Overall Meaning

Rufus Wainwright's song "Not Ready To Love" is a ballad about a person who is not ready to give in to love. The lyrics suggest that the singer has been hurt in previous relationships and is struggling to find peace and continue believing in love. The song starts with the line "I'm not ready to love, I'm not ready for peace," indicating that the singer is not prepared to forgive and forget the wrongdoings of their past relationships. Instead, the singer is "giving up the dove to the beast," suggesting that they are choosing to embrace the darker side of love and relationships.

The singer goes on to say that they are "not ready to surrender to another glove murderer," implying that they have been hurt by someone who pretended to love them, but ultimately betrayed them. In the second chorus, the singer emphasizes their reluctance to love by saying "I'm not ready to fly, I'm giving up belief in the sky." This line suggests that the singer has also lost faith in the concept of a perfect love and may be disillusioned with the idea of soulmates or perfect matches.

Overall, Wainwright's "Not Ready To Love" is a powerful ballad that highlights the difficulties of finding love after being hurt. The lyrics convey a sense of loss and pain that many people can relate to, while the melody and chord progression add to the song's emotional depth.

Line by Line Meaning

I'm not ready to love
I am not prepared to fall in love with someone.

I'm not ready for peace
I am not ready to be calm, peaceful, or conflict-free.

I'm giving up the dove to the beast
I am choosing to give up my peaceful ways for something more aggressive or competitive, like an animal.

I'm not ready to surrender to another glove murderer
I refuse to give in to someone who will hurt me emotionally or mentally.

I'm not ready to to fly
I am not ready to let go of my grounded and earthbound beliefs and desires.

I'm giving up belief in the sky
I am letting go of my faith or belief in a higher power or heaven above.

So you can take my sin in up above on high, say goodbye
I am willing to let go of my sins, but I am saying goodbye to the idea of heaven as a place where they will be absolved.

I'm not ready to love until I'm ready to love you the way you should be loved
I will not fall in love until I am capable of loving you to the best of my ability and in the way you deserve.

Until I'm ready to hold you the way you should be held (not ready to love)
I will not claim to love you until I can physically hold you and give you the affection that you deserve.

You should be held, but I'm not ready to
I acknowledge that you should receive love and affection, but I am not yet able to provide it to you.

(Not ready to love)
I am not ready to love, despite external pressures or expectations.

Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: RUFUS WAINWRIGHT

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Comments from YouTube:

B. Cause

8y↑4

Classic Rufus! I adore dramatic, surprising twists with piano and voice. The way song fades in the end is simply brilliant.

paul cardno

4y↑3

Simply brilliant

Shawn Smith

11y↑2

Love this song.

Joan Vaes

4y↑6

If I were heartbroken right now (which I'm not) I'd kill myself. Just the combination of his voice and the orchestration is enough to make you cry. (I only recently discovered him. And I fell.)