Just one listen to Adam Green & Binki Shapiro is enough to become enchanted… Read Full Bio ↴Just one listen to Adam Green & Binki Shapiro is enough to become enchanted. With deceptively pretty arrangements that echo filigreed late-sixties folk-pop and an easygoing rapport between singers, this duets collaboration may seem like the perfect accompaniment to a sunny summer’s day, Southern-California style. But it works even better as a comforting soundtrack at the end of a dark, lonely night in the big city. The atmosphere the pair conjures up with strummed guitars and discreet layers of synths indeed suggests romantic possibility, but the lyrics are more sweetly melancholic, gently but candidly addressing betrayal, incipient heartbreak, and conjugal discord. It’s an approach that makes for compelling repeated listening, as the intimate dramas reveal themselves, and it’s one that surprised even Green and Shapiro as their debut album together began to take shape.

On their own, Green and Shapiro have long been notable figures among indie-pop fans, cherished for their off-kilter sensibility (him) and elegantly quirky style (her). As part of New York City’s “anti-folk” scene at the end of the nineties, Adam Green first came to prominence as one-half of Moldy Peaches, his duo with Kimya Dawson that enjoyed belated mainstream success via the Grammy-winning soundtrack of the 2007 indie film Juno.

If You Want Me To
Adam Green & Binki Shapiro Lyrics

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Don’t be generous with my faults, I’ll be
More like a woman, less like a lady
If you want me to

And I’m younger than you are? You’ll see
You’re just like me in fast forward
Not a day too soon

I may be a baby, but not forever
I’ll do anything, don’t you want me to?

One day I’ll be a man and old
Face like a maze, tending to our own
If you want it so

Every one’s a dog till they find someone they love
I’ll do anything at all
Don’t you want me to?

With jealousy as my witness
You know I do it best
There’s no other way to say it
Why don’t love me yet?

I may be a baby, but not forever
I’ll do anything, don’t you want me to?

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Adam Green & Binki Shapiro's song "If You Want Me To" convey a sense of vulnerability and the desire to be loved and accepted for who one is, flaws and all. The first two lines of the song seem to speak of self-awareness and a willingness to acknowledge one's faults but also a plea to not be judged too harshly. The line "more like a woman, less like a lady" perhaps suggests a desire to be seen as a human being, imperfect and real, rather than an idealized stereotype of femininity.

The next few lines talk about age and how it affects our perception of time and experience. The singer asserts that even though they may be younger than the person they are addressing, they are not too different from them. The line "just like me in fast forward" seems to imply that the older person has gone through the same experiences but at a faster pace, suggesting that life is finite and time passes quickly.

The chorus repeats the phrase "I may be a baby, but not forever" as a reminder that despite their youth, they will eventually grow up and face the challenges of adulthood. The line "I'll do anything, don't you want me to?" reiterates the desire for love and acceptance, a willingness to go to great lengths to make the other person happy.

The lines "One day I’ll be a man and old/Face like a maze, tending to our own" speak of the inevitability of aging and the need to take care of oneself as one grows older. The metaphor of a maze suggests the complexity of life's challenges and the need to navigate them on one's own.

The bridge of the song brings in the theme of jealousy and the singer's desperation for love. The line "there’s no other way to say it/why don’t love me yet?" seems to reflect the frustration of not being able to express oneself adequately and the fear of rejection.

Overall, "If You Want Me To" is a poignant song about the search for love and acceptance, the complexities of aging and the passage of time, and the vulnerability of being human.

Line by Line Meaning

Don’t be generous with my faults, I’ll be
Please don't overlook my flaws easily. I will try to behave less like a refined lady and more like a common woman if you want me to.

More like a woman, less like a lady
I will not maintain stereotypical ladylike conduct in your company, instead, I will behave more casually like an average woman.

If you want me to
All of this behavior change depends on whether or not you want me to change.

And I’m younger than you are? You’ll see
Is my age a concern for you? You will notice that despite my young age, I am active and spirited like you.

You’re just like me in fast forward
You and I are not so different. You are me, but with more experience and a higher pace of life.

Not a day too soon
This situation could not have come at a more perfect time.

I may be a baby, but not forever
Though I am young, I will not always be. I will grow up and mature eventually.

I’ll do anything, don’t you want me to?
Please tell me what you want, and I will do everything in my power to make it happen for you.

One day I’ll be a man and old
One day, I will be mature and wise like a man.

Face like a maze, tending to our own
My face will have lines like a maze from experience, and we will focus on our own lives.

If you want it so
We can live our life together in this way if this is what you desire.

Every one’s a dog till they find someone they love
Everyone can be promiscuous until they find true love.

I’ll do anything at all
I am ready to do anything you ask of me.

Don’t you want me to?
Do you not desire me to do these things for you?