Although a vein of social and political humor runs though even his earliest work, Bern's work became more explicitly political during the 2004 US presidential election campaign, with songs such as "Bush Must Be Defeated" and "President" highlighting his sometimes surreal political takes.
Bern is reflexively literate, in the style of his favorite authors, including L.A.'s legendary bohemians Charles Bukowski and John Fante, urbane fantasist James Thurber, and yarn-spinning humorist Ring Lardner. He is in love with the power of words to turn on themselves, to frolic, to bite, and his strong, friendly voice can go from earnest to ferocious within seconds. Being captivated by Dan is the easy part; describing his music to the non-initiated is more difficult. One journalist tried: "topical-poetical-sarcastic-punk-folk." An admirable effort, further elaborated by the New York Times: "He veers from comedy to anger, conjectures to shaggy-dog stories; he takes sidelong approaches to theology, science fiction, consumer culture, art, love and baseball."
Baby Love
Dan Bern Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Baby love is what we've got
Baby love
Baby love is what we've got
No good poetry coming from my mouth
No neat chords ringing on, ringing on
Ringing on my guitar
Just baby love
Baby love is what we've got
Baby love
Baby love is what we've got
Leave behind your sadness
I'll leave behind my loneliness
Forget your hat
I'll forget my dress
There'll only be time for us
When you touch me
It ain't really baby love
It's a true love
An adult love with all the complications of
There's a bridge in every song
To complicate things and tell you what's wrong
But I'm too tired after my baby playing
Put your head on my lap and we could have some
Let's nauseate the people around us
Make 'em squirm
Make 'em really, really jealous
Pretty uncool my brother says
Lacking in decorum
And me and me
And me so well-read
Oh, we are not babies
I know that
We do not have babies
Thank God for that
But when you eat and sleep
You look just like a baby
When you whine you drive me crazy
You might as well be my baby
Oh, baby love
Teenage love
True love
Adult love is what we've got
Old love
Real love
True love is what we've got
The song 'Baby Love' by Dan Bern is a love song that talks about the strong bond between two people despite their imperfections. The two lovers are not musicians, but they are content with their level of affection towards each other, which they refer to as 'Baby Love.' The chorus of the song affirms this love stating, "Baby love is what we've got." The verses of the song explain why they consider their relationship to be a deep, meaningful love that transcends physical intimacy.
The first verse of the song talks about the singer's inability to find meaningful words to express his love, but he knows that it exists. He does not have poetic words to use or a musical instrument to play, but he has 'Baby Love.' The second verse affirms that they would leave everything aside for each other. It suggests that they have each other's company, and there is no time for anything else. The third verse talks about the complexities of their relationship. It suggests that their love is not a childish one; it is an adult love that requires them to navigate challenges together.
The song then moves on to the bridge, where the singer talks about the complications that are present in most relationships. He suggests that they are too tired to go through these unnecessary complications, and they would instead stay cuddled up together. The song concludes on a high note, stating that their love is real, true love. The singer refers to it as 'Old love, real love, true love.'
In conclusion, 'Baby Love' by Dan Bern is a straightforward love song without any musical flares or poetic lyrics. The song's simplicity highlights that love does not need to be flashy or extraordinary, but it should be affectionate enough to keep the two lovers satisfied.
Line by Line Meaning
Baby love
Love between two people
Baby love is what we've got
We have that love that can be described as innocent and pure
No good poetry coming from my mouth
I can't seem to find any good rhymes or words for you
No neat chords ringing on, ringing on
I can't even find any good melodies either
Ringing on my guitar
even when I play my guitar
Leave behind your sadness
Forget all the things you're currently upset or unhappy about
I'll leave behind my loneliness
I'll forget all my feelings of being alone and try to make you happy
Forget your hat
Let go of the small things that you're worried about
I'll forget my dress
I'll do the same and try to be more present with you
There'll only be time for us
We'll make sure that nothing else comes in between us, just spending time together
When you touch me
Any time when we're feeling physical intimacy
It ain't really baby love
It's not just the innocent, puppy love but something much deeper
It's a true love
What we have is genuine and authentic
An adult love with all the complications of
We have the same love that adults have with all the complexities that come with mature relationships
There's a bridge in every song
Normally there's a part in every tune that changes things up
To complicate things and tell you what's wrong
Making things difficult or pointing out what's going wrong
But I'm too tired after my baby playing
Playing with you like we're children exhausted me.
Put your head on my lap and we could have some
Let's lay down and spend time relaxing together in some way
Let's nauseate the people around us
Let's show our love so much and in such a way that people find it sickening
Make 'em squirm
Let's make people uncomfortable
Make 'em really, really jealous
Let's make everyone envious of our strong love connection
Pretty uncool my brother says
My brother doesn't think what we're doing is cool
Lacking in decorum
He thinks we're not acting appropriately or respectfully
And me so well-read
Even though I'm knowledgeable in many subjects, love still makes me act like a teenager
We are not babies
Even though our love may seem young and innocent, we are not foolish or inexperienced
I know that
We both understand it
We do not have babies
We're not starting a family yet
Thank God for that
A humorous way of being thankful that we're not dealing with a baby yet
But when you eat and sleep
When we're both enjoying our basic pleasures of life
You look just like a baby
You seem so innocent and pure while doing simple things that babies do too
When you whine you drive me crazy
Even though you can act like a baby sometimes, your complaining can annoy me
You might as well be my baby
You act so much like a baby, sometimes you might as well be my own child
Baby love
Love between two people
Teenage love
A love that is young and full of excitement
True love
The genuine love shared between two people
Adult love is what we've got
Our love has matured and grown over time and is now a deep, complex relationship
Old love
A long-lasting love
Real love
Genuine love
True love is what we've got
We continue to share a strong, authentic connection
Contributed by Elliot N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.