Gary Jules attended The Bishop's School in La Jolla, California. Some of his early projects/bands were The Ivory Knights, Our Town Pansies, Woodenfish and The Origin.
Jules started off his solo recording career with the debut Greetings from the Side. Originally released by A & M, this album slipped through the cracks due to neglect on the label's part, and Jules was dropped. In 2001, together with friend Michael Andrews, Gary Jules recorded Trading Snakeoil For Wolftickets. It was from this album that the remake of Tears for Fears' Mad World was subsequently used by Michael Andrews for Donnie Darko.
In December 2003, two years after Donnie Darko was released, Mad World finally reached the charts and became the Christmas Number One in the UK. In early 2004, the song surfaced in the US and Canada.
His most recent album, simply titled Gary Jules was released in 2006. The song Falling Awake from this album was recently used in the season 3 episode Six Days: Part Two of Grey's Anatomy.
Jules' Andrews' arrangement of "Mad World", was recently used in a trailer for the Gears of War for the XBOX 360, it was also used in a few episodes of CSI, Without a Trace, in some episodes of Dead Like Me, in an episode of Jericho, and an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Official Site: http://www.garyjules.com/
I Want You to Want Me
Gary Jules Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I need you to need me.
I'd love you to love me.
I'm beggin' you to beg me.
I want you to want me.
I need you to need me.
I'd love you to love me.
I'll get home early from work if you say that you love me.
Didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin'?
Oh, didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin'?
Feelin' all alone without a friend, you know you feel like dyin'.
Oh, didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin'?
I want you to want me.
I need you to need me.
I'd love you to love me.
I'm beggin' you to beg me.
I'll shine up the old brown shoes, put on a brand-new shirt.
I'll get home early from work if you say that you love me.
Didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin'?
Oh, didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin'?
Feelin' all alone without a friend, you know you feel like dyin'.
Oh, didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin'?
Feelin' all alone without a friend, you know you feel like dyin'.
Oh, didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin'?
I want you to want me.
I need you to need me.
I'd love you to love me.
I'm beggin' you to beg me.
I want you to want me.
I want you to want me.
I want you to want me.
I want you to want me.
The lyrics to Gary Jules's song "I Want You to Want Me" speak of a desire for reciprocated love and acceptance. The repetition of "I want you to want me, I need you to need me, I'd love you to love me" emphasizes the singer's desperation for the subject of the song to feel the same way about him. The begging tone of the lyrics is further emphasized by the repetition of "I'm beggin' you to beg me."
The verse "I'll shine up the old brown shoes, put on a brand-new shirt, I'll get home early from work if you say that you love me" shows the lengths to which the singer is willing to go to win the subject's affection. The lines "Didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin'? Feelin' all alone without a friend, you know you feel like dyin'" suggest that the singer has witnessed the subject's pain and wants to be the one to provide comfort and companionship.
Overall, the song speaks to the universal desire for love and acceptance, and the lengths to which an individual may go to attain it.
Line by Line Meaning
I want you to want me.
The singer desires the love and affection of the person he is addressing.
I need you to need me.
The singer feels a strong sense of dependence on the person he is addressing and craves their validation.
I'd love you to love me.
The singer yearns for the person he is addressing to reciprocate his feelings and love him in return.
I'm beggin' you to beg me.
The singer feels desperate and is pleading for the attention and affection of the person he is addressing.
I'll shine up the old brown shoes, put on a brand-new shirt.
The singer is willing to make an effort to impress the person he is addressing, even going so far as to spruce up his appearance.
I'll get home early from work if you say that you love me.
The singer is willing to alter his schedule and make sacrifices to please the person he is addressing, demonstrating how important they are to him.
Didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin'?
The singer is reminding the person he is addressing of a time when they were vulnerable and in need of support. He is implying that he was there for them and is hoping they will reciprocate that support now.
Feelin' all alone without a friend, you know you feel like dyin'.
The singer is acknowledging that the person he is addressing has been through difficult times and is expressing empathy towards them.
I want you to want me.
Repeating the chorus drives home the singer's desire for the person he is addressing to feel the same way about him.
Writer(s): Rick Nielsen
Contributed by Bentley D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.