You Don't Know
Greenwich Ellie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Since the day I laid eyes on you
& you don't know how hard it is to hide
All my love (baby) deep inside
& I'll pray that's the way it's gonna stay
& day by day I'll just pretend 'cause she's my friend
& I can't let her know I really love you so, oh oh
Won't somebody help me? Oh help me, please help me, oh
You don't know what I've been goin' through
'Cause till I die (baby) I'll love you
& I'll try not to cry when you walk by
'Cause she's just like a sister to me & she, yes she
Is so in love with you, I don't know what to do, no oh
Won't somebody help me? Oh help me, I love you, oh
(You don't know) know what I've been goin' through
Since the day I laid eyes on you
(You don't know) know (what I've been goin' through)
Don't know what I'm gonna do
('Cause till I die) baby (I'll love you)
In the song "You Don't Know" by Greenwich Ellie, the singer expresses her love for someone whom she can't tell how she feels. She talks about the anguish she experiences every day by hiding her love for this person. From the first line of the song, the singer addresses the person she loves, letting them know that they don't know what she has been going through since the day they met. She implies that she has been carrying the burden of unrequited love by herself. The chorus, "And I'll pray that's the way it's gonna stay, & day by day I'll just pretend 'cause she's my friend & I can't let her know I really love you so," indicates that the person she loves is probably in a relationship with someone else.
Furthermore, the singer acknowledges that it is hard for her to keep her love for this person hidden (line 3). The love she has for this person is deep, and she does not know how to let them know. She also describes how she tries not to cry when the person walks by because her friend is also in love with them "she's just like a sister to me, and she, yes she, Is so in love with you, I don't know what to do." This scenario adds to the anguish that the singer experiences every day. She concludes the song by saying that she will love this person until she dies.
Line by Line Meaning
You don't know what I've been goin' through
My feelings for you are intense and complicated and you have no idea the depths of my emotions.
Since the day I laid eyes on you
Ever since I first saw you, I have been overwhelmed with emotions.
& you don't know how hard it is to hide
Keeping my feelings for you hidden is a constant struggle.
All my love (baby) deep inside
I feel a deep love for you that I can't express openly.
& I'll pray that's the way it's gonna stay
I hope that I can continue to keep my feelings hidden and that they won't cause any problems.
& day by day I'll just pretend 'cause she's my friend
I have to pretend that I don't have feelings for you because it could hurt my friendship with someone who loves you too.
& I can't let her know I really love you so, oh oh
I can't confess my love for you because it could ruin my friendship with someone who also loves you.
Won't somebody help me? Oh help me, please help me, oh
I am struggling with my feelings and need someone to help me sort them out.
You don't know what I've been goin' through
My love for you is so intense and complicated that words can't describe it.
'Cause till I die (baby) I'll love you
My love for you is everlasting and will never fade, even if it can't be expressed.
& I'll try not to cry when you walk by
Seeing you is emotionally difficult for me and I try to hide my feelings.
'Cause she's just like a sister to me & she, yes she
My friend who also loves you is like family to me and I can't hurt her.
Is so in love with you, I don't know what to do, no oh
My friend who loves you is also struggling with her feelings and I don't want to hurt her or lose her friendship.
Won't somebody help me? Oh help me, I love you, oh
I need someone to help me navigate my complicated feelings for you and my friendship with someone else who loves you.
(You don't know) know what I've been goin' through
My feelings for you are incredibly complex and you don't have any idea how much I'm struggling.
Don't know what I'm gonna do
I don't know how to deal with my feelings without hurting myself or others.
('Cause till I die) baby (I'll love you)
My love for you will never fade, even if it's difficult to express or act on.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: NICOLE JOHNSON, ROB BEACON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Bianca Rennie
You don't know what I've been goin' through
Since the day I laid eyes on you
& you don't know how hard it is to hide
All my love (baby) deep inside
& I'll pray that's the way it's gonna stay
& day by day I'll just pretend 'cause she's my friend
& I can't let her know I really love you so, oh oh
Won't somebody help me? Oh help me, please help me, oh
You don't know what I've been goin' through
'Cause till I die (baby) I'll love you
& I'll try not to cry when you walk by
'Cause she's just like a sister to me & she, yes she
Is so in love with you, I don't know what to do, no oh
Won't somebody help me? Oh help me, I love you, oh
know what I've been goin' through
Since the day I laid eyes on you
(You don't know) know (what I've been goin' through)
Don't know what I'm gonna do
('Cause till I die) baby (I'll love you)
Allthisisthat
Some nights (like this one) I find myself missing Ellie soooo much. So I listen to all these great songs and find myself smiling (though I do get emotional). So grateful we have these to listen to. Thanks!
Thomas Shore
Just a powerful song. Ellie should have released more of her own compositions.
Juliet Reminiec
Ellie Greenwich is one of my favorite singers
Christopher Peden
Thank you YouTube this song has haunted me for years it's sublime
Caleb Smith
One of my favorite songs... I love that short instrumental bridge so damn much.
nick thomas
another ellie great - what a composer and singer one of the best
dobbsiancant
one of the greatest girl group recordings.you were the man,shadow.
H Lu
Love this song!
jkeyes1000
That's the way to get a "Wow!" out of me, Anthony! I have just about every RED BIRD single except that one...and it's a promo copy no less. I think the production values of this recording are unusually spare--as if maybe Morton in cahoots with Barry were playing down Ellie's potential. I mean--compare it to the RAINDROPS and to her later work with Bob Crewe, Steve Tudanger et al. Anyway---fantastic!
Juliet Reminiec
Don't forget about Phil Spector ,who claimed ownership on the girl groups names