Hailing from Hitchin, Hertfordshire, Bay gained a reputation thanks to stints at Communion's monthly night at Notting Hill Arts Club in London and a successful run of support slots with Tom Odell, John Newman and Kodaline. He issued his debut EP, The Dark of the Morning, in 2013, with a second extended player, Let It Go, and a third extended player, Hold Back the River, arriving the following year.
In May 2018, Bay released his second studio album, Electric Light.
If You Ever Wanna Be In Love
James Bay Lyrics
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It felt just like it used to be
Talking for hours about a different life
Surrounded us in memories
Now we were close, never close enough
Where are we now?
'Cause if it's torn, we can stitch it up
Don't rule it out, oh no no
I'll come around if you ever want to be in love
I'm not waiting but I'm willing if you call me up
If you ever want to be in love, I'll come around
Wanted to ask if we could have been
But my tongue wouldn't break the seal
You always had something effortless
In school, you were the biggest deal
Now little cuts close and open up
Time is slipping by
I'm always thinking 'bout the two of us
You play on my mind, always playing on my mind
I'll come around if you ever want to be in love
I'm not waiting but I'm willing if you call me up
If you ever want to be in love, I'll come around
(Ooh oh ooh, ooh oh)
We were young, we were side by side
Don't know when we started losing touch
If you want, we can walk a while
Maybe that would be enough
Used to talk, drink into the night
I would wake up on the front room floor
All alone you'd be in my bed, made me crazy
Made me want you more
I'll come around if you ever want to be in love
I'm not waiting but I'm willing if you call me up
I'll come around if you ever want to be in love
I'm not waiting but I'm willing if you call me up
If you ever want to be in love, I'll come around
James Bay's song "If You Ever Wanna Be In Love" tells the story of two people who were once very close, but have since drifted apart. The singer saw his old friend after a long time and reminisces about the old times when they talked for hours about a different life. The memories of their closeness overwhelm him and he wonders where they stand now. He suggests that they can stitch up the tears from their past and not rule out the possibility of rekindling their friendship.
The singer acknowledges that he's not waiting for his friend to come back into his life, but he's willing to be there for the other person if they need him. He will come around if his friend ever wants to be in love. The second verse reveals that the singer had always wanted to ask "if they could have been" but never broke the seal. He describes his friend as someone with something effortless that made them the biggest deal at school. He thinks about their little quirks that used to open up when they were closer and the time that is slipping by as he thinks about the two of them.
The third verse talks about how they used to lose track of time while they talked through the night and drank. The memories of the singer waking up on the front room floor while his friend was in his bed still playing in his mind. Throughout the song, the singer is reassuring his friend (and maybe even himself) that he'll always be there if they ever want to be in love again.
Line by Line Meaning
Saw you today after so much time
After a long time, I saw you today
Felt just like it used to be
It felt like old times
Talking for hours 'bout a different life
We talked for hours about how our lives have changed
Surrounded us in memories
We were surrounded by memories of our past
We were close never close enough
We were never as close as we wanted to be
Where are we now
We are wondering where our relationship stands now
‘Cause if it's torn we can stitch it up
If our relationship is broken, we can fix it
Don't rule it out
We shouldn't dismiss the possibility of a rekindled relationship
I'll come around
I will be there for you
If you ever want to be in love
If you ever want to be in a relationship
I'm not waiting, but I'm willing if you call me up
I am not waiting for you, but I am still open to a relationship if you initiate it
Wanted to ask if we could have been
I wanted to ask if we could have been in a relationship
But my tongue wouldn't break the seal
I couldn't find the courage to ask you
You always had something effortless
You always had something that came naturally to you
At school you were the biggest deal
You were very popular in school
Little quirks close and open up
Our little quirks brought us closer together sometimes and pushed us apart at other times
Time is slipping by
Time is passing us by
I'm always thinking 'bout the two of us
I often think about our past relationship
Replay on my mind
It keeps playing in my mind
We were, young we were side by side
We were young and always together
Don't know when we started losing touch
We don't know when we started growing apart
If you want we could walk around
If you want, we could spend time walking around together
Maybe that would be enough
Maybe spending time together would be enough to rekindle our relationship
Used to talk drinking to the night
We used to talk and drink together late into the night
I would wake up on the front room floor
I used to get so drunk that I would pass out on the floor
All along you'd be in my bed
You were always in my bed with me
Make me crazy make me want you more
Being with you made me feel crazy and crave your presence even more
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: James Dearness Hogarth, Steven McEwan, James Michael Bay
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Alivia Csrro
on Get Out While You Can
I thought it was about 9/11