It Could Have Been You
Journey Lyrics


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We were so close yet so far away
I'd reach out, you'd be gone
Moments that still talk my breath away
There's so much more to life than loving you
You don't need me, no...

I...can't wait all my life, on a street of broken dreams
It could have been you my love (where are you now)
Oh I...still wonder if you remember the night
It could have been you

Time washes over, memories
I can't look back no more
Change has forsaken, our promises
There's someone else for you to hold again
So please stop your crying

I...can't wait all my life, on a street of broken dreams
It could have been you my love (where are you now)
Oh I...still wonder if you remember the night
It could have been you

Remember, remember, girl I remember
I...can't wait all my life, on a street of broken dreams
It could have been you my love (where are you now)
Oh I...still wonder if you remember the night
It could have been you (where are you now)
Should have been you my love (where are you now)




It could have been you my love, (where are you now)
Remember...remember...remember

Overall Meaning

The song "It Could Have Been You" by Journey is about unrequited love and regret. The opening lines "We were so close yet so far away, I'd reach out, you'd be gone" suggest that the singer and his love interest were once close to each other but now feel far apart. The singer's longing for his love interest can be seen in the lines "There's so much more to life than loving you, you don't need me, no...". The singer comes to terms with the fact that his love interest may never reciprocate his feelings, singing "There's someone else for you to hold again, so please stop your crying".


The chorus, "I can't wait all my life, on a street of broken dreams, it could have been you my love (where are you now), oh I still wonder if you remember the night, it could have been you" reflects the singer's regret over what could have been. He wonders if his love interest still remembers the night they could have been together, but now they have both moved on with their lives. The repetition of "remember" in the final lines of the song reinforces the idea that the singer is unable to forget what might have been.


Overall, the song "It Could Have Been You" is a bittersweet reflection on a missed opportunity for love. The singer recognizes that life is full of possibilities, but still yearns for what might have been.


Line by Line Meaning

We were so close yet so far away
Even though we were geographically close, we were emotionally distant


I'd reach out, you'd be gone
Every time I attempted to connect with you, you were already disconnected


Moments that still talk my breath away
There were some memories with you that still leave me breathless


There's so much more to life than loving you
There are a lot more things that matter to me in life than just loving you


You don't need me, no...
You do not require my presence or my love in your life


Time washes over, memories
As time passes, memories start to fade away


I can't look back no more
I cannot continue to dwell on the past any longer


Change has forsaken, our promises
The changes that came in our life have broken our promises to each other


There's someone else for you to hold again
You have someone new in your life for you to find comfort in


So please stop your crying
I'm urging you to stop crying and move on from our past relationship


Remember, remember, girl I remember
I still remember everything we went through as a couple


Should have been you my love (where are you now)
I feel like my love and affection should have been enough for us to stay together


It could have been you my love (where are you now)
I still ponder where you are and how different life could have been for us


Oh I...still wonder if you remember the night
I'm still curious about whether you remember that special night we shared


I...can't wait all my life, on a street of broken dreams
I cannot keep waiting forever for something that may never come true


It could have been you my love, (where are you now)
I'm still wondering why things didn't work out between us and where you are currently


Remember...remember...remember
I'm reminiscing about all the memories we created together and want you to remember them too




Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Peermusic Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Stephen Ray Perry, Neal Joseph Schon, Jonathan Cain

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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