"Shades of Cool" is about an unrequited love and the narrator's inability t… Read Full Bio ↴"Shades of Cool" is about an unrequited love and the narrator's inability to make a connection with the object of their affection. The narrator's lover lives in California and lives for love, yet the narrator can't "break through" their world. The narrator describes them as "unfixable", and their heart as "unbreakable". The lyrics hint that the narrator's lover has a destructive lifestyle and an attitude of apathy and indifference towards them. The song ultimately suggests that even though the narrator may harbor feelings for their unresponsive lover, they must accept that they may never be able to gain their true affections.
It is the third track of Lana Del Rey's third studio album, Ultraviolence.
It is the third track of Lana Del Rey's third studio album, Ultraviolence.
Shades of Cool
Lana Del Rey Lyrics
Instrumental
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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@babyblue6852
For me this song is about loving a person despite their cold personality. Here Lana is constantly pointing out how aloof and detach her ‘baby’ is, but despite this she’s in love with him and tries to change him (even though she can’t). She loves him despite his love of drugs, women, and his ‘strange weather’ (unpredictability).
From the first verse, we can already tell that Lana’s ‘baby’ is a typical old Hollywood bad boy because he has the ‘blue eyes’ (cold gaze), ‘jazz’ (charisma), and ‘attitude’. She also points out that ‘he lives in California too’, assumably because there might’ve been loads of boys like him in California. But at the end at the verse even though this boy ‘lives for love’ (is a womanizer/sleeps around) and is also a drug addict, he still loves his ‘baby’ (Lana).
In the pre-chorus, Lana mentions her frustration of not being able to ‘help’ her significant other and having the inability to ‘make him better’, this might be because of the boy’s ‘strange weather’ that she mentions at the end of the pre-chorus. Having a strange weather could mean having mood swings or constantly changing one’s desires and beliefs.
In the chorus, she also mentions how being in a relationship with this person saddens her deeply because not only he is ‘unfixable’ (doesn’t want to change his ways), but she ‘can't break through’ his ‘world’, that could possibly mean despite her attempts of trying to understand him, she always ends up feeling lost because this ‘baby’ of hers lives in ‘shades of cool’ (his own world). Lana also says that her boy’s heart is unbreakable, this might be because he seems so detached and aloof, she feels as though he wouldn’t care if she leaves him or not.
In the second verse, Lana further describes her ‘baby’. Not only does he live in his own world but he’s also has a cold heart (he’s detached, cold hands (he can be physical), and cold aptitude (he tends to be aloof in general). Now Lana is more pessimistic as she mentions how her boy lives for love (sex) and women, and how she just ‘one of many’, and the most shockingly of her boy’s lover’s is ‘blue’ (dead), Lana might’ve added this one bit to exaggerate how meaningless it is to be her boy’s girl because they’re all easily discarded and forgotten.
Despite all this, Lana still believes that she’s special to her boy because the boy only ‘calls’ for her when he ‘calls’, this could be Lana’s way of saying that the boy only longs for her and thinks about her despite having many lovers.
Lana also believes that he’s a good person inside because she mentions how the boy prays for ‘peace’ and ‘love’, but then Lana discreetly adds ‘and maybe someone new’, this could be her way of hinting the fact that she doesn’t feel secure in the relationship because she feels as though her ‘baby’ might find her replacement one day. Despite her beliefs of being his special ‘baby’, she also realizes that she might not be special to him for long because of his changeable nature.
In the bridge, Lana frustratedly sings of her boy’s hot weather (bad temper) in the summer and how even though he’s hot, he’s also a ‘neglectful lover’. But then she talks of how he’s ‘sadly crumbling’, this could mean that even though Lana still doesn’t understand him, she slowly notices his patterns and realize that there’s a reason behind his coldness, and he doesn’t even realize that Lana notices this.
In conclusion, I think that this is a heartfelt song that resonates with a lot of people who’s in a relationship with a toxic person, is emotionally attached to said person, and wants them to change despite how seemingly impossible it is. This song really explores the feelings of insecurity and uncertainty of being with someone who lives in their own world and doesn’t want to change.
Word of advice: always follow your heart but think about yourself and your well-being because you ARE important.
@akmalhakim7483
My baby lives in shades of blue
Blue eyes and jazz and attitude
He lives in California too
He drives a Chevy Malibu
And when he calls
He calls for me and not for you
He lives for love, he loves his drugs
He loves his baby too
But I can't fix him, can't make him better
And I can't do nothing about this strange weather
But you are unfixable
I can't break through your world
'Cause you live in shades of cool
Your heart is unbreakable
My baby lives in shades of cool
Cool heart, and hands and aptitude
He lives for love, for women, too
I'm one of many, one is blue
And when he calls
He calls for me and not for you
He prays for love, he prays for peace
And maybe someone new
But I can't help him, can't make him better
And I can't do nothing about his strange weather
'Cause you are unfixable
I can't break through your world
'Cause you live in shades of cool
Your heart is unbreakable
(You're hot, hot, weather in the summer
High, high, neglectful lover
Hot, hot, weather in the summer
High, a bird flew over
You're crumbling, sadly
I'm sorry
You're gone with me)
You are unfixable
I can't break through your world
'Cause you live in shades of cool
Your heart is unbreakable
@yurrrrr3333
god this woman makes no bad songs, the more i get into her discography, the better her songs get it’s crazy
@Rebamonica-c6f
Ikr! Same thing happened with me when I first listened to her.
@uhuraenterprise6372
First song I heard was Video games and time kinda stopped
@kristilambert3416
Right!
@andyba.8501
Same here. I thought "Born to die" was good but I didn't expect "Ultraviolence" to be that awesome. I'm excited for the next album of her discography.
@R-H-B
@@andyba.8501’ve probably misinterpreted this but you know she has 5-6 more albums right?
Edit: thanks to this comment Andy eventually became one of my best friends. Love you bro, thanks for everything
@mahakpunjabi4814
Ultraviolence is such a great album
@winogirlll
Every song and it’s even better once a little THC has kicked in.
@dragonboimmdvideos
Better than BTD tbh, fite me hoes
@mahakpunjabi4814
@@dragonboimmdvideos BTD is special for me because it was my First Lana Album but Yeah Ultraviolence is kinda better