Mary Lou Lord first gained notice playing acoustic guitar and singing in and around Boston subway stations (particularly on the Red Line, as noted by the name she chose for her music and lyric publishing company, On the Red Line Music.)
She has claimed that she had a romantic relationship with Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain before the group's rise to mainstream fame. This claim was disputed by some, including Cobain himself, though it has been suggested that Cobain's wife Courtney Love made him publicly lie about his past relationships to prove his devotion to her. In 1994, Lord showed up uninvited at a party for Courtney Love's band Hole, which ended with Love chasing Lord down Sunset Strip.
Lord toured three separate times with Elliott Smith during the 1990s. He also wrote and helped Lord record a song called, "I Figured You Out", in 1997. Smith would later say that, "I gave that song away 'cause I thought it sounded like The Eagles and that it sucked."
Her recordings have been a mixture of covers (including songs by Elliott Smith and Richard Thompson) and original material, with a number of songs written by, or in collaboration with, Nick Saloman of the British band The Bevis Frond.
Her recording of Daniel Johnston's "Speeding Motorcycle" (which was originally featured on her self-titled 8-song Kill Rock Stars release) was featured in commercials for Target stores, after which her label reissued the song as the lead-off track of a CD single which also included two demo recordings from the sessions for Got No Shadow.
In 2001, Lord released Live City Sounds. This was a self-released disc of Mary Lou playing live in the Boston subway. The disc was later re-released after Mary Lou signed to Rubric Records.
She announced in 2005 that she suffered from a rare vocal chord affliction known as spasmodic dysphonia. She thereafter became more involved in A&R work and started Jittery Jack Management with her husband, Kevin Patey.
I Don't Want To Get Over You
Mary Lou Lord Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I guess I could take a sleeping pill
And sleep at will
And not have to go through
What I go through
I guess I should take Prozac, right?
And just smile all night
At somebody new
But sweet and kind
Who would try to get you off my mind
I could leave this agony behind
Which is just what I'd do
If I wanted to
But I don't want to get over you
'Cause I don't want to get over love
I could listen to my therapist
Pretend you don't exist
And not have to dream of
What I dream of
I could listen to all my friends
And go out again
And pretend it's enough
Or I could make a career of being blue
I could dress in black and read Camus
Smoke clove cigarettes and drink vermouth
Like I was seventeen
That would be a scream
But I don't want to get over you
Mary Lou Lord's song "I Don't Want To Get Over You" is a poignant ballad about the struggle of moving on from a former love. The singer expresses her reluctance to let go of her feelings for her ex-partner, despite their no longer being together. She begins the song by acknowledging that she could try to find relief in medication such as sleeping pills or Prozac to escape the torment of her thoughts. However, she knows deep down that trying to forget or repress her emotions won't work long-term.
Throughout the song, the singer considers the different ways she could try to move on. She could listen to her therapist and pretend her ex doesn't exist, or follow her friends' advice and go out on dates to distract herself. She could even make a career out of being sad and embrace a melancholic lifestyle. However, despite all these options, she admits that she doesn't want to get over her ex-partner because she doesn't want to give up on love.
Line by Line Meaning
I don't want to get over you
I still love you and I don't want to forget the feeling we shared.
I guess I could take a sleeping pill
I could take drugs to numb the pain of missing you.
And sleep at will
And sleep peacefully without having to deal with the pain of losing you.
And not have to go through
And not have to experience the heartbreak that comes with moving on.
What I go through
The pain, sadness, and loneliness of losing someone I love.
I guess I should take Prozac, right?
I could take medication to help numb the pain and feel happier.
And just smile all night
And act happy and cheerful all night long to hide the pain.
At somebody new
At someone who isn't you, who I could use as a distraction.
Somebody not too bright
Someone who isn't too smart or interesting, but who I can use to distract myself from missing you.
But sweet and kind
Someone who is nice and gentle, who I can lean on when I'm feeling down.
Who would try to get you off my mind
Someone who would try to help me forget about you and move on.
I could leave this agony behind
I could let go of the heartbreak and pain of losing you, if I wanted to.
Which is just what I'd do
I could do this, but I don't want to.
If I wanted to
If I decided that forgetting you was what I really wanted.
But I don't want to get over you
I love you too much to let go, even though it hurts.
'Cause I don't want to get over love
I don't want to forget the feeling of being in love, even if it's painful.
I could listen to my therapist
I could take advice from my therapist to help me move on.
Pretend you don't exist
I could ignore the fact that you were ever a part of my life.
And not have to dream of
And not have to dream of the happy times we shared together.
What I dream of
The memories and dreams of us being together.
I could listen to all my friends
I could take advice from my friends to help me move on.
And go out again
And start dating and going out again to try and forget about you.
And pretend it's enough
And pretend that the new relationships are enough to make me happy.
Or I could make a career of being blue
I could choose to live in sadness and heartache indefinitely.
I could dress in black and read Camus
I could try to find solace in onjectivity and by looking at depressing topics.
Smoke clove cigarettes and drink vermouth
I could fall into unhealthy coping mechanisms.
Like I was seventeen
Like I was a teenager who thought being sad was romantic.
That would be a scream
That would be quite a spectacle to see.
But I don't want to get over you
I don't want to forget the love we shared, even though it hurts so much.
Contributed by Henry D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.