The One You Really Love
The Magnetic Fields Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

I do believe our love's in danger I might as well be loving air
You look at me like I'm a stranger You look at me like I'm not there
I gaze into your eyes of blue but their beauty is not for me You're

Thinking on someone who's gone You're dreaming of the one you really love
I made you mine, or so it seemed Though he is dead he haunts your dreams
I might as well be two ft. tall You never will love me at all
You're dreaming of the corpse you really love




Overall Meaning

The Magnetic Fields's song "The One You Really Love" talks about unrequited love and the pain and frustration that comes with it. The lyrics suggest that the singer's love interest is still pining over someone who has passed away, making it impossible for them to reciprocate the singer's love. The line "I might as well be loving air" illustrates the singer's feeling of being invisible and insignificant in their love interest's eyes. The singer's desperation is evident in lines like "I made you mine, or so it seemed" and "You never will love me at all." The final line of the song, "You're dreaming of the corpse you really love," is haunting and reinforces the idea that the person the singer loves is completely out of reach.


The song's melancholy lyrics are underscored by a sparse, lo-fi melody that creates a sense of distance and isolation. The song is characterized by an almost whimsical music box-like quality, which makes the lyrics sound even more poignant. The instrumentation consists of a simple acoustic guitar, a toy piano, and a glockenspiel, imparting the song with a childlike quality that belies the bittersweet theme of the lyrics.


Line by Line Meaning

I do believe our love's in danger
I think that our relationship is in a precarious position


I might as well be loving air
To you, my love may not even exist


You look at me like I'm a stranger
I feel like you don't even recognize me anymore


You look at me like I'm not there
It seems like you don't see me or care about me at all


I gaze into your eyes of blue but their beauty is not for me
Although I am looking at you, it feels like I am not the one you are looking at or admiring


You're thinking on someone who's gone
Your mind is preoccupied with someone who is no longer here


You're dreaming of the one you really love
You are fantasizing about the person who holds your true affections


I made you mine, or so it seemed
Although I thought we had a romantic connection, it may have been all in my head


Though he is dead he haunts your dreams
Your love for someone who has passed away lingers and affects your subconscious


I might as well be two ft. tall
To you, I am insignificant and unnoticeable


You never will love me at all
It is unlikely that you will ever feel any genuine affection for me


You're dreaming of the corpse you really love
Your thoughts are fixated on the lifeless body of the person who holds your heart




Lyrics © ROUGH TRADE PUBLISHING

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found

More Versions