Well, in my opinion this song is about being a young & maybe a little naive &/or introverted girl and finding yourself loving a man who is at first very charming, carefree & outgoing, and seems at first to be without limits, as in
"There was a time
you opened up every doorway
you didn't mind if everything
wasn't your way"
then that man starts to gradually become more introverted & shows their more possessive/obsessive side to you as the relationship progresses, even while they keep up the appearance of being carefree & outgoing to everyone else,
"Don't pull away
that goes against what you told me
I look in your eyes
I realize what you've sold me
is love in a vacuum"
so you confront them about the way they're acting and of course they deny it,
"I think you've changed
but you insist that
that's not true"
quite possibly they are an addict of some sort, my guess would be cocaine, &/or showing very obsessive behavior towards you (early on in the video for this song we see the man hanging a picture up, it is a very large portrait of Aimee & it is prominently displayed in his/their apartment for the duration of the song), thus their "love in a vacuum",
"You look so strange, so distant
that you're hardly you
Now I can see
how you have been acting different
You say it's me
but I know
that it isn't
it's love in a vacuum"
but still you are in love with them and don't want to leave them and you know that they are truly in love with you and they don't want you to leave them either, maybe they are convinced you can save them from themself, maybe they are so broken that the possibility of an overdose &/or suicide attempt is very real and you want to get through to them that their behavior not only dangerous but it is also just pissing you off and if they don't wise up they run the risk of loosing you, as in the lines
"You will be lonely
if you leave me alone", so you want to save them but can't get through to them due to the addiction &/or emotional problems they have,
"Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
love in a vacuum
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
You will be lonely
if you leave me alone
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough"
you want them to understand that the love they are giving you is not enough when it is filtered through the vacuum of their drug addiction &/or emotional impairment,
"You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough
and just wait
you will be lonely
Love in a vacuum
Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
Love in a vacuum".
'Love In A Vacuum' for me is a hauntingly truthful acute argument on the loneliness of obsession and almost inevitable loss of love that follows people who are broken in some way or another; the obsessives, the coke heads, the drunks, addicts or the just-plain-old emotionally broken; a razor sharp, lyrically driven, deceptively poppy, yet ultimately-depressing-in-the-best-way song.
Quintessential Aimee Mann.
I'm not content to be with you in the day time
Girl, I want to be with you all of the time
The only time I feel alright is by your side
Girl, I want to be with you all of the time
All day and all of the night
All day and all of the night
All day and all of the night
I believe that you and me last forever
Oh yeah, all day and night time yours, leave me never
The only time I feel alright is by your side
Girl, I want to be with you all of the time
All day and all of the night
All day and all of the night
Oh, come on
I believe that you and me last forever
Oh yeah, all day and night time yours, leave me never
The only time I feel alright is by your side
Girl, I want to be with you all of the time
All day and all of the night
All day and all of the night (time)
All day and all of the night
Girl, I want to be with you all of the time
The only time I feel alright is by your side
Girl, I want to be with you all of the time
All day and all of the night
All day and all of the night
All day and all of the night
I believe that you and me last forever
Oh yeah, all day and night time yours, leave me never
The only time I feel alright is by your side
Girl, I want to be with you all of the time
All day and all of the night
All day and all of the night
Oh, come on
I believe that you and me last forever
Oh yeah, all day and night time yours, leave me never
The only time I feel alright is by your side
Girl, I want to be with you all of the time
All day and all of the night
All day and all of the night (time)
All day and all of the night
Lyrics submitted by magicnudiesuit
All Day And All Of The Night Lyrics as written by Ray Davies
Lyrics © BROADWAY MUSIC CORPORATION, Kassner Associated Publishers Ltd
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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its amazing how far music can come.. 24 years after it released and its one of the most heartfelt songs ive heard
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Warren wanted a Beach Boys thing for this one, and Carl Wilson and Billy Hinsche came in, with Carl arranging the vocal parts. The other harmony vocalists (credited as the "Gentlemen Boys") were Jackson Browne, J.D. Souther, Zevon's longtime backers Waddy Wachtel and Jorge Calderon, and Linda Rondstadt/Stone Poneys guitarist Kenny Edwards.
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This song is def a twin to "Unfair" (a song she has been quoted as saying is about falling in love with someone who is already in a relationship) so it is presumably about the same person. Given the references to buying an apartment and not being able to see her love interest "after tonight," it's most likely that she's moving away and she'll "wait a day to break the bad news" (i.e. notifying him that she's leaving once she's already gone).
And, of course, the fact that she sees in him a fellow "idealist" and "dreamer" (terms commonly given to people with the INFP personality on the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)) portends that she'll always be left wondering if they would've been perfect together.
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
I remember seeing him live a few months ago. The whole show was very good, but this was the highlight for me. Before he played the song, he told a little story.
"Back when we were first starting up, we recorded a demo and sent it to all the record labels in London... and no one picked us up. One guy, he wrote us back saying that the guitar "sounded like a dog." Can you believe that? He said my brother's guitar sounded like a dog.
Well, I've never seen a dog like that... but he certainly had a loud bark..."
It was so cool...
@TheSilverNoble Dave definitely gave his guitar tone more bite on this song.
the chord progression and construction of the song is very interesting to me.
This is a classic, so ahead of it's time.
wicked song :]
i agree with TabuuDi26
it is a really good love song and it is a cool song
i dedicate this to my boyfriend, its such a cool "love song" without sounding mushy and silly
Dave Davies and his brother Ray are masterful musicians. Too bad they're not as fondly remembered as the Beatles and the Stones are.
"I believe that you and me last forever" are good words but in reality....???
From an interview in the Guardian:
Nevertheless, he would be interested in collaborating with a contemporary artist and when talk turns to Ed Sheeran and his recent copyright lawsuit (“Did he settle?”), it reminds him of a similar to-do he had with the Doors in the 60s when they borrowed the opening riff for Hello, I Love You from the Kinks’ All Day and All of the Night, for which they had to pay Davies royalties.
He eventually met Jim Morrison when the Doors came to London’s Roundhouse in 1968 and reminded the light-fingered Lizard King of his “playful plagiarism”.
“He owned up,” Davies reports gleefully. “He said: ‘You really got me.’”
theguardian.com/music/2017/may/11/the-kinks-ray-davies-brexit-is-bigger-than-the-berlin-wall