Joni Mitchell – All I Want

...
I am on a lonely road and
I am traveling, traveling, traveling, traveling
Looking for something, what can it be
Oh I hate you some, I hate you some, I love you some
Oh I love you when I forget about me
I wanna be strong I wanna laugh along
I wanna belong to the living
Alive, alive, I want to get up and jive
I want to wreck my stockings in some jukebox dive
Do you want, do you want, do you wanna dance with me baby
Do you wanna take a chance on
Maybe finding some sweet romance with me baby, well come on

All I really really want is our love to do
Is to bring out the best in me and in you too
All I really really want our love to do
Is to bring out the best in me and in you
I wanna talk to you, I wanna shampoo you
I wanna renew you again and again
Applause, applause, life is our cause
When I think of your kisses my mind see-saws
Do you see, do you see, do you see how you hurt me baby
So I hurt you too
Then we both get so blue

I am on a lonely road and I am traveling
Looking for the key to set me free
Oh the jealousy
The greed is the unraveling it's the unraveling
And it undoes all the joy that could be
I wanna fun, I wanna shine like the sun
I wanna be the one that you want to see
I wanna knit you a sweater
Wanna write you a love letter
I wanna make you feel better, I wanna
Make you feel free
Hm hm hm, hm
Wanna make you feel all free
All I wanna make you feel free


Lyrics submitted by hamlet82

"All I Want" as written by Joni Mitchell

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Crazy Crow Music / Siquomb Music Publishing

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

All I Want song meanings
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26 Comments

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  • +7
    General Commentas 2 people have said but everyone else seems to have missed: this song is NOT about a perfect love, it's about a love that is hurt by jealousy and greed and by people hurting each other. all the stuff about knitting sweaters and making each other feel free is what she is WISHing for, not what she has.
    chelseamorningon August 31, 2007   Link
  • +2
    General CommentThis song reminds me of when you are head over heals for a guy and all you want is just the company of him. Its one of my favorite Joni Songs
    mobladimobladaon March 10, 2003   Link
  • +2
    General CommentJoni's voice on this song is so bare, young, and truthfull that it elevates my mood anytime or anywhere i hear it.
    hippyathearton June 13, 2003   Link
  • +1
    General CommentI think you guys are missing a very important element of this song. Yes, it's about happiness, and yes it's about "perfect" love, but it's about striving for both of those things in an unhappy, imperfect relationship.
    It sounds like the relationship she is in is not how it used to be. They hurt each other, and she wants it to get back to how it used to be. She loves him so much that her "mind see-saws" but it's to the point that she feels that "I love you when I forget about me." She can only love him if she forgets how awful he makes her feel sometimes and vice versa.
    She just wants it to be a happy, healthy relationship again.
    iheartnitzon December 20, 2005   Link
  • +1
    My InterpretationThis song is about a woman who's been hurt by someone she was once in love with. She still loves that person but has resentment towards them; for something they did, probably cheating. She says "i hate you some .... I love you some.. I love you when I forget about me" meaning she hates them for what they did to her, but when she's not thinking of her own feelings she's able to feel that love for them again. The happy parts about dancing in a juke box dive may be reminiscent of their past together- before things went south. "When I kiss you my mind see-saws" refers to the internal struggle she has with the love/hate feelings. She asks "do you see how you hurt me?" And she hurt them too, meaning she probably tried to make her love jealous by hooking up with someone else- but that just hurt them both more. She talks about all the things she wants - love and being good to one another, she wants the good times back. When she says the jealousy and greed are unraveling, she's saying that she's letting her guard down in hopes of making her love as well as herself happy again . She's on a lonely road and she's traveling because she basically doesn't know what to do. She's torn between her heart and fear of being hurt again.

    ^i love this song, I interpreted the song this way because I can relate. Maybe I'm wrong but it makes sense to m
    Hooping_Cactuson July 29, 2016   Link
  • 0
    General CommentAll I want - being happ - that's all we want isn't it? ANd Joni's so happy she's "wrecked her stockings in some juke box jive" and she doesn't give a damn, in fact it's great! Her head is so full of him her mind "see saws" - who hasn't been there?
    Almost Famouson July 06, 2003   Link
  • 0
    General CommentAll I want - being happy - that's all we want isn't it? ANd Joni's so happy she's "wrecked her stockings in some juke box jive" and she doesn't give a damn, in fact it's great! Her head is so full of him her mind "see saws" - who hasn't been there?
    Almost Famouson July 06, 2003   Link
  • 0
    General CommentThis is such a great song. I'm a huge Joni Mitchell fan. I love when she says, "I want to shampoo you." That's gold.
    I wax poeticon October 18, 2004   Link
    • 1 Reply
  • 0
    General CommentThe bit when Joni sings "All i really want our love to do/is to bring out the best in me and in you to" is utterly poignant. Can anyone else tell me of a better reason or explanation for love?
    "i want to make you feel free" echos a similiar sentiment. i guess Joni is saying that if you have (her) love, you are free from all fears and insecurities, you feel like nothing is insurmountable or restrictive and you can just soar. With such a one at your side, all else seems trivial. Gorgeous.
    Shiro_Kon November 17, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General CommentJoni expresses so humanly what it's like to really be in love... I know I can totally relate to the exhuberance of this song.... just to be totally wrapped up in someone. The last verse is just classic... it's so poignant and yet slightly ironic and ridiculous! Bless her..
    ohmanon January 08, 2005   Link

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