I've never seen you looking so lovely as you did tonight
I've never seen you shine so bright, mhm-hmm
I've never seen so many men ask you if you wanted to dance
They're looking for a little romance, given half a chance
And I have never seen that dress you're wearing
Or the highlights in your hair that catch your eyes
I have been blind

The lady in red
Is dancing with me, cheek to cheek
There's nobody here, it's just you and me
It's where I want to be
But I hardly know this beauty by my side
I'll never forget the way you look tonight

I've never seen you looking so gorgeous as you did tonight
I've never seen you shine so bright, you were amazing
I've never seen so many people want to be there by your side
And when you turned to me and smiled, you took my breath away
I have never had such a feeling
Such a feeling of complete and utter love, as I do tonight

Lady in red
Is dancing with me, cheek to cheek
There's nobody here, it's just you and me
It's where I want to be
But I hardly know this beauty by my side
I'll never forget the way you look tonight

I never will forget the way you look tonight
The lady in red, the lady in red
The lady in red, my lady in red

I love you


Lyrics submitted by vfobush

The Lady in Red Lyrics as written by Chris De Burgh

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

The Lady in Red song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

24 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +3
    General Comment
    Beautiful song. Its inspired by a time he saw his wife across a crowded nightclub, without at first realising it was her. As a result he realised that often people never quite appreciate that the most important person in their lives is taken for granted, and how after a while you fail to notice the things that brought you together.
    kmk_natashaon January 21, 2007   Link
  • +2
    General Comment
    Its about a guy who's crazy in love with a woman whom he sees as being utterly perfect. And hes wondering what he did to have someone so great in his life.
    askingtoomuchon May 15, 2007   Link
  • +2
    General Comment
    It never ceases to amaze me, the nonsense that people can come up with when they want to badly enough. Have you ever noticed that the more simple and innocent a song is, the harder people will work to come up with a "nasty" interpretation? It's as though the very presence of innocence is an affront to them, and they become like angry little monkeys flinging their poo at something they don't understand. Silly little monkeys... ;> This song could hardly be simpler or more beautiful. It's about seeing a woman you know and realizing as if for the first time how beautiful she is and how much you love her. It doesn't matter if all the men in the room are really asking her to dance, the singer thinks they are, assuming that they can see the same incredible beauty in her. The song is about that overwhelming rush of love or infatuation, so intense that it's physical, that we've all felt at one time or another in our lives. I don't know if this song was written about the artist's wife or mistress; it doesn't really matter. The emotion it conveys is pure and universal (whether the choices made after it are or not). I don't know what it is about the words, the music, the arrangement, or the vocal delivery in this song, but they work together beautifully, and I've never heard such a perfect expression of that that one emotion. Poe said that a perfect story or poem was one in which every single part of it works to create a "unity of effect or impression," a single, intense feeling or mood in the reader's or listener's mind. By that standard, "Lady in Red" is a perfect song, and nothing else said about it really matters more than that.
    ShinyAeonon February 04, 2012   Link
  • +1
    General Comment
    This song sends many messages, or it just could be that a guy is so wrapped up in other things that he forgets how lovely his lady is until one night he sees other men admiring her from afar, it makes him realize how lucky he is, and he falls in love with her all over again ...
    CtFrenchyon September 02, 2002   Link
  • +1
    General Comment
    This song is so beautiful...What girl wouldn't dream about being the "lady in red"?
    bee_happyon March 30, 2003   Link
  • +1
    General Comment
    The song is about a man who never notices how beautiful the love of his life is until he spends that one magical night with her. The perfect song for my first and only love, to whom i dedicate the lyrics.
    b-real3480on March 31, 2003   Link
  • +1
    My Opinion
    Often, after some time together, we tend to take our partner for granted. We no longer see the beauty that made us fall in love in the first place. This song makes me think of that. A man who sees his wife in a new light and realizes that he has forgotten how amazing and beautiful she is. He said he's never seen her look so amazing. That is because he's forgotten and is seeing her again as if for the first time. "I hardly know this beauty by my side" because they gave grown apart and are pretty much strangers at this point. All the things he's noticing are not new. He just wasn't paying attention before now. I think this is a beautiful song and while the true meaning may be something different, that is how I hear it.
    DnJLoveon February 13, 2023   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    Seriously, could there be a much cornier song? I love it anyway :-) Very much a school disco kind of song, the kind that will almost always soften up a woman even if she knows the man who's playing it for them doesn't mean a word! Such an ego trip for a gal - not only does this guy realise he's madly in love with her, but every other man in the room's hitting on her too. It's a lovely fantasy, and always makes me desperate to run out and buy a red dress!
    gracelynon August 15, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    I'm reminded of my Senior Prom back in 1998. My then boyfriend and I were slow dancing and I happened to have on a Red dress that night...how ironic is that...hehehe :-) Anyways, this is one of my favorite slow songs to dance to. The other being Eric Clapton's song "Wonderful."
    Bubbley69on October 17, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    It's so true, how many of people don't realize the beauty and amazement they have in their S.O. until someone else wants them. When someone is so desireable to others, they often become much more desireable to the person whom they are with. Smooth way to portray it in a song.
    YourPassengeron November 29, 2004   Link

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
The Last Dance
Within Temptation
@[Kahiara:35260] Actually I think the husband passed away, "She sang for you last night She heard you were calling" Many people say they have felt, heard, or seen their loved ones after they have passed. "Don't be scared now Close your eyes She holds guard tonight Go on forward no remorse Life will take it's course" This is said to the late husband by a third part (never named), who encourages him to pass on. Because life will eventually continue. The phrase "holds guard" refers to the ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wake_(ceremony) ) which is a Christian ceremony held after someone dies. Now it is usually held right after the funeral, but in most celtiic countries the wake is held before the funeral. "She danced with you last night so you will remember All you have shared, a lifetime." This sentence feels as if the only thing it wants to convey is their history together, namely, husband and wife. For the rest it just refers back to the first verse.
Album art
X French T-Shirt
Shudder to Think
This song is timeless, and nearly 20 years after its creation, still possesses the mystique it did the first time i heard it ~1994. To me, at first blush, all those years ago, it had some kind of homo-erotic allure. The line "so that the others may do" tells of something which must be done for others to follow suit. It felt like like some kind of roxy-glam-pop invitation to sexual liberation. Upon further introspection I think the song may not have an intrinsic meaning, but simply represents a sort of "holding open the door" for people who otherwise might be affronted by this song/band's unusual style. I know, as a sort of armchair rock-historian, that there have been few bands so daring and so true to the sound that wanted to emerge from within, whether the creator wanted it or not. This band handled it with elegance and grace seldom, if ever, seen.
Album art
Blank Space
Taylor Swift
This song is Swift's response to the negative reputation the media has given her. "I can make the bad guys good for a weekend" - the bad guys are the paparazzi to Swift, but are good to the "player" since association with Swift immediately gives publicity. Any publicity is good publicity and Swift knows this. "You can tell me when it's over" - the tabloids rumor relationships are over before the couple announces it officially. With this song Swift is portraying the way she is portrayed by the media. It is a sarcastic jab at how she views herself and how her "ex-lovers" only wanted to be with her to increase their fame. I applaud the brilliance in writing about how you always write about relationships. It is expected so Swift is giving the media what they want and profiting off the attention.
Album art
Mad Hatter
Avenged Sevenfold
Matt Shadows their lead singer says the song was written as per request from the developers of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. Watching the initial trailers for the game & looking at production sketches reminded him of the 'S-Town' podcast & its main protagonist, John B. McLemore. Matt also comments specifically on the lyrics: "I decided that the lyrics would shadow McLemore's life." In 2012, antiquarian horologist John B. McLemore sent an email to the staff of the show 'This American Life' asking them to investigate an alleged murder in his hometown of Woodstock, Alabama, a place McLemore claimed to despise. After a year of exchanging emails & several months of conversation with McLemore, producer Brian Reed traveled to Woodstock to investigate. Reed investigated the crime & eventually found that no such murder took place, though he struck up a friendship with the depressed but colorful character of McLemore. He recorded conversations with McLemore & other people in Woodstock. McLemore killed himself by drinking potassium cyanide on June 22, 2015 while the podcast was still in production. In the narrative of the podcast, this occurs at the end of the second episode; subsequent episodes deal with the fallout from McLemore's death while exploring more of McLemore's life & character.
Album art
I don't want another sorry
Dax & Trippie Redd
This standalone single marks the first official collaboration between the two rappers. The track was produced by SephGotTheWaves, Stillsanexile & Trademark. It was released on December 29, 2020.