"Only the Lonely" as written by and Roy/ Melson Joe Orbison....
We walked the loneliest mile
We smile without any style
We kiss all together wrong
No intention
We lie about each other's drinks
We live without each other
Thinking what anyone would do
Without me and you
It's like I told you
Only the lonely can play
So hold on here we go
Hold on to nothin' we know
I feel so lonely
Way up here
You mention the time we were together
So long ago well I don't remember
All I know is it makes me feel good now
It's like I told you only the lonely can play
Only the lonely only the lonely can play
Only the lonely only the lonely can play
It's like I told you only the lonely can play
Only the lonely
Only the lonely can play
We smile without any style
We kiss all together wrong
No intention
We lie about each other's drinks
We live without each other
Thinking what anyone would do
Without me and you
It's like I told you
Only the lonely can play
So hold on here we go
Hold on to nothin' we know
I feel so lonely
Way up here
You mention the time we were together
So long ago well I don't remember
All I know is it makes me feel good now
It's like I told you only the lonely can play
Only the lonely only the lonely can play
Only the lonely only the lonely can play
It's like I told you only the lonely can play
Only the lonely
Only the lonely can play
Lyrics submitted by stoolhardy, edited by deemic
"Only The Lonely" as written by Martha Emily Davis
Lyrics © RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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"We live without each other, thinking what anyone would do
without me, without you"
They are both in relationships that they don't want to be in, but at the same time they feel the pressure to stay. It's a great line, and an awesome song!
Is it a typo that you wrote 1992, since the song came out in 1982?
Thanks for sharing such a personal and deeply moving story. It took a lot of courage. I truly believe good music is a reflection of the soul; whether wonderful or painful it comes from a place that you can't hide or deny. Martha Davis achieved greatness by sharing her pain.
With very few words she has painted a picture, the minor almost muted chord structure set on a slow simple but driving bass line / rhythm backbone, which builds as the perfect canvas for Martha's sultry yearning vocal. Like a great book, her description pulls you in, forcing you to see the picture through your own eyes.
She does this ever so subtly with cues allegorically:
"We walk the loneliest mile" - her time away from her lover
"We kiss altogether wrong" - they lost it the first time
"No intentions" - It wasn't anyone's fault; I don't blame you. And perhaps a whimsical note about how haphazard and random love is.
"We lie about each other's drinks" - the meaningless small talk they need to break the ice
"We live without each other, thinking what anyone one would do, without me and you" - Her we'll crafted attempt to be cool not giving all her feelings away, where between the lines she's asking "do you miss me?"
"So hold on - here we go, hold on to nothing we know, I feel so lonely - way up here" - This is where she drops her facade for a moment, to let him know she's miserable without him
"You mention the time we were together, so long ago, well I don't remember all I know is it makes me feel good now" - Part regaining her cool with a faux denial that she remembers, yet how can she not remember the deep love? And partly a reflection that she is glad she has those memories: perhaps even real world proof that there's nothing wrong with her as she did find love once.
Its the subtle words cloaking heartfelt emotions that touch everyone who's ever been in love that make this a timeless song.
who hasn't felt this way ...
"You mention the time we were together
So long ago, well I don't remember
All I know
Is that it makes me feel good now"
It makes you wonder how someone so beautiful and talented could ever feel this way, and then you read about her life: pregnant at 15, then again at 17, her mother a suicide, spent many years in poverty and deprivation chasing her dreams of stardom - never quite finding the right guy.
The fact that she was able to have even a couple of hits like this one was and is an incredible story of perseverance, if not just plain stubbornness.
It's amazing in some ways how different this song is from her other hit, 'Suddenly Last Summer'. In that song, the music itself is the real draw, as the lyrics are simplistic and used more as a suggestion of what you should be thinking about.
This lyrics in this song are far more critical and anyone who's ever felt loneliness can absolutely empathize. Here, Martha reaches out to embrace the emptiness of her life and translate it into words.
I believe she is writing this to her ex, and anyone who's had to deal with their ex after the relationship is over knows how to 'hold on to nothing we know'. You wonder how you even had a relationship with that person in the first place.
And yet, when you've spent part of your life with someone, they still know you pretty well, and depending on how amicable the breakup was, maybe you can still talk to them and share. Is it a waste of time to continue to pour your heart out to someone who will no longer be with you romantically?
Maybe. But maybe it beats being lonely altogether...
love this song. too damned true, but I love this song.
Reminds me of a young lady I met a long time ago in Hawaii. We dated for a
couple of months, only to find out...all we had was physical, no intentions...
She was lonely... I was lonely... (Man...what I would give to go back in time..)
Should've..Could've. But! Didn't! "It's Like I told You... Only the Lonely can play. "
Ever time I hear the Song... I go drifting in time...