This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
Been a lot that I've been through
I've cried a tear a time or two
Baby, you know I cried some over you, my
Had my heart kicked to the ground
Love ripped me up and tore me down, baby
But that ain't enough to break me
'Cause I'll rise above it
And I'll pick myself up
And I'll dust the pain off of my heart
And I'll be all right
And I'll love again
And the wounds will mend
I'm bruised but not broken
And the pain will fade
I'll get back on my feet
It's not the end of me
My heart is still open
I'm bruised but not broken
Been a lot of tears-stained nights
I thought the tears were here for life, baby
The hurt came on and held on tight
I took a chance, I took a fall
Love broke my heart and shattered all my dreams
But I won't be down on my knees
'Cause I'll rise above it
And I'll pick myself up
And I'll shake the rain out of my heart
And I'll be alright
And I'll love again
And the wounds will mend
I'm bruised but not broken
And the pain will fade
I'll get back on my feet
It's not the end of me
My heart is still open
I'm bruised but not broken
Gonna pick my heart up
Take my life back
Shake the hurt away
Pull myself together, put the pieces back in place
See, I've learned love's so hard
Love left my soul scarred
I was shattered inside
It shattered me, baby
And I'll be alright
And I'll love again
And the wounds will mend
I'm bruised but not broken
And the pain will fade
I'll get back on my feet
It's not the end of me
My heart is still open
I'm bruised but not broken
(I'll be alright) and I'll be all right
(And I'll love again) and I will love again
(And the wounds will mend) my wounds will mend
(I'm bruised but not broken)
(And the pain will fade) I'll be all right
(I'll get back on my feet)
(It's not the end of me) no, not about me, baby
(My heart is still open) no, I'm not broken, baby
(I'm bruised but not broken) I'm so far from broken, now
Bruised but not broken
Bruised but not broken
But not broken
I've cried a tear a time or two
Baby, you know I cried some over you, my
Had my heart kicked to the ground
Love ripped me up and tore me down, baby
But that ain't enough to break me
'Cause I'll rise above it
And I'll pick myself up
And I'll dust the pain off of my heart
And I'll be all right
And I'll love again
And the wounds will mend
I'm bruised but not broken
And the pain will fade
I'll get back on my feet
It's not the end of me
My heart is still open
I'm bruised but not broken
Been a lot of tears-stained nights
I thought the tears were here for life, baby
The hurt came on and held on tight
I took a chance, I took a fall
Love broke my heart and shattered all my dreams
But I won't be down on my knees
'Cause I'll rise above it
And I'll pick myself up
And I'll shake the rain out of my heart
And I'll be alright
And I'll love again
And the wounds will mend
I'm bruised but not broken
And the pain will fade
I'll get back on my feet
It's not the end of me
My heart is still open
I'm bruised but not broken
Gonna pick my heart up
Take my life back
Shake the hurt away
Pull myself together, put the pieces back in place
See, I've learned love's so hard
Love left my soul scarred
I was shattered inside
It shattered me, baby
And I'll be alright
And I'll love again
And the wounds will mend
I'm bruised but not broken
And the pain will fade
I'll get back on my feet
It's not the end of me
My heart is still open
I'm bruised but not broken
(I'll be alright) and I'll be all right
(And I'll love again) and I will love again
(And the wounds will mend) my wounds will mend
(I'm bruised but not broken)
(And the pain will fade) I'll be all right
(I'll get back on my feet)
(It's not the end of me) no, not about me, baby
(My heart is still open) no, I'm not broken, baby
(I'm bruised but not broken) I'm so far from broken, now
Bruised but not broken
Bruised but not broken
But not broken
Lyrics submitted by Pryncess33
Bruised But Not Broken Lyrics as written by Diane Warren
Lyrics © Realsongs
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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to me, this song is about a person's inner strength... they've been hurt, but instead of allowing it to completely break them, they decide to acknowledge the pain, then make attempts at moving past it.
she says i'm bruised, as in yes, this has hurt me... but i'm strong woman, and i'm not going to give up...
i love the line "and i'll love again," because often after heartbreak, people give up on love, or are afraid of it. in this song she is saying that she wont give up on love, and i feel that that is a sign of a good, healthy, strong outlook on life.
:)