i want somebody who sees the pointlessness
and still keeps their purpose in mind
i want somebody who has a tortured soul
some of the time
i want somebody who will either put out for me
or put me out of misery
or maybe just put it all to words
and make me say, you know
i never heard it put that way
make me say, what did you just say?

i want somebody who can hold my interest
hold it and never let it fall
someone who can flatten me with a kiss
that hits like a fist
or a sentence, that stops me like a brick wall
if you hear me talking
listen to what i'm not saying
if you hear me playing guitar
listen to what i'm not playing
and don't ask me to put words
to all the silences i wrote
don't ask me to put words
to all the spaces between notes
in fact if you have to ask, forget it
do and you'll regret it
i'm tired of being the interesting one
i'm tired of having fun for two
just lay yourself on the line
and i might lay myself down by you
but don't sit behind your eyes
and wait for me to surprise you
i want somebody who can make me
scream until it's funny
give me a run for my money
i want someone who can
twist me up in knots
tell me, for the woman who has everything
what have you got?
i want someone who's not afraid of me
or anyone else
in other words i want someone
who's not afraid of themself

do you think i'm asking too much?


Lyrics submitted by aur0ra

Asking Too Much song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

14 Comments

sort form View by:
  • 0
    General Comment

    "someone who can flatten me with a kiss that hits like a fist or a sentence, that stops me like a brick wall"~great line

    babyMEon June 19, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    if you hear me talking listen to what i'm not saying if you hear me playing guitar listen to what i'm not playing

    hell yeah

    sara_rachelon June 21, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    this is the best part of the song because unlike so many pop songs out there shes not saying "i'm pathetic and you walke all over me" its like rock i'm this amazing woman and what do you have to offer for me?

    tell me, for the woman who has everything what have you got? i want someone who's not afraid of me or anyone else in other words i want someone who's not afraid of themself

    goodkarma49on September 16, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    this song is amazing...."if you hear me talking listen to what i'm not saying if you hear me playing guitar listen to what i'm not playing and don't ask me to put words to all the silences i wrote don't ask me to put words to all the spaces between notes... i want someone who's not afraid of me or anyone else in other words i want someone who's not afraid of themself " ~ the song states want everyone wants in a mate...and the words she uses "flatten me with a kiss" for ex. are such powerful illustrations of what we all want and need. this song is beautiful

    4:20chick4eva!on April 21, 2003   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    tell me, for the woman who has everything what have you got?

    never put me on a pedestol. always let me strive, and don't think i have won. becuase when i win, there's nothing more i can still achieve. let me achieve you and strive to make our love better everyday. . . . just a thought on what it means.

    Tars05ozon April 21, 2003   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    the title and last line pose and interesting question -- is that asking too much? while her lyrics are bold, specific, and truthful, i think that it can apply to us all in each of our individual circumstances. is it really too much to ask for someone who is an equal partner, who gives as well as recieves, who treats you as well as you treat them? humanity has spent so much time being desensitized and dehumanized, i think it's time we all start demanding a little more from eachother. it's like another of her lyrics states "we owe eachother the world" -- let's take a second, acknowledge that we are all essentially the same and are trudging through the same life, so why not pause for a second and share some love and respect. fuck yeah ani d!

    fireygoddesson June 09, 2003   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Well everything Ani sings in this song, i can relate to. I also want all of these things in a man! So no, i don't think she's asking too much atal! This song is amazing. Unfortunately, to most men, these things really are asking too much. And i think that's Ani's point.

    Licion October 13, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I agree with what some of you said about demanding more from eachother but my theory is-- she wrote the entire song, and then looked back at it and realized that maybe she should try giving people a little more slack and not expect them to "don't ask me to put words to all the spaces between the notes " I mean people cant read your mind and as much youd like to have someone who can see into your soul and understand you without you having to say a word I think that in the end she does realize that her expectations are a bit unrealistic-- and to prove my point she does name the song "asking too much".

    L-E-7on December 25, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    This song is great, it helped me figure out my own personal list of what I want in a relationship.. And it turns out small feats of carpentry, good conversation, lots of laughter, and creativity are it.. If I don't get it, that's okay too. It's all good. I adore this song.

    xinniefulon March 04, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I love this song because every single thing she lists I want in a man. The only difference is she describes it in an eloquent way that I never could have!

    city212girlon June 28, 2006   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
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Album art
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988. "'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it." "There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
Album art
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Album art
No Surprises
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Album art
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it. “I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.