What You Give

The singer noted the meaning of the song in Tesla's home video compilation "Times Makin' Changes". He wrote the song about a dog that he had to put to sleep. He said to some it was just a pet, but to him, it was something that made him feel great. He was very depressed about putting her "to sleep".

As happy as this song sounds, i think its about a much deeper topic then just being in love. i first thought this after really listening to the bridge "i feel so lonely and i know im not the only one, to ever feel this way, i love you so much that i think im going insane"

this song seems to be about heartbreak or possibly a death of a loved one

i could be wrong but give me some imput

I absolutely LOVE this song. It's amazing.

So many emotions in this song. I 'sent' it to my girlfriend and she got really confused. I understand why when you really read it.

Who's the one that makes you happy. A great sentiment but a danger as you're asking the question not saying you are making me happy.

'It's what you give' always meant to me that it's more important what you give to somebody than what you take in a relationship.

There's so much beauty but so much sadness in this song. A sort of longing but with love there.

@Magicblue22: You sound so disappointed :p

I think, despite the true inspiration, it's still a beautiful song that can relate to any kind of love.

Ha! Tesla. Hmm...like innovative theories, I think this song really makes the mark. I wanted to find a song where "you give what you need" and although this one nearly gets there, it falls a bit short,p like all songs do when you want to give what you need to the person you love yet can't bacause everything is shrouded in comlexities. Hmm. Tesla. I am from Europe, however and fully expect that I will no longer have to do this...one day.

Seeing some of the other comments this song is about love! Any love between a pet or human! This song is deep, I think it can both be sad love, or happy! It could be about someone that doesn't know, or it could be about someone who passed on! Music is great, and this is about the most important thing in the world, Love!!!

I know it was written for his dog. That said, this might just be my favorite song. I was front and center VIP for their 40th and Ocean City Bike Fest's 10 year anniversary in 2021 and they put on a phenomenal performance and I have a video of the entire show which includes this song...LIVE! I met this kid just after I turned 12 and he was about to turn 11. I wanted to be girl/boy friend but we were young and dated off and on for 30 years before having an intimate relationship for 7 years. But for those 30 years, we grew up inseparable at times, seeing many concerts and standing in line for tickets, camping, fishing, bar hopping, riding around toking on some reefer jamming to music. We both married and had kids. After I split up with one guy, as typical, I called him to cry on his shoulder but he confessed his love for me and were a couple for 7 years. Even though we didn't get a fairytale ending, this was our song because we were happy when we were together. The lyrics really fit our relationship. We turned to each other through good and bad. Some guys wouldn't date me because of him, and some girls he dated were really jealous of me (because he talked about me a lot and I suspect compared them to me, and I hear he had called his wife my name on more than one occasion). To be fair, both our names start with the same letter.

I absolutely LOVE this song. It's amazing.

are you serious, about his dog?