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Take This Longing Lyrics
Many men have loved the bells
you fastened to the rein,
and everyone who wanted you
they found what they will always want again.
Your beauty lost to you yourself
just as it was lost to them.
Oh take this longing from my tongue,
whatever useless things these hands have done.
Let me see your beauty broken down
like you would do for one you love.
Your body like a searchlight
my poverty revealed,
I would like to try your charity
until you cry, "Now you must try my greed."
And everything depends upon
how near you sleep to me
Just take this longing from my tongue
all the lonely things my hands have done.
Let me see your beauty broken down
like you would do for one your love.
Hungry as an archway
through which the troops have passed,
I stand in ruins behind you,
with your winter clothes, your broken sandal straps.
I love to see you naked over there
especially from the back.
Oh take this longing from my tongue,
all the useless things my hands have done,
untie for me your hired blue gown,
like you would do for one that you love.
You're faithful to the better man,
I'm afraid that he left.
So let me judge your love affair
in this very room where I have sentenced
mine to death.
I'll even wear these old laurel leaves
that he's shaken from his head.
Just take this longing from my tongue,
all the useless things my hands have done,
let me see your beauty broken down,
like you would do for one you love.
Like you would do for one you love.
you fastened to the rein,
and everyone who wanted you
they found what they will always want again.
Your beauty lost to you yourself
just as it was lost to them.
whatever useless things these hands have done.
Let me see your beauty broken down
like you would do for one you love.
my poverty revealed,
I would like to try your charity
until you cry, "Now you must try my greed."
And everything depends upon
how near you sleep to me
all the lonely things my hands have done.
Let me see your beauty broken down
like you would do for one your love.
through which the troops have passed,
I stand in ruins behind you,
with your winter clothes, your broken sandal straps.
I love to see you naked over there
especially from the back.
all the useless things my hands have done,
untie for me your hired blue gown,
like you would do for one that you love.
I'm afraid that he left.
So let me judge your love affair
in this very room where I have sentenced
mine to death.
I'll even wear these old laurel leaves
that he's shaken from his head.
all the useless things my hands have done,
let me see your beauty broken down,
like you would do for one you love.
Like you would do for one you love.
Song Info
Submitted by
hosimosi On Mar 20, 2002
More Leonard Cohen
Hallelujah
Famous Blue Raincoat
Suzanne
First We Take Manhattan
Alexandra Leaving
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this to me is about someone who is madly in love with a woman, who only thinks of him as a very close friend and sleeps around with other men who she sees romantically, and he asks her to love him even though he knows she doesn't exactly ("like you would do for the one you love", he knows it's not him but is willing to take whatever she can give him cuz he loves her that much) and to let him see her vulnerable and this songs just describes that longing you feel when you're so close to someone but still not as close as you want and it's just so accurate, god, leonard is a genius.
This song is about Nico. The references to the bells and the gown are taken from Velvet Underground lyrics (Venus in Furs and All Tomorrow's Parties). Nico slept with a lot of men, and I guess Leonard Cohen was one of them. Either that, or he NEARLY slept with her (you're faithful to the better man, like you would do for one you love, etc.) This is just a really beautiful song.
yeah, i guess if i were to interpret it any further...
i feel like "the better man" might be the FRIEND that she loves AS A FRIEND, but the fact that "he left" indicates that he can't be that guy anymore. he loves her too much for that. just a hunch, based on experiences i've had.
this is one of my favorite cohen songs. "your beauty lost to you yourself," i've known (and loved) some girls like that.
According to a guardian.co.uk article, Nico "resisted his charms," as she preferred younger men. Makes sense then that this song would be permeated with so much rather desperate unrequited lust....
Also, I'm fairly certain that the lyric is "high blue gown."
Cohen is asking Nico to 'take this longing' away - but the longing isn't for Nico - it's for the woman he stands behind in ruins - his love - the one in 'winter clothes, (with) broken sandal straps'. And that would NOT be Nico.
Cohen is asking Nico to 'take this longing' away - but the longing isn't for Nico - it's for the woman he stands behind in ruins - his love - the one in 'winter clothes, (with) broken sandal straps'. And that would NOT be Nico.
Why would that not be Nico? She grew up poor in war-torn Germany. Winter clothes and broken sandal straps probably alludes to that.
Why would that not be Nico? She grew up poor in war-torn Germany. Winter clothes and broken sandal straps probably alludes to that.
It's songwriting as therapy and not vengeance.
I just really discovered this song this week after some degree of romantic turmoil and these lines here:
So let me judge your love affair In this very room where I have sentenced mine to death
Stopped me absolutely dead in my tracks - It was like looking in a mirror. This song is a complete and absolute gem.
I think it's about a desire of a soldier, for licking (tongue means tongue, and bell, means the clítoris) the captain's girl. It's as subtil than erotic song.