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When Love And Hate Collide Lyrics

You could have a change of heart
If you would only change your mind
Instead of slamming down the phone, girl
For the hundredth time
I got your number on my wall
But I ain't gonna make that call
When divided we stand, baby
United we fall

Got the time, got a chance, gonna make it
Got my hands on your heart, gonna take it
All I know, I can't fight this flame

You could have a change of heart
If you would only change your mind
Cause I'm crazy 'bout you baby
Time after time

Without you
One night alone
Is like a year without you baby
Do you have a heart of stone
Without you
Can't stop the hurt inside
When love and hate collide

I don't wanna fight no more
I don't know what we're fighting for
When we treat each other, baby
Like an act of war
I could tell a million lies
And it would come as no surprise
When the truth is like a stranger
Hits you right between the eyes

There's a time and a place and a reason
And I know I got a love to believe in
All I know
Got to win this time

Without you
One night alone
Is like a year without you baby
Do you have a heart of stone
Without you
Can't stop the hurt inside
When love and hate collide

You could have a change of heart
If you would only change your mind
Cause I'm crazy 'bout you baby
Crazy, crazy

Without you
One night alone
Is like a year without you baby
Do you have a heart of stone
Without you
One night alone
Is like a year without you baby
If you have a heart at all
Without you
Can't stop the hurt inside
When love and hate collide
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Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

"You could have a change of heart If you would only change your mind Instead of slamming down the phone, girl For the hundredth time "

This verse is pretty obvious: They had a fight, maybe even split up, and she's still so angry that she refuses to talk to him, only hangs up on him. He says that if she'd just change her mind about talking to him, she could have a change of heart about getting back together.

"I got your number on my wall But I ain't gonna make that call "

He's getting tired of phoning only to have her "slam down" the phone, and his pride is preventing him from keeping on trying.

"When divided we stand, baby United we fall "

One of the most profound lines Def Leppard ever wrote. When you are in a relationship and you are not pulling the weight together (in other words, you are "standing divided"), then the relationship can't work out, and the two of you won't succeed as a couple ("united we fall").

"Got the time, got a chance, gonna make it Got my hands on your heart, gonna take it All I know, I can't fight this flame "

He's saying that he knows she loves him, he has this opportunity to make this relationship work out with her, and he's going to do his best to make it work, because his feelings are so strong, he can't forget about her.

"You could have a change of heart If you would only change your mind Cause I'm crazy 'bout you baby Time after time "

If she'd just change her mind and start talking/listening to him, he could convince her to give the relationship another chance, because no matter how much they fight, or how many times they break up, or how bad it gets, he's still crazy about her.

Without you One night alone Is like a year without you baby Do you have a heart of stone? "Without you Can't stop the hurt inside When love and hate collide "

The first 3 lines are obvious. Then he says that when they're apart or split up, all those feelings of anger and frustration and love and joy and longing hurt too much, but when he's with her, he can bear it. That's why "without you (I) can't stop the hurt inside".

"I don't wanna fight no more I don't know what we're fighting for When we treat each other, baby Like an act of war"

He's tired of fighting with her, and he can't even see the point of arguing when all they do is hurt each other without achieving anything.

"I could tell a million lies And it would come as no surprise When the truth is like a stranger Hits you right between the eyes "

This one is always a bit tricky for me, and I'd like some input. I think he's saying that no matter how many times he lies, he's not surprised, but the truth (that he does love her, and wants to make it work) comes as a huge surprise.

"There's a time and a place and a reason And I know I got a love to believe in All I know Got to win this time "

Same as the previous bridge. They have something special, and they have this opportunity to really find true love in each other, and he really wants it to work.

This is how I interpret the song's lyrics, anyone care to comment?

that second to last stanza, about telling lies, i believe i can explain, as i can deeply relate to it (at least as i interpret it).

he's lied to her so many times now that it doesn't surprise her anymore, in fact she's actually surprised when he tells the truth. and even though he knows he deserves her distrust, it still feels like he's being hit between the eyes everytime she expresses it.

@Lilandra I think you're both wrong.

The lines "I could tell a million lies but it would come as no surprise, when the truth is like a stranger, hits you right between the eyes"

aren't about lying to her during the relationship or being surprised that he loves her. It's about lying to himself. Either telling himself it can still work when deep down he knows it can't as she now has hate for him (ties in with "divided we stand" and the theme of "love and hate collide")

OR

Telling himself he can...

@Lilandra I know this was 11 years ago but I just felt the need to share my own thoughts about this. As we know, lyrics can be interpreted differently depending on the person, his/her experiences and emotions while listening to the song. So I think there is no right or wrong answer. Artists, well most good ones make music that people can relate to and can interpret however they want.

"I could tell a million lies And it would come as no surprise

----for me it means no amount of lies can surprise her anymore as she is used...

Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

This is my favorite song by them.

Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

When my boyfriend and I broke up I was listening to this song and when it got to the verse "Without you one night alone, Is like a year without you baby, Do you have a heart of stone" I cried. This is one of my alltime favorite songs.

@mego435 Hi, just curious nearly 20 years after posting, did you an your boyfriend ever work things out?

Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

Awe. It's a good ballad.

Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

ur change of heart turns my love for u into hate... still it hurts to hate u as much as it hurts to love ya... i feel like a prisoner locked in this misery since i knw u... knwing i meant nothin to u... i'm hurt becoz i cnt shake frm this love i have for u...

@tigress

I don't think it's about the conflict of emotions within himself. I think it's a conflict of emotions between the two of them.

This is a break up. He's done something to upset her. That's why she won't take his calls. Maybe deep down she still loves him, we don't know, because we only get his side, but right now, at this moment, for whatever reason, she feels like she hates him. But he still loves her and that's what hurts. That is the collision of love and hate. "I can't stop the...

@tigress

Just further to that, what I'm saying is reinforced by the lines "do you have a heart of stone" and "do you have a heart at all"

She is the one with the hate, or presumed hate. It's not an internal conflict. It's a collision between the two of them. Much simpler than you are making it by over analysing it. Def Leppard are Yorkshiremen and they are known for saying it how it is. Most of their lyrics are very straight forward. Look at Animal! Take care.

Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

Boy does this song reming me of two of my friends. This is one of my fav's by them, because it was basically there last big hit.

Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

one of my favs also, absolutely awesome i agree with tigress good call, i can relate so well

Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

It's about wanting someone so bad but them just refusing to talk to you. I think it's so sad that so many things could be sorted out if people just sat down and talked things over. The song is one of my favorites too.

Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

One of the greatest Def Leppard songs.

"Can't stop the hurt inside, when love and hate collide" is such a powerful line.

You always hear that there's a fine line between love and hate, and it's true. You love and hate with the same type of passion.

"I don't want to fight no more. I don't know what we're fighting for."

That says a lot. It's like the strained relationship where you're always fighting about the same thing over and over to the point where you become restless and don't even know what it's all about anymore.

Check out the acoustic version of the song done with a piano. AWESOME.

Cover art for When Love And Hate Collide lyrics by Def Leppard

Yeah it's a deeply emotional song, my favourite by Def Leppard. The song has already been summarised by tigress. Fantastic

 
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