I Want You To Want Me Lyrics

Lyric discussion by Androcles 

Cover art for I Want You To Want Me lyrics by Cheap Trick

I think the meaning is fairly obvious, but I just want to say more specifically that this song is about a guy who wants a girl to like him as much as he likes her. He wants her to have the same degree of passion and intense feelings that he does. There's always a parallel between the way he feels and what he wants her to feel. The intensity increases from want to need, love, and even begging. He doesn't just want to win the girl over, he wants her to be in love with him. A simple and straightforward meaning.

I imagine that this girl is someone lofty and seemingly unattainable. Maybe she doesn't show much interest in him and she puts on a tough exterior. When he asks "didn't I see you crying" it's almost like he's spotted a chink in her armor and can now see that she has a more vulnerable side to her after all, and perhaps there is room in her heart to have those same sort of feelings for him.

Song Meaning