Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Meaningful Lyrics: Being Alive

I was talking to a friend the other day about the music of Stephen Sondheim and, not to be a Broadway queen, but he just wrote so many great songs! One of my favorites.... Being Alive from the 1970 show Company.
I love this song because it so clearly expresses the uncomfortability of human relationship... while acknowledging that despite (or maybe because of) the pain, it is WORTH IT. Relationship is really all there is.

Someone to hold you too close
Someone to hurt you too deep
Someone to sit in your chair
And ruin your sleep
And make you aware of being alive

Someone to need you too much
Someone to know you too well
Someone to pull you up short
And put you through hell
And give you support for being alive - being alive
Make me alive, make me confused
Mock me with praise, let me be used
Vary my days, but alone is alone, not alive.

Somebody hold me too close
Somebody force me to care
Somebody make me come through
I'll always be there
As frightened as you of being alive
Being alive, being alive

Someone you have to let in
Someone whose feelings you spare
Someone who, like it or not
Will want you to share a little, a lot of being alive
Make me alive, make me confused
Mock me with praise, let me be used
Vary my days, but alone is alone, not alive

Somebody crowd me with love
Somebody force me to care
Somebody make me come through
I'll always be there
As frightened as you to help us survive
Being alive, being alive,
Being alive, being alive.

No comments:

Post a Comment