For a long time this song has been floating around in my mind, for about a year actually and now I finally get the opportunity to write it down. This is one of those songs that you like listening to, the beat is nice, sounds a little upbeat and just overall quite a nice song. However, you are then hit with the realisation of the lyrics. It is of course possible that I peered a little too much into the lyrics, but I am fairly certain that the song is about a abusive relationship. I remember listening to this song and for some reason I decided to switch the genders, as if the “narrator” of the song was female. That is when the realisation hit me, and it frustrates me that I had to change the roles for me to realise this. It just shows how we treat abuse towards males, as if it doesn’t happen, that males cannot be victims. I am glad to say though, that I am aware that abuse does not only happen to females, but to males to, and people need to know that. Both cases should be treated the same. “All I need’s a little love in my lifeAll I need’s a little love in the darkA little but I’m hoping it might kick startMe and my broken heartI need a little loving tonightHold me so I’m not falling apartA little but I’m hoping it might kick startMe and my broken heart” Reading through the chorus I would say the message is quite clear, that is if you imagine it being an abusive relationship. The narrator is obviously not happy with the life they are living/the relationship they are in. He says here that he “needs a little love in my life” and “little love in the dark”. Neither of those things are positive. He also speaks about his broken heart needing a kick start. Then he continues “need a little loving tonight”. Then he asks (who I assume is his partner) to hold him so he wont fall apart, and even though it is little, he hopes it is enough to kick start his heart. The narrator doesn’t ask for much, something as small as a hug seems to be enough to make them feel slightly better. “Yeah…Shot gun, aimed at my heart, you got oneTear me apart and then someHow do we call this love (whoa oh oh oh)I try to run away but your eyesTell me to stay, oh why,Why do we call this love (whoa oh oh oh)” The first line, I don’t know exactly how to go deep into it, having a shot gun aimed at your heart, metaphorically speaking I assume, feels quite straight forward. This might be stretching it a bit, but if I plan on diving deeper, maybe it is the singers way of saying his heart is held hostage? He has a gun aimed at his heart, one wrong move and you are out. He continues saying by “tear me apart” which hints that this partner of his completely ruins him. Then he asks “How do we call this love?”. I have heard about many examples, where people in abusive relationships do not seek help, they still say they love the person they are with, and people standing on the outside may not understand what is going on in their mind. But the narrator seems to be in love still, but questions it how this can be called love. Or maybe their partner is telling them they do what they do,because they love them. When the singer/narrator attempts to run away they are drawn back by their partners eyes, which tell him to stay. It is said the eyes are the window to our soul, which to some extend, I would say is true. You can often see emotions in people just by looking them in the eyes. Perhaps his partner starts crying (idea) which fills him with guilt about leaving, which results in him staying longer, and the whole thing repeats. “It seems like we’ve been losing controlSomebody tell me I’m not aloneWhen I said” At some point in their relationship something went wrong. There seems to have been a shift which caused this whole thing. Their relationship is chaotic it seems. Then he says “Somebody tell me I’m not alone”. I have heard victims often feel like they are all alone. They have no one to turn to, because they feel alone, but the singer wants to know if someone else out there is going through the same thing. [chorus, see above]“All I need’s a little love in my lifeAll I need’s a little love in the darkA little but I’m hoping it might kick startMe and my broken heartI need a little loving tonightHold me so I’m not falling apartA little but I’m hoping it might kick startMe and my broken heartMaybe some part of you just hates meYou pick me up and play meHow do we call this love? (whoa oh oh oh)One time tell me you need me tonightTo make it easy, you lieAnd say it’s all for love (whoa oh oh oh)” The singer wonders, or asks, if some part of their partner hates him. Why would someone treat you badly if they loved you? They must hate me? Right? He continues, saying that “you pick me up and play me”. In their partners eyes, they just seem like a toy. Something you can play around with regardless of how he (the singer) is feeling. Again he asks, how can this be called love? The last three lines of of this verse support my idea before, that their partner says that, what they do, they do it because of love. His partner tells him that they need him tonight, and to make it easy, perhaps for both parties, his partner says its all for love. It is possible that his partner is also trying to convince himself. [pre-chorus, see above]“It seems like we’ve been losing controlSomebody tell me I’m not aloneWhen I say” [choruse, see above]“All I need’s a little love in my lifeAll I need’s a little love in the darkA little but I’m hoping it might kick startMe and my broken heartI need a little loving tonightHold me so I’m not falling apartA little but I’m hoping it might kick startMe and my broken heartWhoa oh, whoa ohMe and my broken heartWhoa oh, whoa ohMe and my brokenYeah, yeah, yeah(Me and my broken, broken heart)Yeah, yeah, yeahHow do we call this?” There is not much to say here, this is the bridge, there isn’t much to analyse here. Maybe the repetition is to emphasize that his heart is broken? Though I doubt it was meant in that sense. “It’s just meIt’s just meIt’s just meMe and my broken heart” Quite straight forward, he is just asking if it is “just him”. Like I mentioned before, victims may feel as if they are alone. [chorus, see above]“All I need’s a little love in my lifeAll I need’s a little love in the darkA little but I’m hoping it might kick startMe and my broken heartI need a little loving tonightHold me so I’m not falling apartA little but I’m hoping it might kick startMe and my broken heart” After the second verse the song is quite repetitive and not much to analyse. I have been allowing this song to float in my mind for so long, looking at it from different perspectives etc., that there was nothing that surprised me when I started writing this down. I remember when I first started thinking about this song, I asked one of my friends if she could see where I was going, though she didn’t agree. It could have been because she hadn’t looked much into the lyrics, or that I am going into this too deep. Maybe it is just a guy that is heartbroken, and is trying to piece himself together with meaningless relations, just to get a little love in his life. Maybe the chorus is the present and the two verses his past. Whether it was the goal of the writer or not, I still believe this song has something to do with abusive relationships. And maybe the “upbeat” music might be a distraction from the actual message of the song, which could be intentional to show how abusive relationships might be on the surface. I do not have any personal relationships with people that have gone through these things (maybe I do, just don’t know about it), but I have heard and read stories from people that have managed to get out of relationships like these, which convinces me that this song is about an abusive relationship.