Category Archives: 2000s songs

The top 500 songs from the 2000s. Lyrics, interpretations and meanings from your favorite bands. Coldplay, Christina Perri, Christina Aguilera, Death Cab for Cutie, Greenday, Arcade Fire, and all your favorite bands from the 2000s ranked.

2000s songs, toxic relationship

#163 True Love Waits (live)- RadioHead

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I’m not living/
I’m just killing time.

Radiohead’s “True Love Waits” is a song is about a codependent, toxic relationship. The woman (who speaks in the first verse) is willing to give up her beliefs and start dressing younger to make the man want to be with her. Anything–as long as her lover doesn’t leave. It is clear she is not happy.

True Love Waits

The man isn’t happy either. He likes her smile and tiny hands; he is sexually attracted to her. But, he admits he isn’t truly living, he is just killing time with her.  At the same time he pleads with her: “please don’t leave”.

Both lovers seem to acknowledge that there is a such thing as true love out there: maybe when they were younger, maybe in the old days, but not between them; not now. Inertia keeps them together, even though deep-down they both would rather be with different people.

The song is haunting and the instrumentation is simple. Yorke’s falsetto is amazing. The live version really adds a lot of emotion to the song. It is interesting that sometimes the short simple songs can have the strongest emotional impact.

True Love Waits Lyrics

I’ll drown my beliefs,
To have your babies.
I’ll dress like your niece,
And wash your swollen feet.

Just don’t leave.
Don’t leave.

I’m not living.
I’m just killing time.
Your tiny hands,
Your crazy kitten smile.

Just don’t leave.
Don’t leave.

And true love waits
In haunted attics.
And true love lives
On lollipops and crisps.

Just don’t leave,
Don’t leave.

written by: Edward John O’Brien / Jonathan Richard Guy Greenwood / Philip James Selway / Thomas Edward Yorke

2000s songs, life is hard

#160 The Beauty Of The Rain- Dar Williams

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the beauty of the rain/
Is how it falls, how it falls, how it falls.

For Dar Williams, “The Beauty of the Rain” is its constancy…you can always count on the rain doing what it does…it falls. Dar William’s world has changed rapidly, significantly for the worse due to a relationship ending. She feels overwhelmed. Wasn’t it just yesterday that they were falling in love with each other? She is looking to the heavens (figuratively and perhaps literally) for answers.

The Beauty Of The Rain Meaning
Dar Williams

She sees a familiar, recognizable pattern that is almost comforting. She sees the rain falling down. Just like it did throughout her relationship. At least she has that! She’s being sarcastic; this is not a celebration of the rain.

Dar William’s “The Beauty of the Rain” is a simple folk song with little more than the singer and a guitar. Sometimes those can be the most impactful songs. While the majority of the sound is just Dar Williams and her guitar, she does mix in a variety of other instruments in a very minute way to make the sound a little more voluminous.

Williams uses a standard but pleasant finger-picking pattern and uses minor percussion, keyboards, bass, a sax solo and a muted trumpet to fill out the mix of the underrated classic “The Beauty of the Rain”.

The Beauty of The Rain Lyrics

And you know the light is fading all too soon.
You’re just two umbrellas one late afternoon.
You don’t know the next thing you will say.
This is your favorite kind of day,
It has no walls, the beauty of the rain,
Is how it falls, how it falls, how it falls.

And there’s nothing wrong but there is something more,
And sometimes you wonder what you love her for.
She says you’ve known her deepest fears,
‘Cause she showed you a box of stained-glass tears;
It can’t be all, the truth about the rain,
Is how it falls, how it falls, how it falls.

But when she gave you more to find,
You let her think she’d lost her mind.
And that’s all on you.
Feeling helpless if she asked for help
Or scared you’d have to change yourself.

And you can’t deny this room will keep you warm.
You can look out of your window at the storm.
But you watch the phone and hope it rings,
You’ll take her any way she sings;
Or how she calls, the beauty of the rain,
Is how it falls, how it falls, how it falls.
How it falls, how it falls, how it falls.

written by Dar WIlliams

2000s songs, breakup songs

#149 I Don’t Wanna Hurt- Anouk

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I don’t wanna hurt no more…/
We’re breaking things we can’t repair/
None of us will take them blame.

In “I Don’t Wanna Hurt”, Anouk has come to the realization that her relationship has come to an end. Once there may have been love between them, now there is only bitterness and sadness and they are clearly not right for each other.

There is nothing more to talk about…just some minor logistics to settle like who leaves who. So, in the morning Anouk will leave.

I Don't Wanna Hurt Meaning
Anouk

Why can’t she get the life she’s dreamed of? Will she ever be happy? All she knows it that they bring each other pain and it is time to end. Hopefully this will end the pain as well.

The great thing about “I Don’t Wanna Hurt” is the emotion in Anouk’s voice when she sings this song. We believe her words and we know these are her feelings she is expressing. She sounds exhausted from the relationship and sounds like she needs a break.

She feels resolute in her decision and will not be changing her mind. She always kind of felt it might end this way. But does this mean she will never have the life she always wanted? That remains to be seen.

I Don’t Wanna Hurt Lyrics

We’re breaking things we can’t repair,
None of us will take them blame,
No nothing can be done this time.
All the memories that we’ve made,
I threw them all away,
There’s no need to talk it over.
Don’t let me get you down,
Let’s just move on,
I am setting you free.

‘Cause I don’t wanna hurt no more.
I don’t wanna make you go
Through one more rainy day.
No I don’t wanna hurt no more.
Strange enough I always knew
I’m taking off today.
Don’t wanna hurt no more.

Darkness you left in my soul,
Now do we know how much we’ve lost?
Will the moon be shining as bright as before?
And as I am singing this song,
The tears went up in my eyes.
And I will always wonder
Why I will never have the life I wanted-
Now I’m letting it go.

‘Cause I don’t wanna hurt no more.
I don’t wanna make you go
Through one more rainy day.
No I don’t wanna hurt no more.
There’s not much more to say
‘Cause it’s to late now
I won’t hurt no more.

So I’ll wait till morning comes
You made it clear it’s been only pain loving me.
Things that we don’t do for love,
I am setting you free.

‘Cause I don’t wanna hurt no more.
I don’t wanna make you go
Through one more rainy day.
No I don’t wanna hurt no more.
Strange enough I always knew
I’m taking off today.
I’m letting you go.

written by Anouk Teeuwe / Daniel Hill