Well, in my opinion this song is about being a young & maybe a little naive &/or introverted girl and finding yourself loving a man who is at first very charming, carefree & outgoing, and seems at first to be without limits, as in
"There was a time
you opened up every doorway
you didn't mind if everything
wasn't your way"
then that man starts to gradually become more introverted & shows their more possessive/obsessive side to you as the relationship progresses, even while they keep up the appearance of being carefree & outgoing to everyone else,
"Don't pull away
that goes against what you told me
I look in your eyes
I realize what you've sold me
is love in a vacuum"
so you confront them about the way they're acting and of course they deny it,
"I think you've changed
but you insist that
that's not true"
quite possibly they are an addict of some sort, my guess would be cocaine, &/or showing very obsessive behavior towards you (early on in the video for this song we see the man hanging a picture up, it is a very large portrait of Aimee & it is prominently displayed in his/their apartment for the duration of the song), thus their "love in a vacuum",
"You look so strange, so distant
that you're hardly you
Now I can see
how you have been acting different
You say it's me
but I know
that it isn't
it's love in a vacuum"
but still you are in love with them and don't want to leave them and you know that they are truly in love with you and they don't want you to leave them either, maybe they are convinced you can save them from themself, maybe they are so broken that the possibility of an overdose &/or suicide attempt is very real and you want to get through to them that their behavior not only dangerous but it is also just pissing you off and if they don't wise up they run the risk of loosing you, as in the lines
"You will be lonely
if you leave me alone", so you want to save them but can't get through to them due to the addiction &/or emotional problems they have,
"Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
love in a vacuum
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
You will be lonely
if you leave me alone
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough"
you want them to understand that the love they are giving you is not enough when it is filtered through the vacuum of their drug addiction &/or emotional impairment,
"You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough
and just wait
you will be lonely
Love in a vacuum
Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
Love in a vacuum".
'Love In A Vacuum' for me is a hauntingly truthful acute argument on the loneliness of obsession and almost inevitable loss of love that follows people who are broken in some way or another; the obsessives, the coke heads, the drunks, addicts or the just-plain-old emotionally broken; a razor sharp, lyrically driven, deceptively poppy, yet ultimately-depressing-in-the-best-way song.
Quintessential Aimee Mann.
Nothing was delivered
And I tell this truth to you
Not out of spite or anger
But simply because it's true
Now, I hope you won't object to this
Giving back all of what you owe
The fewer words you have to waste on this
The sooner you can go
Nothing is better, nothing is best
Take care of yourself, get plenty of rest
Nothing was delivered
But I can't say I sympathize
With what your fate is going to be
Yes, for telling all those lies
Now you must provide some answers
For what you sold that's not been received
And the sooner you come up with them
The sooner you can leave
Nothing is better, nothing is best
Take care of yourself, get plenty of rest
Now you know nothing was delivered
And it's up to you to say
Just what you had in mind
When you made everybody pay
No, nothing was delivered
Yes, and someone must explain
And as long as it takes to do this
Then that's as long that you'll remain
Nothing is better, nothing is best
Take care of yourself, get plenty of rest
And I tell this truth to you
Not out of spite or anger
But simply because it's true
Now, I hope you won't object to this
Giving back all of what you owe
The fewer words you have to waste on this
The sooner you can go
Nothing is better, nothing is best
Take care of yourself, get plenty of rest
Nothing was delivered
But I can't say I sympathize
With what your fate is going to be
Yes, for telling all those lies
Now you must provide some answers
For what you sold that's not been received
And the sooner you come up with them
The sooner you can leave
Nothing is better, nothing is best
Take care of yourself, get plenty of rest
Now you know nothing was delivered
And it's up to you to say
Just what you had in mind
When you made everybody pay
No, nothing was delivered
Yes, and someone must explain
And as long as it takes to do this
Then that's as long that you'll remain
Nothing is better, nothing is best
Take care of yourself, get plenty of rest
Lyrics submitted by BraveSirRobin
Nothing Was Delivered Lyrics as written by Bob Dylan
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Sounds like a very threatening, ominous song: seems to have nothing to do with love or a romantic attachment gone bad. Sounds rather like a drug deal gone bad: someone who got burned by a dealer is now holding that dealer hostage until either his money is returned or "the goods" are delivered. Dylan had monkeyed around with heroin previously (he was quite obviously on it during at least parts of his spring '66 tour of England- see the video of him riding in the back of a limo with John Lennon early one morning, on route from Lennon's suburban house (St. John's Wood) to Dylan's hotel after a post-gig all night party featuring lots of alcohol and lots of drugs- the documentary makers stop the taping after 10-15 minutes as Dylan gets ready to vomit on the inside of the limo). My guess was that during his subsequent retreat from the public eye following his motorcycle accident (summer '66) when he was holed up for much of the time with The Band at Big Pink, he was still messing with hard drugs. Dylan reemerged at the end of '67 with "John Wesley Harding" and, a few months later, of course, came The Band's album debut ("Music From Big Pink"). The Byrds also had a version of this song during this period on their Gram Parsons-influenced hard-right turn into country music, "Sweetheart of the Rodeo."