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The book of love is long and boring
No one can lift the damn thing
It's full of charts and facts and figures
And instructions for dancing
But I, I love it when you read to me
And you, you can read me anything
The book of love has music in it
In fact, that's where music comes from
Some of it is just transcendental
Some of it is just really dumb, but
I, I love it when you sing to me, and
You, you can sing me anything
The book of love is long and boring
And written very long ago
It's full of flowers and heart-shaped boxes
And things we're all too young to know, but
I, I love it when you give me things
And you, you ought to give me wedding rings
No one can lift the damn thing
It's full of charts and facts and figures
And instructions for dancing
But I, I love it when you read to me
And you, you can read me anything
The book of love has music in it
In fact, that's where music comes from
Some of it is just transcendental
Some of it is just really dumb, but
I, I love it when you sing to me, and
You, you can sing me anything
The book of love is long and boring
And written very long ago
It's full of flowers and heart-shaped boxes
And things we're all too young to know, but
I, I love it when you give me things
And you, you ought to give me wedding rings
Lyrics submitted by Anne Arbour
Track duration: 02:42
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"No one can lift the damn thing" I would say with this line, he's indicating that no one can live up to the expectations of the "perfect love" because what we've been taught about love in the movies, isn't reality.
However when his loved one does the things he doesnt think much of such as reading TBOL to him, he loves and enjoys it although it still doesnt make sense to him but because he loves that person so much. Only my interpretation :)
When love is lost; the love of books.
~ W.
The song is a natural for being covered and it really doesn't bother when other artists attempt their own version of it. However, I think most attempts are doomed to fail because they can't approach the stark simplicity and authenticity of the original without just copying it completely which would be pointless. Peter Gabriel's version is remarkably uninspired because his style (lush compositions) doesn't suit the irony implicit in the songs lyrics, and his musical vision is so different than Stephen Merritt's.
I would have loved to have heard Jeff Buckley cover this song (sadly that can't happen) or someone with an equally supple and expressive sound. Somebody upthread mention Leonard Cohen and and there really is a similar style and approach. (I wonder if and how much SM was influenced by Cohen).
Some survivors describe unimaginable acts of love, courage, valor, and dedication while others describe the daily struggle to procure enough food to survive. Some survivors describe sublime acts of personal dedication whereas others describe banal experiences and daily travails.
The book of love is relivent to all as it is a catalog of personal attachment. In fact, the book of love is a complete an integrated account of attachment. It includes often described "fairy-tale like moments" as well as the moments of boredom that exist between emotional high peaks. Moreover, the book of love is a personal history. When moments are recapitulated, commiserated, or ego-syntonic, they are most palpable. Hence, the text becomes all the more sublime when read by a lover, as the process of reading itself can substantiate the text.
The book of love really is a metaphor to describe the various behaviors we assume (or more accurately: have assumed) to express our affection to others. Love often is described as an altruistic commitment to another. However, in reality, we generally love those who "love" us back for our "loving" actions. Thus, being read to from the book of love is analogous to being loved as the mere act of "reading" is analogous to "loving."
Iron and Wine covering the Postal Service
Nirvana covering Bowie
TV On The Radio covering the Pixies
Sun Kil Moon covering Modest Mouse
Gnarls Barkley covering Radiohead
All homages to the original, and interesting to learn who the artists themselves are listening to and admiring. It's not like this is "Smelly Cat" rewritten to be used in a cat food commercial, you know?