Taylor Swift’s “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” became the longest #1 hit song on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, and the artist took to Instagram to sincerely thank her fans for this. Everything about the song from its backstory to its composition is still all the hype for Swifties, even months after its release. “All Too Well” is probably one of her most iconic songs because of the meaningful lyrics and message behind it; it is an understatement to say that her 10-minute version was just what fans needed. In celebration of the song’s success, here are her six best lyrics from “All Too Well (10 Minute Version).”
- “I walked through the door with you, the air was cold, but something about it felt like home somehow.”
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Right at the beginning of the song, Swift narrates a feeling that all of us have felt before. When you are in an unfamiliar setting, all it takes is for that one special person to make you feel like home somehow. It doesn’t matter where or who you are with; having your person by your side is all the solace you need. The use of the word “home” also relates to the comfort you feel when being in a relationship with someone; a feeling you wish you could hold on to forever.
- “You taught me about your past, thinking your future was me.”
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The feeling you get after meeting your person. You tell them everything about your past because you are certain they are going to be there forever. Opening up about your past is a vulnerable thing to do, but once you share it with someone special, it’s as if the past is irrelevant; you hope the rest of your life is spent with them. Ouch.
- “And I was thinking on the drive down, “any time now he’s gonna say it’s love,” you never called it what it was.”
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This is possibly the saddest lyric in the whole song. When you are certain the relationship you are in is simply “love” but your partner never explicitly says it. They never called it what you called it. This hurts for numerous reasons.
- “Well maybe we got lost in translation, maybe I asked for too much, but maybe this thing was a masterpiece till you tore it all up.”
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The “maybe’s” of a relationship are always the most haunting. Were you the problem or was it the other person? What went wrong? Could it have all been fixed? Is it really over? These feelings burden you. But here, Swift expresses it differently. Maybe things got difficult, but maybe it was their fault and not yours because they could not handle the masterpiece of a relationship you were giving them. It’s not you, it’s me. It’s cliché, but it is important to remember that if someone cannot handle your love and affection, they never deserved it in the fist place, and you are better off without them.
- “That’s what happened, you.”
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What’s wrong? What happened? Why are you sad? You get asked all these questions and are forced to think of a million excuses because you do not want to admit the truth. You. That’s what happened. You broke me; you ruined me. That is what is being expressed here. Though it is such a short lyric, it holds a lot of emotion. It takes a lot of vulnerability to admit that the one thing hurting you most is the one person you never thought would.
- “But you keep my old scarf from that very first week, cause it reminds you of innocence and it smells like me.”
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The innocence and purity at the beginning of a relationship. Everything’s new; you are in the “honeymoon phase.” The honeymoon phase should last throughout the relationship, but as expressed here, it didn’t. The old scarf is a representation of how the relationship began and how it ended. Again, ouch.
This 10-minute version is what we all needed. The power this song holds on her whole fandom is unmatched. Although it’s been months since this version’s release, every time I hear it again is like the very first time.