I Wanna Learn a Love Song Songtext
von Harry Chapin

I come fresh from the street
Fast on my feet, kinda lean and lazy
Not much meat on my bones, and a whole lot alone
And more than a little bit crazy
The old six string was all I had to keep my belly still
And for each full hour lesson I gave, I got a crisp ten dollar bill

She was married for seven years to a concrete castle king
She said she wanted to learn to play the guitar
And to hear her children sing
So I′d show up for 'bout once a week
In my faded tight legged jeans
With a backlog full of hobo stories and dilapidated dreams

She said, "I want to learn a love song full of happy things"
She said, "I want to learn a love song, won′t you let me hear you sing?"
She said, "I want to learn a love song, I want to hear you play"
She said, "I, I want to learn a love song before you go away"


So I tried to teach her a couple of chords and an easy melody
But it always turned out she'd rather listen to my guitar and me
I could hear her old man laughing in the den, playing stud poker with the boys
While I sang so soft in the living room
Too scared to make much noise

I came one week, and the den was dark, and she met me at the door
And we sat on the couch and we sang and talked 'til I could not sing no more
The silence kept on building, her eyes grew much too wide
And I could hear both of our heartbeats, but there was no place to hide

She said, "I want to learn a love song full of happy things"
She said, "I want to learn a love song, won′t you let me hear you sing?"
She said, "I want to learn a love song, I want to hear you play"
She said, "I, I want to learn a love song before you go away"

Well, I guess you know what happened, God, I, I never been so clean
Yes, I feel like I′m working in a Hollywood movie, or living out a good bad dream
And all them pin-up girls in that tinsel world, never touched me like she can
It took another man's wife in the real world life to make this boy a man

She said, "I want to learn a love song full of happy things"
She said, "I want to learn a love song, won′t you let me hear you sing?"
She said, "I, I want to learn a love song, I want to hear you play"
She said, "I want to learn a love song before you go away"

I guess you know I stayed
(Ooh, ooh, ooh)