# Better Than No Love At All?



## wanttolove (Jan 25, 2012)

I am curious to see how others react to the lyrics of an old song I heard this morning. It touched me immediately, brought tears as I drove my car and listened as best I could. I was happy, on my way to ride my mountain bike off road (studs on ice are FUN), and I really liked the sense these lyrics made to me as I listened, then looked them up.

No Love At All, sung by BJ Thomas

Read in the paper nearly day
People breakin' up and just walkin' away
From love and that's wrong
That's so wrong

A happy little home comes up for sale
Because two fools have tried
And failed to get along
And ya know that's wrong

A man hurts a woman and a woman hurts a man
When neither one of them will love and understand
And take it with a grain of salt
Oh, now believe that

A little bit of love is better than no love
Even the bad love is better than no love
And even the sad love is better than no love at all
Got to believe that

A little bit of love is better than no love
Even the bad love is better than no love
And any kind of love is better than no love at all

No love at all is a poor old man
Standin' on the corner
With his hat in his hand
And no place to go, and he's feelin' low

And no love at all is a child in the street
Dodgin' traffic and beggin'
To eat on a tenement row
And that's a long row to hoe

No love at all is a troubled young girl
Standin' on a bridge at the end of the world
And it's a pretty short fall
Now people believe me

A little bit of love is better than no love
Even the bad love is better than no love
And even the sad love is better than no love at all
Got to believe that

A little bit of love is better than no love
Even the bad love is better than no love
And any kind of love is better than no love at all

And oh, now you got to believe me

A little bit of love is better than no love
Even the bad love is better than no love
And even the sad is better than no love at all
Got to believe me

A little bit of love is better than no love
Even the bad love is better than no love
And any kind of love is better than no love at all
Oh, now believe

A little bit of love is better than no love
Even the bad love is better than no love
And any kind of love is better than no love at all
Oh

A little bit of love is better than no love
Even the bad love is better than no love
And any kind of love is better than no love at all
Oh, now believe

A little bit of love is better than no love
Even the bad love is better than no love


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

I disagree wholeheartedly.


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## BirdieToldMe (Jan 16, 2016)

I also think I disagree wholeheartedly. I would rather be single than ignored everyday. I would rather be lonely and alone than lonely lying next to my husband. The bad love is definitely not better than no love.


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## SimplyAmorous (Nov 25, 2009)

Is the reason you cried.. because you realized through the song.. that -even though you are going through a hard time.. this song hit upon how it's still worth the ride.. to count your blessings ??

My impression of your opening line anyway...

I am one who does feel that LOVE is the greatest feeling of fulfillment we will ever have in this life.. *TO LOVE and BE LOVED*.. but how true.. not everyone finds that - if I can use the term "Soul mate" -or maybe one we thought was ours.. broke our hearts for another.. nothing can crush us like this, some never fully recover from a lost love (always very sad).

Not everyone NEEDS Romantic Love.. though for us Romantics... some sort of love that is at least "honest"- even if difficult -but not tied to betrayal or heartbreak... just fighting, disagreements .. yet they remain.. Yes.. I'd TAKE that over never finding anyone to share my life with.. 

If those 2 options existed.. though thankfully the world is bigger than this. and we have lots of options!.. and if young.. more time to find a compatible mate...

I would feel.. to have never been loved by a man - to be worse..


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## BirdieToldMe (Jan 16, 2016)

I will say that I like the "count your blessings" aspect of it all. I think in that sense certain lines would resonate with me. 

Nobody's perfect and if they're giving you their best and only giving you sad love because of depression or whatever, then it's better than nothing because there's still love there. I get that.

But I kind of took the song to be like someone saying, "It's better than being single / having no one." I would totally disagree with that take on it.


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## jorgegene (May 26, 2012)

Very moving lyrics.

this is a tough one, but I'd have to say generally I agree.

there are far too many lonely people out there with nothing.


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## jorgegene (May 26, 2012)

SimplyAmorous said:


> Is the reason you cried.. because you realized through the song.. that -even though you are going through a hard time.. this song hit upon how it's still worth the ride.. to count your blessings ??
> 
> My impression of your opening line anyway...
> 
> ...


isn't that the ' meaning of existence'? To love and be loved?


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## SimplyAmorous (Nov 25, 2009)

jorgegene said:


> *isn't that the ' meaning of existence'? To love and be loved?*


Well not everyone will think so... One thing I learned coming to this forum was.. WOW.. I'm terribly Romantic compared to the general population who could care less about such things.. seems lots of men & women would he happy to be alone, they have their hobbies or career that fulfills ...and be content with a f*** buddy on the side when the physical calls.. 

That's NOT me.. That would never satisfy my soul.. 

I feel like this...


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## jorgegene (May 26, 2012)

Well that may certainly be true, and I'm not sure that many people would accept that notion. However, I think the christian, judaic, buddhist, hindu paradigm, as well as much of the collective wisdom of the ages could be distllilled down to that very simple idea.


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## wanttolove (Jan 25, 2012)

SimplyAmorous said:


> Is the reason you cried.. because you realized through the song.. that -even though you are going through a hard time.. this song hit upon how it's still worth the ride.. to count your blessings ??
> ..


Yes. For the most part, yes. Sometimes I wonder why I continue to hang on. While I am still here, I may not have the complete love of my wife, but I have the love of my children, my friends, my wife's family, even my dog and cat. That means something. It's not so crazy to hang on!


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## Openminded (Feb 21, 2013)

I am much happier divorced than I was married. I have the love of my family and pets and friends and they are my focus. I'm not a romantic so, no, to me a little love isn't better than no love at all. I did that for decades and greatly regret it. However, many people stay in less-than-perfect marriages their entire lives. We all make our choices.


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## Broken at 20 (Sep 25, 2012)

I'd rather have no love than bad love. Bad love will destroy you. 

But to me, any kind of love is a weakness. It should be given out sparingly and carefully, because whoever holds it can hurt you.


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## thefam (Sep 9, 2014)

I kind of feel like SA. Although I've only been in love with one person in my life, and have never had my heart broken, I cannot imagine living life with no one to love and no one to love me in a romantic sense. But I fully understand that (1) everyone does not need/want it and (2) some have been through such bad relationships that they would truly rather be alone.


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## MJJEAN (Jun 26, 2015)

If there's not a deep, abiding, passionate, love on both sides, I don't want it.

"I want you. I need you. Now, don't feel sad. Cuz two out of three ain't bad." Meatloaf. Umm, when the missing third is the romantic love spouses should feel for each other, two out of three IS bad. I'd rather have 3/3 or nothing.


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## EleGirl (Dec 3, 2011)

Personal said:


> Life is too short to waste on bad love.


Nicely put.

The song is a romantic look at love. A relationship is not perfect all the time. In a basically good marriage, there will be hard times, bad times. And yes when that is the case you stick it out and fake till you make it.

But when it's bad love? No that song does not apply. When loves really goes bad, it's not better than no love.


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