The Meaning of 'Love Story' by Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift is an amazing songwriter and an amazing artist. I am not a big Country fan, and I am definitely not a ‘Swiftie.’ However, I greatly appreciate Taylor Swift’s music. So much so that I even took the time to learn and play one of her songs.

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Her songs are highly relatable to so many people, and the meaning of ‘Love Story‘ by Taylor Swift demonstrates this perfectly. Although it is a song mostly geared towards a younger generation, the song still feels relevant to an older audience. Let’s get started.

Early Life

Taylor Alison Swift was born on the 13th of December 1989 in Pennsylvania. The name ‘Taylor’ was picked in part as a reference to the incredible guitarist and singer/songwriter James Taylor. This seems now so appropriate, given her love of playing the guitar. Taylor Swift has been a long-time admirer of James Taylor. And she has even had him as a guest star at some of her concerts.

Taylor Swift’s grandmother was an opera singer. This might explain her initial interest in theatre and acting. However, when she got a little older, she became obsessed with Shania Twain and Country music. We all know where that would eventually lead.

At age 12, she started to learn the guitar from a local musician named Ronnie Cremer. He also nurtured her songwriting abilities and helped her with the songwriting process. And he even helped write Taylor Swift’s first song.

At only 13 years old…

Taylor was given a development deal with RCA Records. Subsequently, she regularly traveled to Nashville with her mother to try to break into the Country scene. Then, in what can only be described as a wonderful piece of supportive parenting, her father, a Merrill Lynch stockbroker, arranged for a transfer to Nashville.

The whole family relocated, and Taylor, after one school transfer, ended her education at the Aaron Academy. However, during this time, she had already been working with incredible songwriters. For example, Bret James, The Warren Brothers, and Liz Rose.

By the time she was 16, she was signed to a new label, Big Machine Records. And with that, the task of writing her first album began. Once completed, Taylor ended up fully credited for three of the songs on the album and as a co-writer for the remaining eight songs.

Career Success

Taylor Swift’s first album, the self-titled Taylor Swift, was released in October 2006. She was still just 16 years old. The album went to #5 in the US and, in the process, went seven times platinum. It also sold more than seven million copies worldwide. These are truly incredible numbers for a debut album.

Taylor Swift’s debut single, “Tim McGraw,” also performed strongly. It went to #40 in the US and went double platinum. She released five singles from the album. The best-selling release was “Our Song,” which came out in 2007. That song went to #16 in the US and went four times platinum.

Taylor Swift went on to have so much success and continues to do so…

Therefore, it is only possible to stick to a few of the highlights before moving on. The most successful Taylor Swift album was 1989, which was released in 2014. It went to #1 pretty much everywhere and sold over 14 million copies.

The album also included the huge smash hit single “Shake it Off.” This also went to #1 in most countries and earned her more platinum discs and even a diamond disc in her home American market.

Taylor Swift is currently one of the Top 5 best-selling female artists of all time and is showing no signs of waning in popularity. Given her incredible songwriting skills and fiercely loyal fan base, it is not beyond a stretch of the imagination that she could become the most successful female singer of all time at some point. So, how does “Love Story” fit into all of this?

Recording

“Love Story” is probably one of Taylor Swift’s most significant songs. Firstly, it was the song that helped her to finally break through as an international artist. The song made it to #2 in the UK and got into the Top 10 on most European charts.

With her previous five single releases, the best she had managed was a lowly #51 on the UK charts. That was for the debut single, “Tim McGraw.” Consequently, the widespread acceptance of “Love Story” was pivotal in propelling her to international recognition and stardom.

What is also important…

“Love Story” was the only Country song to get to the top spot on the US Mainstream Top 40 Radio charts. This made it the biggest crossover Country song in history and, therefore, represented a huge increase in her fan base. The fact that the single sold six million copies in the US alone and a staggering 18 million copies worldwide very much backs this up.

“Love Story” is a Country/Pop song that was written solely by Taylor Swift. It was featured as the lead single of her second studio album, Fearless, released in 2008. The song was produced by Nathan Chapman and Taylor Swift at Blackbird Studios, which, of course, is in Nashville, Tennessee.

The recording of the song was made with Taylor singing live as her band played acoustic guitar, bass, and drums. I love this element of the recording as it gives the track warmth and authenticity. I also love that the dreaded autotune was never used, and thus the humanity in her voice remains. This, I believe, is why many of her songs are so popular. Modern producers take note.

Once the initial recording was complete…

Chapman continued to overdub with banjos, electric guitars, and fiddles to give it that Country feel that Taylor wanted as the finished product. So, what is it all about?

Lyrics and Meaning

If you watch the video and don’t even listen to the song, then you probably would have a pretty good idea. The video flips between modern-day scenes in a high school and back to an indeterminate time in history. But we should assume it has to be somewhere in the 16th century. Taylor dresses accordingly in both cases.

The reason for this transport back in time is due to the many references in the song to the characters of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, written in 1595. We can, therefore, reasonably deduce that this is a story about a troubled relationship between two young lovers. A highly fertile area for Taylor Swift as far as songwriting is concerned.

So, what specifically is the meaning of ‘Love Story’ by Taylor Swift?

Undoubtedly, what “Love Story” by Taylor Swift is about is young love. Furthermore, Taylor clearly draws upon the characters of Romeo and Juliet to paint a story of forbidden love. As far as the song is concerned, we see things from Juliet’s viewpoint, with Taylor having taken on her persona.

In the song, like in the play, the father is less than happy with their relationship and does not allow them to see each other. They, of course, ignore this and see each other behind their parents’ backs. That creates lots of conflict, emotion, pleasure, and pain all at the same time. Ripe emotions for a songwriter.

Like so many of her songs…

The song is thought to be partly about an ex of Taylor’s. When she was a young teenager, she was going out with a boy whom she was convinced that she was in love with. But whom her parents thought was unsuitable. Taylor ignored their views and continued to spend time with him. However, in time, she realized that he was nothing but a creep and that her parents had been right all along.

The song is also thought to be a dig or reference, at least to another ex. This time, we know the identity as it is almost certainly the middle brother of the Jonas Brothers, Joe Jonas, who she was dating in 2008. He was potentially another unsuitable ex-boyfriend. Nice work, Taylor; having a go at two ex-boyfriends in just one song.

Unlike in Shakespeare’s play…

The ending of the song is surprisingly a happy one. At the point where it looks like Juliet is about to give up on Romeo, he suddenly pops up and proposes. Even better, he tells her that he has spoken to her father, and it is now all OK. So they can prepare for a fairytale wedding and a happy ever after.

It is an interesting ending, one that possibly reflects Taylor’s positive outlook on the dating scene and that she will eventually find her Prince Charming. Sadly, she is still looking. Within a few days of writing this, she split up with her long-term boyfriend of six years, Joe Alwyn. I wish her all the luck in the world. But expect some new songs in the next few months or so.

Curious About The Meaning Behind Other Famous Songs?

If you are, check out our thoughts on the Meaning Behind “Ghost” Song by Justin Bieber, The Meaning Behind “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele, The Meaning Behind “Both Sides, Now” by Joni Mitchell, the Meaning Behind “Edge of Seventeen” Song By Stevie Nicks, and the Meaning Behind “Purple Rain” Song By Prince for more song analysis and lyrical insights.