On Track

John Prine - "If You Don't Want My Love"
Bruised Orange (Oh Boy Records)

With a voice quickly compared to Bob Dylan, the folkster John Prine sings, "If you don't want my love/I know who I'll give it to."

Moving on and remaining on both of your feet; two moments that confronts you when the love you try to give to someone else just doesn't work out. Maybe you tried too hard? Or maybe you opened up too easily and laid yourself open to have your heart walked over? To try and love again is never a simple path that anyone can take.

With angelic backing vocals floating in and out, a relaxed drum beat, and the soft touch of a slide guitar, John Prine captures the confidence that comes with love. There is strength in a song that declares if the love you have to offer isn't wanted then it will be given to someone who will want it, and that person will be the luckiest person in the world. We all have thought at some point or another that our love can never be beaten by another. They can be a husband, a wife, a boyfriend, a girlfriend, an optimistic crush, or just a friend.

Prine conveys a quiet shrug of the shoulders. It's almost like a point of no return as if he is saying to someone else, "If you don't want me now, don't try looking for me later." No games. Prine is ready to take back his love and walk off into the sunset without looking back or saying long goodbyes. This is a song of acceptance. It is the acceptance that another's heart can not be told to feel a certain way. It is the acceptance that two hearts sometimes can not find a common ground no matter how hard the two try. It is this acceptance that Prine comes to realize in "If You Don't Want My Love," and it is this realization which proves to be as equally challenging as moving on with your heart.