Queen – “Somebody to Love” (2)

Edward Munch – 1894/96 – Melancholy

This song is about faith, desperation, soul-searching, and, above all, the human basic need to truly love and be loved: life is not worth living without sharing it with someone we love

The singer feels he is getting old and needs someone by his side. He has worked really hard to be where he is, but now he feels so lonely and isolated that he cries when he perceives his image in the mirror. He needs help, while people think he is just mad.
He is losing hope day by day but in the end, he realizes he will get over it.

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Refrain
Can anybody find me somebody to love?

Throughout this song, the refrain “Can anybody find me somebody to love?” does not only mean that he needs someone by his side, but also that he is afraid of not being able to find love.

Verse 1

Ooh, each morning I get up I die a little
Can barely stand on my feet
(Take a look at yourself) Take a look in the mirror and cry (and cry)
Lord, what you’re doing to me (yeah yeah)
I have spent all my years in believing you
But I just can’t get no relief, Lord!
Somebody (somebody) ooh somebody (somebody)
Can anybody find me somebody to love?

The singer feels he is getting old and needs someone by his side. He has worked really hard to be where he is, but now he feels so lonely and isolated that he cries when he perceives his image in the mirror. Words such as “each morning I get up I die a little” portray a man who is hurt, depressed and lonely, longing for love as a means of leaving his sorrows. Even waking up becomes an unpleasant task without a person beside him.
Mercury was religious; he was a Zoroastrian, a religion deeply rooted in the power of a supreme god who requires good deeds for help in his cosmic struggle against the evil spirit Ahriman. Now he is frustrated since he has always been faithful to his God but still hasn’t been rewarded with love.

Verse 2

I work hard (he works hard) every day of my life
I work ’til I ache in my bones
At the end (at the end of the day)
I take home my hard earned pay all on my own
I get down (down) on my knees (knees)
And I start to pray
‘Til the tears run down from my eyes
Lord, somebody (somebody), ooh somebody
(Please) can anybody find me somebody to love?

He works really hard, he earns some money, but this doesn’t cancel out the feelings of loneliness and longing for someone to share his life with, to meet at home after a hard day’s work.

Bridge

Everyday (everyday) I try and I try and I try
But everybody wants to put me down
They say I’m going crazy
They say I got a lot of water in my brain
Ah, got no common sense
I got nobody left to believe in
Yeah yeah yeah yeah

He needs help, while people think he is just mad, he wants to find love but no one seems willing to give him a chance. Words like “everyone wants to put me down” imply his sorrow and despair. Nobody wants to trust him and the feeling of being unlovable increases his depression

Chorus

Oh, Lord
Ooh somebody, ooh somebody
Can anybody find me somebody to love?
(Can anybody find me someone to love)

Here he prays again the Lord to let him find somebody to bond with.

Verse 3

Got no feel, I got no rhythm
I just keep losing my beat (you just keep losing and losing)
I’m OK, I’m alright (he’s alright, he’s alright)
I ain’t gonna face no defeat (yeah yeah)
I just gotta get out of this prison cell
One day (someday) I’m gonna be free, Lord!

In his present situation he feels awkward when he is with other people. He thinks he lacks warmth and charm, and this may be the reason why he is so unsuccessful in finding someone to love. He is losing hope day by day but in the end, he realizes he will get over it: the earlier pessimistic attitude becomes determination to reach his goal.
Since life looks like a prison cell that keeps him trapped, he hopes, someday, to break free.