This is a song about the desire for a particular lover’s touch and embrace.

Verse 1

“You’re the light, you’re the night / You’re the color of my blood / You’re the cure, you’re the pain / You’re the only thing I wanna touch / Never knew that it could mean so much, so much”

The character Ellie Goulding portrays in this jam – who very well may be a self-insert – is so enraptured by this person she sings about that she compares them to the light and dark itself. By saying the person is the color of her blood, it’s clear that the person has gotten deep under her skin and fills her with powerful feelings.

“You’re the fear, I don’t care / ‘Cause I’ve never been so high / Follow me through the dark / Let me take you past our satellites / You can see the world you brought to life, to life”

By likening her lover to the concept of fear, she introduces the idea that this affair doesn’t come without its fair share of mixed feelings. But in the same line, she confirms that this is not a deal-breaker for her. The strength of her attraction towards this person has made her feel higher than she ever has, and she goes so far as to say that her whole world as been brough to life by this person. Clearly, there’s an overwhelming sense of the positive feelings that have resulted from this person being in her life.

Chorus

“So love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do / Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do / Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do / What are you waiting for?”

These lyrics are fairly straightforward comparatively, but it does specify that she wants her lover to love her in the particular way that they do. It’s a specific kind of love that she’s after, and she wants it sooner rather than later.

Verse 2

“Fading in, fading out / On the edge of paradise / Every inch of your skin is a Holy Grail I’ve got to find / Only you can set my heart on fire, on fire”

Because of how powerful this love spell is on the song’s narrator, she practically feels like she is already in paradise. She has the effect of tuning in and out of reality, and she sees her love as something that is sacred at highly precious. It’s this lover and this lover alone who can light her flaming desire.

“I’ll let you set the pace / ‘Cause I’m not thinking straight / My head’s spinning around, I can’t see clear no more / What are you waiting for?”

Here, Ellie’s character admits that she’s not quite in her right mind because of the intoxicating effects of this attraction. As a result, she’s prepared to let her lover take the lead and go as fast or slow as they feel fit. In the last line, she urges her love to hurry up and get on with it.

Lyrics

You’re the light, you’re the night
You’re the colour of my blood
You’re the cure, you’re the pain
You’re the only thing I wanna touch
Never knew that it could mean so much, so much

You’re the fear, I don’t care
‘Cause I’ve never been so high
Follow me through the dark
Let me take you past our satellites
You can see the world you brought to life, to life

So love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do
What are you waiting for?

Fading in, fading out
On the edge of paradise
Every inch of your skin is a Holy Grail I’ve got to find
Only you can set my heart on fire, on fire

Yeah, I’ll let you set the pace
‘Cause I’m not thinking straight
My head’s spinning around, I can’t see clear no more
What are you waiting for?

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do
What are you waiting for?
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (ye-yeah)
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do
What are you waiting for?

I’ll let you set the pace
‘Cause I’m not thinking straight
My head’s spinning around, I can’t see clear no more
What are you waiting for?

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (ye-yeah)
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do
What are you waiting for?
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (whoa)
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do (ah)
What are you waiting for?

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Max Martin / Savan Kotecha / Ilya Salmanzadeh / Tove Lo

Love Me Like You Do lyrics © Bmg Gold Songs, Universal Pictures Music, Warner/chappell Music Scandinavia Ab, Mxm Music Ab, Wolf Cousins

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