On Air Now
Capital Breakfast with Jordan North, Chris Stark and Sian Welby 6am - 10am
9 April 2021, 18:33
Olivia Rodrigo and Conan Gray reenact Taylor Swift's songs
"So you’re telling me that Taylor uses the word “Mr” 27 times in 'Mr. Perfectly Fine' which Joe Jonas and Taylor broke up in a 27 second phone call..."
Everybody knows that Taylor Swift loves to leave easter eggs and little references within her music for her fans to find. Fans also know that she loves to revisit and reference lyrics and phrases, that either feature on old songs or end up on unreleased tracks, in other projects.
Before the release of Fearless (Taylor's Version), fans had already spotted easter eggs on the new album art (Taylor wears a shirt similar to the one Romeo wore in the 'Love Story' music video), and in the lyrics to 'Love Story', which some fans think have changed from "baby just say yes" to "baby just said yes".
With the release of the six new From The Vault tracks, fans are also spotting a number of familiar lyrics that reference songs from Speak Now, Red and more of Taylor's previous albums.
'You All Over Me' (featuring vocals from Maren Morris) was the first vault song to be released. On the track, Taylor sings about the feeling of still being reminded of an old flame.
Thematically, the song almost acts like a prequel to 1989's underrated masterpiece, 'Clean'. While 'Clean' was about finally realising you've let go, 'You All Over Me' is about that period of time when everything reminds you of that past relationship.
In 'Clean', Taylor sings the lyric: "You’re still all over me like a wine-stained dress I can’t wear anymore" and in 'You All Over Me', she sings: "No amount of freedom gets you clean."
Another familiar lyric that fans clocked on the song was the "hands in your pockets" reference that also features in Speak Now's 'Last Kiss'.
In 'YAOM', Taylor sings the lyrics "with your hands in your pockets and your 'don't you wish you had me' grin" and then brings up the same image in the Speak Now track 'Last Kiss', when she sings: "I love how you walk with your hands in your pockets".
In the previously unreleased track, Taylor also sings about rain on the pavement, which fans will instantly notice is a familiar motif within a few of her songs from around that time.
Echoing the opening lines of 'Fearless' ('There's something 'bout the way, the street looks when it's just rained'), 'You All Over Me' could even be a follow up to what happens once that relationship is over, as Taylor sings: 'Once the last drop of rain has dried off the pavement'.
Similarly, 'Last Kiss' also includes the lyric: "I do recall now the smell of the rain, fresh on the pavement, I ran off the plane."
Next up, it's 'Mr. Perfectly Fine', which fans are absolutely convinced is an old vault song about Joe Jonas.
As soon as it was released, fans drew comparisons to one specific line in the song ("Mr. "Looked me in the eye and told me you would never go away") with the 'Forever & Always' lyric: “You looked me in the eye and told me you loved me” as well as the 'Last Kiss' lyric: "You told me you loved me, so why did you go away?"
Taylor previously confirmed that 'Forever & Always', a last minute addition to the Fearless album, was indeed about her break up with Joe.
The lyrics also appear to be about Taylor's break up with Joe, as Taylor sings “Mr. "Never told me why”, Mr. "Never had to see me cry," seemingly in reference to how he broke up with her over the phone. Fans also theorised that Taylor referenced the length of the phone call with the use of the word "Mr" throughout the track.
But anyway! Everyone's moved on now! There hasn’t been any hard feelings between Taylor and Joe Jonas for a very long time, the two are on great terms and, as we know from the ‘Invisible String’ lyrics, she even sent him and Sophie Turner a gift for their baby daughter. Love to see it!
so you’re telling me that taylor uses the word “mr” 27 times in mr perfectly fine which joe jonas and taylor broke up in a 27 second phone call. bye that woman-
— R (@exilesrep) April 8, 2021
Swifties also clocked the “Mr. Casually Cruel” lyric in the song, which ultimately ended up being written into the brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping and spectacular bridge in Red's 'All Too Well'.
Imagine sitting on "casually cruel" for FOUR YEARS and then dropping it in All Too Well.
— Nora Princiotti (@NoraPrinciotti) April 7, 2021
'We Were Happy', which features backing vocals from Keith Urban, is about the feeling of guilt after falling out of love with someone.
The song draws on similar imagery that Taylor may have recycled for Speak Now's 'Mine', as she sings, "We used to watch the sun go down on the boats in the water". In 'Mine', Taylor sings about "the city lights on the water".
On 'Bye Bye Baby', Taylor sings "It wasn't just like a movie, the rain didn't soak through my clothes, down to my skin" which fans will immediately link to the chorus of 'If This Was A Movie', on which Taylor sings: "Come back, come back, come back to me like/ You would, you would if this was a movie/Stand in the rain outside till I came out."
'That's When', another track featuring Keith Urban, was originally written for Fearless but was ultimately cut from the album. A demo of the song has existed online for a while, but the lyrics to the second verse, now sung by Keith, have changed.
The lyrics to the demo's second verse were: "I said 'I know'/You said 'I did you wrong/Made mistakes/Put you through all of this'. Cause I let you go/You let me think that I'd be fine without you/Imagine that/So baby, when can I come back?'"
The lyrics to Keith's new verse are now: "I said, "I know"/When you said, "I did you wrong/Made mistakes/And put you through all of this". Then through the phone/Came all your tears/And I said, 'Leave those all in our past'/And you said, 'When can I come back?'"