'For My Lover' is the ninth track of Tracy Chapman's self-titled album Tracy Chapman. Tracy Chapman (born March 30, 1964) is an American Singer-songwriter, best known for her singles " Fast Car " " Tracy Chapman is the Self-titled debut Album by Singer/songwriter Tracy Chapman, released in 1988 (see 1988 in music
In 1986 Tracy recorded "For My Lover" for Fast Folk Musical Magazine, a Greenwich Village Folk magazine sold with a record. Fast Folk Musical Magazine (originally known as The Co-op) was a combination Magazine and Record album published from February Greenwich Village (ˌgrɛnɪtʃ ˈvɪlɪdʒ often simply called the Village, is a largely residential area on the west side of downtown (southern Manhattan
The narrative of the song describes a Bonnie and Clyde style relationship, and the protagonist describes suffering "two weeks in a Virginia jail" and "twenty-thousand dollar bail" for her lover.
Although it seems that the relationship isn't approved of - "everybody thinks I'm a fool" - she claims that they can't know, because "they don't get any love from you".
The relationship isn't healthy, and the protagonist sometimes doubts herself, though she claims she'll "follow my heart and leacve my mind to wonder is this love worth the sacrifices I make?". The sacrifices she promises include "climb[ing] a mountain if I have to", and "risk[ing] my life so I could have you". she also claims that "every day I'm psychoanalyzed", and that they "dope [her] up" and she "[tells] them lies" for her lover.