Love Story is a song written and performed by Taylor Swift in the series finale episode "Plus Est En Vous". It was released on September 15, 2008, by Big Machine Records, as the lead single from Swift's second studio album, Fearless (2008). Inspired by a love interest unpopular to Swift's family and friends, "Love Story" is based on the plot of William Shakespeare's 16th-century play, Romeo and Juliet. In the song's narrative, the two characters, Romeo and Juliet, end up in a marriage proposal, contrary to Shakespeare's tragic conclusion. The lyrics also reference Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1850 novel, The Scarlet Letter. Produced by Swift and Nathan Chapman, the country pop song features soprano vocals and a slow-building melody consisting of banjo, fiddle, mandolin, and guitar.
In contemporaneous reviews, critics praised "Love Story" for its catchy production but deemed its literary references ineffective. In retrospect, critics have considered it one of Swift's best singles. "Love Story" peaked atop the chart in Australia, where it was certified ten times platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). It reached the top five on charts in Canada, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Scotland, and the U.K. In the U.S., "Love Story" peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Swift's first top-ten hit, and was certified eight times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). A success on pop radio, "Love Story" was the first country song to top the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 chart. It has sold over six million copies in the U.S. and 18 million copies worldwide.
Trey Fanjoy directed the accompanying music video, which Swift conceived as a period piece that drew influences from the Medieval, Renaissance, and British Regency eras. It follows Swift and model Justin Gaston as they meet in a university campus and imagine themselves as lovers in a prior era. The video won Video of the Year at both the Country Music Association Awards and CMT Music Awards in 2009. Swift included "Love Story" on the set lists of all of her headlining tours: Fearless (2009–2010), Speak Now (2011–2012), Red (2013–2014), 1989 (2015), and Reputation (2018). The re-recording, "Love Story (Taylor's Version)", was released on February 12, 2021, through Republic Records. It topped Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, making Swift the second artist after Dolly Parton to reach number one with both the original and re-recorded versions of a song.
Lyrics[]
We were both young when I first saw you
I close my eyes and the flashback starts
I’m standing there
On a balcony in summer air
See the lights, see the party, the ball gowns
See you make your way through the crowd
And say, “Hello.”
Little did I know…
That you were Romeo, you were throwin’ pebbles
And my daddy said, “Stay away from Juliet!”
And I was cryin’ on the staircase
Beggin’ you, “Please don’t go!”
And I said…
"Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone.
I’ll be waiting, all there’s left to do is run.
You’ll be the prince and I’ll be the princess,
It’s a love story, baby, just say yes.”
So I sneak out to the garden to see you
We keep quiet ‘cause we’re dead if they knew
So close your eyes
Escape this town for a little while
Oh, oh
‘Cause you were Romeo, I was a scarlet letter
And my daddy said, “Stay away from Juliet!”
But you were everything to me
I was beggin’ you, “Please don’t go!”
And I said…
"Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone.
I’ll be waiting, all there’s left to do is run.
You’ll be the prince and I’ll be the princess,
It’s a love story, baby, just say yes.
Romeo, save me, they try to tell me how to feel.
This love is difficult, but it’s a real.
Don’t be afraid, we’ll make it out of this mess,
It’s a love story, baby, just say yes.”
Oh, oh
But I got tired of waiting
Wonderin’ if you were ever coming around
My faith in you was fading
When I met you on the outskirts of town
And I said…
"Romeo, save me, I’ve been feeling so alone.
I keep waiting for you, but you never come.
Is this in my head? I don’t know what to think."
He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said…
"Marry me, Juliet, you’ll never have to be alone.
I love you and that’s all I really know.
I talked to your dad, go pick out a white dress,
It’s a love story, baby, just say...yes.”
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh
‘Cause we were both young when I first saw you!