Musical Gems - Diary

Like my post on Lobo's song, "Don't Expect Me to Be Your Friend," this post is about a song of unrequited love.  This song is by the soft rock group, Bread, and dates from the same year, 1972.  It is called "Diary."

Bread was formed in Los Angeles in 1968 and had a string of hits in the early Seventies.  These included, "It Don't Matter to Me", "If", "Everything I Own", and "Lost Without Your Love."   "Diary" came from their album, Baby I'm-a Want You. It reached number 15 on the pop charts, and number 3 on the easy listening chart.

Like "Don't Expect Me to Be Your Friend", this song starts out very simply with just an acoustic guitar.  As the song progresses, electric guitar, keyboards, and eventually orchestra are added.  Also like that song, the song is slow, sad, and wistful.  Again, the singer is not bitter or angry, and after discovering his love is in love with someone else wishes the both of them, "all the sweet things they can find."

I found her diary underneath a tree

And started reading about me

The words she'd written took me by suprise

You'd never read them in her eyes

They said that she had found

The love she'd waited for

Wouldn't you know it, she wouldn't show it

Then she confronted with the writing there

Simply pretended not to care

I passed it off as just in keeping with

Her total disconcerting air

And though she tried to hide

The love that she denied

Wouldn't you know it, she wouldn't show it

And as I go through my life

I will give to her my wife

All those sweet things I can find

I found her diary underneath a tree

And started reading about me

The words began to stick and tears to flow

Her meaning now was clear to see

The love she'd waited for

Was someone else not me

Wouldn't you know it, she wouldn't show it

And as I go through my life

I will wish for her his wife

All those sweet things she can find

All those sweet things they can find

Songwriters: David Gates

Diary lyrics © Sony/ATV Tunes LLC