I and Love and You Lyrics

[Chorus]
Oh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in
Are you aware the shape I'm in?
My hands, they shake, my head, it spins
Oh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in

[Bridge]
Three words that became hard to say
I and love and you

What you were then, I am today
Look at the things I do


[Chorus]
Oh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in
Are you aware the shape I'm in?
My hands, they shake, my head, it spins
Oh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in

Oh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in
Are you aware the shape I'm in? (Oh!)
My hands, they shake, my head, it spins (spins)
Oh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in


[Verse 3]
Dumbed down and numbed by time and age
The dreams the catch, the world the cage

The highway sets the traveler's stage
All exits look the same

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About

Genius Annotation

The title track from the Brothers' 2009 album, one of their most popular songs.

The subject seems to be about leaving their current lives behind, and pursuing their dreams of music in the City.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did The Avett Brothers say about "I and Love and You"?
Genius Answer

Producer Rick Rubin told Rolling Stone,

“I and Love and You” is the first song on the first album we worked on together. I found early on that the Avett Brothers wrote these great parts but then put them together into songs where the individual parts didn’t sound the best where they were placed. So a lot of our work together was simplifying and distilling the songs down to the essence of them. Once the essence was established, we expanded on that instead of making a left turn.

“I and Love and You” is a really beautiful example of a song that builds on a theme in a coherent way. We all worked on the arrangement together, and I would usually talk about it in a more architectural way, thinking, “OK, an event needs to happen at this point.” Then they would say, “Oh, what about backup vocals?” And they would come up with a part to go there. Or I’d say, “This section needs to grow more and sound fuller.” And they would say, “We could try strings, we could try piano.” They would try different things to fill it out and make it build the way that it does.

I love the way that song works; it’s a beautiful song. And every time I hear it, it hits me in an emotional way. It’s the beauty of their lyrics that does that.

Credits
Produced By
Percussion
Harmonium & Hammond B3 Organ
Mixing Engineer
Release Date
September 29, 2009
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