| Awww, yeah
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| Mmmm, hmmm, hmmm, mmmm, mmmm, mmmm, mmmm, mmmm
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| I’m talking about the power of love now
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| I’m gonna tell you what love can do
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| You know when they say love makes the world go 'round, that’s the truth
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| Love can make you or break you
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| It can make you laugh. |
| It can make you cry
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| It can make you happy. |
| It can make you sad
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| Aw, it’d get hung up real bad
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| In a case of jealousy, love can make you mad. |
| Aw, yeah
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| Now everybody, everybody’s got it’s own thing
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| Everybody’s got it’s way of doing a thing
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| Now we should attempt to do a tune that is very popular it was written by one
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| of the great young songwriters of today
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| Now I don’t know what he was thinking about or what inspired him to write this
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| tune, but it’s a deep tune
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| There’s a deep meaning to this tune because it shows you what the power of love
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| can do
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| Now I should attempt it to do it my way, my own interpretation of it
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| Like I said, everybody’s got it’s own thing
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| I’m gonna bring it on down to Soulsville
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| Now I want you to bear along with me for a few minutes while I set it up
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| Now I want your imagination. |
| I want you to travel with me
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| Oh, come on, come on, come on
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| This young man was raised in the hills of Tennessee
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| When he reached the age of maturity, he moved to the West Coast
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| And he fell in love when he got out there to this young girl
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| Aw, man, she was out of sight. |
| She was bad
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| And then they started dating and then the inevitable, became engaged and they
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| were married
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| Mmmm, hmmm, hmmm
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| They were happily married. |
| That’s right they lived in L. A
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| Oh, oh. |
| The power of love was upon them
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| But you see, girls, I don’t mean to come down on you, but this man loved this
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| woman so… He can really say love is blind
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| He could see no wrong. |
| No, no, no
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| He worked every day and sometimes he’d pull overtime, double time, triple time
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| He bought anything that this woman’s heart desires, anything that he could rake
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| and scrape
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| He spent his last dime on women because he loved her
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| And you know, girls, you can take love and kindness sometime for weakness and
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| she took it for granted
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| She said, «I got a fool and I know I got a fool. |
| I got a good thing.»
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| Yeah, she was standing around on the corner, you understand, meeting with her
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| friends
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| She would go to the beauty salon, get her hair fixed
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| She’d go shopping and she would brag about her good thing that she’s got
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| Yeah. |
| And she took doubt on it
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| See, ain’t nobody gonna believe what to tell him no way, fool
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| Oh, yeah, girls, you would love that sometimes
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| But one day, one day, the old boy got sick and he had to come home
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| I don’t have to tell you what he found
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| Oh, yeah, it hurt him so bad
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| He said, «Baby, Mama… why?» |
| That’s all he could say
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| That’s all he could say. |
| He was hurt
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| But she said, «Oh, go on fool, you’re doing it, but the man wasn’t doing it,
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| but that’s the only excuse you can give him.»
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| He said, «Mama, I can’t take it. |
| I’ve got to leave you. |
| I’m gonna leave you.»
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| He packed up his rags, you understand, and he started out the door
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| And when he reached the driveway, you understand, he went in there begging just
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| like my man Tyrone Davis
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| And he said, «Oh, mama, mama, mama, can I change, oh, my mind?»
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| You see, the power of love was upon him and he came back
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| Oh, yes he did
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| When she tried to straighten up, she said she was gonna straighten up
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| She got a little job to help him out with the bills too, but that was just a
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| sham because he found it again and again
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| And seven times he left this woman and seven times he came back
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| Oh, but you know, the heart can take so much
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| That’s right. |
| You can kick a dog around for so long and he’ll get tired.
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| He’ll turn
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| And he taken all that he could stand
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| In the eighth time that this went down, he said, «Mama, I’ve got to go.»
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| With tears in his eyes, he said, «I'm gonna leave you, baby.»
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| He said, «I ain’t coming back.»
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| He said, «I'm leaving my heart right here, but I’ve got to go, you see,
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| 'cause this man can’t take no more.»
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| She didn’t believe it
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| He packed his clothes. |
| He got in his 1965 Ford
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| He started out
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| Three times he started to turn back before he reached the outskirts of the city, |
| but he kept on going
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| Oh, I don’t wanna go, but I’ve got to leave you, mama
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| And he’s going down the highway
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| I guess it was around 3:30 in the morning
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| He could not hardly see the road with tears in his eyes
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| That’s right, he was crying
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| There were meaning in his tears
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| He cannot barely see the sign that read on the side of the road,
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| the next town is 125 miles away
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| And these very words came into his mind. |
| He said…
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| By the time I get to Phoenix, she’ll be rising
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| Oh, and she’ll find a note I left hanging on her door
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| She’ll laugh when she reads the part that says I’m leavin'
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| Yes she will. |
| Why?
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| 'Cause I’ve left that girl so many times before. |
| Oh
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| By the time I make Albuquerque, she’ll be workin'
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| And she’ll probably stop at lunch
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| Just to give her, her sweet good thing a call
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| And oh, she’ll hear, oh, oh, the phone keeps right on ringin' and ringin' and
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| ringin' and ringin' and ringin' and ringin'
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| Oh, and ringin' off the wall
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| Mama, mama, mama, that’s all
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| And by the time I get to Oklahoma, she’ll be sleepin'
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| She’ll turn softly in her restless sleep, call my name out low
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| And oh, then she’ll cry just to think I-I-I-I-I…
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| I would really leave her
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| For time after time after time after time and time again, I tried to tell her so
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| But she was a non-believer, oh, and she didn’t know
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| Oh, that I-I-I-I-I-I…I would really go
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| She didn’t believe I would really go. |
| Oh no
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| I hate to leave you, baby, yes I do
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| I really, really, really hate to go, oh yeah
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| But this heart of mine just can’t take no more
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| I-I-I-I-I-I've taken all that I could stand
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| You should’ve known what you were doing to the man
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| Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
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| You see, when I left, baby, I left a piece of my heart
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| Oh yeah
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| You know, you know, you know, you know you took, baby
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| You know you, you took the greatest part, yeah, yeah
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| I don’t know how I’m gonna make it, oh no, but I’ve got to go
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| I’m gonna miss all the sweet loving and the good times
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| But the good times weren’t as heavy, oh no, as the bad times
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| Oh yeah
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| You really, really put the hurt on me, yes you did
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| I’m a prisoner of your love and I just, I just won’t ever be free, no, no, no
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| So it’s bye-bye. |
| Oh, mama, mama, bye-bye
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| Oh, bye-bye. |
| Oh, bye-bye, baby, bye-bye
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| It’s too late for you to cry
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| You had a good thing, oh, and you misused it, yes you did
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| Yes you did
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| You had a good heart, oh, and you abused it
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| Oh yeah
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| You were sweet to me, yes you were
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| But on the other hand, you was real cold, cold, cold, cold
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| You just kept me, oh, you kept me hanging on, yes you did
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| Oh, oh, you kept me hanging on
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| You kept me begging, begging… You kept me begging you to do right
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| You kept me pacing the floor at night, oh yeah
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| But I love you. |
| God knows that I love you, baby
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| Ah, yeah. |
| I’ll always love you, yeah
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| (Instrumental break)
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| Raindrops of water beating under my chin
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| You can look at me and tell all the pain I’m in
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| Aw, yeah. |
| Aw, yeah. |
| I’m gonna moan now
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| Mmmm, mmmm, mmmm, mmmm
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| Mmmm, hmmm
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| (Organ solo)
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| (Instrumental finale)
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| The moment I wake up
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| Before I put on my makeup
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| I say a little prayer for you
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| While combing my hair, now
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| And wondering what dress to wear, now
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| I say a little prayer for you
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| Forever, forever, you’ll stay in my heart
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| And I will love you
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| Forever, forever, we never will part
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| Oh, how I’ll love you
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| Together, together, that’s how it must be
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| To live without you
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| Would only be heartbreak for me
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| I run for the bus, dear
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| While riding I think of us, dear
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| I say a little prayer for you
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| At work, I just take time
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| And all through my coffee break-time
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| I say a little prayer for you
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| Forever, forever, you’ll stay in my heart
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| And I will love you
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| Forever, forever we never will part
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| Oh, how I’ll love you
|
| Together, together, that’s how it must be
|
| To live without you
|
| Would only be heartbreak for me
|
| I say a little prayer for you
|
| I say a little prayer for you
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| Forever, forever, you’ll stay in my heart
|
| And I will love you
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| Forever, forever we never will part
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| Oh, how I’ll love you
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| Together, together, that’s how it must be
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| To live without you
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| Would only be heartbreak for me
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| My darling, believe me
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| For me there is no one |
| But you… |