Like Crying

The lyrics describe a woman overwhelmed by sadness. Her closest friend cannot seem to comfort her, and the song keeps returning to the fact that she has “the blues.” The repeated feeling of wanting to cry develops into the much stronger expression of feeling like dying. This makes the mood seem increasingly desperate, though the words do not explain what caused her distress.

“The blues” is an idiom for deep sadness, rather than a reference to the color blue. The question about whether a woman can help another woman may express doubt, frustration, or a belief that friendship is not enough to solve this particular pain. “Feels like dying” is a dramatic way to describe extreme emotional suffering; by itself, it does not tell us that she intends to harm herself.

The lyrics leave much unsaid: we do not learn why she is suffering, or whether her friend has tried and failed to help. The question about women helping women could be sincere, ironic, or simply part of the speaker’s confused response. Because the same lines recur, the sadness seems stuck and unresolved. The song offers little narrative change, focusing instead on the weight of the feeling.