Isn’t It Enough
Sometimes you only have to hear a song once.
We were making movies, back when that was exotic, back before you could buy a cam for a thousand bucks and everybody started making a documentary. As a result, there was not a door that would not open, everybody wants their song in a flick.
So we ended up on the second floor of a building on Sunset Boulevard meeting with Lionel Conway of Island publishing. And after b.s.’ing for about thirty minutes, he said he wanted to play us something…
Sometimes I’d like to quit you and find somebody who
Don’t know me quite as well
We’ve all been through this. When life gets too tough. When the newness of love is gone. We ponder…what would it be like with somebody else?
Yeah, like a gypsy, she would be my jewel
Spend my days in a lovin’ spell
Classic rock and roll imagery, I can’t think of gypsies without thinking of “Love Potion No. 9,” MADAME RUE!
But baby I fit you, like a worn out glove
You know I ain’t goin’ nowhere
That’s what’s funny about couples. Live together long enough and you start looking alike, the one who doesn’t wear jeans suddenly does, and Nikes too, even the hairstyles, two people blend into one, they just can’t help it. That’s what you don’t realize about jumping the track, that you’re starting all over, and it’s so HARD! There are so many false starts, meanwhile, sand keeps running through the hourglass.
There ain’t nothin’ we can’t rise above
We still got a lifetime to share
Optimism. Without it a relationship dies. It’s just a matter of time until someone punts. And the funny thing is it doesn’t always take two, one is enough, one person can make a difference…sometimes.
Isn’t it enough that I still love you
Isn’t it enough to make you stay
Don’t make me suffer, baby
Don’t throw it all away
That must’ve been ’83 we had that meeting on Sunset. But “The Boyfriend,” the album from which “Isn’t It Enough” is the opening track, didn’t come out until ’86.
We were housesitting on Bristol, behind a wall, ensconced in the upper class lifestyle we dreamed of but were only experiencing for a month. We were in the master bedroom, with the Proton TV suspended from the wall, and one night on MTV, we were addicted back then, they played this video.
Oh, eventually Patty Smyth & Scandal had a semi-hit with “Isn’t It Enough,” but it was absent the buzzsaw guitar and the exuberance. That’s the thing about rock and roll, it can’t be studied, it has to sound like you’re about to come. You know that feeling, when nothing can hold you back, you can see the destination, and your only goal is to get there.
That’s what we were doing on a regular basis.
But after we got married she moved out.
And that’s when “Isn’t It Enough” took on new meaning.
Now I know you’re tired
And feelin’ all alone
I know what you’re goin’ through
I’ll satisfy your fire
But I’m not made of stone
Tell me what more can I do
That’s what you do when they leave, TRY! It’s like being George Costanza, you’re suddenly doing the opposite of what you did when you were together. Listening instead of talking. Changing your look. You do everything to win them back. But it never works. If they’re ever gonna return, it’s gonna be their decision, and they rarely do.
Now can you look in my eyes
And tell me there’s nothin’ there
That’s what we’re looking for, a chance. But we blew it when we weren’t even paying attention. They were making their decision to go when we believed everything was hunky-dory.
“You know I’ve compromised enough to show I care”
And then we stop. We’re just short of begging. And this is never attractive. It’s after this we regain our dignity, when we finally accept it’s over. Not that we’re totally convinced.
Yeah, sometimes I’d like to quit you
And find somebody who don’t know me quite the same
But it took so long just to get this far
I’ll be damned if I’ll do it again
He’s invested. And that’s what relationships are, an investment, which pay dividends. They’re also sharks, like Woody Allen said, if they don’t keep moving they die. So pay attention, keep swimming.
But it’s not really about the lyrics, they’re just the icing on the cake. It’s the aforementioned buzzsaw guitar. And the way the drums punch in between. And the other guitar dancing around. It’s a cornucopia of sound.
With a heartfelt vocal delivery.
And even a bridge.
And the rest of “The Boyfriend” is almost as good.
Which landed Danny Wilde a deal with Geffen which paid no dividends. After which he retreated to his garage with his old buddy Phil Solem and became the Rembrandts.
And even though the “Friends” theme will have a long lifespan, most people have already forgotten “Isn’t It Enough.” But not me.
Because I love its pure sound. And honesty. And the fact that this is a guy who’s willing to put it all on the line to convince her to stay.
This is rock and roll.
