Written in 1984, with Paul Young in mind as a performer, this has always been a favourite of mine, but a tough one to record a good version of. This is about the best (so far).
It doesn't have to be this way
That's what makes it so much worse
I've said all I have to say
There's nothing to reverse
But it ain't easy to be strong
When you believed that you were right
And all the time you were wrong
If only I'd known before what I know now
I wouldn't have been so sure about the way it had to be
But now I see
If only
So I thought I knew freedom
Held it gift-wrapped in my hands
For everyone to understand
But I built my own prison
Though I've realised too late
Now there's no way to escape
I've burnt my bridges
Made up my mind
When I thought I could see everything
How could I have been so blind
Thought I'd got the picture
But I only saw a part
Now it's too late to contemplate
A sudden change of heart
If only, if only I could have seen
If only, if only I'd known what might have been
