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For Taylor Swift Fans

If you're not a TS obsessive, stop here. Otherwise, read on.

To me--and to many others--the new highlight is "Betty." This is a song from the perspective of an adolescent boy, James, who has cheated on his girlfriend. But he wants the girl--Betty--back. So he tries to explain himself. All the drama went down at a dance. James saw Betty dancing with some other guy. Walking home, on cobblestones, distraught, James found himself ensnared by a nameless seductress. Conversation happened. More conversation. "Those days turned into nights." But it was "just a summer thing." James misses Betty.

There are many things I love in this song. The rhyming of "Inez" with "she says." The intrigue surrounding a class change: "I'm pretty sure you switched your homeroom because of me." The strange focus on the verb "to know": "I don't know anything but I know I miss you."

I also like the nostalgic feel--the use of instruments that you might have heard on "Speak Now." The mystical allure of the doorstep (think of "Back to December"). The romantic importance of the car ride (think of "Fearless," "All Too Well").

The song is simple and direct; it tells a story; it playfully shows what it might be like to live inside the mind of a self-indulgent teenaged boy. Does this look easy? I don't think it's easy....

P.S. On the subject of knowing/knowledge: Many imagined "Betty" scenes occur in "the garden." In the garden, would you trust me? To me, this seems to be part of a TS interest in Adam/Eve/Eden/The Fruit of Knowledge. (See also "Cruel Summer.") Just striking. Maybe she was reading Genesis while she lived on the Christmas Tree Farm.
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