Song lyrics reflect the culture and social norms of their time period. Examining song lyrics from two different time periods can therefore reveal the ways these two generations differed in terms of messages about core subjects. Love is a universal theme in all song, making it an especially good subject for analysis. Songs about love will differ according to the definition of love, how love is expressed or shared between two people, and also gender roles in relationships. In 1975, one of the biggest-selling songs was by a band called Captain and Tennille. The song is called, "Love will Keep us Together." In 2010, there was a song called "Boyfriend" by Best Coast. Both of these songs are overtly about love. Although "Boyfriend" is about unrequited love, and "Love will Keep us Together" is about relationships, these two songs have similar lyrics about the meaning...

It is about how to keep the relationship together over the course of time. The lyrics are about the difficulty of making and keeping commitments, especially with the temptations of other people. The lyrics send a message that temptation and other potential challenges to a relationship can be overcome by being conscious of the other person's eternal love. For example, the chorus of the song is: Just Stop [stop], 'cause I really love you / Stop [stop], I'll be thinking of you / Look in my heart and let love keep us together."
"Boyfriend," on the other hand, is about a woman who wants a relationship with a boy who is now just a…