As with songs such as "We Can Work It Out" and "I'm Looking Through You" from the same period, the “You Won't See Me" lyrics are about Paul’s troubled relationship with Jane Asher.
Asher, who was shortly due to turn 20, was refusing to comply with Paul’s wishes that she stay at home and put his interests first. In late 1965, while the Beatles were recording the album Rubber Soul in London, she had accepted an offer to appear in a stage production at the Bristol Old Vic theatre.
After an argument, they briefly ended their relationship. When he then attempted to telephone her in Bristol, Asher rejected him by not returning his calls. Paul said that it was "shattering to be without her".
The “You Won’t See Me” lyrics benefit from Paul’s commitment to making sure each line is tight in how the words fit the meter. That allows those lyrics to deliver an even greater impact, in that none are wasted. Which is important to the narrator, because time, especially time spent with the one he loves, is precious to him.
When I call you up, your line’s engaged, Paul begins. You might find it harsh when he tells her to act her age, but there’s an honesty to that line that makes it true to when a couple argues. The issue: We have lost the time / That was so hard to find.
He knows that there isn’t a lot he can do to change the situation if he can’t speak to her: But I can’t get through, my hands are tied. You can sense his hurt at what he feels is her neglect of his feelings: But I get turned away / And you won’t see me. Granted, this is a one-sided take, but it has to be since his whole point is that she’s not there to try and work it out with him.
In the bridge, Paul adds sarcasm to get his point across: Time after time, you refuse to even listen / I wouldn’t mind if I knew what I was missing. The final verse reveals tear-filled days and a deep desperation creeping up in him: And I just can’t go on / If you won’t see me.
Whether that last line is a threat to break things off with the girl doesn’t matter. What matters is he expresses himself about his displeasure so things don’t get to that point.
Lyrics:
When I call you up, your line's engaged
I have had enough, so act your age
We have lost the time that was so hard to find
And I will lose my mind
If you won't see me, (you won't see me)
You won't see me, (you won't see me)
I don't know why you, (oh, la la la)
Should want to hide, (oh, la la la)
But I can't get through, (oh, la la la)
My hands are tied, (oh, la la la)
I won't want to stay, (oh, la la la)
I don't have much to say, (oh, la la la)
But I get turned away, (oh, la la la)
And you won't see me, (you won't see me)
You won't see me, (you won't see me)
Time after time
You refuse to even listen
I wouldn't mind
If I knew what I was missing, (no, I wouldn't, no, I wouldn't)
Though the days are few, (oh, la la la)
They're filled with tears, (oh, la la la)
And since I lost you, (oh, la la la)
It feels like years, (oh, la la la)
Yes, it seems so long, (oh, la la la)
Girl, since you've been gone, (oh, la la la)
And I just can't go on, (oh, la la la)
If you won't see me, (you won't see me)
You won't see me, (you won't see me)
Time after time
You refuse to even listen
I wouldn't mind
If I knew what I was missing, (no, I wouldn't, no, I wouldn't)
Though the days are few, (oh, la la la)
They're filled with tears, (oh, la la la)
And since I lost you, (oh, la la la)
It feels like years, (oh, la la la)
Yes, it seems so long, (oh, la la la)
Girl, since you've been gone, (oh, la la la)
And I just can't go on, (oh, la la la)
If you won't see me, (you won't see me)
You won't see me, (you won't see me)
Yeah, oh, la la la, yeah, yeah
Oh, la la la, oh, la la la
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