Send His Love To Me
PJ Harvey
A Desperate Plea for Love: The Heartache in PJ Harvey's 'Send His Love To Me'
PJ Harvey's song 'Send His Love To Me' is a haunting ballad that delves deep into the themes of longing, separation, and emotional torment. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of a woman left behind as her lover crosses a desert plain, leaving her in a state of desperate yearning. The repeated invocation of Jesus to 'send his love to me' underscores the depth of her despair and the intensity of her need for reunion. This plea to a higher power highlights the helplessness she feels, as she turns to divine intervention in hopes of alleviating her suffering.
The imagery in the song is stark and evocative. The desert plain symbolizes the vast emptiness and isolation she feels in her lover's absence. Her home, once a place of comfort, has transformed into a 'hell,' a 'tether,' and a 'cell,' illustrating how her surroundings have become a prison of her own making due to her overwhelming sorrow. The physical manifestations of her grief—'arms too weak to grip,' 'eyes too dry for weeping,' and 'lips too dry to kiss'—further emphasize the toll that this separation has taken on her both emotionally and physically.
PJ Harvey's raw and emotive delivery of the lyrics adds another layer of depth to the song. Her voice conveys a sense of vulnerability and desperation, making the listener feel the weight of her heartache. The song's repetitive structure, with its recurring pleas to Jesus, mirrors the cyclical nature of her suffering and her relentless hope for her lover's return. 'Send His Love To Me' is a powerful exploration of the pain of unfulfilled love and the lengths to which one might go to seek solace and reunion.