Lyrics Page
I Can't Get Started
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Aug 8, 2026 updated
Verified editorial review
Song Meaning
Merle Haggard's rendition of "I Can't Get Started" is a classic jazz standard about a man who has achieved great worldly success but is utterly unsuccessful in winning the affection of the woman he loves. The lyrics contrast his accomplishments—flying around the world, charting the North Pole, being courted by movies—with his inability to make any romantic progress. The song is a wistful, melancholic reflection on unrequited love and the futility of material achievements when matters of the heart are concerned. It is not a Christian song, as it focuses on secular romantic longing rather than spiritual themes.
Lyrics Verified by Editorial Team
I've flown around the world in a plane
I've settled revolutions in Spain
The North Pole I have charted
But can't get started with you
Around the golf course I'm under par
And all the movies want me to star
I've got a house, a show place
But I get no place with you
You're so supreme, lyrics I write of you
Scheme, just for a sight of you
Dream, both day and night of you
And what good does it do?
In 1929 I sold short
In England I'm presented at court
But you've got me downhearted
'Cause I can't get started with you
You're so supreme, lyrics I write of you
Scheme, just for a sight of you
Dream, both day and night of you
And what good does it do?
In 1929 I sold short
In England I'm presented at court
But you've got me downhearted
'Cause I can't get started with you