Red: More than a Color

Whether it be through carefully curated reaction videos on Youtube, Instagram stories featuring fan-designed stickers, or the speakers of your local Starbucks— you’re likely to be swept up in the celebration of Taylor Swift’s latest career triumph. The star’s most ambiguous project to date, and highly anticipated by fans and the music industry alike, Red (Taylor’s Version) was released on November 12, 2021— featuring 20 re-recorded versions from the star’s fourth studio album Red,  six previously unreleased “from the Vault” tracks,  a 10-minute version of the fan favorite All Too Well, and two songs written by Swift that were originally released under other artists. In addition, the project has also sprouted All Too Well: The Short Film, written and directed by Swift herself. 

Red (Taylor’s Version) is simultaneously a work of nostalgia and breakthrough, transforming Swift’s initial transition from country to pop into an even more impressive repertoire of genres, embellished with powerful epiphanies on love and selfhood that the singer has gained with age. It’s a moment of gratification for long-time fans who have watched Swift’s career flourish over the years, as well as a witty rebuttal against those skeptical of her songwriting abilities.

Yet the significance of this album does not stop at its artistic or sentimental value; the on-going re-recording of previous projects, such as her second studio album Fearless, is all part of Swift’s efforts to reclaim ownership over her master recordings— acquired by talent manager Scooter Braun as part of his purchase of record label Big Machine in 2019, despite Swift’s departure from the company since the year before. Not only is revisiting and adding new twists to her albums an act of empowerment and agency for the 31 year-old singer, it is also a much-needed statement on the music industry’s work ethic and management. The restrictions that artists face in accessing rights to their work, vis-à-vis the tyrannizing business models of record companies, remains a vital conversation in the increasingly digitized music culture of today. Swift’s defiance of industry norms is likely to inspire further discourse on the issue, as well as encourage her fellow artists to reclaim what are, first and foremost, their own creations. 

What lends Swift her reputation as a brilliant artist, apart from being a trailblazer in music industry history, is the care placed in her construction of each song— vivid storytelling and versatile sounds are braided together skillfully, lending an often magical quality to the experience of listening to any Taylor Swift song. Many of her bridges, in particular, are widely acclaimed by both fans and critics. In this article, I will then be ranking 15 of the best bridges in Red (Taylor’s Version), based on combined elements of musicality, lyricism, and emotional impact. 

15. 22 

“It feels like one of those nights

We ditch the whole scene

It feels like one of those nights

We won't be sleeping

It feels like one of those nights

You look like bad news

I gotta have you

I gotta have you”

Although the lyrics here don’t offer much specificity or emotional depth, they convey rather effectively the excitement of someone who is turning 22. Swift’s energetic vocals, on top of the light-hearted melody, makes this bridge a fun one to sing along to. 

14. I Knew You Were Trouble 

“And the saddest fear

Comes creeping in

That you never loved me

Or her, or anyone, or anything

Yeah”

Recounting the bitter fear caused by an evasive lover, the bridge’s slow beginning offers a sombreness and vulnerability different to the rest of I Knew You Were Trouble (particularly its dubstep refrain). The vocal buildup towards the end then delivers a powerful emotional catharsis in response to this doomed romance. 

13. Come Back… Be Here

“This is falling in love in the cruelest way

This is falling for you when you are worlds away

In New York, be here

But you're in London, and I break down

'Cause it's not fair that you're not around”

Long-distance relationships are hard, and the bridge here captures the essence of missing someone who is far away. Swift’s specific mentions of London and New York help listeners to visualize the distance between two separated lovers, as well as the feeling that they are “worlds away” from one another.   

12. I Bet You Think About Me

“Oh, block it all out

The voices so loud, sayin'

"Why did you let her go?"

Does it make you feel sad

That the love that you're lookin' for

Is the love that you had?”

Oh, to be the one that got away. There’s a deliciously vengeful satisfaction to the way this bridge confronts a cowardly ex-lover and teases, with no humor intended, his mistake in letting the singer go.  

11. I Almost Do 

“Oh, we made quite a mess, babe

It's probably better off this way

And I confess, baby

In my dreams, you're touching my face

And asking me if I wanna try again with you

And I almost do”

Sometimes the most painful loves are the ones we hope to rekindle but must let go of for the sake of ourselves. That heartbreak is expressed here through a wistful imagining of what it would be like to give someone a second chance, then ultimately realizing the futility of this dream. 

10. Nothing New

“I know someday I'm gonna meet her

It's a fever dream

The kind of radiance you only have at seventeen

She'll know the way and then she'll say she got the map from me

I'll say I'm happy for her then I'll cry myself to sleep

Oh woah ohh, oh woah ohh, oh, oh”

Contrary to 22, which celebrates the notion of growing older, the bridge to Nothing New presents a pessimistic view to aging and the uncertainties it brings to one’s life. It’s a raw and overwhelming feeling that many listeners are sure to be acquainted with. 

9. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together

I used to think that we were forever, ever

And I used to say, "Never say never"

Ugh, so he calls me up and he's like, "I still love you"

And I'm like, "I just- I mean, this is exhausting, you know?

Like, we are never getting back together, like, ever"

Swift’s vocals for this bridge are petty and sarcastic in the best way possible, as the lyrics take humorous jabs at an ex who seems to ooze insincerity with every word and move. The last three spoken lines add an extra layer of sassiness that is equally enjoyable for listeners to imitate. 

8. Sad, Beautiful, Tragic

“Distance, timing, breakdown, fighting

Silence, the train runs off its tracks

Kiss me, try to fix it, could you just try to listen?

Hang up, give up, and for the life of us we can't get back”

Painting a *sad, beautifully tragic* portrait of what it’s like to salvage a deteriorating relationship, Swift strings together individual phrases and moments in this bridge to create a potent, holistic image of loss. 

7. Begin Again 

“And we walked down the block to my car

And I almost brought him up

But you start to talk about the movies

That your family watches every single Christmas

And I want to talk about that

And for the first time, what's past is past”

When we deem ourselves too battered from the past to love again, someone new swoops in to renew our hope when it is least expected. In this part of the song, Swift describes a scene where she slowly begins to heal from a previous breakup with the help of a romantic prospect. It’s sweet and sure to melt the hearts of anyone wary to *begin again*.  

6. Forever Winter

“If I was standing there in your apartment

I'd take that bomb in your head and disarm it

I'd say I love you even at your darkest and

Please don't go”

Nothing is more heartbreaking than watching a loved one struggle to love themselves. Here, in the bridge of Forever Winter, Swift uses the metaphor of a bomb in the head to depict her lover’s impending mental breakdown, expressing her most ardent desire to be his support and beacon of light during his darkest hours. 

5. Red 

“Remembering him comes in flashbacks and echoes

Tell myself it's time now, gotta let go

But moving on from him is impossible

When I still see it all in my head

In burning red

Loving him was red”

In the words of Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky: “Color is a power which directly influences the soul.” In Swift’s case, the vibrant color of red signifies passion and love, lingering even when said love has crashed and burnt. The intense guitar and piano backgrounding this bridge also adds to the experience of being plagued by vivid memories.

4. Treacherous 

“Two headlights shine through the sleepless night

And I will get you, get you alone

Your name has echoed through my mind

And I just think you should, think you should know

That nothing safe is worth the drive

And I would follow you, follow you home

I'll follow you, follow you home”

It’s incredible how Swift manages to construct a scene through sparse words— in only seven lines she is able to depict one brazenly driving through the dark to reach their lover, fueled by reckless impulse and almost dangerous anticipation. What can we say though? The heart wants what it wants.  

3. Ronan

“What if I'm standing in your closet trying to talk to you?

And what if I kept the hand-me-downs you won't grow into?

And what if I really thought some miracle would see us through?

What if the miracle was even getting one moment with you?”

In Ronan, Swift steps away from romance to sing about another kind of love— that of a mother who must watch her child suffer from illness. Her breathy vocals in the bridge and references to hand-me-downs that will never see the light of day culminates into a message about grief that is just as raw as it is powerful.

2. State of Grace 

“This is a state of grace

This is the worthwhile fight

Love is a ruthless game

Unless you play it good and right

These are the hands of fate

You’re my Achilles heel

This is the golden age

Of something good and right and real”

Some of Swift’s best songwriting happens when she incorporates mystical elements into her work. Here, she equates falling in love to a religious experience, a game meant to be played with fairness, and the weakness of a mythological hero that is nonetheless pleasurable. Together with the expansive sounds of her airy voice and chiming instruments, this bridge transports you to a dreamlike realm too good to escape from. 

1. All Too Well 

“And maybe we got lost in translation

Maybe I asked for too much

But maybe this thing was a masterpiece

'Til you tore it all up

Running scared, I was there

I remember it all too well

And you call me up again

Just to break me like a promise

So casually cruel in the name of being honest

I'm a crumpled up piece of paper lying here

'Cause I remember it all, all, all”

Alas, we have reached the end of this list— but what better way to conclude than to bring in the crème de la crème of all Taylor Swift bridges: The All Too Well bridge, with phrases such as “break me like a promise” and “casually cruel” that are sure to stun any first-time listeners of the beloved classic. This climatic part of the song takes us all on a journey of miscommunication, heartbreak, and bittersweet hindsight, all heightened by Swift’s passionate vocals and the music’s arena rock elements. There’s a reason this song has been hailed as Swift’s magnum opus ever since it’s original release— and it’s evident that the claim holds true even a decade later.