“All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)” Song Review

Sad girl fall has officially ended and winter is slowly approaching. But are you still listening to Taylor Swift’s 10-minute version of “All Too Well” on repeat like I am? 

On November 12, 2021, Taylor Swift released her re-recorded album Red (Taylor’s Version). Upon release, the album was met with widespread compliments from music critics, who praised the new tracks, production quality, and most importantly, Taylor’s vocals. But the climax of the entire album is the last track, “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)”. Inspired by the premise of the song, Taylor Swift also wrote and directed All Too Well: The Short Film, a dramatic short movie starring Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brien. 

As an article on the Rolling Stone Magazine commented, “Not for the first time, you might catch yourself begging Tay to slow down and give you a minute to recover, but she plunges ahead because she has no mercy” (Sheffield, 2021). At first glance, you might think a 10 minute song is insanely long because a song is normally between 3 to 5 minutes. However, after listening to “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version)  (From The Vault),” you would definitely hope it was even longer. The song is powerful in a sense, as Taylor continuously brings up the small but significant moments of what the fans have conclude was her relationship with Jake Gyllenhaal. More importantly, Taylor reveals new and private details of the relationship in her new version to highlight her pain and sorrow. The extended version follows Taylor as she delves deeper into her heartbreaking love story that left her emotion like a “crumpled up piece of paper.” 

The 10 minute version of “All Too Well” begins similarly to the original version, only with a slight change in the background accompaniment, the kind of sound that plays when an old film reel starts. The new accompaniment is softer than the original one as a result of the weakening of the metal instruments. The sense that the original version brings is similar to the cold autumn wind, hitting directly on the face, while the new version is more like the mild autumn raindrops, falling down ton your palms. Although both are cold, the new version is definitely more gentle and delicate. In essence, the original version can be described as a regretful confession, but the 10 minute version is rather an emotional remedy. 

Taylor Swift mainly adds five new parts into her new version of “All Too Well.” 

1.

In Verse 2, directly after the phrase “thinking your future was me,” reality gives Taylor a cruel punch. 

And you were tossing me the car keys,

“F**k the patriarchy”

Key chain on the ground,

We were always skipping town

Taylor points out that although her beloved professedly indicates that he is against the patriarchy, he is actually not that gentle in reality. He rudely throws the car key, not even at Taylor but at the ground, not caring about her feelings at all. 

2.

In Chorus 2, after the sweet and joyful scene where they are “dancing around the kitchen in the refrigerator light,” Taylor illustrates her boyfriend’s confusing attitude towards their relationship. 

And there we are again,

When nobody had to know

You kept me like a secret,

But I kept you like an oath

It is clear that in this relationship, Taylor wants to keep her beloved like a promise, while her significant other wants to keep her as a small secret. This directly emphasizes the inequality of love between Taylor and her partner, in which she is very devoted to this relationship while her boyfriend is not. This new detail allows us to realize how Taylor’s relationship with her significant other was rather problematic because he kept denying the true nature of their relationship, refusing to call it love and trying to “hide” Taylor. As listeners of the new version in 2021, we can easily connect to Taylor’s emotions back then when she was writing the song in the first place. 

3. 

In Verse 4, Taylor first quotes a line from William Shakespeare’s play All’s Well That Ends Well. After that, she reveals one of the major problems that cause the relationship to end - the difference in age. 

You said if we had been closer in age,

Maybe it would’ve been fine,

And that made me want to die

The 9-year age difference was definitely a huge factor that made the relationship unsuccessful. Here, Taylor seemingly blames this specific element in their relationship for the break-up. What makes Taylor even more desperate is that the difference in age is unchangeable. This connects back to her heartbreaking feeling of “want[ing] to die.” As listeners and fans, we can clearly feel how this relationship was troubling Taylor at that time. Therefore, the new detail helps connect the listener to Taylor’s experience better.  

4.

At the end of Verse 4, Taylor adds another specific detail that highlights a heart-wrenching moment in the relationship.

But then he watched me watch the front door all night, willin’ you to come,

And he said, “It’s supposed to fun turning twenty-one”

In this part of the song, Taylor mentions that her boyfriend fails to show up at midnight for her 21st birthday. Her dad tries to cheer her up and comfort her. The detail directly shows how terribly Taylor’s partner has treated her. As listeners of the song, we can better understand her downhearted mood and the situation she underwent about ten years ago. In essence, the extended version gives the listeners and fans an even deeper insight into Taylor’s unique experience and who she was in 2012. 

5.

In Verse 6, Taylor implies her and her beloved’s astrological signs and further stresses her sorrowful mood after the relationship ends.

And did the twin flame bruise paint you blue?

Just between us, did the love affair maim you too? 

The “twin flame” means soulmate. Specifically, in zodiac signs, Taylor and her beloved were both Sagittarius, which is a fire sign. The fire sign directly connects to the “flame” in the lyrics. Thus, it can be assumed that Taylor believed in their zodiac signs and more importantly, the fact that they were meant to be they had the same zodiac signs. To Taylor, everything in the relationship seemed as if it was “meant to be” or “written in the stars.” Moreover, “blue” in the lyrics emphasizes Taylor’s melancholy sentiment. The new details added here definitely allow us, the listeners and fans, to look at this heartbreaking relationship from Taylor’s angle.

“All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)” is definitely the perfect song that reminds every listener of their own heartbreaking love story and their past heartbreaks. It is a song that lets people know, in their saddest moments, that they are not alone.