‘I Just Need You’ by Riley Green & Hannah McFarland - Lyrics & Meaning

Before he enjoyed a viral moment with the steamy ‘Worst Way’ in 2024, Riley Green used to joke that he only really had one romantic song in his arsenal, ‘When She Comes Home Tonight’. ‘I Just Need You’ with Hannah McFarland might be a break-up song, but it undoubtedly follows in the sultry ambience of ‘Worst Way’, with Green and McFarland trading verses as they long to return to one another.

‘I Just Need You’ serves as one of the many stand-outs from Green's Don't Mind If I Do (Deluxe) album, which arrived on Friday, August 28th 2025 and saw the Alabama native adding five new tracks to his widely lauded third album of the same name.

‘I Just Need You’ follows a similar structure to Riley Green's much-loved second duet with Ella Langley, ‘Don't Mind If I Do’, with Green leading the vocals for the majority of the track, before Hannah McFarland takes the helm for the intricate bridge.

McFarland also offers striking harmonies throughout, complementing Green's weathered, longing croons seamlessly. The instrumental is kept intimate and pared-down for much of the track, with a sea of electric guitars entering the fray for the crescendo.

“Let’s take another last look back at what could've been

Let’s take another long way home

‘Cause right now I’m dying just trying to feel good again, but baby I don’t

Let’s take it on back to making love where the river bends

Back before we were so long gone

Maybe we can find a way to fall in love again

But maybe we won’t”

Throughout ‘I Just Need You’, the protagonist serenades his old flame, as he expresses how all he wants is to fall back into her arms and spend the night making love like they used to. He paints a rose-tinted picture of how their life was when they were together, incorporating bucolic imagery, such as the river meandering easily by.

“‘Cause I just wanna lie in this bed with you

Baby all night, and do that thing we do

And let our drunk lips tell the truth

And break out all those midnight moves

You got the only thing that’s gonna get me through

And baby I just need you”

During the hook, he adds a little detail to the evening of romance he envisions them enjoying after being apart for too long. The protagonist admits that he's been struggling of late, and he knows the only person who can make him feel better is his ex.

The way Green delivers the first part of the line “‘Cause I just wanna lie“ makes it sound like he's talking about the couple lying to one another about whether they should give their relationship a second shot - a coincidence, or a clever piece of wordplay?

“Let’s take another last look back at what could've been

Let’s take another long way home

‘Cause right now I’m dying just trying to feel good again, but baby I don’t

Let’s take it on back to making love where the river bends

Back before we were so long gone

Maybe we can find a way to fall in love again

But maybe we won’t

-

‘Cause I just wanna lie in this bed with you

Baby all night, and do that thing we do

And let our drunk lips tell the truth

And break out all those midnight moves

You got the only thing that’s gonna get me through

And baby I just need you

-

Let’s take another last minute lap around memory lane

A little something for old times’ sake

Maybe we can still start a little fire from an old flame

Or maybe we can’t

Maybe we can’t

-

‘Cause I just wanna lie in this bed with you

Baby all night, and do that thing we do

And let our drunk lips tell the truth

And break out all those midnight moves

You got the only thing that’s gonna get me through

And baby I just need you

Oh, I just need you

-

I just wanna lie in this bed with you

Baby all night and do that thing we do

I just wanna lie in this bed with you

Baby all night, and do that thing we do

And let our drunk lips tell the truth

And break out all those midnight moves

You got the only thing that’s gonna get me through

And baby I just need you

Let’s take another last look back at what could've been

Let’s take another long way home”

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