Well I've been way so long
I'm too numb to dislike it
And LA'S one big hit song
I never learned to fight it
Dear Caroline
It never meant to go this far
It started out to be a game
I never meant to be a star.

And everybody smiles
But their eyes stare out so empty
From a face they scrub with Dial
And the words that spill so fancy
Dear Caroline
I thought my songs would change the world
Instead of slowly getting rich
Off the emotions of young girls.

Chorus:
And what really makes me laugh
Is that nothing's really changed
Since that day I left you years ago
To find myself a name
And what really makes me cry
Is that it's only an illusion
And all that success means
Is just money and confusion.

I've been told you settled down
Found yourself a family
I'll send my latest record down
The critics tell me that it's happening
Dear Caroline
There's nothing really left to say
I hope you still remember me
After the songs all fade away.