Untouchable is a special song in Taylor Swift’s music collection because she didn’t write it herself. It was first made by a band from Nashville called Luna Halo back in 2007.
Taylor heard it, loved it, and gave it her own twist. She first added it to her Fearless album in 2008, then updated it again in Fearless (Taylor’s Version) in 2021 with her more mature voice and new production.
In this article, I’m going to break down the lyrics of Untouchable, just like an English teacher would. We’ll look at what each line means, why Taylor chose to sing this song, and how she made it feel like her own. Let’s get started.
Untouchable (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift
- Title: Untouchable (Taylor’s Version)
- Album Track: Track 15 on Fearless (Taylor’s Version) (2021)
Originally track 2 on Fearless Platinum Edition (2008) - Writers: Taylor Swift, Cary Barlowe & Nathan Barlowe (Luna Halo), Tommy Lee James
- Written With: Fountain pen ✒️
- Secret Message: “We always want what we can’t reach.”
Taylor took this song, originally written and recorded by Luna Halo, and transformed it into something soft, slow, and emotional. It fits perfectly into her Fearless era, full of dreamy love and aching hearts. The secret message hints at the whole theme of the song: wanting someone who feels just out of reach.
Untouchable Song Analysis: Narrative Summary
Setting: Inside a dream at first, then in real life, where she’s missing someone.
Characters: The storyteller (Taylor) and the person she’s thinking about. It could be a crush, a love, or something she wants but can’t have.
Theme: Wanting something you can’t reach, but still dreaming about it every night.
Mood: Soft, sad, dreamy, and full of longing.
Conflict: She loves someone who isn’t with her, and maybe never will be.
Inciting Incident: She starts dreaming about this person or feeling.
Quest: She wants this dream to come true. She hopes to hold this person for real, not just in her sleep.
Metaphors & Deeper Meanings:
Words like “Untouchable,” “distant diamond sky,” “reaching out,” “caught up in you,” and “burning brighter than the sun” show how far away this person feels.
Other lines like “when you’re close,” “coming undone,” “middle of the night,” “this dream,” “million little stars spelling out your name,” “taste of heaven,” “half full,” “won’t wait here all day,” “you’d be here anyway,” “waking from this dream,” and “by my side” all show how strong and painful this longing is.
Imagery:
The song paints pictures with lines like “distant diamond sky,” “burning brighter than the sun,” “coming undone,” “million little stars spelling out your name,” “taste of heaven,” and “half full.”
They make the feeling feel big, bright, and just a little bit out of reach.
What is Untouchable About?
Untouchable is about wanting someone, or something, that feels too far away to ever have.
It’s the kind of love or dream that only exists in your mind or in your sleep. Taylor uses big space-like images, like someone “burning brighter than the sun” or being “like a distant diamond sky,” to show how far away this person feels. No matter how much she wants it, it seems impossible to reach.
Who is Untouchable About?
Untouchable wasn’t written by Taylor Swift, though she did make it her own by changing the lyrics and the music.
The song was originally written by the Nashville band Luna Halo. They haven’t said exactly what the song means to them, but they did share how it ended up in Taylor’s hands in an interview.
Since Taylor didn’t write the whole song, we can guess it wasn’t based on anyone in her life. What the song really means to her is something we’ll never fully know.
Untouchable Lyrics Meaning: Line by Line
Taylor starts by saying, “Untouchable like a distant diamond sky,” which shows that the person or thing she wants feels so far away, like it’s in the sky, way out of reach.
Then she sings, “I’m reachin’ out and I just can’t tell you why,” meaning she’s trying to get closer to what she desires, but she doesn’t understand why she keeps trying, even if it feels impossible.
She repeats, “I’m caught up in you,” showing how deeply she’s thinking about this person or thing, and how her feelings are overwhelming her.
In the pre-chorus, she sings, “Untouchable, burning brighter than the sun,” which makes it clear that this desire feels intense and hot, but it’s still so far away that it’s hard to get close to.
When she says, “And when you’re close, I feel like comin’ undone,” she compares herself to the Greek myth of Icarus, who flew too close to the sun and ended up falling. Like Icarus, she tries to reach something that’s too hot and dangerous, and it ends up hurting her.
Then she says, “In the middle of the night, when I’m in this dream,” revealing that everything she’s feeling is part of a dream. It’s not real, but it feels real to her. The dream becomes a way to escape her longing, showing how much she wishes this could be real.
She sings, “It’s like a million little stars spelling’ out your name.” This shows that her dream is completely filled with thoughts of this person or thing she desires. It’s almost like the stars themselves are trying to send her a message, making it clear that she’s obsessed with this unachievable dream.
Then, she says, “You gotta come on, come on, say that we’ll be together.” She’s hoping for a promise, begging for this impossible dream to come true and for her to be with the person she wants.
She continues, “Come on, come on, little taste of Heaven,” suggesting that if she could just have this love, it would feel perfect, like something heavenly.
This line reminds us of The Cure’s song “Just Like Heaven,” which also uses dreams to describe a relationship: “you’re just like a dream.”
The phrase “taste of heaven” ties into all the cosmic ideas in the song, like the stars, sun, and even the moon. It’s all about wishing for something so beautiful, it feels almost out of this world.
Verse 2: “It’s Half Full, And I Won’t Wait Here All Day”
She sings, “It’s half full and I won’t wait here all day.” But what does she mean by “half full”?
It could be the moon, like a half-moon in the sky, or it could mean the “glass is half full,” a way of saying she’s not getting everything she wants. Either way, she feels uncertain and isn’t willing to stay stuck in this place of doubt forever.
Then she says, “I know you’re sayin’ that you’d be here anyway.” But deep down, she’s not sure she can trust them. This person or thing isn’t really with her, they’re “untouchable.” They won’t come down to her level, and their promises just don’t feel real.
She sings, “But you’re untouchable, burnin’ brighter than the sun.” She’s talking about how powerful and overwhelming this person feels.
But what else burns brighter than the sun? Passion. Love. But that kind of fire can also burn out quickly.
Then she says, “And now that you’re close, I feel like comin’ undone.” It’s like they’re so intense that being near them could hurt her, or maybe she’s taking such a big risk that, just like flying too close to the sun, her hopes could fall apart and leave her feeling broken.
2nd Chorus: “A Million Little Stars Spellin’ Out Your Name”
In the second chorus, the dream is explained more clearly, showing what it’s like to wake up from this constant longing.
In the dream, everything feels magical, like “a million little stars spellin’ out your name.” But when she wakes up, reality hits hard. She’s alone, and the dream wasn’t real, it was just something in her mind.
She sings, “I wanna feel you by my side, standin’ next to me,” but in the real world, that person or thing isn’t there. She’s left wondering, has she woken up from a beautiful dream or a painful nightmare?
She repeats, “You gotta come on, come on, say that we’ll be together,” asking for what she wants, but deep down, she knows it’s just an unreachable dream.
Read: No Fairytale Endings: Full Analysis of Taylor’s “White Horse” Meaning
Final Chorus & Outro: “Wakin’ From This Dream”
In the final chorus, she sings about the stars again, using them to express her deep longing. She’s hoping this desire could be real, just like in “Jump Then Fall” when she says, “Don’t be afraid, please, jump, then fall.”
She keeps repeating “Come on,” wishing for the person or thing she wants to be closer to her, without the risk of getting hurt.
The stars in her dreams show how much she longs for them, but what happens when the day comes? The stars disappear, just like how her dream fades when reality hits.
Untouchable Lyrics Meaning: Final Thoughts
Taylor definitely knew what she was doing when she decided to cover “Untouchable” and make it her own.
The themes of longing and desire fit perfectly with her other songs, especially on the Fearless album. It also connects to her next album, Speak Now.
Even though she didn’t write the original song, it hints at the cosmic and dreamy themes that would appear in future hits like Snow on the Beach, Bejeweled, Down Bad, and others.
Her more mature voice in Taylor’s Version adds a special touch to the song, and it’s great that she included this hidden gem in the re-record.
Frequently Asked Questions
What song is Untouchable a cover of?
This is a cover of a song originally written by Nashville duo Luna Halo in 2007. Taylor Swift reworked it for Fearless Platinum Edition.
What is Long Live about Taylor Swift meaning?
Long Live is a tribute to the triumphs and memories of youth, celebrating the power of friendship and the journey of living authentically.
What Taylor Swift album is Untouchable from?
This is from Taylor Swift’s Fearless Platinum Edition (2008) and was also included in Fearless (Taylor’s Version), re-recorded in 2021.
Who sang the Untouchable song?
The song was originally written and sung by Nashville duo Luna Halo in 2007 before being covered by Taylor Swift in 2008.
