A Gentle Confession that Love Leaves Scars Yet Still Offers Salvation
Released in 1989 on his solo album It’s a Game, “Love Hurts And Love Heals” finds Les McKeown stepping away from the glittering, chart-dominating exuberance of his years with Bay City Rollers and into a more reflective, adult emotional space. The song itself was not a chart single, but the album represented an important chapter in McKeown’s career, marking his determination to be heard not as a pop idol frozen in time, but as a seasoned singer confronting love with honesty and hard-earned perspective.
By the late 1980s, McKeown was navigating life beyond teen hysteria and screaming audiences. It’s a Game emerged from that transition, shaped by experience, disappointment, and resilience. “Love Hurts And Love Heals” sits near the emotional center of the record, a song that does not chase radio trends or nostalgic echoes of past fame. Instead, it leans into clarity and restraint, allowing its message to unfold without spectacle. This is not the voice of youthful infatuation, but of someone who has learned that affection carries both consequence and redemption.
Musically, the song is built on a soft, contemporary pop-rock framework typical of late 1980s adult-oriented production. Keyboards glide gently beneath the melody, while understated guitar lines and a steady rhythm section provide emotional stability. Nothing here overwhelms the listener. The arrangement exists to serve the lyric, and in doing so, it creates a space where McKeown’s voice can convey vulnerability rather than bravado. His delivery is calm, reflective, and unforced, shaped by years of performance and personal reinvention.
Lyrically, “Love Hurts And Love Heals” embraces contradiction as its central truth. Love is presented not as fantasy, but as a force capable of wounding just as deeply as it can restore. McKeown does not dramatize heartbreak or romanticize pain. Instead, he acknowledges it as an unavoidable part of connection. The song suggests that hurt is not evidence of failure, but proof that something meaningful was at stake. In the same breath, it affirms love’s ability to mend what it breaks, offering healing not through denial, but through acceptance.
This duality gives the song its emotional gravity. It resonates with listeners who have lived long enough to recognize that love rarely arrives without cost. McKeown’s performance carries quiet conviction, shaped by personal experience rather than theatrical flourish. There is no bitterness here, only understanding. Love is portrayed as a game not because it is trivial, but because it involves risk, chance, and the courage to play again after loss.
In retrospect, “Love Hurts And Love Heals” stands as a poignant example of McKeown’s post-Rollers artistry. It captures an artist reclaiming his narrative, offering sincerity instead of nostalgia. The song may not occupy a prominent place in chart history, but it holds a deeper value as a reflection of growth and emotional maturity.
For listeners willing to meet it on its own terms, this track offers a quiet truth. Love leaves marks, but it also leaves wisdom. In that balance of pain and restoration, Les McKeown found a voice that was finally his own.