Lyrics to
Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing

This version of Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing was released by Jackson 5 in 1972.

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Ain’t nothing like the real thing, baby
Ain’t nothing like the real thing, no, no
Ain’t nothing like the real thing, baby
(Ain’t nothing)
Ain’t nothing like the real thing

Ooh, I’ve got your picture
Hanging on the wall
But it can’t see or come to me
When I call your name
(When I call your name)
I realize it’s just a picture in a frame

I read your letters
When you’re not near
But they don’t move me
And they don’t groove me
Like when I hear
(When I hear your voice)
Your sweet voice
Whispering in my ear
(In my ear)

No other sound is quite the same
As your name
(Quite the same as your name)
Your touch can do half this much
To make me feel better
So let’s stay together

Ooh, I got memories to look back on
Though they help when you’re gone
I’m well aware
(I’m well aware)
Nothing can take the place of your being there
(Being there)

Ain’t nothing like the real thing, baby
(Ain’t nothing)
Ain’t nothing like the real thing
Ooh, baby
Ain’t nothing like the real thing, baby
(Ain’t nothing)
Ain’t nothing like the real thing

Ooh, baby
Ain’t nothing like the real thing, baby
Ain’t nothing like the real thing

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Jackson 5 has released many songs over the years besides Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing. Jackson 5 released songs from 1969 to 1979 spanning across albums like Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5, ABC, Third Album, Christmas Album, Maybe Tomorrow, Goin' Back To Indiana, Lookin' Through The Windows, In Japan, Skywriter, G.I.T.: Get It Together, Dancing Machine, Moving Violation, Joyful Jukebox Music, and Boogie. Decade Lyrics has over lyrics & songs by Jackson 5.

If you're a fan of 1970s songs looking for more songs from 1972 or the 1970s overall, you've come to the right place!

About Lyrics and Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing by Jackson 5

The lyrics for Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing are defined as the words making up the song released by Jackson 5 in 1972. It also includes the verses and words used by the background chorus in the song. Like many hit songs, the lyrics to Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing have different meanings to different people. While it is clear in some of the lyrics what the artist is trying to really say, only Jackson 5 and those working with them know all of the meanings behind all of the lyrics to their songs.

Some folks are interested in word and phrase etymology. It is easy to understand the lyrics to Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing by Jackson 5 if you think through it. The word "lyric" itself derives from the Latin word lyricus, with the actual English word lyrics applied to the definition "words set to music" listed in Stainer and Barrett's 1876 Dictionary of Musical Terms. Continuing the chain, the Latin word lyricus derives from the Greek word λυρικός or lyrikós. This somewhat means "poetry accompanied by the lyre" or "words set to music." You can easily see that by looking at the background of the word lyric, that the "lyrics to Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing" means the words set to the music of Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing, or poetry accompanied by the lyre played by Jackson 5. The singular form "lyric" is still used to mean the complete words to a song. However, the singular form lyric is also commonly used to refer to a specific line (or phrase) within a song's lyrics. Hence, by this analysis of word structure, you could say that the lyric to Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing and the lyrics to Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing are both one and the same thing. None of this talk about the word Lyrics is really relevant to fans of Jackson 5 who came here looking just for the lyrics to Ain’T Nothing Like The Real Thing, but we feel it is still fun to learn what's behind commonly used words and lyrics in songs.

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