About the Song
There’s a unique kind of tenderness found in the songs of the 1970s—music that speaks not with bravado or drama, but with gentle honesty, emotional vulnerability, and a quiet yearning for understanding. Few artists embodied that spirit more gracefully than Lobo, the stage name of Kent LaVoie, whose soft-spoken delivery and heartfelt lyrics brought comfort and connection to countless listeners. Nowhere is that emotional openness more beautifully expressed than in his 1973 ballad, “How Can I Tell Her.”
From the very first lines, the song unfolds like a personal confession—intimate, honest, and delicately introspective. It tells the story of a man caught in a deeply human dilemma: navigating his feelings for one woman while being emotionally supported by another. But this isn’t a song about betrayal or scandal—it’s about conflict of the heart, the kind that many people have faced quietly, without ever speaking it aloud. And that’s what makes it so powerful. There’s no sensationalism—just a sincere voice asking a simple, painful question: “How can I tell her about you?”
Lobo’s voice—soft, warm, and unassuming—carries the emotional weight of the lyrics with disarming ease. He doesn’t force the feelings; he lets them settle slowly into the melody, allowing the listener to feel each moment unfold. The acoustic guitar, paired with a gentle rhythm section and understated strings, creates a musical setting that never distracts from the message. Instead, it cushions it—like a quiet conversation late at night, when there’s no one left to impress, only the truth to share.
What makes “How Can I Tell Her” endure is not just its melody or arrangement, but its emotional clarity. It speaks to the complexities of love—not the grand, sweeping kind, but the quiet decisions, the inner conflicts, the longing to do what’s right even when there are no easy answers. It’s a song that understands how deeply we can feel torn—between comfort and change, between what we’ve known and what we’ve just discovered.
For listeners who appreciate music that speaks gently but honestly, “How Can I Tell Her” remains a timeless reflection on love, loyalty, and the human heart’s quiet struggles. With grace, humility, and emotional depth, Lobo offers not a resolution, but a moment of recognition—and in that moment, the song becomes something more than music. It becomes a mirror.