“Not All Who Wander Are Lost” by Lana Del Rey

The title of this song (“Not All Who Wander Are Lost”) is sort of self-explanatory. Lana Del Rey is asserting that all because you may see someone wandering, that does not mean that said individual is “lost”. In short, all because a person may not necessarily know where they’re going, that doesn’t mean he or she doesn’t have any direction in life.

But within the context of the featured narrative, Lana is obviously making this assertion within a romantic context. And in that regard what she would be saying is something like no, she may not have a significant other at the moment. Moreover, she may actually be looking for love. In other words, Lana has what she describes as “wanderlust” when it comes to romance.  But that acknowledged, she is not “lost”.

And perhaps the best way to describe the overall titular sentiment is as the singer being single and searching alright, but that doesn’t mean that she is desperate.

Narrator’s Addressee

Furthermore, she is actually relaying such a sentiment to the addressee, who would be a budding romantic interest. This is a dude who is doing all of the right things, like “pulling out chairs” and “opening doors” for Lana – acts from the days of chivalry that are sure to impress a lady.

But even more to the matter at hand is him declaring his love for her, having her ‘name as his tattoo’ for instance.  Additionally the singer is able to recognize that she and the addressee are kindred spirit. So it’s like the potential for a serious relationship is definitely there.

But “not all who wander are lost”. So even though Lana may be free on the field, that doesn’t mean she is going to give in just like that. Nor should the addressee be under such an impression, that he’s going to say and do nice things, and then boom, that’s it.

And this is not to imply that perhaps they haven’t already done something romantic. Indeed the chorus insinuates that the singer has in fact fallen for his charms at least once, as in the two of them may have already had some type of amorous experience.

But that being noted, this dude is not going to be able to really lock the vocalist down unless somewhere along the way he is able to truly prove that he loves her. So for the time being perhaps the best way to classify the way Lana perceives him is sort of as a booty call that she can’t resist. However, as stated earlier, the potential is definitely there for it to evolve into more than just that, if this current interest is actually sincere.

Release Date of “Not All Who Wander Are Lost”

This track is from “Chemtrails Over the Country Club”, the follow-up to Lana ’s highly-successful “Norman F–king Rockwell”(2019) album. “Not All Who Wander Are Lost” was issued as part of the aforementioned project on 19 March 2021. And it is the seventh track on the playlist of the 11-song album.

This is one of the top songs on the project. Others include the following:

• “White Dress”
• “Wild at Heart”
• “Tulsa Jesus Freak”
• “Chemtrails”
• “Let Me Love You Like A Woman“

Writing Credits for “Not All Who Wander Are Lost”

Lana wrote this song with Jack Antonoff, roles that two of them served throughout Chemtrails. Antonoff also produced the tune, as he did the album. But this is one of the rare cases on the project where Lana is also credited as a co-producer.

Lana Del Rey

At the time of the release of this track, Lana Del Rey is one of the hottest female singer/songwriters in the game. Her career dates back to 2005, coming from humble beginnings as a self-promoted artist while simultaneously engaged in her undergrad studies.

In fact around the same time she graduated from Fordham University, having earned a B.A. in philosophy, was also the juncture in history when he music career really began to take off.

And in between 2010 to date, she has dropped seven albums. The most-successful was her third effort, “Ultraviolence” (2014), which topped the Billboard 200 and UK Albums Chart. And this is a feat that she replicated with her fifth album, “Lust for Life”, in 2017.

In fact all but one of her major-label albums (the first one, 2010’s “Lana Del Rey”, which was a minor-label release) with the exception of 2015’s “Honeymoon” topped the UK Albums Chart.

Meanwhile the above-mentioned “Norman F–king Rockwell” only peaked at number 3 on the Billboard 200. But it was a massive critical success, apparently more so than any of her previous projects. And based on early reviews of Chemtrails, this album will ultimately be held in a similar regard.