"Love Ain't for Keeping" was originally conceived as part of Townshend's abandoned "Lifehouse" project, and the demo version (which, like the hard rock version, includes synthesizers) appears on "Lifehouse Chronicles". The song (referring to the best-known version on "Who's Next") has been described as "a blues-tinged country love song." The lyrics project optimism and contentment and the themes of the song include the peaceful joy of physical love, the power of nature and the need to live for the moment, indeed to share love rather than "keep" it. For example, the lyrics include: