Alec Wilder praised the song as a "model of pop song writing, musically and lyrically". He cites its surprising shifts in rhythm and key. The lyrics are sophisticated and perfectly synchronized with the tune. Mercer successfully borrowed some lyric techniques from Ira Gershwin, and like Gershwin, he writes more about language than about love. Margaret Whiting said of the lyrics, that the song was an enormously original approach to saying "I love you, honey".