The Heart of the Matter - Don Henley

No one can hold a light to your misery You're number one Being hard done Hard done by You'll get by with your smile Wicked smile and laughing at the misfortune of others Yelling at your kids A can of bricks Laughing as they pick up sticks And old ladies walks on by Trip up as they cry With all the battering it's taken I'm surprised it's still ticking Yeah with all the battering it's taken I'm surprised it's still ticking Let's get straight to the heart of the matter So glum, it's all on a platter So what's the matter, what's the matter today? I am no stranger to the cause I carry them in my soul They scorch my flesh and leave great holes In the meaning of my life But I get by, I get by Just as crooked little smile You'll get by, you'll get by With all the battering it's taken Well, I'm surprised it's still ticking Yeah, with all the battering it has taken I'm surprised it's still ticking Let's get straight to the heart of the matter So glum, it's all on a platter So what's the matter, what's the matter today? Oh let's get straight to the heart of the matter Why so glum it's all on the platter So what's the matter tell me what's the matter today? So hold a light to my misery But don't send it up in flames It's only I who take the blame But try me anyway And you'll get by you'll get by With your wicked little smile You'll get by, you'll get by with your wicked little Ohhhh With the battering it's taken I'm surprised that it's still ticking Yeah with all the battering it's taken I'm surprised it's still ticking Let's get straight to the heart of the matter Oh why so glum, it's all on a platter Oh what's the matter, what's the matter today? Let's get straight to the heart of the matter Why so glum, it's all on a platter Oh what's the matter is the glum ruining your day Straight to the heart of the matter Why so glum, it's all on a platter Oh what's the matter, what's the matter today? Let's get straight!

I got the call today, I didn't wanna hear But I knew that it would come An old true friend of ours was talkin' on the phone She said you found someone And I thought of all the bad luck And all the struggles we went through How I lost me and you lost you What are these voices outside love's open door Make us throw off our contentment And beg for something more? I've been learning to live without you now But I miss you sometimes The more I know, the less I understand All the things I thought I knew, I'm learning them again I've been tryin' to get down to the heart of the matter But my will gets weak And my thoughts seem to scatter But I think it's about forgiveness Forgiveness Even if, even if you don't love me anymore These times are so uncertain There's a yearning undefined And people filled with rage We all need a little tenderness How can love survive in such a graceless age And the trust and self-assurance that lead to happiness They're the very things we kill, I guess Pride and competition cannot fill these empty arms And the work they put between us You know it doesn't keep us warm I've been trying to live without you now But I miss you, baby The more I know, the less I understand And all the things I thought I figured out, I have to learn again I've been tryin' to get down to the heart of the matter But my will gets weak And my heart is so shattered But I think it's about forgiveness Forgiveness Even if, even if you don't love me anymore All the people in your life who've come and gone They let you down, you know they hurt your pride Better put it all behind you; 'cause life goes on You keep carryin' that anger, it'll eat you up inside I wanna be happily, ever, after And my heart is so shattered But I know it's about forgiveness Forgiveness Even if, even if you don't love me anymore I've been tryin' to get down to the heart of the matter Because the flesh will get weak And the ashes will scatter So I'm thinkin' about forgiveness Forgiveness Even if you don't love me anymore Even if you don't love me anymore

You're looking for a way out, I can feel it Come on, show me where it hurts, maybe I can heal it Your feelings are your own, now you keep them under lock and key You've got me driving through the streets for an answer to the mystery The world's still awake on Charleston Avenue Outside that vacant starlight motel I see you Laughing with your girlfriends Not a care in the world Not a burden on your mind It was a matter of time There's a panic in this house and it's bound to surface Just walking through the front door makes me nervous It's creeping up the floorboards, got me wondering where I stand I cannot put out the fire, I've got a book of matches in my hand When we first met, headstrong and filled with doubt Made just enough, hustling tables, that summer to take you out I was falling back on forever When you told me about your heart You laid it on the line Laughing with your girlfriends Not a care in the world Not a burden on your mind You're hanging on the line! It was just a matter It was a matter of time We'd find ourselves a place, we belong in this forever Ain't that what it's all about? Make the promise and keep it Come hell or high water We'd figure it out It was the night, it was the moon It was the green grass in the garden The victory and the sin I know you're weary, look at me Flailing in the corner Here's the towel Go on, throw it in It was a matter of time Can't you see that it's tearing me up inside? Look what's laying at our feet That's the wreckage of broken dreams And burned out halos And it's here on our street

Every part in my heart I'm giving out Every song on my lips I'm singing out Any fear in my soul I'm letting go And anyone who ask I'll let them know She's the one, she's the one I say it loud She's the one, she's the one I say it proud Ring a bell, Ring a bell For the whole crowd Ring a bell, Ring a bell I'm telling the world That I've found a girl The one I can live for The one who deserves Every part in my heart I'm giving out Every song on my lips I'm singing out Any fear in my soul I'm letting go And anyone who ask I'll let them know She's the one, she's the one I say it loud She's the one, she's the one I say it proud Ring a bell, Ring a bell For the whole crowd Ring a bell, Ring a bell I'm telling the world That I've found a girl The one I can live for The one who deserves To give all my heart A reason to fly The one I can live for A reason for life Oe oh oe oh Yeah yeah Oe oh oe oh Yeah yeah Oe oh oe oh Yeah yeah