Matchbox Twenty

Released: May 23, 2000

Featuring: The Nashville String Machine

Songwriter: Rob Thomas

Producer: Matt Serletic

[Verse 1]
It's amazing
How you make your face, just like a wall
How you take your heart, and turn it off
How I turn my head, and lose it all

[Verse 2]
It's unnerving
How just one move puts me, by myself
There you go just trustin', someone else
Now I know I put us, both through hell

[Pre-Chorus]
I'm not sayin', there was nothin' wrong
I just didn't think you'd ever get, tired of me
And I'm not sayin', we ever had the right to hold on
I just didn't wanna let it get away from me

[Chorus]
But if that's how it's gonna leave, straight out from underneath, Then we'll see who's sorry now
If that's how it's gonna stand
When you know you've been depending on
The one you're leavin' now
The one you're leavin' out

[Verse 3]
It's aggravating
How you threw me on, and you tore me out
How your good intentions, turned to doubt
The way you needed time, to sort it out

[Pre-Chorus]
And I'm not sayin', there was nothin' wrong
I just didn't think you'd ever get tired of me
And I'm not sayin', we ever had the right to hold on
I couldn't ever let you get away from me

[Chorus]
But if that's how you're gonna leave
Straight out from underneath
Then we'll see who's sorry now
If that's how it's gonna stand when
You know you've been depending on
The one you're leavin' now
The one you're leavin' out
The one you're leavin' now
Now, no no
The one you're leavin' out

[Pre-Chorus]
And I'm not sayin', there was nothin' wrong
I didn't think you'd ever get tired of me

[Chorus]
But if that's how you're gonna leave
Straight out from underneath
Then we'll see who's sorry now
If that's how it's gonna stand when
You know you've been depending on
The one you're leavin' now, now
Yeah well tell me is that, how it's gonna end
When you know you've been depending on
The one you're leaving now
The one you're leaving out (I'm not sayin)
I'm the one your leavin' now
The one you're leavin' out (I'm not sayin)

Upon the release of their debut album, Yourself or Someone Like You, in fall 1996, Matchbox Twenty was pigeonholed as one of the legions of post-grunge guitar bands that roamed the American pop scene in the middle of that decade. As their first single, “Push,” climbed the charts, it was widely assumed (at least by cynical critics) that they were a one-hit wonder, but Yourself or Someone Like You continued to spin off singles well into 1998. By that time, the group’s blend of ‘70s arena rock and early-'90s American alt-rock – closer to Pearl Jam and maybe R.E.M. than Nirvana – had become the sound of mainstream American rock. That transition slipped underneath the radar of many pop music critics and fans. Yourself or Someone Like You sold millions of copies without ever truly dominating the charts – by 1998, it had gone platinum five times; by 2000, ten times. At no time did the record top the charts, but it was always around, a staple of modern rock, adult alternative, and Top 40 radio alike. Matchbox Twenty was omnipresent because they managed to blend the structure and sentiment of '70s arena rock with '90s hard rock, thereby winning a large audience by seeming simultaneously classicist and modern. They were a little more classicist than modern, but that’s the reason why they became America’s most popular rock band of the late '90s – even if nobody quite realized they had achieved that status.

The de facto leader of Matchbox Twenty is lead singer and songwriter Rob Thomas. An Army brat born on a military base in Germany, Thomas spent much of his childhood between his mother’s house in Florida and his grandmother’s place in South Carolina. The stress of the constant movement spilled over into his schoolwork, and he dropped out of high school at the age of 17. He spent some time wandering around the Southeast, singing in a variety of rock bands before he made Orlando, Florida his home base. There, he met bassist Brian Yale and drummer Paul Doucette, and the three spent several years drifting through local bands before Matchbox Twenty officially formed. They rounded out the lineup with Adam Gaynor (rhythm guitar, vocals), who had previously worked at the Criteria Recording Studios in Miami, and Kyle Cook (lead guitar), a former student of the Atlanta Institute of Music.

The band hooked up with Collective Soul producer Matt Serletic and recorded a batch of demos, which helped the band secure gigs throughout the U.S. Soon, the band signed to Lava, a subsidiary of Atlantic Records, and recorded its debut, Yourself or Someone Like You, also with Serletic. The album was released in October 1996 to little attention, but Matchbox Twenty continued to tour America, cultivating a fan base. They eventually landed their single “Long Day” on several influential radio stations, which paved the way for their breakthrough hit, “Push.” In spring 1997, “Push” began climbing its way to the top of the modern rock charts, as it received heavy airplay from radio and MTV. By the summer, the single was in the modern rock Top Ten, and Yourself or Someone Like You had reached the album Top 40 and gone gold.

more tracks from the album

Mad Season

From the album

Mad Season (2000)

Matchbox Twenty popular songs

LeaveMatchbox Twenty

Matchbox Twenty

Mad Season