Billy McLaughlin graduated with honors from the University of Southern California. He now resides in his home state of Minnesota where he is raising his two boys.
While studying music at the University of Southern California, he became interested in the minimalist compositions of Phillip Glass and Steve Reich. Hearing recordings by guitarists Michael Hedges and Steve Tibbets, McLaughlin began composing for his first CD released on his own record label in 1986. Many of the compositions featured a technique using both hands on the fingerboard in which the notes are “tapped” in a series of hammer-ons and pull-offs creating a harp-like effect. The technique became McLaughlin’s stylistic signature and by the early 90s he was touring the US coast-to-coast.
In 1995, Narada/Virgin Records signed McLaughlin to a multi-album contract ending his string of seven self-released titles. Narada’s first release, Fingerdance, climbed to #7 on the Billboard’s New Age chart and was distributed world-wide.
By 2000, McLaughlin's skills on the guitar were severely degraded due a problems in one of his hands. He could no longer perform most of his own repertoire. Several months later Billy was diagnosed with a neuromuscular disorder called focal dystonia. Choosing to go against doctors’ recommendations to quit music and look for other work, McLaughlin focused on his songwriting and returned to his ensemble which was less demanding for his hands. McLaughlin began the unlikely journey of teaching himself to play in his signature style, left-handed. Warned by doctors of a higher likelihood for developing focal dystonia in his remaining good hand, McLaughlin chose to press on towards an ambitious goal he had yet to achieve – to perform and record a new project with a string orchestra.
In January 2007, McLaughlin published a limited release of Into the Light, a concert recording of compositions for acoustic guitar with string orchestra. This collaboration with Grammy nominated arranger, Eugenio Toussaint, is McLaughlin’s first as a left-handed guitarist. Into the Light will be released nationally in the Fall of 2007 accompanied by a companion concert DVD.
The Best of My Love
Billy McLaughlin Lyrics
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I'm lying in bed,
Holdin' you close in my dreams;
Thinkin' about all the things that we said
And comin' apart at the seams.
We try to talk it over
But the words come out too rough;
I know you were tryin'
Beautiful faces,
Loud empty places
Look at the way that we live,
Wastin' our time
On cheap talk and wine
Left us so little to give.
The same old crowd
Was like a cold dark cloud
That we could never rise above,
But here in my heart
I give you the best of my love.
Oh, sweet darlin',
You get the best of my love,
(You get the best of my love.)
Oh, sweet darlin',
You get the best of my love.
(You get the best of my love.)
I'm goin' back in time
And it's a sweet dream.
It was a quiet night
And I would be alright
If I could go on sleeping.
But every morning'
I wake up and worry
What's gonna happen today.
You see it your way,
And I see it mine,
But we both see it slippin' away.
You know, we always had each other, baby.
I guess that wasn't enough.
Oh, but here in my heart
I give you the best of my love.
Oh, sweet darlin',
You get the best of my love.
Oh, sweet darlin',
You get the best of my love.
The lyrics to Billy McLaughlin's song The Best of My Love tells the story of a couple struggling to keep their relationship alive. The first stanza talks about the physical distance between the two lovers as they lie in bed, holding on to each other in their dreams. Despite the love they share and their efforts to communicate, their relationship is slowly unraveling. The second stanza paints a picture of their surroundings, filled with people and places that do not seem to inspire them anymore. They are stuck in a cycle of cheap talk and wine, which has left them with nothing to offer each other. The chorus reaffirms the love that the singer has for his partner, even though they are struggling. The final stanza looks back on a happier time, but the worries of the present keep creeping in. The couple seems to have lost their way, but the singer still believes that the love they share is the best that he can give.
The lyrics of The Best of My Love are poignant in their simplicity. The song tells a familiar tale of a relationship that has lost its way but still holds the promise of something better. The message of the lyrics is that love is not always easy and that it takes work to keep a relationship going. The imagery of the lyrics is strong and evocative, with words like "cold dark cloud" and "slippin' away" painting a picture of despair and hopelessness. Nevertheless, the chorus reminds us that love is worth fighting for, even when it seems like everything else is falling apart.
Line by Line Meaning
Every night
Every night, before I go to sleep, I think of us together.
I'm lying in bed,
As I lay in bed at night,
Holdin' you close in my dreams;
I dream of holding you close to my heart.
Thinkin' about all the things that we said
I think about all of the conversations we had.
And comin' apart at the seams.
I feel like we're slowly falling apart.
We try to talk it over
We try to solve our problems through conversation.
But the words come out too rough;
But our words don't come out right causing conflict.
I know you were tryin'
I know you were doing your best.
To give me the best of your love.
To show me your love in the best way possible.
Beautiful faces,
The people around us look beautiful, but,
Loud empty places
The places we go feel empty and unfulfilling.
Look at the way that we live,
The way we're living isn't fulfilling to either of us.
Wastin' our time
We're wasting our time together.
On cheap talk and wine
We're not doing anything meaningful together, just drinking wine and talking about nothing.
Left us so little to give.
We don't have much love to give each other anymore.
The same old crowd
The people we hang out with every day,
Was like a cold dark cloud
Feels like a weight on our relationship that we can't shake.
That we could never rise above,
Regardless of how hard we try, we can't seem to break free of the negative energy around us.
But here in my heart
Despite all of that, in my heart,
I give you the best of my love.
I still give you all of the love I have.
Oh, sweet darlin',
My dear beloved,
You get the best of my love,
You receive all the love I am capable of giving.
(You get the best of my love.)
I'm goin' back in time
I'm reminiscing about the past.
And it's a sweet dream.
It's a happy memory from the past.
It was a quiet night
It was a peaceful night when everything felt alright.
And I would be alright
I wish I could go back there and be okay again.
If I could go on sleeping.
If only I could go back to sleep and dream of that peaceful night again.
But every morning'
But every morning when I wake up,
I wake up and worry
I wake up anxious and worried about what the day will bring.
What's gonna happen today.
What troubles are waiting for us today.
You see it your way,
We have different ways of looking at things.
And I see it mine,
We each have our own perspective.
But we both see it slippin' away.
We both can feel our relationship slipping away from us.
You know, we always had each other, baby.
But we always knew we had each other's love.
I guess that wasn't enough.
But our love alone isn't enough to sustain our relationship.
Oh, but here in my heart
Even though we're struggling,
I give you the best of my love.
You still have all of my love.
Oh, sweet darlin',
My dear beloved,
You get the best of my love.
You continue to receive all of my love.
Oh, sweet darlin',
My dear beloved,
You get the best of my love.
You continue to receive all of my love.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Glenn Frey, Don Henley, John Souther
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind