The Paris, IL, native was visiting Nashville for the first time early in his sophomore year at Chicago's Elmhurst College. He was at the Station Inn, an historic bluegrass/country venue where many of the greats of both worlds have played. His cousin Terry, a veteran of Dolly Parton's band and now a member of the Grascals, was playing with a band called the Sidemen, and a mesmerized Brett was in the crowd.
"There was something so real and truthful about the songs they were playing," he says. “What happened next came as a shock.”
"He asked me to come up on stage and told me to pick a song to play with the band," says Brett. I said, 'Amarillo By Morning,' and when I heard that fiddle intro, chills shot up my spine. I sang it for the crowd there and it was a magical experience. That was the point where I thought, 'This is it. This is something I've got to do.'"
By the start of the next school year, he had transferred to Middle Tennessee State University and begun the round of writers' nights and writing appointments that led him eventually to a record deal.
The talent that let him turn that dream into reality—the depth of his writing and the sheer power of his smoky and expressive baritone—are both apparent in his first single. "Raymond" is the poignant tale of a nursing home employee mistaken by a patient with Alzheimer's for her deceased son, who was killed at war. It is a song whose inspiring reaffirmation of their mutual humanity is affecting listeners deeply. The single rings true for Eldredge as his Grandmother currently struggles through the disease.
"There are a lot of things I'll play live where people will say, 'I like that,' or 'That's a really cool song,'" Brett says, "but when I do this one, I get the chance to tell people how special a thing it's been in my life, and it always touches someone. A lot of people know someone with Alzheimer's and people react in a really emotional way to it."
Brett has earned a reputation as much for the strength of his writing as for his world-class voice. He and co-writer Pat McLaughlin landed a song called "I Think I've Had Enough" on Gary Allan's latest album, Get Off On The Pain, and one of his frequent collaborators is Country Music Hall of Famer and Grand Ole Opry stalwart Bill Anderson.
"He's one of my favorite people to write with," says Brett. "I love the fact that he believes in country music so much, because it's something I really believe in. My dream, as I find my place in country music, is one day to be an Opry member."
Brett heard all kinds of music growing up, and became a particular fan of the classic pop singers he heard in his grandfather's car.
"I heard a lot of Frank Sinatra, who is still a favorite of mine, and Ray Charles and Bobby Darin," he says. "When my mother convinced me to sing 'Mack The Knife' at a talent show, I got hooked on singing in public."
That was in Paris, a town of 9,000 with "cornfields and factories and lake right in the middle." Brett, his older brother and his parents—a traveling grain salesman and a nurse—lived on the lake and, says Brett, "We were on the water every day, from the time I was so little they could pull me on water skis in a paddle boat until I left for college at 18." Sports were a big part of his life, and he played basketball, baseball and football in high school.
He also sang everywhere he could, often the Big Band music of Sinatra, earning spending money and learning to work a stage. His appreciation for country music became a passion when he turned 16 and he and a friend rode around listening to a Brooks & Dunn greatest hits album.
"There was something about it that just struck me," he says. "I couldn't get enough of it. Ronnie Dunn is one of my favorite singers of all time—I love the soul in his voice—and one of the main reasons I got into this in the first place."
Brett spent two years in Chicago, where his older brother lived, performing with a school jazz band and with a Big Band around the region.
"One of the coolest gigs," he says, "was at the Field Museum, I was singing in front of a 12-piece band under this huge Tyrannosaurus Rex statue near some mammoths. It was quite the experience."
Then came that fateful visit to Nashville and his transfer to MTSU. He studied classic country stylists like Ray Price and George Jones, and later Vince Gill, absorbing everything he could.
"I was driving back and forth Nashville every day from Murfreesboro, which is thirty miles away," he says. "I had a guitar Terry had given me, which was originally a gift from Dolly, and I'd pretty much lock myself in my room and make myself learn songs. I would play writers' nights all around Nashville. There might be two people, there might be 40 or 50. I'd go play my songs and see what people liked and what they didn't. I'd screw up royally in front of them, but I learned."
He earned a degree, which, he says, "made Mom and Dad happy, and then I moved on to what I really wanted to do.
A staff writer for hit producer/publisher Byron Gallimore heard him at a writers' night and introduced him to Byron, who signed him.
"I wrote for about two years, developing my craft and writing with everyone I could. In the beginning, Byron just let me kind of find myself, because that takes a while. As you write more you starting homing in on what you sound good on. Eventually, Byron said, 'You've got something here' and we went in and started cutting songs. We did a showcase, and Carole Ann Mobley from Warner Music Nashville said, 'We've gotta sign this kid'. Mobley and Craig Kallman then signed Brett to Atlantic Records, making him the first official signing for the new imprint.
As he worked with his band tightening his show, he was offered a particularly gratifying gig.
"I opened for Blake Shelton at The Ryman and it was the coolest experience. I flew back from this house gig and all of a sudden I'm thrown into playing the Mother Church of Country Music, something I always dreamed of doing. I was operating on almost no sleep, but stepping out on that stage where everybody who's anybody in country music has been meant the world to me."
He remains active in sports, playing basketball and volleyball and playing on an intramural softball team in Nashville, and rooting for the Cubs and Bears. Meanwhile, he is dedicated to improving his craft.
"As a songwriter," he says, "my aim is to portray a little bit of me and my life along with the stories of other people and turn them into something that can really touch somebody's heart and soul. We sit down on Music Row every day and write songs and every once in a while a song like ‘Raymond’ comes from such a real place. I hope it's that real to other people and that I can make them feel the way I felt when I wrote it and when I sing it."
Judging from audience reaction, that’s exactly what he’s doing.
The One You Need
Brett Eldredge Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And you can't sleep
When there's no one else
Let me be the one you need
When your hope goes out
Like a ship at sea
If it don't come back
Oh, let me be the one you need
And rest your head here, pull me closer
I'll hold you tight while you let go, girl
I could love you if you just let me
Be the one you, be the one you need
When you fly too high
When you sink too deep
When you're lost out there
Oh, let me be the one you need
When those falling stars
Don't line up your dreams
Before it breaks your heart
Oh, let me be the one you need
Rest your head here, pull me closer
I'll hold you tight while you let go, girl
And I could love you if you just let me
Be the one you, be the one you need, oh
I've spent most my life
Thinkin' love was out of reach
So maybe just this once
You could be the one I need
If you let me be the one you need
The lyrics to Brett Eldredge's song "The One You Need" convey a message of support and comfort to a loved one during times of struggle. The opening lines suggest a sense of loneliness and restlessness, with the reference to coldness and difficulty sleeping. The singer offers to be there for the person, to fill the void and be the one they can rely on. The repetition of the phrase "let me be the one you need" emphasizes the desire to be their source of solace.
The lyrics further illustrate the singer's willingness to provide love and support. The lines "rest your head here, pull me closer, I'll hold you tight while you let go" depict a scene of physical and emotional intimacy. The use of the word "girl" suggests a romantic connection, expressing the singer's desire to love and care for the person if they allow it.
As the song progresses, the singer acknowledges their own past struggles with love and suggests that the person in question has the potential to be the one they need as well. The line "I've spent most my life thinking love was out of reach, so maybe just this once you could be the one I need" portrays vulnerability and a shift in perspective. It reveals the singer's longing for reciprocal love and the hope that the person they are addressing can fill that void.
Line by Line Meaning
When it's cold outside
In times of hardship or discomfort
And you can't sleep
When sleep eludes you
When there's no one else
When you feel alone
Let me be the one you need
Allow me to be the person who can support you
When your hope goes out
When your optimism diminishes
Like a ship at sea
Similar to a lost vessel in the ocean
If it don't come back
If it doesn't return
Oh, let me be the one you need
Oh, allow me to be the person who can support you
And rest your head here, pull me closer
Find solace with me, draw near to me
I'll hold you tight while you let go, girl
I will embrace you tightly while you release your burdens
I could love you if you just let me
I have the capacity to love you if only you allow me
Be the one you, be the one you need
Choose me to be the person you require
When you fly too high
When you reach incredible heights
When you sink too deep
When you descend into profound depths
When you're lost out there
When you feel disoriented in the world
Oh, let me be the one you need
Oh, allow me to be the person who can support you
When those falling stars
When your desires or aspirations disappoint
Don't line up your dreams
Fail to align with your dreams
Before it breaks your heart
Before it shatters your heart
Oh, let me be the one you need
Oh, allow me to be the person who can support you
Rest your head here, pull me closer
Find solace with me, draw near to me
I'll hold you tight while you let go, girl
I will embrace you tightly while you release your burdens
And I could love you if you just let me
And I have the capability to love you if you simply allow me
Be the one you, be the one you need, oh
Choose me to be the person you require, oh
I've spent most my life
I have dedicated a significant portion of my existence
Thinkin' love was out of reach
Believing that love was inaccessible
So maybe just this once
Perhaps only on this occasion
You could be the one I need
You could serve as the person I require
If you let me be the one you need
If you allow me to be the person who can support you
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Brett Eldredge, Jessie Jo Dillon, Matt Rogers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Maran Chic Teo
BRETT ELDREDGE (2020) – THE ONE YOU NEED (Traducción)
When it's cold outside
Cuando hace frío afuera
And you can't sleep
Y no puedes dormir
When there's no one else
Cuando no hay nadie más
Let me be the one you need
Déjame ser el que necesitas
When your hope goes out
Cuando tu esperanza mengüe
Like a ship at sea
Como un barco en el mar
If it don't come back
Si no regresa
Oh, let me be the one you need
Oh, déjame ser el que necesitas
Rest your head here, pull me closer
Reposa tu cabeza aquí, acércame más
I'll hold you tight while you let go, girl
Te abrazaré fuerte mientras lo dejas ir, nena
I could love you if you just let me
Podría amarte si me dejases
Be the one you, be the one you need
Ser el que tú, ser el que necesitas
When you fly too high
Cuando vueles demasiado alto
When you sink too deep
Cuando te hundas demasiado profundamente
When you're lost out there
Cuando estés perdida ahí fuera
Oh, let me be the one you need
Oh, déjame ser el que necesitas
When those falling stars
Cuando aquellas estrellas fugaces
Don't line up your dreams
No se alineen con tus sueños
Before it breaks your heart
Antes de que te rompa el corazón
Oh, let me be the one you need
Oh, déjame ser el que necesitas
Rest your head here, pull me closer
Reposa tu cabeza aquí, acércame más
I'll hold you tight while you let go, girl
Te abrazaré fuerte mientras lo dejas ir, nena
I could love you if you just let me
Podría amarte si me dejases
Be the one you, be the one you need
Ser el que tú, ser el que necesitas
Oh, eh
I've spent most my life
He pasado la mayor parte de mi vida
Thinkin' love was out of reach
Creyendo que el amor estaba fuera de alcance
So maybe just this once
Así que tal vez sólo esta vez
You could be the one I need
Podrías ser la que necesito
If you let me be the one you need
Si me dejas ser el que necesitas tú
AK2023
This song is just beautiful. Peaceful and complete
Carolee Gunter Byrum
Everything about Brett is soulful! Hes a beautiful man inside and out
Veronika Stupar
I absolutely love listening to this album while driving around aimlessly with my best friend.
We watch the sunset and scream our lungs to all the lyrics ❤
Thank you Brett for making magic and glorifying our moments in life.
Brett Eldredge
Thank you so much for your love ❤️❤️
Lynn Roberta
Your voice is soothing and can't get enough of it. Can feel the love ❤
happy cheese
Brett will always be the one I need! I LOVE THIS SONG!! IT'S THE BEST SO FAR!!
Heather Collins
Another beautiful song that didn’t disappoint. Maybe one day I’ll find that love. ❤️❤️
Martin Billingsley
Don't know why you're cute
Peg
Beautiful song...give me tears...love the lyrics ..never take anymore for granted...when you know you have the one keep him or her...don't be afraid to take that risk...love your singing Brett...😞🎶🎸🎵❤️
LiFu Stigers
It’ll shock me if this song doesn’t become a number 1 hit for at least 9 weeks straight. This needs to win CMA Song of the year.