Not that such anxiety is evident on the highly accomplished disc, the follow-up to Ruben’s self-released 2008 debut, Aiming for Honesty. Adding full-band accompaniment to his lush, soulful pop-rock, Ruben also stretches impressively as a writer on The Ones That Matter, achieving a near-novelistic sense of character and setting on finely hewn tracks like “A Lack of Armor,” “Bleeker and Sixth,” and “Unbreakable.” His relentless attention to detail pays off handsomely.
He makes no apology for meticulously fine-tuning all aspects of his work and presentation. “Every time you create something you have an opportunity to say something new – or at least something honest,” he says. “I take that opportunity seriously.”
Ruben’s expansive and deeply compassionate point of view has resonated strongly with an ever-growing audience, whom the performer has cultivated with virtually nonstop touring and persistent online networking; as a result, he’s sold some 5,000 copies of Honesty on his own.
He often receives emotional messages from fans declaring that his songs have crystallized their feelings, commemorated milestones in their lives and even helped repair broken bonds. “One woman wrote to me and said she and her daughter didn’t get along, but when she drives the girl to school every day they listen to my music – and it’s the only time they don’t fight,” he marvels. “The songs I wrote in my basement helped her relationship with her daughter. How could I ask for more than that?” Indeed, his compositions have connected so powerfully with listeners that several cover versions have been posted on YouTube.
Such moments of connection helped inspire the title of The Ones That Matter. Ruben had compiled a list of some 80 candidates, but it was in the aftermath of the recording process that he realized what the disc should be called.
“I was on an epic road trip,” he remembers of this epiphany. “I realized that as much as this album is about music, it’s ultimately a representation of who I am – and all that amounts to is all the incredible people I’ve surrounded myself with, and the places I’ve spent time, and the stories and jokes that came out of those experiences with those people. That’s when I understood that the only logical name for the album was The Ones That Matter.”
Recorded during a record-breaking snowstorm in Charlottesville, Virginia – where producer Chris Keup (Jason Mraz, OAR, Parachute) and partner Stewart Myers (Mraz, Lifehouse, Rachel Yamagata, Mandy Moore) have their studio – the disc afforded Ruben a chance to fully appreciate the devotion of his pals. “I had some of my best friends in the world come down to help me finish the record,” he relates. Other players on the disc include drummer Brian Jones (Mraz, Yamagata, Moore); and keyboardist Daniel Clark (Ryan Adams, kd lang, Moore). Meyers handled bass on several tracks.
The profound gratitude Ruben felt upon finishing the album snowballed in the coming days. “I wanted the title of this record to express my thanks to everyone who mattered – not just my friends who worked on the record, but their friends. The people who gave me a couch to crash on, made me dinner, drove me to the train station. Everyone who came to my shows, and walked up to tell me what the songs meant to them. I’m thanking them all with this record.”
Predictable
Jesse Ruben Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In the book that I took from your drawer.
The syllables are strained and hard to explain
But I promise my intentions are pure
And its raining outside which is fine cause I remember
We'd huddle just to keep each other warm
And I know it wasn't me but its all that I see
Yea the meaning might be hard to absorb
Why, I knew you would
I said "why, why, the words don't come to me like they should"
These city streets breathe and I wish I could leave
But they're beggin for the right to be heard
And I try to scream, "yea this is all a dream
And this situation seems so absurd"
"This doesn't seem to fit", I say as I sit
With my head in my hands on the curb
And this doesn't make sense, which makes no difference
Because I never get what I should deserve
No I never get what I should deserve
Why, I knew you would
I said "Why, why, the words don't come to me like they should"
Cause I am predictable, closed-minded
You were my sanity now I can't find it
I am predictable
Why, I knew you would
I said "Why, why, the words don't come to me like they should"
These are the thoughts that I wrote
In the book that I took from your drawer.
In the song "Predictable" by Jesse Ruben, the lyrics tell the story of a person struggling to come to grips with a failed relationship. The opening lines describe finding a book in a drawer filled with strained and hard-to-explain words, which the person promises were written with pure intentions. The song continues with the person reminiscing about moments spent with the now-ex-partner, such as huddling to keep each other warm during the rain. However, despite everything that happened, the person cannot shake the feeling that they never got what they deserved.
As the song continues, the person describes feeling trapped in their current city and situation, yearning to escape but feeling unable to do so. They try to convince themselves that it is all just a dream and that everything is absurd, but they cannot shake off the feelings of confusion and frustration. Finally, the person admits that they are "predictable" and "closed-minded," lamenting that the ex-partner who once brought them sanity is now gone and cannot be found.
Overall, Jesse Ruben's "Predictable" is a poignant and relatable song about the difficulties of moving on from a failed relationship, dealing with uncertainty and frustration, and trying to find meaning and hope in the midst of chaos.
Line by Line Meaning
These are the thoughts that I wrote
These are the thoughts that I wrote down so that I wouldn't forget them.
In the book that I took from your drawer.
I took this book from your drawer to write down my thoughts.
The syllables are strained and hard to explain
The words I wrote are difficult to express and put into words.
But I promise my intentions are pure
I promise that my thoughts and intentions are genuine and sincere.
And its raining outside which is fine cause I remember
It's raining outside, but I don't mind because it reminds me of a time when we used to huddle together to keep warm.
We'd huddle just to keep each other warm
We used to get close to each other just to keep warm when it was raining outside.
And I know it wasn't me but its all that I see
I know that what I'm seeing now isn't the same as before, but it's all that I have left.
But the meaning might be hard to absorb
The emotions and feelings I have may be difficult to understand or accept.
Why, I knew you would
I had a feeling that you would leave, but it still hurts.
I said "why, why, the words don't come to me like they should"
I can't express how I feel the way I want to.
These city streets breathe and I wish I could leave
The city is alive and bustling, but I wish I could escape it all.
But they're beggin for the right to be heard
The city streets are chaotic and loud, everyone is fighting to be heard.
And I try to scream, "yea this is all a dream
I want to shout out that this is all just a nightmare.
And this situation seems so absurd"
The circumstances I find myself in are so ridiculous.
"This doesn't seem to fit", I say as I sit
I can't make sense of this situation, and I sit there feeling lost.
With my head in my hands on the curb
I'm so overwhelmed that I collapse in despair with my head in my hands.
And this doesn't make sense, which makes no difference
Even though I can't make sense of it all, it doesn't change the reality of the situation.
Because I never get what I should deserve
I feel like I never get what I deserve, no matter how hard I try.
No I never get what I should deserve
I never seem to receive what I feel is rightfully mine.
Cause I am predictable, closed-minded
I am predictable and set in my ways, unwilling to change and grow.
You were my sanity now I can't find it
You were my source of comfort and stability, but now I feel lost without you.
I am predictable
I am stuck in a routine and can't seem to break free.
Why, I knew you would
I knew you would leave, and it hurts me deeply.
I said "Why, why, the words don't come to me like they should"
I can't seem to express how I feel the way I want to.
Contributed by Sophia O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.