McLaughlin was born on September 27, 1982 in Anderson, Indiana. Playing piano since early childhood, he was always finding ways to get out of piano lessons. While attending Highland High School, he shattered both wrists in an accident that interrupted his musical education. Nevertheless, McLaughlin attended Anderson University to study music. He released an independent album entitled Up until Now in 2003. This quickly led to McLaughlin becoming the first artist to sign on with the school's record label, Orangehaus Records. His self-titled album was released in 2004 to local and regional praise. He began touring, travelling throughout the U.S. Midwest, and working up a grassroots following.
He released Indiana in 2007, preceded earlier in the same year by the EP Industry, also known as Jon McL. In 2008, McLaughlin returned with lead single "Beating My Heart" from his album OK Now released in the same year. He gained fame with his cameo appearance in Disney's Enchanted. Released in early September 2011 in the U.S. Forever If Ever was McLaughlin's third major-label release. 2012's lead single "Summer Is Over" featured fellow singer-songwriter-pianist Sara Bareilles from Promising Promises which was a slightly reworked version of his 2011 album. There were no other singles released from the album. Jon released Holding My Breath on his website and iTunes on September 24, 2013. The mp3 version of the album is also available at Amazon.
One of Four
Jon McLaughlin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I say to downplay the feelings that maybe I should stay
with my heart on the ceiling
I take my time just to sink
into my same old pattern where every day is the same
and it all don’t matter a
nd every one can see, everyone can tell
you hurt me in areas that I have to show again
All the pain that I feel, is coming out of your mouth
I cut myself on your words as I’m sorting them out,
for everyone to see and everyone can tell.
I’m comin’ home, I’m comin’ home.
I’m comin’ back to all I’ve known, it’s so lonely.
I’m coming home.
The life I lead I keep on a shelf
it’s a relationship all by myself
and every chance to get out will be a chance that I’ll miss,
I’ll be an open heart to your closed fist.
And I don’t care if we are never gonna be
the people that we said that we’d be.
And now I’m comin’ home, I’m comin ‘home.
I’m comin back to all I know and so lonely.
I’m gonna take those second thoughts that still reside
from the same damn day I sealed this fate of mine.
Wasted time.
and all of the odds are all inviting
I’ll spend all my time righting all my wrongs
and please don’t find me oh,
cause I’m comin’ home, and I’m comin’ home.
I’m comin’ back to the only thing that I’ve ever known,
and I’m comin’ home.
In Jon McLaughlin's song One of Four, the artist seems to be reflecting on his past relationship with the person he is addressing in the lyrics. The song, which is built around a simple and repetitive acoustic guitar riff, has a nostalgic and melancholic feel to it. The artist surrenders to his past and accepts the pain and hurt that came with it. He recognizes that it is better to downplay his feelings and keep on living in his familiar pattern than to face and deal with them.
The artist seems trapped in a disengaging relationship where he feels the pain of his partner's words cutting deep inside him. He acknowledges that he keeps his life on a shelf, for he is in a relationship with himself; and every chance he gets to break out of it, he ends up missing. He feels that he is an open heart to his partner's closed fist, and he is aware that they may never be the people they said they would be. Despite everything, he is coming home to all he has ever known; maybe he feels that he should confront his past and face his pain.
Line by Line Meaning
It’s better this way,
I believe it's better to pretend that leaving is a good decision, even though I know deep down I want to stay.
I say to downplay the feelings that maybe I should stay
I tell myself it's not a big deal and try to suppress my desire to stay.
with my heart on the ceiling
My emotions are overwhelming and I'm not sure how to handle them.
I take my time just to sink
I'm not ready to face reality and I delay making any decisions regarding my situation.
into my same old pattern where every day is the same
I fall back into my routine where nothing changes and I don't try to improve my situation.
and it all don’t matter
I feel like nothing I do will change my situation, so I lose motivation to make any changes.
and every one can see, everyone can tell
My pain is apparent to those around me and they can tell I'm not doing well.
you hurt me in areas that I have to show again
You hurt me in ways that are affecting me in my everyday life, and I can't hide it.
and I feel the effects of everything that your holding in
I can sense that you're keeping things from me and it's affecting our relationship and my emotional well-being.
All the pain that I feel, is coming out of your mouth
The hurtful things you say are causing me a lot of emotional pain.
I cut myself on your words as I’m sorting them out,
Your words are so sharp and hurtful, they feel like they're physically cutting me.
for everyone to see and everyone can tell.
My suffering is becoming more apparent and it's hard to hide it anymore.
I’m comin’ home, I’m comin’ home.
I've made the decision to return to where I come from and find comfort there.
I’m comin’ back to all I’ve known, it’s so lonely.
I know going back won't solve my problems, but at least I know what to expect there, even if it's lonely.
The life I lead I keep on a shelf
I've been living my life in a way that's stagnant and I haven't been taking risks or growing as a person.
it’s a relationship all by myself
I haven't been allowing other people into my life or forming close relationships.
and every chance to get out will be a chance that I’ll miss,
I'm afraid of taking risks and making any changes because I might regret missing out on what I have now.
I’ll be an open heart to your closed fist.
I'm putting myself in a position to be hurt by staying with someone who is closed off emotionally.
And I don’t care if we are never gonna be
I've given up hope that things will get better between us.
the people that we said that we’d be.
We've failed to live up to the expectations we had for our relationship.
And now I’m comin’ home, I’m comin ‘home.
I've made the decision to return to my roots and find comfort there.
I’m comin’ back to all I know and so lonely.
Even though I know what to expect when I return, I still feel lonely because of the problems I'm facing.
I’m gonna take those second thoughts that still reside
I'm going to confront the doubts I still have about my decision to leave and try to work through them.
from the same damn day I sealed this fate of mine.
I made a decision in the past that led me to where I am now and I regret it.
Wasted time.
I feel like I've wasted a lot of time by not taking action and making changes in my life sooner.
and all of the odds are all inviting
Despite the challenges I'm facing, I feel like I have a chance to make things right.
I’ll spend all my time righting all my wrongs
I'm going to dedicate myself to making things right and fixing the mistakes I've made in my life.
and please don’t find me oh,
I need some space and time to work through my problems, and I don't want anyone to come looking for me.
cause I’m comin’ home, and I’m comin’ home.
I've made the decision to return to where I come from and find comfort there.
I’m comin’ back to the only thing that I’ve ever known,
Even though it's not perfect, it's familiar and comforting to me.
and I’m comin’ home.
I'm looking forward to being back where I come from and finding peace there.
Contributed by Isaiah A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.