Mattea was born in South Charleston, West Virginia, because it had the nearest hospital to her parents' home in Cross Lanes, where she grew up, graduating from nearby Nitro High School. In 1976, while in college, she joined the bluegrass band Pennsboro, and two years later dropped out of school to move to Nashville. She worked as a tour guide at the Country Music Hall of Fame, did backup vocal work for Bobby Goldsboro , and sang demos for several Nashville songwriters and publishers including Nashville songwriter/producer Byron Hill, who brought her to the attention of Frank Jones (then head of Mercury Records), who signed her to her first record deal in 1983.
Mattea's third album, 1986's folky Walk the Way the Wind Blows, proved to be her breakthrough both critically and commercially. Her cover of Nanci Griffith's "Love at the Five and Dime" was her first major hit, reaching #3 (and in addition, earned Griffith notice as a songwriter); and the album produced three other top ten songs: "Walk the Way the Wind Blows" (#10), "You're the Power (#5), and "Train of Memories" (#6).
Further hit songs include her first #1, "Goin' Gone"; the truck-driving song "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses" (1988); "Come From the Heart" and "Burnin' Old Memories" (both #1 hits in 1989); "She Came From Fort Worth" (1990); "Lonesome Standard Time" (1992); "Walking Away a Winner" (1994); "Nobody's Gonna Rain on Our Parade" (1994); "Maybe She's Human" (1994); and "455 Rocket" (1997). "Eighteen Wheels," in late May 1988, became the first single by a solo female to spend multiple weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard country singles chart since Dolly Parton's "You're the Only One" in August 1979; both singles were on top of that chart for two weeks.
The heart-wrenching "Where've You Been," which Mattea's husband Jon Vezner co-wrote with singer/songwriter Don Henry, reached #2 on the country chart and won her a 1990 Grammy for Best Female Country Vocal. Mattea is a repeat winner of the County Music Associations Female Vocalist of the Year, which she won on the success of "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses" and "Where've You Been."
The following year, Mattea took part in Voices That Care, a multi-artist project that featured other top names in music for a one-off single to raise money for the allied troops in the Gulf War. The project included fellow country singers Garth Brooks, Kenny Rogers and Randy Travis. She has also been heavily involved in HIV/AIDS-related charities beginning in the early 1990s, and is often credited with leading the country music community, commonly regarded as the last segment of the entertainment industry to address the AIDS epidemic, to finally do so. She performed with Mary Chapin Carpenter on VH1's very first Save The Music concert, which also starred Bette Midler.
Mattea won another Grammy in 1993 for her gospel-oriented Christmas album Good News. Her first single from the album, "Mary, Did You Know?" went on to be covered by Kenny Rogers with Wynonna, as well as Reba McEntire.
Mattea subsequently moved to MCA and, in 2000, released the ballad-heavy The Innocent Years, a heartfelt tribute to her ailing father. Wanting to explore her taste for Celtic folk, Mattea hopped labels to Narada, for whom she debuted in 2002 with the eclectic Roses.
With her social activism and her taste for songs with introspective lyrics, it has been often said that Mattea owes as much to the traditions of folk music as mainstream country.
Though her recent work has failed to make the country charts, Mattea continued to enjoy a strong following throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s; her albums are critically well received, and she continues to tour and perform. She continues to have strong support from a very active fan club, run by Sue Phelps, whose members refer to themselves as Matteaheads.
Kathy travelled the country presenting Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" and speaking to crowds about the importance to fight global warming.
Before leaving Narada she released another album full of differing influences, Right Out Of Nowhere, including a cover of a Stones tune.
Her CD "Coal" released on her own label is a collection of songs about mining and received a nomination for a Grammy. She continues to tour across the US and in early 2008 she made a welcome return to the UK.
In 2018, Mattea announced a new album, Pretty Bird, which was released independently with Tim O'Brien serving as producer.
The Battle Hymn Of Love
Kathy Mattea Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To the love we share
Through the good and the bad times too
I'll forsake my rest
For your happiness
'Til my death I will stand by you
With God as my witness
To have and to hold you
No other to take
For rich or for poor
Under skies grey or blue
'Til my death I will stand by you
There are wars and there are rumors
Of wars yet to come
Temptations we'll have to walk through
Though others may tremble
I will not run
'Til my death I will stand by you
I will put on the armor of faithfulness
To fight for a heart that is true
'Til the battle is won, I will not rest
'Til my death I will stand by you
With God as my witness
This vow I will make
To have and to hold you
No other to take
For rich or for poor
Under skies grey or blue
'Til my death I will stand by you
'Til the battle is won
I will not run
'Til my death I will stand by you
The lyrics of Kathy Mattea's song "The Battle Hymn Of Love" talk about a person's pledge to unconditionally love and support their partner through all of life's ups and downs till the end of their life. The first verse describes how the person will sacrifice their own rest and happiness to make sure their partner is content. The second verse emphasizes their commitment to their partner and states that they will pledge their vows before God to love and cherish them without taking anyone else. The lines, "For rich or for poor, Under skies grey or blue" signify that the person's promises are not bound by any conditions or materialistic aspects of life.
The chorus carries forward the same beliefs and convictions with the phrase, "โTil my death I will stand by you", signifying absolute devotion and faithfulness. In the third verse, the lyrics mention that the journey is not going to be easy, and there might be wars and rumors of wars yet to battle through. But the person promises to stand alongside their partner through it all and not run away. The fourth verse evokes a powerful image of the armored heart, where the person puts on an armor of faithfulness to fight fiercely for their true love.
Overall, the lyrics are full of promises of love that's unconditional, unwavering, and eternal.
Line by Line Meaning
I will pledge my heart
I promise to give you my heart
To the love we share
As a token of our shared love
Through the good and the bad times too
Even during the tough times, our love will stay strong
I'll forsake my rest
I'll give up my own comfort
For your happiness
To see you happy
'Til my death I will stand by you
Until the day I die, I will be by your side
With God as my witness
I swear by God's name
This vow I will make
I promise to keep this vow
To have and to hold you
To love and cherish you
No other to take
I will be faithful to you
For rich or for poor
Regardless of our financial status
Under skies grey or blue
In any kind of weather
There are wars and there are rumors
There may be conflicts and gossip
Of wars yet to come
Possible future wars
Temptations we'll have to walk through
We may encounter temptations and we have to face them together
Though others may tremble
Even if others are scared
I will not run
I won't back down
I will put on the armor of faithfulness
I will be faithful and committed
To fight for a heart that is true
To fight for the honesty in our love
'Til the battle is won, I will not rest
Until our relationship is settled, I won't rest
'Til the battle is won
Until our relationship is settled
'Til my death I will stand by you
Until the day I die, I will be by your side
Lyrics ยฉ Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: PAUL OVERSTREET, DON SCHLITZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Julie-kb3mo
๐ฎ
YOSEMITE !! ๐
A favorite place of mine and my husband's since we met over 33 years ago now.
(Our personal license plate of 28 years is of Half Dome)
Gorgeous setting for a beautiful, heartfelt song.๐
Half Dome and the entire valley, as well as way up there at Tuolumne Meadows where we would always camp is incredibly breathtaking and a vision of the magnificence God has blessed us with.๐
Wow. ๐ฅฒ
Bridalveil Fall in the background.
Singing atop Lembert Dome.
El Capitan, I see ...
Absolutely beautiful. ๐ฒ
We just visited a few months ago in mid February to see the Firefall at Horsetail Fall against the west side of El Capitan at sunset.
(Not to be confused with the 'Firefall' nightly ceremony of pushing embers over Glacier Point long ago ๐)
Lovely.
@nengneilamtouthang9792
I will pledge my heart
To the love we share
Through the good and the bad times too
I'll forsake my rest
For your happiness
'Til my death I will stand by you
With God as my witness
This vow I will make
To have and to hold you
No other to take
For rich or for poor
Under skies grey or blue
'Til my death I will stand by you
There are wars and there are rumors
Of wars yet to come
Temptations we'll have to walk through
Though others may tremble
I will not run
'Til my death I will stand by you
I will put on the armor of faithfulness
To fight for a heart that is true
'Til the battle is won, I will not rest
'Til my death I will stand by you
With God as my witness
This vow I will make
To have and to hold you
No other to take
For rich or for poor
Under skies grey or blue
'Til my death I will stand by you
'Til the battle is won
I will not run
'Til my death I will stand by you
@Julie-kb3mo
๐ฎ
YOSEMITE !! ๐
A favorite place of mine and my husband's since we met over 33 years ago now.
(Our personal license plate of 28 years is of Half Dome)
Gorgeous setting for a beautiful, heartfelt song.๐
Half Dome and the entire valley, as well as way up there at Tuolumne Meadows where we would always camp is incredibly breathtaking and a vision of the magnificence God has blessed us with.๐
Wow. ๐ฅฒ
Bridalveil Fall in the background.
Singing atop Lembert Dome.
El Capitan, I see ...
Absolutely beautiful. ๐ฒ
We just visited a few months ago in mid February to see the Firefall at Horsetail Fall against the west side of El Capitan at sunset.
(Not to be confused with the 'Firefall' nightly ceremony of pushing embers over Glacier Point long ago ๐)
Lovely.
@user-dk9rc7xo1y
Choose this song for our wedding in 2019 when hubby was 76 and I was 69. I listen to this song often
@heycolslaw
I could listen to this song 100 times in a row and still not be tired of it. I have a new song to my all time favorites list. God Bless you,Kathy & Tim!
@patriciamillar5626
Same here ๐
@christianorr1059
Same here again!
@timjames7470
๐๐ผ ๐ ๐๏ธ ๐ ๐ ๐ฆ ๐ ๐ ๐ถ ๐ง๐ผโโ๏ธ โจ
@Lynnmusiccowgirl
For all years her and Jon have been married, they truly live this song๐๐ค
@Lindariley1
I love this song. When I got married, these were part of our vows. Now that my husband is in Heaven, I still stand by these words.
@steveclinton4084
Hello Linda how are you doing hope youโre having a great time with your family may God bless you and your family
@user-qi5vf2ws8t
Thanks Kathy Mattea and Tim O'Brien. A so beautiful song crosses all the earth and touch the hearts of country music lovers