In early 2003, Costa's homemade demo reached No Doubt guitarist Tom Dumont, who offered to record more demos for Costa in his home studio. Those first recordings led to two EPs that Costa and Dumont distributed themselves. These were later combined and mixed by Phil Ek in order to form Costa's first full-length CD entitled Songs We Sing.
Costa spent the summer of 2005 opening on Jack Johnson's summer tour. He has since toured with Modest Mouse, Oasis, Ryan Adams & The Cardinals, G. Love & Special Sauce, and Death Cab for Cutie. Costa joined Jack Johnson for his 2006 European tour. He has also contributed to the Jack Johnson and Friends Curious George soundtrack; his track is entitled "Lullaby". This song was taken from his The Elasmosaurus EP. Costa has also toured extensively in Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Asia and South America.
The video for Costa's first single "Cold December" was released February 2, 2006. On July 31, 2007, he released a song titled "If You Took To Me" as part of the environmentally minded polar bear documentary Arctic Tale and its soundtrack.
On October 7, 2007, Costa released the first single, "Mr. Pitiful," from his record Unfamiliar Faces. The song "Mr. Pitiful" was used during a scene with Paul Rudd in the movie I Love You, Man, the redband trailer for the film Youth in Revolt starring Michael Cera, and the movie Marmaduke. The song is featured during the opening credits of The Answer Man (film). Apple also used an instrumental cut of this song for the worldwide iPhone 3GS ads.
Mobile Chateau, Costa's next album, was released on September 21, 2010, via Brushfire Records. His 2013 self-titled album was recorded at Pheasant Studios in Santa Ana, CA, as Costa's first solo production.
Laura Lee
Matt Costa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
sitting there the chest of tree.
Laura Lee, Laura Lee,
whispers every word to speaks.
Dark bright it hair Laura Lee.
Laura Lee, Laura Lee,
an orphan in the hands of faith
Laura Lee, Laura Lee,
love to render set me free
Laura Lee, Laura Lee,
if you see and tell it though for me.
Think gonna roughed in Laura Lee.
The lyrics of Matt Costa's song Laura Lee tell the story of a woman named Laura Lee who is sitting by the chest of a tree and seems to be speaking in a whisper. The singer describes her dark and bright hair and reveals that she is an orphan at the mercy of fate. He then offers her a clock and asks her to take it and walk away from him. He seems to be in love with her but feels trapped and isn't sure how to express himself. He asks Laura Lee to help him by seeing and telling what he cannot.
The song's intimate and melancholic tone suggests the singer's sense of loneliness and isolation. He seems to be reaching out to Laura Lee, not just for the sake of their own relationship, but also to share his personal burdens with someone who can understand and help him. The tree mentioned in the opening line may symbolize the passage of time or the growth of life, and Laura Lee's close proximity to it suggests her importance in the singer's life. The clock may represent the limited time that the singer feels he has with Laura Lee, or it could be an invitation to her to help him measure out a better future.
Line by Line Meaning
Laura Lee, Laura Lee,
The singer is addressing a person named Laura Lee.
sitting there the chest of tree.
Laura Lee is sitting next to a tree.
whispers every word to speaks.
Laura Lee tends to speak softly and quietly.
Dark bright it hair Laura Lee.
Laura Lee has dark and bright hair, possibly meaning it has highlights or different tones.
an orphan in the hands of faith
Laura Lee is an orphan and their life is determined by a higher power or fate.
take this clock and walk of me.
The singer wants Laura Lee to take a clock from them and leave them alone.
love to render set me free
The singer is expressing their desire for love to liberate them.
if you see and tell it though for me.
The artist is asking Laura Lee to communicate something for them if she sees it.
Think gonna roughed in Laura Lee.
It seems like life may be tough for Laura Lee.
Contributed by Allison C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.