In the past three years Matthew Mayfield has both redefined himself and red… Read Full Bio ↴In the past three years Matthew Mayfield has both redefined himself and redefined how a musician can record and release music. When Matthew’s previous band, Moses Mayfield, which signed with Epic when he was only 21, disbanded at the close of 2007, the Birmingham-based musician was forced to decide how to proceed with his life. A working musician since the age of 18, he only knew songwriting, recording, and touring. “All I ever wanted to be was a rock 'n roll star,” Matthew says. “When the band broke up, I knew I had to keep pushing."

Matthew’s career as a solo artist has evolved naturally over the past few years, his fanbase growing organically and his songwriting skills growing exponentially. But it has not just been the quality of Matthew’s songs that sets him apart. The prolific musician has self-released eight EPs since 2008, offering his fans a consistent stream of new music. In September of 2008, Matthew recorded his debut solo EP, The Fire EP, for $1000 in a Birmingham basement. This disc spawned “First In Line,” which appeared in the 100th episode of Grey’s Anatomy.

Matthew’s second EP followed in July 2009. Five Chances Remain Hers, produced by Paul Moak, which landed another track, “Better,” on Grey’s Anatomy. The single skyrocketed to No. 1 on the iTunes singer/songwriter chart and in December of 2009 Matthew offered fans a third EP-- Maybe Next Christmas. The reaction to these releases and to Matthew’s songwriting was so strong it just made sense for him to keep doing it.

“The response was pretty overwhelming and caught me a bit off guard,” Matthew explains. “It reset something inside me and got my wheels turning for the EP series. I wanted to try something that no one else was trying. I knew I had the songs, and I knew that if I worked hard, I could put out records that people wanted to hear month after month. I've had plenty of issues over the years as an artist, but there's never been a shortage of songs.”

Since Maybe Next Christmas, Matthew has written, recorded, and released five more EPs--regularly putting them out every month from January 2010 through May 2010. Each disc has showcased a different facet of the musician, revealing his depth and versatility. Funded by his fans— who were also involved in selecting the tracklists and cover art via Pledge Music--each EP has also reached the top of the iTunes singer/songwriter charts. The whirlwind process has taught Matthew, who toured in the midst of this with Needtobreathe, Pete Yorn, Switchfoot, Blue October and The Civil Wars, an immense amount about both himself and about creating music.

“Each EP is a different chapter for me,” he says. “Essentially, it was an exercise in storytelling.Late '08 into early '09 was by far the hardest period of my life. There was a lot of grief to process, and it was tough to file it down into song form. The ideas spilled out night after night, morning after
morning. I learned to keep a voice recorder close by at all times for that reason. Most of the melodies came to me in the car, the airport, the shower— pretty much the most inconvenient places for making noise.”

Riding on the momentum of this succession of music, Matthew is currently preparing to release his debut album, Now You’re Free, a record that was completely funded by his fans via Pledge Music. Recorded over the course of three weeks with producer Paul Moak in Nashville in June, the disc pairs five songs pulled from Matthew’s past EPs and five brand new tracks. The ten songs walk a fine line between Matthew’s acoustic singer-songwriter tendencies and the group-driven rock ‘n roll he loves making, in the end creating a cohesive, narrative-driven collection of spirited rock songs.

"I want to write songs that people can sing back at me the way I sing back at my favorite artists,” he says. “I'm excited about attempting to change something with a song. It could be someone's mood for four minutes, the temperature in their room or the way they watch the sun set driving down the interstate. Music has changed everything for me. I want to be a part of that for other people.”

Come Back Home
Matthew Mayfield Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Another morning
And I’m still holding onto you to you
I’ll write you letters
Makes me a better man for and I’d do

Anything, any way
Forever after
All of the steps you take,

I’m standing still
Let it go and try to get some sleep

Another morning
And I’m still looking for a sign for a sign
And all I wanted was for you to look me in the eye
And find

All of the everything that I found in you
Madness and disarray, I still see through
Let it go and try to get some sleep
Cos’ you’re a secret that I need to keep

Come back
Come back

Come back
Come back home…to me

Overall Meaning

The song Come Back Home by Matthew Mayfield is a powerful expression of longing and regret in a relationship that has ended. The opening lines of the song indicate that the singer is still holding onto his former lover, even though it is a new morning. The singer admits to writing letters, hoping to become a better man, but the recipient of the letters is left unclear. The singer is willing to do anything and everything in order to be with his missing love.

As the song progresses, the singer admits to looking for a sign that his lost love might return. He reflects on their shared experiences and the disorder that came with it, but insists that he can still see through the madness. Even though he acknowledges that it may be time to let go and try to move on, he cannot shake the feeling that his soulmate is still out there somewhere. The chorus is a plea to his lover to return to him, to come back home.

Overall, Come Back Home is a touching and heartfelt song that captures the complex emotions that come with the end of a relationship. The lyrics express the singer's feelings with sincerity and honesty, while the melody creates a mood that is both melancholy and hopeful.

Line by Line Meaning

Another morning
It's a new day and the singer wakes up with the same feeling of missing the person he's addressing this song to.

And I’m still holding onto you to you
The singer is struggling to move on from the person he's missing and is still holding onto memories and feelings.

I’ll write you letters
To cope with the pain of missing someone, the singer writes letters to the person he's missing.

Makes me a better man for and I’d do
Writing letters allows the artist to reflect on his feelings and become a better person, and he's willing to do anything for the person he's addressing in this song.

Anything, any way
The artist is willing to do anything it takes to be with the person he's missing.

Forever after
The singer wants to be with the person he's addressing in this song for the rest of his life.

All of the steps you take,
The person the singer is addressing is moving forward with their life while the singer is stuck in the past, missing them.

I’m standing still
The artist is unable to move forward and is stuck in his current state of missing the person he's addressing.

Let it go and try to get some sleep
The artist is trying to let go of the person he's missing and move on with his life, but it's difficult for him.

And I’m still looking for a sign for a sign
The artist is hoping for a sign from the person he's addressing that they still care about him like he does for them.

And all I wanted was for you to look me in the eye
The singer wants to have a face-to-face conversation with the person he's missing and have them acknowledge his feelings.

And find
The artist wants the other person to acknowledge how important they are to him and how much he misses them.

All of the everything that I found in you
The singer is reflecting on what he loved about the person he's addressing and how much they meant to him.

Madness and disarray, I still see through
Even though the singer is struggling without the other person, he still sees through the chaos and knows how important they are to him.

Cos’ you’re a secret that I need to keep
The person the singer is addressing is a hidden treasure to him that he can't let go of despite his struggles.

Come back
The artist is begging the person he's missing to come back to him.

Come back
The artist is pleading with the person he's addressing in this song to come back to him.

Come back
The singer's desire for the other person to come back to him is so strong that he repeats it for emphasis.

Come back home…to me
The singer wants the person he's missing to return home to him and be with him again.

Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: MATTHEW MAYFIELD, PAUL MOAK

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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