The two families, the Watkinses and the Thiles, met after Sean Watkins and Chris Thile had mandolin lessons with the same music instructor, John Moore. Sara Watkins studied with Moore's bandmate, Dennis Caplinger. The band name came from a song by Byron Berline, who was Sara Watkins' fiddle instructor.
Nickel Creek's first performance was at That Pizza Place in Carlsbad, California in 1989 with Scott Thile, Chris's father, playing string bass. Sean Watkins was only twelve years old at the time. At the start Chris Thile played guitar and Sean Watkins played mandolin but later they decided to switch instruments. The band played many bluegrass festivals throughout the 1990s, and the band members were home-schooled to accommodate their tour schedule. Nickel Creek's first two albums were Little Cowpoke (1993) and Here to There (1997).
The group received two Grammy nominations: Best Bluegrass Album and Best Country Instrumental for the song "Ode to a Butterfly". The trio was nominated at the CMA Awards for Best Vocal Group and the Horizon Award and were named one of the "Five Music Innovators of the Millennium" by TIME Magazine in May 2000. Nickel Creek's "The Lighthouse's Tale" video was nominated for a CMT "Flameworthy Video Award" for Group/Duo Video of the Year.
In 2002 the band released their fourth album, This Side, produced by Alison Krauss. It was a departure from their previous releases which were purely bluegrass. Although the core influence of bluegrass remained, other genres such as indie rock and folk rock were present in their music included cover songs Spit on a Stranger by Pavement, and Should've Known Better by Carrie Newcomer.
In 2005 the band released their fifth album, Why Should the Fire Die? with more rock and pop influences. The album debuted and peaked at No. 17 on the Billboard 200 and topped the Billboard bluegrass chart.
In late summer 2006, via Billboard and their official website, Nickel Creek announced that at the end of the year they would no longer be recording as a group and their tour, scheduled through 2007, would be their last for an indefinite period of time so band members could expand their musical horizons.
The band had plans to record its final performance at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville in November 2007 but the idea was later "scrapped".
The band released a new album in the spring of 2014. They also played a handful of live shows and festival dates, including a concert at the Ryman Auditorium, the last venue the band played when it played its last show.
Best Of Luck
Nickel Creek Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't look
Don't think
Best of luck
She tried as hard as she could
But she knew it wasn't good enough and wouldn't ever be
So she had to start hiding how she felt
And if his hands weren't tied
He would've really liked to help her
He's still shaking it off buys flowers for his wife
Guilty he could even think of life without her
Gets home looking like he's seen a ghost
She's ready for the worst
But when he tells her
She breaks down crying I'm so sorry
We didn't want our love to end in high school
At college I called every day until the day I met you
A year ago he got in touch, I asked him to forgive me
It should've ended there but I forgot I wasn't eighteen
She'll try as hard as she can
But he'll know it isn't good enough and won't ever be
So she'll have to start hiding how she feels
Though she loves him and he knows it
Still his hands are tied even if he wants to help her
The lyrics of Nickel Creek's song "Best of Luck" are about a tragic love triangle. The first verse is sung from the perspective of a woman who is clearly in love with a man, but for whatever reason, she can't pursue the relationship. She instructs herself not to touch, look or think about him, wishing him the best of luck instead. The second verse describes the man's point of view, and although he is married, he still has feelings for this woman. He buys flowers for his wife, but is guilty for even thinking about a life without her. When he finally comes clean and admits his feelings to the woman, she breaks down crying and apologizes for not being able to reciprocate.
The chorus of the song is very interesting, because it's not just a simple phrase repeated multiple times like in most songs. Instead, it's an ever-changing mantra that evolves over the course of the song. At first, the woman is singing "Don't touch, don't look, don't think, best of luck". Then, in the second verse, she changes it to "She'll try as hard as she can, but he'll know it isn't good enough and won't ever be, so she'll have to start hiding how she feels, though she loves him and he knows it. Still, his hands are tied even if he wants to help her." It's interesting to see how the meaning of the phrase changes as the story progresses.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't touch
Do not make any physical contact
Don't look
Do not stare or make eye contact
Don't think
Do not entertain any thoughts
Best of luck
Good luck with not doing the above
She tried as hard as she could
She put in her best effort
But she knew it wasn't good enough and wouldn't ever be
But she knew it was futile as she was incapable of what was expected
So she had to start hiding how she felt
Thus, she decided to conceal her emotions
But she loved him, he knew it
However, he knew that she still loved him
And if his hands weren't tied
If he were not restrained
He would've really liked to help her
He would have genuinely wanted to assist her
He's still shaking it off buys flowers for his wife
He's still trying to get over her and now buys flowers to make it up to his wife
Guilty he could even think of life without her
He feels remorseful for thinking about what life would have been without her
Gets home looking like he's seen a ghost
When he returns home, he's visibly shaken
She's ready for the worst
She is prepared for terrible news
But when he tells her
However, when he informs her
She breaks down crying I'm so sorry
She bursts into tears and apologizes
We didn't want our love to end in high school
When in high school, we did not wish to see our love end
At college I called every day until the day I met you
While in college, I called until you came into my life
A year ago he got in touch, I asked him to forgive me
A year ago, he contacted me and I begged for his forgiveness
It should've ended there but I forgot I wasn't eighteen
It should have ended, however, I failed to realize I had matured since then
She'll try as hard as she can
She will make every effort possible
But he'll know it isn't good enough and won't ever be
However, he will ascertain that it is inadequate and will never be enough
So she'll have to start hiding how she feels
Therefore, she must begin to conceal her true sentiments
Though she loves him and he knows it
Despite her ardent love for him which he has knowledge of
Still his hands are tied even if he wants to help her
He is still incapable of lending a helping hand even if he wishes to do so
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: CHRIS THILE, SARA WATKINS, SEAN WATKINS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Rich Archer
YES, REAL MUSIC .
SonofMann
Superb Collection.
Elli Lima
I miss Nickel Creek :'(
Elli Lima
@TheAwsomeman13 I know! I'm so pumped :D
TheAwsomeman13
they announced they reunited with new album and new tour
Joe Hall
Saw them at the Ryman last night and they didn't play this song. I was bummed.
Wolfdude
I think they should have tried to stick to their initial success, bluegrass. Acoustic trending style has too much competition. Such a diminishing song originality as they moved away from the 1st "Nickel Creek" CD