A former staff writer for PolyGram Publishing in Nashville, Pettis' musical career was started in 1979 when Joan Baez covered his song, "Song at the End of the Movie", on her album Honest Lullaby. Following that release, Pettis became heavily involved in the "Fast Folk movement" in New York in the 1980s alongside artists such as Shawn Colvin and Suzanne Vega.
In 1984, Pettis released his first independent solo album, Moments, followed by a string of releases for High Street Records; While the Serpent Lies Sleeping, Tinseltown and Chase the Buffalo. None of these releases have made Pettis a household name, but his music has become extremely popular with other artists. His songs have been covered by artists like Dar Williams ("Family" on Mortal City), Garth Brooks ("You Move Me" on Sevens), Dion & the Belmonts, Sara Groves, Randy Stonehill and others.
In the early 1990s, Pettis developed a working relationship with songwriter and producer Mark Heard. Pettis was performing with Heard at the Cornerstone Festival in July of 1992, when Heard had a heart attack on stage. Heard finished the show, but collapsed off-stage afterwards and died the following August. That loss led to the start of a tradition for Pettis, who has started off each of his albums with one of Heard's songs since 1993's Chase the Buffalo, where he recorded Heard's "Nod Over Coffee". Other Heard covers include "Satellite Sky" (1996's Making Light of It), "Tip of My Tongue" (1998's Everything Matters), "Rise from the Ruins" (2001's State of Grace) and "Another Day in Limbo" (2004's Great Big World.) Pettis also appeared on a 1994 tribute to Heard entitled Strong Hand of Love.
In 1996, Pettis signed on with Compass Records and released Making Light of It, produced by David Miner (T-Bone Burnett, Elvis Costello), and featuring Derri Daugherty and Steve Hindalong of The Choir.
Two years later Everything Matters was released, produced by Grammy award winning Gordon Kennedy (who is best known for co-writing Eric Clapton's "Change the World.") Pettis followed that release with State of Grace in 2001, which featured cover art by the late southern folk artist Howard Finster.
2001 saw Pettis' most regionally oriented album, State of Grace released. 2004's Great Big World record saw Pettis collaborating with a number of other songwriters. In 2009 That Kind of Love included less of a regional focus. 2013 saw Pettis, along with Tom Kimmel and Kate Campbell, form the New Agrarians and release a debut album on the independent Due South label.
2019 saw the release of his album "Father's Son".
Pettis tours frequently, alternating between solo shows, concerts with the New Agrarians, and a double bill with his daughter Grace Pettis.
You're Not There
Pierce Pettis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On trains and at the movies sitting next to empty seats
I wouldn't mind you going
If the emptiness would leave
But the presence of your absence follows me
(you're not there)
The silence of your voice deafens me
The overwhelming quiet
So loud I cannot think
The silence of your voice deafens me
(you're not there)
Heaven and earth could not make your stay
I'm damned by your memory that will not go away
The softness of your touch
The toss of your hair
Sometimes I even reach for you
But you're not there
The thought of your love tortures me
Left to my own devices sleeping with the enemy
The unexpected flashbacks that I don't want to see
The thought of your love tortures me
(you're not there)
(CHORUS)
(You're not there)
The presence of your absence follows me
(You're not there)
The silence of your voice deafens me
(You're not there)
The thought of your love tortures me
You're not there
Pierce Pettis's song "You're Not There" speaks about the overwhelming feeling of missing someone who is no longer there. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of how the absence of someone can feel so real that even their presence is felt everywhere. The first verse talks about how the presence of the absence follows the singer everywhere they go, like on trains or at the movies where they see empty seats next to them. The singer wishes the emptiness would leave because it's been so hard to cope since the person they miss is no longer around. There is a longing for things to go back to the way they were, but they know that can never happen again.
The second verse talks about how the silence of the person's voice is so loud that it becomes deafening. The singer talks, but there is no one responding, which is a painful reminder of the person's absence. The silence is so loud that it becomes difficult to even think. The third verse expresses how nothing seems to work, and the pain of the person's absence is too much to handle. The thought of their love is torturous, and it's as if they are sleeping with the enemy, yet they cannot seem to let go. The chorus reiterates that the person being missed is not there, they are just a memory that haunts the singer everywhere they go.
Line by Line Meaning
The presence of your absence follows me
I cannot escape the feeling of loneliness and longing that comes with your absence
On trains and at the movies sitting next to empty seats
Even in public places surrounded by people, I still feel the void of your absence
I wouldn't mind you going
I understand that you had to leave and I don't blame you for it
If the emptiness would leave
If only the sense of emptiness and loneliness that came with your leaving would disappear
But the presence of your absence follows me
But unfortunately, I still feel the void you left behind
(you're not there)
The silence of your voice deafens me
The lack of sound from you is so loud that it feels like it's drowning out everything else
The sound of no one answering every time I speak
I feel completely unheard and ignored when I try to communicate without your response
The overwhelming quiet
The emptiness that comes with your absence is almost suffocating
So loud I cannot think
It's so overwhelming that I struggle to even process my own thoughts
The silence of your voice deafens me
I feel deafened by the lack of sound from you
(you're not there)
Heaven and earth could not make your stay
No amount of pleading or bargaining could have kept you from leaving
I'm damned by your memory that will not go away
Your memory still haunts me and prevents me from moving on
The softness of your touch
I still remember the feel of your touch
The toss of your hair
I still remember how you looked and moved
Sometimes I even reach for you
I still have moments of hopelessness where I try to grasp onto the illusion of you being here
But you're not there
But unfortunately, you're not actually present
The thought of your love tortures me
Just thinking about the love we shared causes me extreme pain
Left to my own devices sleeping with the enemy
Without you, I turn to harmful coping mechanisms that only make things worse
The unexpected flashbacks that I don't want to see
I am haunted by memories of our time together that bring me pain and discomfort
The thought of your love tortures me
Even thinking about the love we shared is enough to cause me extreme pain
(you're not there)
(CHORUS)
(You're not there)
The presence of your absence follows me
I am still haunted by the void you left in your absence
(You're not there)
The silence of your voice deafens me
Without your voice, everything else seems to fade away
(You're not there)
The thought of your love tortures me
The memory of our love causes me extreme pain and suffering
You're not there
Unfortunately, you are still absent and I am left to suffer alone
Contributed by Ian N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@catherineadams6863
I love this song.