Sawyer Brown is a country music band formed in 1981 at a Pizza Hut restaura… Read Full Bio ↴Sawyer Brown is a country music band formed in 1981 at a Pizza Hut restaurant in Apopka, Florida. Lead singer Mark Miller asked keyboardist Gregg "Hobie" Hubbard to play piano for a couple of songs he had written. The two left for Nashville, Tennessee, where they met up with Florida drummer Joe Smyth, Michigan bass player Jim Scholten and original lead guitarist Bobby Randall. They first called the band "Savanah", but renamed themselves "Sawyer Brown" after Sawyer Brown Road, the street where they rehearsed. Miller likes to say "We thought it would be easier to get work if people thought we were one person." The band played up to five sets a night, six days a week, until they auditioned for the TV show Star Search in 1983. They auditioned just to get the videotape to promote the band, yet ended up winning the $100,000 grand prize and record contract.

The band signed with Capitol Records and scored a Top 20 hit with their first single, "Leona," in 1984. That success was quickly followed by their first #1 hit, "Step That Step". The band had their ups and downs on the charts throughout the 1980s. But radio success was not really Sawyer Brown's strong suit. It never was. Rather, they have been successful due to their live performances. Fans flock to the band's concerts year after year, whether the band performs in a stadium, state fair, or casino. The live shows, more than anything, sustained the band until 1989's remake of the George Jones hit "The Race Is On" put them back near the top of the charts.

In 1991, after the release of their album Buick, guitarist Bobby Randall left the group to remain close to his family and host a short-lived TV talent show, You Can Be A Star. Duncan Cameron, formerly of The Amazing Rhythm Aces, was chosen as his replacement just as Sawyer Brown was about to become country music's "it" band. The band then switched labels, moving to Curb Records and releasing the albums The Dirt Road, Cafe On The Corner, and Outskirts Of Town, which saw hit after hit for the band in the early to mid-'90s.

Sawyer Brown was all over country music radio and television for much of the decade. After 1999's Top 10 hit "Drive Me Wild," however, the country music industry seemed to forget about Sawyer Brown in favor of newer acts like Tim McGraw, Rascal Flatts, Toby Keith, Kenny Chesney, and Keith Urban.

The band was having ups and downs in the charts again – mostly downs. In 2003, they parted with Curb, their record label of eleven years, and signed with Lyric Street Records. They released one single, "I'll Be Around", and then left Lyric Street as well. In 2004, they re-signed with Curb, but Duncan Cameron decided to leave the group to pursue a life-long dream of flying for Southwest Airlines.

Guitarist Shayne Hill was added to the lineup as they prepared for the release of their 20th album, Mission Temple Fireworks Stand. While Sawyer Brown is still looking to reclaim the top of the charts, their live shows continue to keep the band going strong.

Every Little Thing
Sawyer Brown Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

There were clouds rollin' in
Rain on the wind
There at the end of September
Your sweater was white
It was buttoned up tight
Darlin' you see I remember

[Chorus]

Every little thing, every little thing
So real so strong, such a long time gone
Here I am still holding on
To every little thing, every little thing

I remember again how you squeezed my hand
Now and then as we walked down the hall
We stood under the light
When you kissed me goodnight
Now I can't help but recall

[Chorus]

Where you've gone I don't know
But some how I've got to let go
Here I am still holding on

To every little thing
Every little thing

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Sawyer Brown’s song Every Little Thing describe the nostalgia and longing associated with a past relationship. The song pays tribute to the tiny details that have stayed etched in the singer’s memory, even though time has passed since the relationship ended. The imagery of the changing season is symbolic of how everything is constantly changing, except the memories of that special someone. As clouds roll in and rain gathers on the wind, there is a sense of impermanence that throws into contrast the memories of the relationship, which remain vivid in the singer’s mind.

The lyrics also describe a specific moment when the couple was together. The singer sees a picture in his mind’s eye of his lover’s white sweater, buttoned up tight against the chill of autumn. The singer remembers walking down the hall with his lover and feeling her hand squeezed in his. The specificity of these details reminds the listener that these memories are not abstract but grounded in real-life moments that the couple shared together. The use of the word “Darlin’” signifies a feeling of intimacy and fondness that the singer still holds for his former partner.

Overall, the song's theme conveys the lingering memories of a person who is still holding on to their past relationship. In the face of time’s passage and inevitable change, these memories remain stable and constant, unyielding to the vagaries of life. The song captures the raw emotions that we feel when a relationship ends and we find ourselves struggling to let go of the memories of what was once love.

Line by Line Meaning

There were clouds rollin' in
The sky was getting dark

Rain on the wind
It was windy and rainy

There at the end of September
This happened at the end of September

Your sweater was white
The color of your sweater was white

It was buttoned up tight
Your sweater was fastened firmly

Darlin' you see I remember
My love, I still remember it clearly

[Chorus]
Refrain of the song

Every little thing, every little thing
Every detail of that moment

So real so strong, such a long time gone
It feels so vivid even though it happened long ago

Here I am still holding on
I'm still holding onto the memories

To every little thing, every little thing
Every small detail is important to me