Lead vocalist Danny Wilde began his musical career as the lead singer of The Quick, an L.A.-based punk and power pop inspired combo briefly popular in the late 70s, breaking through with their song "Pretty Please Me". The musical duo of Danny Wilde and Phil Solem had roots in an early 80s new wave/power pop band, called Great Buildings, which released a single critically-lauded album on Columbia in 1981. Although spawning minor hits in "Hold On To Something" and "Maybe It's You", major success eluded the outfit.
After they disbanded, Wilde released a series of slick 80s solo albums before rejoining with his former partner to form the Rembrandts. Initially, the band was heavily indebted to simplistic guitar pop reminiscent of early work from The Beatles and The Everly Brothers. They also took serious inspiration from pop contemporaries such as Squeeze and Crowded House. Their first, self-titled album, released in 1990, featured the surprise #14 hit "Just the Way It Is, Baby", which managed to claw its way onto top 40 playlists despite sounding out of place for the time. Follow-up singles "Someone" and "Save Me" also garnered some airplay.
Their second record, released two years later (and titled, humorously, 'Untitled') also spawned minor hits in the brooding, violin-spiked "Johnny, Have You Seen Her?" and the breezy "Rolling Down the Hill". Both songs showed the band's partial influence from alternative rock groups. In 1995, however, the Rembrandts became a surprise, seemingly-overnight success when they recorded the theme song to the program 'Friends', a ditty reminiscent of British invasion groups called "I'll Be There For You",
The song became an instant smash based on its thirty-second TV version. Interestingly enough, they recorded the full-length version of "I'll Be There For You" only after the shorter version was recorded specifically for the TV show. The band was busy prepping their third release, 'L.P.', at the time that "I'll Be There For You" became so successful, and it was shoehorned last minute onto the end of the track order (initial pressings omit the song on the track list). Unfortunately, much of the new audience generated by the hit didn't take a shine to the rest of the low-key pop rock on the disc. The album went platinum and picked up supportive critical reviews, but it has become something of a lost 90s classic. A few follow-up singles, notably "This House Is Not a Home", generated a small amount of interest, but nothing compared to that of the 'Friends' theme.
The sudden shift in the band's fanbase-- where they had gone from being a low-flying critical success to a discarded 'one-hit-wonder' in the popular consciousness-- took its toll on the band, especially Solem. He outright quit several years later. Danny Wilde produced another Rembrandts album without him, but it was a commercial failure. In 2001, however, the duo reunited for 'Lost Together', their fourth album as a duo and fifth overall. A greatest hits compilation was released in 2006, displaying that the band did in fact have a singles history far deeper than the 'Friends' theme. As time has gone on, they've also had a cult following among power pop fans.
Just the Way It Is Baby
The Rembrandts Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When you were mine
The stars above were bright and new
I pulled them down for you
Just when I fell in love again
You said that all good things must end
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
I never had a head for solitaire
It's so unfair
That I'd should have my chance and lose
Feel like I've been used to help you
Through another night
You spelled in out in black and white
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
The tides that had once carried you away
They bring you back again today
Time has washed away my pain
You'll find that things have changed
And disappeared without a trace
You can't get back what you've erased
And I say
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
That's just the way it is
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
That's just the way it is
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
In this song, The Rembrandts reminisce about a past love and the memories they shared. The singer recalls a time when they were together and everything seemed perfect, represented by the bright and new stars that he pulled down for her. However, their love came to an end when she decided to break up with him, stating that all good things must end. The chorus, "Baby, that's just the way it is," suggests that sometimes things don't work out, no matter how perfect they may seem.
The second verse suggests that the singer may have been used by his former love, feeling like he had his chance and lost. This reinforces the idea that sometimes things don't work out, even when one person may have put in more effort or invested more in the relationship. The bridge, "And disappeared without a trace, You can't get back what you've erased," implies that the singer has ultimately moved on, but acknowledges that things have changed and they can't go back to what they once were.
Overall, the lyrics of "Just the Way It Is Baby" explore the bittersweet nature of love and relationships. While the memories of a past love may be sweet, they also come with the knowledge that sometimes things don't work out, no matter how much one may want them to.
Line by Line Meaning
Do you remember once upon a time
Do you recall the time when we were together?
When you were mine
When we were in a romantic relationship
The stars above were bright and new
The world was full of wonder and possibility
I pulled them down for you
I would have done anything for you
Just when I fell in love again
Just when I had opened myself up to new love
You said that all good things must end
You told me that our relationship was over
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
This is just how life is
I never had a head for solitaire
I was never good at being alone
It's so unfair
It seems unjust
That I'd should have my chance and lose
I was given an opportunity to love and lost it
Feel like I've been used to help you
It feels like you took advantage of my love for you
Through another night
Through another heartbreak
You spelled in out in black and white
You made it very clear that our relationship was over
The tides that had once carried you away
The events that separated us in the past
They bring you back again today
They have brought you back into my life
Time has washed away my pain
The pain of our previous breakup has faded over time
You'll find that things have changed
Our relationship will be different this time around
And disappeared without a trace
The reasons for our previous breakup are unclear
You can't get back what you've erased
You can't undo what has been done
And I say
And I want to express
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
This is just how life is
That's just the way it is
This is just how life is
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
This is just how life is
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
This is just how life is
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
This is just how life is
Baby, that's just the way it is Baby
This is just how life is
Lyrics © Downtown Music Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DANNY C. WILDE, PHIL SOLEM
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@user-hd9ph3cx7p
Do you remember once upon a time
When you were mine
The stars above were bright and new
I pulled them down for you
Just when I fell in love again
You said that all good things must end
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby, whoa, whoa
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby
I've never had a hand for solitaire
It's so unfair
That I should have my chance and lose
I feel like I've been used
To help you through another night
You spelled it out in black and white
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby, whoa, whoa
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby
The tides that once had carried you away
They bring you back today
The time has washed away my pain
I find that things have changed
And disappeared without a trace
You can't get back what you've erased
And I say baby
That's just the way it is, baby, that's just the way it is
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby, ooh, that's just the way it is
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby (just the way it is)
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby, baby
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby
Baby, baby
That's just the way it is, baby
Baby
That's just the way it is, baby
@ants5679
What an underrated song, it's a shame that this kind of music is rare nowadays.
@paultyson4389
So true..
@bernielomax4702
What do you mean? There's still plenty of cloying generirock
@raydog_97
I hear this song at work almost everyday now man, maybe it’s finally getting the recognition it deserves. This specific station plays a lot of very popular music too so I say it’s getting somewhere
@minskie
You got that that right. Most mainstream music is utter garbage these days. The fact that Taylor Swift is the first billionaire singer, is prime evidence.
@awwgez
Don't let the friend's theme song fool you, the Rembrandt's are awesome. You just dont realize how good things are until way too late. That's just the way it is.
@user-hw6np3sp3t
The “I’ll be there for You” song is good but of course it became a sitcom song. The rest of that album (1995) is phenomenal. Very talented, almost Beatlesque at times.
@awwgez
@@user-hw6np3sp3t I actually like the full length song of "I'll be there for you." The guitar solo is awesome but yeah a lot of folks hear the theme song and never go deeper with this band.
@shubhankarsharma917
@NakedAndLaughing Why do you hate Friends though?
@ladystrange7791
Boy is that true. I had the lyrics to the chorus pop into my head today as I was getting flowers for my Grandparents grave. I used to hear this song blasting all the time from the boom box at a community pool near their house. The two places I loved most on earth & now both are gone. I haven’t thought about that song since until today but didn’t know the title or who sang it. When Google said The Rembrandts, I thought it must be a different song because I didn’t care for the theme song or show...mostly because my ex watched it so much, I just got sick of it. But this I love, I want to hear the rest of the album.