Matt and Keith together played all the instruments appearing on that album, with its name taken from 'The Hobbit' by J.R.R. Tolkien, though they both mostly played acoustic guitar. Both also contributed to writing all the songs and both sang for 'There and Back Again'. The duo toured for several years after this, mostly appearing with similar bands such as Jackopierce. By 1995, they were ready to record again. The resulting album, titled 'Running on Ice', again had Matt and Keith playing acoustic guitar and singing, but it also featured the addition of other guest musicians to play other instruments. Guests included members of Jackopierce band as well as Carter Beauford (of the Dave Matthews Band) on drums.
More touring followed, and soon Matt and Keith were joined by Ed Toth on drums. In 1997, a live album, Live Stages, was released. This featured Matt, Keith, and Ed, as well as Ryan Fisher on bass. Live Stages signaled a departure from the original acoustic guitar-based music, and featured heavy emphasis on electric guitar. Also, by this time, the band was explicit in their intent to find a major record label; band members have said that it was no accident that the first track of Live Stages opens with the sounds of a large cheering audience. Their wishes came true, and the band was signed to RCA Records.
Ryan had never intended to join the band permanently, so the three other members held auditions for a permanent bass player. Their first audition was Sean Hurley, and everyone liked him immediately. There were many more auditions, but they eventually came back to Sean, and he officially joined Vertical Horizon.
The band's major label debut, "Everything You Want", was released in 1999. The title track, released as the second single from the album, skyrocketed up the charts and ended up as one of the most played tracks on radio in 2000. One of the stand out tracks "You're A God" got on several compilation CD's and featured in the Box Office smash Bruce Almighty
The follow up to "Everything You Want", titled "Go", was delayed several times until finally being released in 2003. "I'm Still Here", the first single from Go, was released with little fanfare and faded quickly. VH ended their relationship with RCA in 2004 and re-signed with Hybrid Recordings. "Go" was re-released with an additional track in 2005. A second single, "Forever", was released prior to the re-release and received moderate airplay but did not match the earlier success of Everything You Want.
In 2005, drummer Ed Toth got what he considered the dream gig of a lifetime when he was invited to join the Doobie Brothers following the death of drummer Keith Knudsen. While Toth had hoped to juggle both bands, he quickly realized it would not be possible and announced his departure from Vertical Horizon in July 2005.
In 2007, realizing as Matt says, “there was more to do” and “thinking the timing was just right to start working on a new album,” the band began writing and recording, Burning The Days. The album is slated for release on September 22, 2009 with the first single, “Save Me From Myself” recently sent to radio. The single has been extremely well-received and is currently climbing the Hot AC charts with strong airplay in McAllen, Modesto, Monterey-Salinas, El Paso, and New Orleans.
Independent of label constraints, Burning The Days was produced by Scannell and recorded at his studio over the course of the past 2 years. For the band, it was a complete return to their beginnings of working at their own pace and “nurturing those moments of inspiration.” According to Matt, the album is “sonically as good as anything we have ever done. I take great pride in this album and feel that our renewed sense of creativity will resonate with our fans.” The album also features virtuoso drummer Neil Peart of Rush on “Save Me From Myself,” “Even Now” and “Welcome To The Bottom” as well as Richard Marx playing piano on “Here” and producing two of Matt’s lead vocal tracks.
“I’m actually in a pretty positive place right now,” says Scannell. “Of course I still have that underlying fear of everything falling apart and crumbling to the floor, but it is not the first thing on my mind, like it’s been at times in the past.” And so one of the main themes of Burning The Days is about finding balance in a journey from hardship to peacefulness – knowing that the up must follow the down, and vice versa. “It’s about being okay with things going well, and also finding strength to get through the tough times.”
The first single, “Save Me From Myself,” is about “the danger of getting so lost in your own struggles and personal demons that you can’t help the people you love, and you won’t let the people you love help you. You’re too far away in your own head to do anything but spin off in self-criticism and doubt. There’s a lot of anger and frustration in that song.” Conversely, “The Lucky One” is one of the album’s most upbeat tracks, a fact that took the song’s author a bit of time to get used to. “I’m usually wary of songs that have really upbeat messages, but this song resonated for me because I tend to be the last one to believe when things are really going well. Songs where everything is perfect and everyone’s in love make me suspicious, but this song has enough of a gray area to feel real for me.”
Other highlights on the album are “Afterglow,” “All Is Said And Done” and “The Middle Ground.”
To support the album’s September 22nd release, the band plans on doing targeted performance dates throughout the summer with a nationwide tour in the fall.
Offical web site: http://www.verticalhorizon.com
Japan
Vertical Horizon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He was sitting alone in the rain
I said hey young man what you doing there
And he said sir I'm going insane
He said sir I'm going insane
You see I love an American beauty
But nobody here understands
And said Lord why am I in Japan
Oh Lord why am I in Japan
Then he told me a story about yesterday
When he walked in the search of a friend
But nobody came to his rescue
And he came to his bitter end
He pulled me close and said they all stopped and stared
As I walked down the street all alone
Nobody knew my name
Nobody knew my name
I said young man I know where you're going
And young man I know where you've been
For I've been in this land for a lifetime it seems
And I'm never to come back again
No I'm never to come back again
So I turned and I gave him my blessing
And I left him alone in the rain
But I had to just stop and laugh at myself
Still nobody knows my name
Nobody knows my name
Still nobody knows my name
Nobody knows my name
Nobody knows my name
My name, yeah yeah
The lyrics of the song 'Japan' by Vertical Horizon narrates a story of a young man sitting alone in the rain, going insane in his loneliness. He confides to the storyteller about his American beauty, and how nobody in Japan seems to understand his love, leaving him with resentment in his eyes as to why he is in Japan. The young man tells him his story about how he walked in search of a friend, but nobody came to his rescue as he ended up alone, with people stopping and staring as he walked down the street, with nobody to care for him. The storyteller tells him that he knows where he's been, and where he's going, for he too has been in this land for long but is never to come back again.
The lyrics of the song portrays the theme of loneliness and isolation, with the young man feeling lost and confused in a place so foreign to him, with nobody to relate or connect with. The storyteller, on the other hand, has accepted his isolation and loneliness, having been in the same situation for so long, and wishes to depart finally.
Line by Line Meaning
Well I saw a young man by a telephone
The singer sees a young man sitting alone by a telephone in the rain.
He was sitting alone in the rain
The young man is sitting by himself in the rain.
I said hey young man what you doing there
The singer asks the young man what he is doing there.
And he said sir I'm going insane
The young man replies that he is going insane.
He said sir I'm going insane
The young man confirms again that he is losing his mind.
You see I love an American beauty
The young man states that he loves an American woman.
But nobody here understands
The people around him do not understand or relate to his feelings.
Then he looked to the sky with resentment in his eyes
The young man looks to the sky with resentment in his eyes.
And said Lord why am I in Japan
The young man questions why he is in Japan.
Oh Lord why am I in Japan
He repeats his question, expressing his frustration.
Then he told me a story about yesterday
The young man shares a story with the singer about the previous day.
When he walked in the search of a friend
He went out searching for a friend.
But nobody came to his rescue
However, nobody came to help him.
And he came to his bitter end
His quest for a friend ended in disappointment and he became bitter.
He pulled me close and said they all stopped and stared
The young man tells the singer that people stopped and stared at him as he walked down the street.
As I walked down the street all alone
He walked down the street completely by himself.
Nobody knew my name
He realizes that he is anonymous and unimportant to the people around him.
Nobody knew my name
The same idea is repeated, emphasizing his sense of isolation.
I said young man I know where you're going
The singer tells the young man that he knows where he is heading.
And young man I know where you've been
He also tells the young man that he understands where he has been.
For I've been in this land for a lifetime it seems
The artist reveals that he has been in Japan for a long time, and it feels like a lifetime.
And I'm never to come back again
He has decided not to return to Japan again.
No I'm never to come back again
He repeats his decision, underscoring how strongly he feels about it.
So I turned and I gave him my blessing
The artist wishes the young man well as he prepares to leave him.
And I left him alone in the rain
The singer departs, leaving the young man alone in the rain.
But I had to just stop and laugh at myself
The singer finds something funny about his situation.
Still nobody knows my name
The song ends with the repetition of the idea that nobody knows the singer's name.
Nobody knows my name
Again, the idea is repeated for emphasis.
Still nobody knows my name
And once more, the song leaves us with the same thought.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: KEITH MICHAEL KANE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind