Album: A Twist In My Story (2008)
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Songfacts®:

  • John Vesely (AKA Secondhand Serenade) told MTV the story behind this song: "'Goodbye' is the last song on the album. It had to end with a bang. I originally wrote this song for the acoustic guitar but never had an ending for it. When I started recording this album, I started working on it again. I'm a sucker for builds, so I wanted to incorporate something leading up to an explosion. I decided to use a full band for the ending because it was so powerful and it really summed up the album well.
    This is a pretty angry song. Most of my songs are pretty sad, but this one is more angry. I wrote it a long time ago, before I even started Secondhand Serenade. The last project I was in was called Sounds Like Life. It was an acoustic duo. The guy I was in the band with started to pay a lot more attention to his side project, and I was putting everything I had into the band. I felt betrayed and I couldn't do anything about it, so I decided to go off and do my solo project. At the time I had no idea if I could do it by myself. It's a really scary thing not having anyone to fall back on and being alone on stage. I just felt like it was something I had to do."

Comments: 5

  • Clover from MarylandI’ve been listening to this song for months, and the first few times it had me felt its meaningful rhythm and verses. I believe it’s about a male who wanted nothing more than to care and show his heart to a woman he opened it too but at a certain point where something like differences, misunderstandings, or expected events occurred that they broke up. And in that moment, the worst pain that no human can/will ever easily heal or see the light out of the male knee that saying his apologies wouldn’t traditionally change it, so even though he was still alive that didn’t fully satisfy his own happiness being single for he wasn’t comfortably breathing and maybe going on with life without her by his side haunts him that he thinks what he’s feeling and going through is the same for her. However since the woman isn’t at sight in showing any signs of concerns on how the male feels, he builds anger at her pride and that all the moments they ever shared where she might’ve never even said anything to confirm her commitment as he did causes him to say it was an unfortunate mistake. At hat point he finally just gives up the heartfelt patience for her and lets it go by singing out his pain to be notice and then possibly move on.
  • Mharize from Manila, Philippinesi really love this song , it reminds me of an ex lover. sometimes it's better to say goodbye to someone you love because you know it is for the best...
  • Jenniemel from Calapan, PhilippinesI love this song!
  • Ashley from Bloomington, Ili love this song. it makes me think about so many things. secondhand serenade is amaing :D
  • Jordan from Holland, MiI though 'Goodbye' would probably be about a guy saying goodbye to his girlfriend, or maybe a death in the family, but t his makes sense too. John really made it good by himself. =]
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