But everything changes/
And my friends seem to scatter/
But I think it’s about forgiveness.

If you watch The Eagles documentary it is clear that Henley has lived a full life. Fuller than most of us. In Don Henley’s “The Heart of the Matter” he seems to be coming to terms with some of the choices he made and believes that forgiveness is a virtue onto itself.

Interestingly, in the song he is giving this advice to someone else, but it doesn’t make it any less poignant. Perhaps carrying around anger will eat you up inside.  Three years after this song was released, he got back together with The Eagles.

As I was working on this project, I was surprised by how Henley’s solo work held up. This will be his third song on this list which in my book makes him HOF worthy. He had two other borderline songs as well. I think The Eagles and Henley get a bad rap—much of it rightly deserved due to their arrogance, but there is no doubting their talent.

In “Heart of the Matter” we hear Henley sound more sincere than he does in other songs. The material sounds more personal than anything he did in The Eagles or solo and it comes across in his voice.

The Heart Of The Matter Lyrics & Meaning

I got the call today, I didn’t want to hear,
But I knew that it would come.
An old, true friend of ours was talkin’ on the phone,
She said you found someone.

And I thought of all the bad luck,
And the struggles we went through.
And how I lost me, and you lost you.
What are those voices outside love’s open door?
Make us throw off our contentment,
And beg for something more?

I’m learning to live without you now.
But I miss you sometimes.
The more I know, the less I understand.
All the things I thought I knew, I’m learning again.

I’ve been tryin’ to get down
To the heart of the matter,
But my will gets weak,
And my thoughts seem to scatter
But I think it’s about forgiveness,
Forgiveness.
Even if, even if you don’t love me anymore.

These times are so uncertain,
There’s a yearning undefined,
People filled with rage.
We all need a little tenderness,
How can love survive in such a graceless age?

Ah, the trust and self-assurance that lead to happiness,
They’re the very things we kill, I guess.
Oh, pride and competition,
Cannot fill these empty arms.
And the work I put between us, you know it doesn’t keep me warm.

I’m learning to live with out you now,
But I miss you, baby.
And the more I know, the less I understand.
All the things I thought I’d figured out,
I have to learn again.

I’ve been trying to get down
To the heart of the matter,
But everything changes,
And my friends seem to scatter
But I think it’s about forgiveness,
Forgiveness.
Even if, even if you don’t love me anymore.

There are people in your life,
Who’ve come and gone.
They let you down,
You know they’ve hurt your pride.
You better put it all behind you baby,
‘Cause life goes on.
You keep carryin’ that anger,
It’ll eat you up inside baby.

I’ve been trying to get down
To the heart of the matter.
But my will gets weak,
And my thoughts seem to scatter
But I think it’s about forgiveness,
Forgiveness.
Even if, even if you don’t love me.

I’ve been tryin’ to get down
To the heart of the matter.
Because the flesh will get weak,
And the ashes will scatter
So, I’m thinkin’ about forgiveness,
Forgiveness.
Even if , even if you don’t love me.

Forgiveness, forgiveness, baby,
Forgiveness, forgiveness.
Forgiveness, forgiveness.
Even if, even if you don’t love me anymore.

Written by Don Henley