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Songfacts:  You can leave comments about the song at the bottom of the page.

Mike Campbell wrote the music and produced this track. As a member of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Mike writes tracks for many of Petty's songs. He first collaborated with Henley in 1984 when he wrote and produced "Boys Of Summer," which he came up with on a 4-track tape recorder in his house. Mike told us how this came together:
"That was a couple of years later, by then I had upscaled my home studio to a 24-track. I cut the track at home and played it for him (Henley). He wrote some words, I think he got some help from J.D. Souther on some of the lyrics. He changed the key to fit his voice, then we went in and basically recreated the demo. I know he was especially proud of that one. He told me that lyric was something he had been trying to write for a long time and it finally came out the way he liked it, something he really wanted to sing. A lot of people like that song."

Campbell is known for his outstanding guitar work. He played on this and another track on the album, "The Last Worthless Evening." (Thanks to Mike Campbell for speaking with us about this song. Read his full interview in the Songfacts Interviews. Learn more at tompetty.com.)

Henley wrote the lyrics with J.D. Souther. They are about a man who finds out his former lover has found someone else.

The line "The flesh will get weak and the ashes will scatter" is a biblical reference.

Comments:

This song can bring me to tears, it's so well written and performed with such feeling. The line where Henley sings," I'm learning to live without you now, BUT I MISS YOU, BABY..." he kinda sounds choked up...that's the line that gets me every time.
- Dave, Easton, PA

Forgiveness . . .. suppose it is the Heart of the Matter? In order to get along, or to get by? To let go some past horror. Letting go and forgiving. Sounds a bit like what Jesus was preaching two thousand years before. Or, Confuscious or Zoroastrious, etc.
- Jeff, Casa Grande, AZ

Yet again, Henley turns in some beautiful lyrics, and sings them so well. The subject matter is fertile ground for some of the best songs ever.
- oldpink, New Castle, IN

I believe this song was written for Maren Jensen. Don Henley had a long relationship with her.
- Elizabeth, Ithaca, NY

IT'S NOT ABOUT STEVIE NICKS!!!! if you want to hear a song about both Stevie Nicks and Don Henley, listen to "Leather and Lace"
- Elizabeth, Ithaca, NY

Obviously being a song about a couple who has broken up, it's beautifully written about forgiving each other even if they aren't in love anymore -- because he realizes the importance of forgiveness over all things, and the need to do at as soon as possible because "the flesh will get weak and the ashes will scatter" (meaning death is too late.) Also a great line about when you're sad or lonely, how the people in your life seem to forget about you when you need them the most.. "and my friends seem to scatter." One of my top 10 songs ever.
- Chris, Indianapolis, IN

this song is so clear and concise and just what i needed.it just an affirmation for me while i emerge from a 2yr relationship split...not a marriage but it meant alot to me.in the end such is life and i forgive myself and him.the song is so theraputic.thnx henley xoxo-lct.Trinidad&Tobago.West.Indies
- Leslie Ann, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

A great song my 9 yr old boys love's it , just show's how good Henley is.
- craig, oz, Australia

I saw an interview with henley where he said that after recording this song he felt he needed to take his own advice and reach out to glenn frey and mend their broken relationship. I am glad he did because it meant the return of the eagles and finally a new album. If you haven't heard any of it, you should. Waiting in the weeds is one of the best songs I have ever heard and it proves that Henley/Frey still have that special magic of writing songs together~
- jennifer, louisville, OH

"forgiveness"-wondering who Henley means to forgive, himself or the past love. Either way, it's a great song with some of the best lyrics ever put to music.
- Kelly, Carver, MN

Everything that Justin said was spot on. I do not know why I get a lump in my throat everytime I hear this song. In the Hell Freezes Over DVD, Don Henley says that he wrote it with Mike Campbell and J.D. Souther. He said that it was a song that took about 42 years to write and 5 minutes to sing. This song rates up up there with one of the ten best songs ever written.
- Alan, Singapore, Singapore

I remember when I first bought that album. I sat back and listened to the whole album. When "The Heart of the Matter" finished, I was numb. Right then, I knew that Don had written his masterpiece. Don had always wanted to write songs as purposeful as Jackson Browne, this one is.
- Eric, Melville, NY

simply an amazing song. you can feel the pain of the failed relationship. henley hints at unconditional love as the only thing that will get him thru this. this is deeper than boyfriend/girlfriend. we're talking about a failed marriage perhaps also humanity. what a tonic for my troubled soul
- sc, redlands, CA

agree w/ Justin, THE BEST love song ever!
- Tina, Monterey, CA

In the lyrics: I've been tryin' to get down to the heart of the matter "Because the flesh will get weak" And the ashes will scatter... I believe it is: "Before the embers die" and the ashes will scatter. not a big change but it makes more sense. could be wrong. thanks.
- stefan, sarasota, FL

this song is very good and proves that Don Henley is one the best drummers ever. Songwriter(as a solo artist and with the Eagles), lead singer(The Eagles and as a solo artist), and just a great drummer, It all adds up to make a great drummer.
- Ray, Stockton, NJ

When I saw the Eagles in concert, Henley sang this song and introduced it as a song that was 20 years in the making.....it was worth the wait. Agree with Justin.
- Steve, Fenton, MO

The Eagles also sang this song on the Hell freezes over tour.
- Clarissa, Dallas, TX

haaha.i always thought this song was about don henley's past relationship with Stevie Nicks.. the line that made me think that was " An old true friend of ours was talking on the phone she said she found someone new" " i thought of all the bad times and the struggles we went through" " how i lost me and u lost u" .... i dont know i just always thought he was talking about their past with each other.. they have such a history and i think this song fits it. But any way i love this song no matter what i love don henleys voice
- Melissa, Seattle, WA

The lyrics and title MAY have been inspired by the novel "Heart of the Matter" by Graham Greene. The novel is about a working man whose wife goes away on a holiday and he ends up falling in love with another. The lyrics of the song seem to tell the same tale.
- Drew, Portage, IN

I believe that this is one of the best love-lost songs ever written, if not THE best. The lyrics are beautiful and powerful, and everyone can identify with the situation depicted in the song (someone finds out that their lover, a person they still long for, has found another). The song has great pluses, due to Mike Campbell's soaring guitar and Henley's aching voice. It is no wonder that Mike Campbell was right when he said that "a lot of people like this song."
- Justin, Felts Mills, NY

Several otherwise successful musicians actually sang backup on this album, including Patty Smyth, Melissa Etheridge, and Axl Rose.
- Thomas, Pittsburgh, PA