Songfacts®:

• This song was inspired by the 2003 Tim Burton movie Big Fish, starring Albert Finney. Like the fantasy film, the lyrics tell the story of a former salesman who, from his deathbed, regales his son with tall tales about his life.
• "How I Go" features guest vocals from Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks. Yellowcard frontman Ryan Key was hoping Maines would appear on the country-flavored track "View from Heaven" from their 2003 album Ocean Avenue, but the record label refused to reach out to Maines because Yellowcard wasn't a big enough band to attract such a big-name contributor. After Yellowcard exploded when the song "Ocean Avenue" hit MTV and radio, however, the plan seemed feasible. The Chicks landed at the same studio where Yellowcard were working on their next album, Lights And Sounds, and Key saw his chance.
  
  "I finally got up the balls to go over there and say, 'Hey, we kinda want you to sing on this song.' We gave her a copy of that track, and when she came back, the first thing she said was, 'How many kids do you have?'" he told Billboard.
  
  The then-single, child-free singer cleared up the confusion. "I wrote it, like the rest of the album, in an out-of-body experience kind of way," he explained. "I told her, 'It's not about me - I'm not even dating anyone right now!'"
• Natalie Maines was originally going to sing backing vocals, but after she heard the demo, she came up with her own lyrics and vocals and the song turned into a duet.
• This song features a 25-piece orchestra conducted by the band's violinist, Sean Mackin.