All of This and Nothing: The Hurting Heart

"All of This and Nothing" is a series of weekly posts, each about one song I really love, by an artist I haven't featured in the previous This Year, Portions For Foxes, or Better Things series. It alternates between Obscure and Famous songs; feel free to argue either way if you're so inclined. See the introduction for more.

We're back to Obscure this week, with The Hurting Heart, my favorite song from singer-songwriter Richard McGraw, off his 2009 record Burying the Dead.

This is another artist I know basically nothing about. Somehow, I got on publicity lists for some small record labels in the early days of this blog - I know; I'm not sure why or how myself - and have gotten a stream of review material that way. Because of that, I think I got Burying the Dead via email: it was coming out, and a publicity person at the label had me on the big list of "media" - or, probably more likely, and sadly for me, "influencers" - so I got it, and listened to it.

I don't know how many other people did. It's a fine record, with a bunch of excellent songs. But there are dozens of fine records every year; I don't myself listen to most of them, and I'm sure you're the same. The world is big and full of wonders, which can be sad if you're someone who just made something wonderful and the world isn't interested.

But maybe I can cast a little bit of light on this raw, bad-love song, a decade and a half later.

This is another "you broke up with me; you're going on with life and I'm not" kind of song, with McGraw's immediate, tormented voice to make it real.

And you're not even a ghost
since you moved back home.

She's doing well; the singer is not - and knows it. He wants to get over this, but he's not there - I hope there's a "yet" implied, but you never know with bad-love songs.

And if I could set aside this hurting heart.
I'd bear your ring at your wedding.
'Cause I don't want to own it
and I don't want to show it.

That refrain is strong and true, and gives the song real power - it's a song that shows rather than tells. McGraw says "hurting heart," but doesn't describe it, or talk about his pain, just what his ex-lover is doing and what he insists he is or will or should be doing.

But he's not doing it yet. That's the point of a song like this, and McGraw has crafted a great one here.