“Here Comes Those Tears Again” by Jackson Browne

Credit: Wikipedia

When Jackson Browne — best known for his hits like “Doctor My Eyes” and “Running On Empty” — lost his first wife to suicide, he channeled his grief into the hauntingly beautiful “Here Comes Those Tears Again” that was partially written with her mother. While “Here Comes Those Tears Again” tells of the narrator’s lover’s original departure because she “needed to be free” only to return expecting that he will easily take her back, the backstory of Browne’s wife’s suicide gives a haunting edge to the lyrics. Browne’s smooth yet somewhat upbeat singing hints at the heartbreak and the struggle with deep grief over his wife’s death.

With almost gospel-like backing vocals from Bonnie Raitt and Rosemary Butler, along with jamming guitars, Browne’s voice shines through with a glimmer of hope that there will come a time when his grief will not seem so overwhelming. The song begins with a detailed description of the emotions that most people who have lost someone they loved deeply have experienced before: “Here come those tears again/Just when I was getting over you/Just when I was going to make it through/Another night without missing you.” The narrator hears “footsteps echoing” and his lover’s reappearance happens shortly. This mirrors those moments in grief when you swear you can actually hear or see the loved one you have lost in the flesh, no matter how long it has been since they died.

Jackson Browne
(Credit: Wikipedia)

The narrator’s heartbreak, sadness and anger at this unwelcome return stems from trying to overcome his grief and learn to live life without his lover. They become clear when he admits, “Well I don’t know if I can/Open up and let you in baby.”

This beautiful memorial song serves as a gentle example that hope remains for a future without a lost beloved no matter how challenging and consuming grief can seem when we are in the throes of it. Shedding those necessary tears will make us more resilient for future losses we may experience.

Here come those tears again
Just when I was getting over you
Just when I was going to make it through
Another night without missing you
Thinking I might just be strong enough after all
When I hear your footsteps echoing in the hall

Baby here we stand again
Like we’ve been so many times before
Even though you looked so sure
As I was watching you walking out my door
But you always walk back in like you did today
Acting like you never even went away…

Read the rest of the lyrics here.

Check out more sayings and songs in the SevenPonds “A Rite of Passage” library here.