What Matters Most

Alan Bergman / Marilyn Bergman / Dave Grusin / Cheri Keaggy

Song Facts:

• Genre: Adult Contemporary/Folk

Annotations and Meaning:

The track "What Matters Most" by Kenny Rankin is surely from the album "After the Roses" and still provides poignant reflection on love, life, and the true essence of what holds importance. The song's lyrics themselves, with the verses and the refrain, tell of the very core of relations; not the question of how long you know each other or other surface questions, but just how deeply you connect and its quality.

Verse 1 Analysis:

The opening verse sets the tone for the song's overarching message. He says the lines, "It's not how long we held each other's hand, What matters is how well we loved each other," explaining that the time they held each other's hand was definitely not a barrier, and obviously, time couldn't be a limitation towards expressing and sharing love either. This feeling is further elaborated by the speaker when he speaks of not having the miles and their differences in speech but rather experiences and feelings they have shared. This is brought out by "all the shades of green," illustrating that such variety and fullness one might expect from shared moments.

Verse 2 Analysis:

The second verse, as a general idea, is all about its theme: "Life and love are not always measured in quantity but also has to be appreciated for its quality. This is to reflect the sweetness in years spent together, emphasizing that shared summers of accumulation and falling into fall with loved ones (in metaphorically closing years) mean little compared to the joys and love shared. "Early morning smiles that we tearfully recall," one of those moments that really got to my heart, where I remembered a little nostalgia from cherished times that created the definition of a relationship.

Refrain Analysis:

It is the refrain that will echo what the second verse says, bringing out the core message of the song: "What really matters is we loved at all." This line will be a gentle reminder of the basic importance love itself held—above measures and other such milestones. It's a celebration of love's presence in our lives, regardless of its duration or the challenges faced.

Thematic Interpretation:

The movie "What Matters Most" resounds with its brilliant exploration of the painful value of love. It rails against common societal gauges of success and fulfillment, demanding, though rather imploring, that listeners consider or value the essence of emotional connections. The song says that the love shared and the memories that the human shares together are the real measures for one to say that they have lived a good life. Soft melody and inspiring lyrics by Kenny Rankin stir the hearer in relation to bonds of imperishable love.