Rascal Flatts are known for having a wide variety of songs. Among their many hits are several sad ones. These are three of Rascal Flatts’ most heartbreaking songs, with lyrics that are truly tragic.
“I’m Movin’ On”
There might not be anything sadder than accepting that a relationship is over, even when you didn’t want it to be. It’s a pain that the trio articulates well in “I’m Movin’ On”. The song, out in 2001, is on their eponymous debut album. Phillip White and D. Vincent Williams are the two writers of the song.
Videos by American Songwriter
“I’m Movin’ On” begins with, “I’ve dealt with my ghosts and I’ve faced all my demons / Finally content with a past I regret / I’ve found you find / strength in your moments of weakness / For once, I’m at peace with myself / I’ve been burdened with blame, trapped in the past for too long / I’m movin’ on.”
“What Hurts The Most”
On Me And My Gang, Rascal Flatts’ fourth studio album, is “What Hurts The Most”. The song was written by Jeffrey Steele and Steve Robson. It first became a pop hit for UK artist Jo O’Meara in 2005.
One year later, Rascal Flatts had a major hit with this sad song. “What Hurts The Most” says, “It’s hard to deal with the pain of losing you everywhere I go / But I’m doing it / It’s hard to force that smile when I see our old friends and I’m alone / Still harder / Getting up, getting dressed, living with this regret / But I know if I could do it over / I would trade give away all the words that I saved in my heart / That I left unspoken.”
“What Hurts The Most” became Rascal Flatts’ first No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
“Here Comes Goodbye”
The visual imagery in “Here Comes Goodbye” is part of what makes the song so poignant. Out in 2009 on their Unstoppable project, Chris Sligh and Clint Lagerberg are the song’s two writers.
“Here Comes Goodbye” says, “I can hear the truck tires coming up the gravel road. And it’s not like her to drive that slow, nothing’s on the radio / Footsteps on the front porch, I hear my doorbell / She usually comes right in, now I can tell / Here comes goodbye / Here comes the last time / Here comes the start of every sleepless night / The first of every tear I’m gonna cry / Here comes the pain / Here comes me wishing things had never changed / And she was right here in my arms tonight, but here comes goodbye.”
Rascal Flatts earned a Grammy Award nomination for this song.
Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Grand Ole Opry