When my body won't hold me anymore
And it finally lets me free
Will I be ready?
When my feet won't walk another mile
And my lips give their last kiss goodbye
Will my hands be steady?

When I lay down my fears
My hopes and my doubts
The rings on my fingers
And the keys to my house
With no hard feelings

When the sun hangs low in the west
And the light in my chest
Won't be kept held at bay any longer
When the jealousy fades away
And it's ash and dust for cash and lust
And it's just hallelujah
And love in thoughts and love in the words
Love in the songs they sing in the church
And no hard feelings

Lord knows they haven't done
Much good for anyone
Kept me afraid and cold
With so much to have and hold

Mmh
When my body won't hold me anymore
And it finally lets me free
Where will I go?
Will the trade winds take me south
Through Georgia grain or tropical rain
Or snow from the heavens?

Will I join with the ocean blue
Or run into the savior true
And shake hands laughing
And walk through the night
Straight to the light
Holding the love I've known in my life
And no hard feelings

Lord knows they haven't done
Much good for anyone
Kept me afraid and cold
With so much to have and hold
Under the curving sky
I'm finally learning why
It matters for me and you
To say it and mean it too
For life and its loveliness
And all of its ugliness
Good as it's been to me
I have no enemies
I have no enemies
I have no enemies
I have no enemies


Lyrics submitted by mazda3grl

No Hard Feelings Lyrics as written by Scott Avett Robert Crawford

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management

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No Hard Feelings song meanings
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10 Comments

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  • +6
    General CommentCan't believe no comments on this deep and amazing song. To me, it is a song reflection and realization in looking forward to when we all pass and subsequently looking back on your life from there. Realizing through your life the love you experience from everyone is what sticks out and the negativity you experienced is an afterthought. Basically, while your here, enjoy things. Don't resent people and be happy with what you have and enjoy it. Don't focus on the negative and you will be a much happier person in the end. Just my take.
    edward1020on January 05, 2017   Link
  • +2
    General CommentThis isn’t a song, it’s much deeper and more powerful than any song could ever be. A song can get stuck in your head, but this thing gets stuck in your bones... The language and lyrics are so beautiful and symbolic, yet powerful and deeply personal in its explanation that loving and being loved is what it all comes down to. Love is the thing, man. And in the end, it really is everything.
    marlo10799on February 02, 2018   Link
  • +1
    General Comment3:00 a.m. in New York City and I just watched the documentary on The Avett Brothers. I caught it by accident mid-way flicking channels, middle of the night and wide-awake! Lol But by their second song I was hooked. Apart from their music their simple take on life love family and eternity was so inspiring.
    When they finally sang "No Hard Feelings" it brought tears to my eyes.
    Thank you guyz!

    L.Carrion
    Carrilyn106on February 01, 2018   Link
  • +1
    General Commenthow did i not find out about this earlier?
    CinderLunaron February 07, 2018   Link
  • +1
    General CommentI want to thank you - Seth and Scott and your band - for sharing such a deeply personal piece. It has helped to mend years of pain and very hard feelings between me and my mother. Long story short, it would not have happened without your words.
    marlo10799on February 16, 2018   Link
  • +1
    My OpinionThis is no ordinary song, it is an unqualified masterpiece that works and can be interpreted on many levels. It’s profound, and words fall short of its emotional impact. I listen to this song every week, and am drawn to its loveliness and heart tugging emotion every time I hear it. Thank you Seth for sharing such a personal part of yourself that we can all relate to on some level.
    MSweeton April 01, 2018   Link
  • 0
    General CommentSo I waited for it to start all over again! ❤
    Carrilyn106on February 01, 2018   Link
  • 0
    General CommentThe greatest complement I can write about this song is I don't have words to describe its profundity. It is so powerful in its truth, it deserves a moment of silence and reflection. In this one song, they encapsulated the human experience in all its beauty, fears, and uncertainties. It makes me ashamed of some of my behaviors and pettiness throughout my life that I have been a part of.
    I listen to it everyday, several times a day, as a reminder for me to not allow situations or people to get to me to the point I am harboring resentment or ill-will, because just as the song says:
    " no hard feelings
    Lord knows they haven't done
    Much good for anyone
    Kept me afraid and cold
    With so much to have and hold. "
    Life can be so sweet and sour simultaneously, but the beauty is we have the power to choose how we taste and experience it. This song reminds me of this choice.
    In the end, with its profound lyrics and incredibly beautiful melody, if I had to describe it in one word, the only word that justifies this miracle of a song is--SUBLIME!


    Chihardingon February 04, 2018   Link
  • 0
    General CommentI'm a latecomer to these comments but I have to agree that this song expresses some of the most profound thoughts about the end of life and coming to terms with how you've lived it. I first heard it when it was performed on camera in "May it Begin". It seemed like an emotional bomb had gone off in the studio when they finished and Seth and Scott seemed stunned by the price they had just paid to lay the track down. I know that I was crying. Lately that song is going round and around my head as my 95 year old uncle is dying of liver cancer. He's a brilliant, loving, stubborn and didactic man who has some unresolved issues and relationships (don't we all?) This morning I sent him the recording with the lyrics translated into Spanish so that he could get the meaning in his native tongue. I don't know how he will receive it but I know that this song has already had a powerful impact on my life.
    surfgreenpbasson March 13, 2019   Link
  • 0
    TranslationSin Sentimientos Duros

    Cuando mi cuerpo ya no me va a retener.
    Y finalmente me deja libre.
    ¿Estaré listo?
    Cuando mis pies no caminen otra milla
    Y mis labios se despiden de su último beso.
    ¿Mis manos estarán firmes?
    Cuando yo dejo mis miedos
    Mis esperanzas y mis dudas.
    Los anillos en mis dedos
    Y las llaves de mi casa
    Sin duros sentimientos
    Cuando el sol cuelga bajo en el oeste
    Y la luz en mi pecho.
    No se mantendrá a raya por más tiempo.
    Cuando los celos se desvanecen
    Y es ceniza y polvo por dinero y lujuria.
    Y es solo aleluya.
    Y el amor en los pensamientos y el amor en las palabras.
    El amor en las canciones que cantan en la iglesia.
    Y no hay malos sentimientos.
    Dios sabe que no han hecho
    Mucho bien para cualquiera
    Me mantuvo asustado y frío
    Con tanto tener y mantener.
    Cuando mi cuerpo ya no me va a retener.
    Y finalmente me deja libre.
    ¿A dónde iré?
    ¿Los vientos alisios me llevarán al sur?
    A través de grano de Georgia o lluvia tropical.
    ¿O la nieve de los cielos?
    ¿Me uniré con el océano azul?
    O correr al salvador verdadero.
    Y estrechar la mano riendo
    Y caminar por la noche
    Directo a la luz.
    Sosteniendo el amor que he conocido en mi vida.
    Y no hay malos sentimientos.
    Dios sabe que no han hecho
    Mucho bien para cualquiera
    Me mantuvo asustado y frío
    Con tanto tener y mantener.
    Bajo el cielo curvo
    Finalmente estoy aprendiendo por qué
    Importa para mi y para ti
    Para decirlo y decirlo también
    Por la vida y su encanto.
    Y toda su fealdad.
    Bueno como ha sido para mi
    No tengo enemigos
    No tengo enemigos
    No tengo enemigos
    No tengo enemigos
    surfgreenpbasson March 13, 2019   Link

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