'Trust' by Chris Stapleton - Lyrics and Meaning

Over the better part of a decade, we've learned that Chris Stapleton is a jack of all trades – and all genres.

A multi-talented musician with an otherworldly voice, he can jam out and howl with the best of them with plenty of his signature arena-ready rockers, but he can also pull it all back and deliver some of the most delicate and altogether beautiful performances in recent memory.

On his newest record, Higher, we see Stapleton at both ends of that spectrum, screaming and slinging his trusty six-string on full-sledged southern rock anthems like 'White Horse' and sending us into the heavens with more country leaning songs like its title track.

While the record, as is often the case with Stapleton, takes on a genre-agnostic form, there are plenty of traditional country-leaning tunes, including 'Trust'.

The third song on the album, 'Trust' is a song with a long and storied history for Stapleton, having been kept securely in his back pocket for nearly twenty years.

Though his musicianship and masterful finger picking skills usually take center stage in his songs, 'Trust' serves to remind listeners of Stapleton's abundant lyrical prowess, letting its moving prose have its moment in the spotlight.

The entirety of Higher was produced by the trio of Stapleton, his wife Morgane and his longtime producer Dave Cobb.

'Trust', penned by Stapleton and Steve McEwan, opens with what can only be described as a sweet, soothing acoustic guitar, accompanied by a brushed drum beat that quickly takes you to your favorite coffee shop.

These sonic elements remain pretty consistent throughout the song's three-and-a-half minute runtime, providing a simple and steady stripped down melody.

Stapleton's southern drawl comes through sweet and strong as Morgane's honey-dipped harmonies arrive at the first chorus and weave in and out of the rest of the song, which finds the pair of love birds singing about unconditional love that can withstand any of life's challenges.

Though we jump through hoops
And dance on wires
Walk on broken glass
And play with fire
Though we're blindfolded
When we turn on the light
I know everything will be alright

As the calming guitars strum and pick away, Stapleton kicks things off by essentially saying that no matter what happens, he knows that everything between he and his beloved will be okay.

Prefacing with how "we" have to face a variety of obstacles and difficulties, from jumping through hoops, walking on broken glass and playing with fire, Stapleton brings it all full circle to show that no matter what comes their way, he's confident that they'll make it through.

If you trust in true love
And you trust in time
If you trust in forever
Trust this heart of mine
We could lose ourselves
Just like lovers do
If you trust in me like I trust in you
Trust in me like I trust in you

Our narrator explains that if the other person can find it within themselves to trust in intangible things, like true love, time and the idea of forever, then they should be able to trust in him, his heart and his intentions.

Encouraging both of them to put in the effort to make their relationship work, Stapleton pleads that trust is a central component to their once-in-a-lifetime love and something that requires continued effort from both of them.

Too many people have been let down
By broken promises on rocky ground
And there's cracks in the pavement
I don't wanna fall through
Hold on to me
And I'll hold on to you

Switching back to the second verse, Stapleton sheds light on the fact that, in a lot of relationships, the people involved more often than not get their hearts shattered because of broken promises and foundational issues.

However, he turns it around by saying that this isn't the path he wants to go down. Instead, to fight off these invisible forces that seek to ruin their love, he's choosing to hold onto his beloved and encouraging her to do the same.

Now, there are cynics
With rusty knives
Trying to cut away the good in our lives
But I don't care what they believe
With you I have everything I need

After serenading us through the chorus once more, Stapleton waits till the last verse to really lay it on thick.

Explaining that there are plenty of people out there whose goal is to destroy people's happiness and break apart true love, he firmly states that he doesn't care what they think or say, and he doesn't need or want their approval when it comes to his love and his heart.

Rather, as long as he has his partner, he has everything he could ever need and more. As we've come to understand, true love will always prevail, regardless of what might get tossed onto its path.

And if you trust in true love
And you trust in time
If you trust in forever
Trust this heart of mine
We could lose ourselves
Just like lovers do
If you trust in me like I trust in you
Trust in me like I trust in you

Upon Higher's release, Stapleton made it known that throughout its fourteen tracks, there are songs that run the full gamut. While some were written in real time during his recording sessions, others have been with the reigning CMA Male Vocalist of the Year since he arrived in Nashville more than twenty years ago.

In the case of 'Trust', Stapleton told Apple Music's Kelleigh Bannen that it falls in the latter category.

Explaining that some songs just need a little more time to find the right moment, he shared: "[Sometimes it's like], 'This is where we're at right now and this is the time for this song.'"

He added, "'Trust' is an example of that. We've actually tried to record that song for every record we've done and just couldn't get it. It wasn't the time for that song, but here it is. There were a lot of victories on this record in that way."

Though we jump through hoops
And dance on wires
Walk on broken glass
And play with fire
Though we're blindfolded
When we turn on the light
I know everything will be alright

If you trust in true love
And you trust in time
If you trust in forever
Trust this heart of mine
We could lose ourselves
Just like lovers do
If you trust in me like I trust in you
Trust in me like I trust in you

Too many people have been let down
By broken promises on rocky ground
And there's cracks in the pavement
I don't wanna fall through
Hold on to me
And I'll hold on to you

If you trust in true love
And you trust in time
If you trust in forever
Trust this heart of mine
We could lose ourselves
Just like lovers do
If you trust in me like I trust in you
Trust in me like I trust in you

Now, there are cynics
With rusty knives
Trying to cut away the good in our lives
But I don't care what they believe
With you I have everything I need

And if you trust in true love
And you trust in time
If you trust in forever
Trust this heart of mine
We could lose ourselves
Just like lovers do
If you trust in me like I trust in you
Trust in me like I trust in you

For more on Chris Stapleton, see below: