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Come Back...Be Here

Promotional Single | Bonus Track | RED (2012) | RED (Taylor's Version) [2021]

“Come Back…Be Here” is track eighteen on the deluxe edition of Taylor’s fourth studio album, RED (2012). She sings about a relationship lost to distance and time. The re-recording of the song, “Come Back…Be Here (Taylor’s Version)”, was released on November 12, 2021, on RED (Taylor’s Version).

Background and Production

The song was written by Taylor and Dan Wilson over a two-day period in spring of 2012, along with “Treacherous” which they also co-wrote together. Taylor came up with the concept, melody and overall vibe for “Come Back Be Here” on her ride to meet Wilson, he told Billboard in October 2012. They finished the song by the end of the day.

With the writing done, Taylor asked Wilson to produce the songs, and he reached out to Andy Thompson, a colleague from his hometown of Minneapolis to record some of the instruments. Wilson wound up using Taylor’s vocal from the demo recorded in Los Angeles:

«An interesting quality, objectively speaking, was how on fire she was, the clarity she had. She was so open and excited about the things I would add. She works at a very high level of positivity, and that is rare. I followed my own joy [in producing the tracks]. We both had such similar visions of what the songs should sound like.»

Dan Wilson

Lyrical Theme

“Come Back…Be Here” is a song Taylor wrote about experiencing an intense connection with someone, only to face the challenge of physical distance. It describes how the person she falls for has to leave, ending up on the other side of the world, just as Taylor realizes she is in love with him. Eventually, the pain of long distance makes building a lasting relationship impossible. She shared insights about this track with fans during a release party for RED in October 2012:

«'Come Back…Be Here' is a song that I wrote with Dan Wilson about somebody I just met. It’s about the feeling of just meeting someone and having all these sparks and then they leave, they have to go somewhere else. It’s about the anxiety and wondering, 'How am I gonna see you again? I want to. How’s this gonna happen?' There’s a lot of fear that’s involved with falling in love, especially when you’re dealing with distance.»

Taylor Swift

She further elaborated at another event, saying: “It’s a song I wrote about this guy that I met. You know, you meet someone and then they just kinda happen to go away and it’s long distance all of a sudden. And you’re, like, ‘B-b-but, but, come back, be here!’ So it’s a song that I wrote about having distance separate you, which is something I face constantly.”

Live Performances

The song is a fan favorite, as it is Taylor’s only “long distance relationship” track. After being asked to perfom the song for years and years, she finally sang “Come Back…Be Here” live for the first time in Toronto on August 5, 2018, on her “reputation Stadium Tour“. It was also the second surprise song of the night on May 13, 2023, in Philadelphia on Taylor’s “The Eras Tour“. It was performed on piano. Taylor sang the song again, this time on acoustic guitar, on February 18, 2024, during her last “Eras Tour” show in Melbourne. It was a mash-up with “Daylight“. During her show on May 24, 2024, in Lisbon, Taylor decided to mash-up “Come Back…Be Here” with the Fearless songs “The Way I Loved You” and “The Other Side Of The Door”. She introduced the acoustic section by saying:

«Welcome to the acoustic section! This crowd has been one of the most memorable crowds that I’ve ever played for in my whole life. And every time I’m not here, from now on I’m going to be wanting to come back here, which leads me to…»

Taylor Swift

On June 21, 2024, Taylor played a mashup of “Come Back…Be Here” with “The Black Dog” (2024) and “Maroon” (2022).

Commercial Performance

Upon the release of RED (Taylor’s Version), “Come Back…Be Here (Taylor’s Version)” debuted at No. 87 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the week ending November 26, 2021.

Taylor's Version

On August 6, 2021, Taylor announced that a re-recorded version of “Come Back…Be Here”, titled “Come Back…Be Here (Taylor’s Version)”, would be included as the sixth track on her second re-recorded album RED (Taylor’s Version), which was released on November 12, 2021, through Republic Records.

Lyrics

[Verse 1]
You said it in a simple way
4am, the second day
How strange that I don’t know you at all
Stumbled through the long goodbye
One last kiss, then catch your flight
Right when I was just about to fall

[Pre-Chorus 1]
I told myself, “Don’t get attached”
But in my mind I play it back
Spinning faster than the plane that took you

[Chorus]
And this is when the feeling sinks in
I don’t wanna miss you like this
Come back…be here
Come back…be here
I guess you’re in New York today
I don’t wanna need you this way
Come back…be here
Come back…be here

[Verse 2]
The delicate beginning rush
The feeling you can know so much
Without knowing anything at all
And now that I can’t put this down
If I had known what I’d known now
I never would have played so nonchalant

[Pre-Chorus 2]
Taxi cabs and busy streets
That never bring you back to me
I can’t help but wish you took me with you

[Chorus]
And this is when the feeling sinks in
I don’t wanna miss you like this
Come back…be here
Come back…be here
I guess you’re in London today
I don’t wanna need you this way
Come back…be here
Come back…be here

[Bridge]
This is falling in love in the cruelest way
This is falling for you when you are worlds away
In New York, be here
But you’re in London and I break down
‘Cause it’s not fair that you’re not around

[Final Chorus]
This is when the feeling sinks in
I don’t wanna miss you like this
Come back…be here
Come back…be here
I guess you’re in New York today
And I don’t wanna need you this way
Come back…be here
Come back…be here

[Outro]
I don’t wanna miss you like this
Come back…be here
Come back…be here