CMAT When A Good Man Cries Meaning and Review

CMAT’s “When A Good Man Cries” showcases her seamless fusion of indie sensibilities with a country flair, making it one of the standout tracks on Euro Country. The song opens with a gentle strumming that immediately sets a reflective, intimate tone, giving listeners a clear sense that CMAT is venturing into more traditional country territory while still maintaining her distinctive style. The chorus is tender and memorable, with a sweetness that contrasts beautifully against the song’s introspective themes, drawing the listener in from the very first refrain.

Lyrical Themes

Lyrically, the track deals with guilt and accountability in a relationship, as CMAT confronts the consequences of causing pain to a partner. Lines like “What do you do when a good man cries?” capture a raw vulnerability, while her references to third-wave feminism subvert traditional gender expectations, turning the trope of emotional suppression on its head. CMAT’s ability to balance self-reflection with cultural commentary gives the song depth, inviting listeners to engage both emotionally and intellectually.

Musicality

Musically, the track thrives in its country-inspired instrumentation, which CMAT emphasizes as a deliberate choice to set the tone for the album. The strumming patterns and melodic pacing create a sense of space and contemplation, allowing the lyrics to resonate fully. The repeated invocation of Kyrie Eleison in the bridge and outro adds a haunting, almost spiritual dimension, referencing Judee Sill’s influence and highlighting CMAT’s penchant for layering personal narrative with musical homage.

Wordplay and Structure

The pre-chorus and bridge sections are particularly effective in demonstrating CMAT’s lyrical ingenuity. She weaves playful wordplay, cultural references, and introspective confessions, from lines like “Veruca Salt, her just desserts” to “All of my jokes have turned to prayers,” blending storytelling with poetic resonance. This creates a tension between lightness and gravity, underscoring the song’s central theme of remorse while maintaining a captivating musicality.

When A Good Man Cries Review

“When A Good Man Cries” is a standout moment on Euro Country, exemplifying CMAT’s ability to combine emotional honesty with clever, genre-blurring songwriting. The song is both introspective and accessible, with a chorus that lingers and instrumentation that perfectly complements the lyrical narrative. It is a track that not only introduces CMAT’s country influences with elegance but also reinforces her unique voice in contemporary music, playful yet profound, personal yet universal.

Listen To CMAT When A Good Man Cries

CMAT When A Good Man Cries Lyrics Meaning Explained

The meaning of When A Good Man Cries by CMAT is a reflection on guilt, accountability, and emotional consequences in relationships. The song explores the pain caused when one’s actions hurt someone who is kind and undeserving of harm, flipping traditional gender expectations by showing a woman grappling with the impact of her own mistakes. Through vivid imagery, literary and cultural references, and a blend of country-inspired instrumentation with introspective lyricism, CMAT examines personal flaws, generational patterns of behavior, and the desire for redemption. At its core, the track is a meditation on self-awareness, emotional responsibility, and the pursuit of forgiveness, both from others and from oneself.

Verse 1

In the opening verse, CMAT introduces a tension between desire and destruction with the lines “I waited for love / With a cricket bat” and “I got what I want / And I kicked it flat.” The imagery of waiting for love suggests patience, while the cricket bat implies readiness to defend oneself or confront challenges emotionally. Achieving what she wants only to “kick it flat” conveys guilt or self-sabotage, reflecting the harm caused to someone she cares about.

Pre-Chorus

The pre-chorus continues this self-reflection, acknowledging personal flaws and the undeserved suffering of the partner: “You know what I'm like / You don't deserve it.” The reference to “Veruca Salt / Her just desserts” draws on the character from Willy Wonka, famously spoiled and accustomed to getting everything she wants, highlighting the theme of receiving consequences for one’s actions. Lines such as “She kept it out / To show the world / And now it's sour like her mother” explore generational patterns of emotional behavior, suggesting that bitterness and public displays of emotion can be inherited or mirrored from parental figures.

Chorus

The chorus centralizes the song’s theme of guilt and moral questioning. The lines “What do you do when a good man cries? / And you're the one to keep him up at night?” reveal awareness of the pain inflicted on an innocent person. By asking “How could you do what you said you wouldn't do like all the other guys?” CMAT subverts traditional gender tropes, acknowledging her own repetition of behaviors often criticized in men. The phrase “How do you act when the daddy's not home? / Dorian Graying if the door's closed?” references Oscar Wilde’s Dorian Gray, whose portrait bears the consequences of his sins while he outwardly remains unchanged, reflecting the hidden emotional weight she carries. The line “All that you say it doesn't matter cuz you're crushing what you shouldn't hold” emphasizes the destructive effect of controlling or mismanaged emotions.

Verse 2 and Second Pre-Chorus

Verse two continues the introspection with “I hope it don’t last / With our time so sore” and “I hope that I pass / And I get reborn,” signaling a desire for conflict to be temporary and a hope for personal growth or renewal. In the second pre-chorus, CMAT admits, “I've never changed / But lord I’m tryna,” acknowledging persistent patterns while striving to improve. “The people’s mess / Dunboyne Diana” references her childhood in Dunboyne, Meath, positioning her as a local figure entangled in communal and relational dynamics. Lines such as “All of my jokes have turned to prayers / Because they’re scarred just like their mother” show a transformation from humor used as a coping mechanism to sincere reflection, recognizing generational trauma and inherited emotional scars.

Bridge and Outro

The bridge intensifies the spiritual and moral contemplation: “Oh I can feel what I hated in dreams, come on / Give me a hand if you can help Jesus, it's time” highlights a confrontation with past behavior and a plea for divine guidance. “To be real, spin wheels / Kyrie Eleison” suggests ongoing cycles of reflection, with the Greek phrase meaning “Lord have mercy,” connecting to Judee Sill’s influence and signaling penitence. The subsequent lines, “Not hate myself, help me love other people / Oh I'll wear the beads, I'll read / Kyrie Eleison,” reinforce the commitment to personal growth, self-acceptance, and spiritual reflection through symbolic acts. The repeated chorus and outro, culminating in “Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison,” underline the song’s central themes of guilt, accountability, and the pursuit of forgiveness, both divine and personal.

CMAT When A Good Man Cries Lyrics

[Verse 1]

I waited for love

With a cricket bat

I got what I want

And I kicked it flat

[Pre-Chorus]

You know what I'm like

You don't deserve it

Veruca Salt

Her just desserts

She kept it out

To show the world

And now it's sour like her mother

[Chorus]

What do you do when a good man cries?

And you're the one to keep him up at night?

How could you do what you said you wouldn't do like all the other guys?

How do you act when the daddy's not home?

Dorian Graying if the door's closed?

All that you say it doesn't matter cuz you're crushing what you shouldn't hold

[Verse 2]

I hope it don’t last

With our time so sore

I hope that I pass

And I get reborn

[Pre-Chorus]

I've never changed

But lord I’m tryna

The people’s mess

Dunboyne Diana

All of my jokes have turned to prayers

Because they’re scarred just like their mother

[Chorus]

What do you do when a good man cries?

And you're the one to keep him up at night?

How could you do what you said you wouldn't do like all the other guys?

How do you act when the daddy's not home?

Dorian Graying if the door's closed?

All that you say it doesn't matter cuz you're crushing what you shouldn't hold

Shouldn’t hold

[Bridge]

Oh I can feel what I hated in dreams, come on

Give me a hand if you can help Jesus, it's time

To be real, spin wheels

Kyrie Eleison

Oh I can feel what I hated in dreams, help me

Not hate myself, help me love other people, oh I'll

Wear the beads, I'll read

Kyrie Eleison

[Chorus]

What do you do when a good man cries?

And you're the one to keep him up at night?

How could you do what you said you wouldn't do like all the other guys?

How do you act when the daddy's not home?

Dorian Graying if the door's closed?

All that you say it doesn't matter cuz you're crushing what you shouldn't hold

Shouldn't hold

[Outro]

Oh I can feel what I hated in dreams, come on

Give me a hand if you can help Jesus, it's time

To be real, spin wheels

Kyrie Eleison

Oh I can feel what I hated in dreams, help me

Not hate myself, help me love other people

Oh I'll wear the beads, I'll read

Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison