Matchbox Twenty Celebrating 30 Years of 'Yourself or Someone Like You'

On October 12th at the Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles, Matchbox Twenty will celebrate the 30th anniversary of their most acclaimed album, Yourself or Someone Like You, performing the record in full. Recorded in Atlanta in the spring of 1996, the album was released on October 1st to virtually no anticipation. The band—then an unknown group featuring singer Rob Thomas, lead guitarist Kyle Cook, rhythm guitarist Adam Gaynor, bassist Brian Yale, and drummer Paul Doucette—had yet to make any impression on the rock landscape. Producer Matt Serletic was also a relative unknown, having briefly played keyboards in an early lineup of Collective Soul in the early 1990s. Only Adam Gaynor will be absent from the lineup that made the album since he hasn’t been with the band since 2004.

Serletic helped Matchbox Twenty find the right blend of alternative rock, pop, and a touch of post‑grunge, a formula Collective Soul had already mastered by softening grunge’s edges with melody and accessibility. Matchbox Twenty followed that path, but their rise was slow. It wasn’t until 1997 that the band truly broke through.

“Long Day” quietly climbed into the top ten of the Mainstream Rock chart, but their popularity exploded with the second single, “Push.” That track topped the same chart and crossed over to the Hot 100, reaching No. 3. By the end of 1997, Matchbox Twenty—and especially Rob Thomas—had become household names. “3 A.M.” was another enormously successful single, cementing the band’s presence on radio and MTV.

There’s really only one true post‑grunge song on the album—the opener and fourth hit single, “Real World.” The orchestrated “Back 2 Good” became a fifth hit, rounding out one of the most successful rock albums of the decade. The record is often placed in the post‑grunge category because of its tough subject matter, sullen moods, and frustration with the world and personal relationships, even though the music itself is neither heavy nor aggressive most of the way through.

It makes perfect sense that Rob Thomas and Matchbox Twenty are celebrating this album’s 30th anniversary. Yourself or Someone Like You has sold over 15 million copies worldwide, and its hits remain staples on countless playlists. “Push” and “3 A.M.” each have more than half a billion streams on Spotify, proof that the album’s legacy is still very much alive.