By Myself

"By Myself"
Song by Linkin Park
from the album Hybrid Theory
Working title:	Super Xero / Super Zero
Recorded:	1999 - 2000
Stems:	"Parts" CD
Time signature:	4/4
Tempo:	103
Key:	Ab Minor
Live debut:	Unknown
Last performed:	June 14, 2014
Writer:	Brad Delson, Chester Bennington, Joe Hahn, Mike Shinoda, Rob Bourdon
Producer:	Don Gilmore
Label:	Warner Bros.
Hybrid Theory tracklist
Papercut One Step Closer With You Points Of Authority Crawling Runaway By Myself In The End A Place For My Head Forgotten Cure For The Itch Pushing Me Away

"By Myself" is the seventh song on the album Hybrid Theory. It is known for its aggressive energy and atmospheric, electronic-laced verses.

Background

"By Myself" originated from elements of a demo called "Sad", which was released on November 23, 2009 on the LP Underground 9.0: Demos CD. The song was originally called "Super Xero".

Before Fort Minor's show on September 8, 2015, Mike Shinoda did an interview with Daniel P. Carter, from BBC Radio 1's Rock Show, where he explained how recording Hybrid Theory was a learning curve for Chester Bennington, who had recently joined the band and was "still green and imitating his favourite singers".

He said Chester had never screamed in a song before Linkin Park and they had to loan him CDs to get tips on how to do it. He eventually found it "fun to let all that energy out" when screaming, Mike added.

The interview was broadcasted on October 25, 2015 as part of a Hybrid Theory 15th Anniversary special.

Later on the album, the strings at the end of "Cure For The Itch" are featured at the beginning of the "High Voltage (Mike Shinoda Remix)." Mike was asked about this in July 2020 on Twitch and mentioned "By Myself", saying, "So I had this rack mounted keyboard unit and I forget what it was, it was a Roland keyboard unit with these certain string sounds and I used those on a few songs at the time. I forget which ones I used it on. I used it on those two, I think I used them on "By Myself." I used them a couple of times, so that's why that sound popped up, because I liked that sound and I used it on a few things."

Composition

Due to Phoenix being out of the band at this time (1999 to October 2000) to tour with The Snax, he did not record bass on any songs on the Hybrid Theory EP or Hybrid Theory. Brad Delson recorded the bass on "With You", "Points Of Authority", "Crawling", "Runaway", "By Myself", "In The End", and "Pushing Me Away".

Demos

Linkin Park released the earliest known demo of "By Myself" on the LP Underground 9: Demos CD in November 2009, titled "Sad." It is an instrumental beat of the origin of the song. A slightly longer version (by 12 seconds) was released on the LPU 9 EU promo CD.

In October 2010, fans became aware of alternate versions of three tracks on the LP Underground 9: Demos album. A European WBR promo version of the CD exists, with alternate versions of "Across The Line", and the demos of "Faint" and "By Myself". "Across The Line" had an extended intro, which was just an instrumental version of the bridge of the track, while "Faint" and "Sad" had entirely new/longer intros. These were the longer versions of the tracks before they were edited and shortened for their release on the CD by Mike Shinoda. The acetate CD was posted on LPLive on October 31, 2011 by BPERCY.

Adam Ruehmer confirmed the legitimacy of the tracks on November 1, 2011: "I have some good news for you. The songs are legit. I finally found the file Mike sent me before we went to mastering. The extended intros are there. Congrats! I'm REALLY confused at how this stuff got put on a promo CD in Europe. Strangest thing ever!!"

In the Hybrid Party Of A Thousand Things leak in June 2019, two different instrumental MPC demos by Mike that are similar to the LPU 9 version, but different, were included. "Sad Song01" is 3:07 and "Sad Song02" is 2:11.

In 1999, the band, at the time known as "Hybrid Theory", distributed a two-track demo CD containing early versions of "A Place For My Head" and "By Myself" during their shows. This is the first full demo of "By Myself".

The second full demo dates from January 2000 and is titled "SuperXero" or "Super Zero." It was featured on four different demos - the Hybrid Theory 9-Track Demo CD from January 2000, theHybrid Theory 8-Track Demo CD and Hybrid Theory 7-Track Demo CD, which are both from February 2000, and the Hybrid Theory 2-Track Demo CD. This version of the demo has Mike whispering, "so, what do you think?" at the beginning of the song. There is a drum beat going on in the background of the bridge, and the lyrics are unique ("If I hide my pride I'll lie sleepless / And won't be able to cope with my weakness").

The third full demo of "By Myself" was featured on the Raw Power sampler CD by Warner Bros. Records and is attributed to Hybrid Theory (band). It is lyrically identical to the other demo, but it has a different vocal take. Mike comes in offbeat at the beginning rather than right on beat and his vocals are more intense and higher pitched. This sampler was released sometime before May 30, 2000. The song is credited to Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson and Chester Bennington.

A clip of another early version of the song was being played in Mike's headphones when he was recording his final vocals for "By Myself". It was caught by his microphone and can be heard in the multitracks when amplified a considerable amount. The actual demo in question was never in circulation.

The version of "By Myself" found on the Hybrid Theory (Unmastered Studio Finals 5/7/00) CD features a different mix of the song among other changes - the scratching/vocal samples are present in the intro by Joe (he scratches Chester's "myself" scream), the drums come in before the bridge, and guitar is present at the end of the bridge.

Remix

Linkin Park released a remix of "By Myself" on Reanimation in July 2002 titled "By_Myslf." The remix was done by producer Josh Abraham and Mike Shinoda, and it features guitars by Stephen Carpenter from Deftones.

Versions

Note: Only the date of the very first release of each version is listed.

Studio

Title	Album	Length	Recorded	Released	Notes
By Myself	Hybrid Theory	3:09	2000	October 24, 2000
Sad ("By Myself" Demo 1999)	LP Underground 9.0: Demos Compilation Hybrid Theory (20th Anniversary Edition)	1:08	1999	November 23, 2009	Original seed.
Sad ("By Myself" Demo 1999)	LP Underground 9.0: Demos (EU Promo)	1:20	1999	2009	Extended intro. Released on LPLive for free download on October 31, 2011.
Sad Song01	Hybrid Party Of A Thousand Things	3:07			Pre-chorus of the LPU version during the first verse. Ends in the chorus. Released on LPLive for free download on August 5, 2019.
Sad Song02	Hybrid Party Of A Thousand Things	2:11			Beginning is similar to the LPU version. Ends in the third verse of Song01. Released on LPLive for free download on August 5, 2019.
By Myself	Hybrid Theory 2-Track Demo	3:13	1999	1999	On the first words of the song, "What do I do," Mike comes in right on the beat. During the bridge Mike says "I'm so afraid."
SuperXero	Demos Hybrid Theory 8-Track Demo Linkin Park - Demos From 02-2000 Hybrid Theory (20th Anniversary Edition)	3:16	1999		Mike whispers "So, what do you think?" at the beginning. During the bridge there is a drum beat going in the background. The lyrics are significantly different than the other demo versions, particularly the "If I hide my pride I'll lie sleepless/And won't be able to cope with my weakness" part in the second verse. Listed as "Super Zero" in the January 7, 2000 Demos CD. Released on LPFuse for free download on Christmas 2004.
By Myself		3:15	2000	2000	Released for free download on Hybrid Theory's official website. The WebArchive snapshot which shows this demo dates from April 8, 2000. Almost the same as the 2-track version, except Mike comes in off the beat on the first line of the song, and during the bridge he says "Always afraid" instead of "I'm so afraid."
By Myself	Raw Power	3:09	2000	2000	Lyrically identical to the 2-track version. Mike comes in off-beat at the beginning rather than right on the beat. Mike's vocal parts are more intense and higher-pitched. The Raw Power sampler was released before May 30, 2000 (Brougham's Le Cock Sportif release date). Released on LPLive for free download on March 10, 2017 in FLAC format.
By Myself	Studio Finals 5/7/00	3:15	2000		The CD dates from May 7, 2000. Different mix. Scratching/vocal samples ("myself" scream) in the intro. Drums come in before the bridge. Guitar at the end of the bridge. Released on LPLive for free download on April 9, 2011.
By Myself	Hybrid Theory - Instrumentals	3:11	2000		Official instrumental version.

Remix

Title	Album	Length	Recorded	Released	Notes
By_Myslf	Reanimation	3:42	2001	July 30, 2002	Remix by Josh Abraham and Mike Shinoda. Features guitars by Stephen Carpenter. The ending of this version continues in the beginning of "Kyur4 Th Ich".
By_Myslf	Songs From Reanimation	3:44	2001	2002	Longer ending (very low). This version replaced the album version in the initial iTunes release of Reanimation. This was fixed in subsequent releases.
Buy Myself Remix	Pts.Of.Athrty Reanimation Compilation	4:26	2002	July 19, 2002	Remix by Marilyn Manson and Tim Sköld. Features guitars by John 5 and keyboards by Marilyn Manson and Madonna Wayne Gacy.
By_Myslf	Reanimation - Instrumentals	3:42	2001		Official instrumental version.

Live

Title	Album	Length	Recorded	Released	Notes
By Myself	Crawling (DVD)	0:30	December 11, 2000	2001	Incomplete video recording. Professional audio. This video was used in the very first LPTV which is available on the Frat Party At The Pankake Festival DVD.
By Myself	LP Underground 3.0	4:06	August 02, 2003 August 03, 2003	November 17, 2003	Live From Summer Sanitarium.
By Myself	Live In Texas	5:38	August 02, 2003 August 03, 2003	November 18, 2003	DVD only. Recorded live August 2nd 2003 at Reliant Stadium in Houston, TX and August 3rd 2003 at Texas Stadium in Irving, TX on the Summer Sanitarium Tour.
By Myself (Live At Download Festival 2014)	Hybrid Theory - Live At Download Festival 2014	3:23	June 14, 2014	August 12, 2014	The Hunting Party pre-order bonus album through linkinpark.com.
By Myself	Hybrid Theory (20th Anniversary Edition)	3:05	January 30, 2001	October 9, 2020	DVD only. The Fillmore 2001.
By Myself	Hybrid Theory (20th Anniversary Edition)	3:04	June 03, 2001	October 9, 2020	DVD only. Rock Am Ring 2001.
By Myself	Hybrid Theory (20th Anniversary Edition)	3:15	February 23, 2002 February 24, 2002	October 9, 2020	DVD only. Projekt: Revolution 2002.
By Myself (Live In Texas)	Meteora (20th Anniversary Edition)	4:07	August 02, 2003 August 03, 2003	April 7, 2023	Edited differently from the 2003 release. Live In Texas.
By Myself	Meteora (20th Anniversary Edition)	5:28	July 12, 2003	April 7, 2023	DVD only. Veterans Stadium 2003.
By Myself	Meteora (20th Anniversary Edition)	4:44	October 29, 2003	April 7, 2023	DVD only. Live In Seoul 2003.

Live

"By Myself" was a large part of the setlists in the Hybrid Theory touring cycle. The exact debut of the song is unknown, but it happened sometime on the Kottonmouth Kings' Ridin' High Tour, between the shows in St. Louis, Missouri and Springfield, Missouri. The song was performed mid-set throughout the second half of 2000. 2001 rolled around and the song remained in the mid-set for the better half of the year. At the show at Rock am Ring, Brad began to play a short guitar tease intro before the song. At the very next show in London, England, "By Myself" was finally moved down in the set, becoming the second-to-last song in the set. The song returned to its original mid-set position on the Ozzfest, only briefly being performed at the end of the set on the tour, at the second stop in East Troy, Wisconsin (also the last show were Brad played the guitar tease intro). "By Myself" returned to the encore spot in London, England, where it gained an interlude entitled the "Blow Your Mind Interlude" before it. The song remained in this position for the rest of the Hybrid Theory European Tour. The song returned to its mid-set slot after this tour, and remained there for the rest of 2001. In 2002, it returned to the encore, being performed with its pre-song interlude. At the show in Mexico City, Mexico, since there was no encore, it was performed third-to-last in the set.

"By Myself" survived for the first half of the Meteora touring cycle, where it returned to the setlists on the second tour of the era, Projekt Revolution 2003. The song was performed mid-set and featured a brand new extended intro, entitled the "2003 Intro". The song was finally dropped after the Meteora Australian and Asian Tour.

Over the next decade or so, the song has only been performed once (and possibly twice). It was rumored to return in 2009, when the band allegedly rehearsed the song before their International Tour. Evidently, the song did not make it to future sets. The only confirmed performance of the song since 2003 was when the band performed Hybrid Theory in its entirety in 2014, at the Download Festival.

Variations

Last Updated: September 27, 2015

Type	Description	First Played	Last Played
Intro	Brad Guitar Tease Intro	June 3, 2001	June 9, 2001
Intro	Blow Your Mind Interlude	September 16, 2001	February 24, 2002
Intro	2003 Intro	April 9, 2003	October 29, 2003

Personnel

Linkin Park

• Chester Bennington: vocals
• Rob Bourdon: drums, backing vocals
• Brad Delson: guitars, bass, backing vocals
• Joseph Hahn: records, sampling, backing vocals
• Mike Shinoda: emcee, vocals, beats, sampling

Production

• Don Gilmore: producer
• Jeff Blue: executive producer
• Andy Wallace: mixer

Lyrics

Album Version

What do I do to ignore them behind me?
Do I follow my instincts blindly?
Do I hide my pride from these bad dreams?
And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening?
Do I sit here and try to stand it?
Or do I try to catch them red-handed?
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness,
Or do I trust nobody and live in loneliness?
Because I can't hold on when I'm stretched so thin
I make the right moves but I'm lost within
I put on my daily facade but then
I just end up getting hurt again
By myself (MYSELF)
 
I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself (MYSELF)
I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself (MYSELF)
 
I can't hold on
To what I want when I'm stretched so thin
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
To anything watching everything spin
With thoughts of failure sinking in
 
If I turn my back, I'm defenseless
And to go blindly seems senseless
If I hide my pride and let it all go on then they'll
Take from me 'till everything is gone
If I let them go I'll be outdone
But if I try to catch them I'll be outrun
If I'm killed by the questions like a cancer
Then I'll be buried in the silence of the answer
By myself (MYSELF)
 
I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself (MYSELF)
I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself (MYSELF)
 
I can't hold on
To what I want when I'm stretched so thin
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
To anything watching everything spin
With thoughts of failure sinking in
 
How do you think I've lost so much
I'm so afraid that I'm out of touch
How do you expect / I will know what to do
When all I know Is what you tell me to?
 
Don't you
KNOW
I can't tell you how to make it
GO
No matter what I do, how hard I
TRY
I can't seem to convince myself
WHY
I'm stuck on the outside
Don't you
KNOW
I can't tell you how to make it
GO
No matter what I do, how hard I
TRY
I can't seem to convince myself
WHY
I'm stuck on the outside
 
I can't hold on
To what I want when I'm stretched so thin
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
To anything watching everything spin
With thoughts of failure sinking in
I can't hold on
To what I want when I'm stretched so thin
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
To anything watching everything spin
With thoughts of failure sinking in

2-Track Demo

What do I do to ignore what's behind me?
Do I follow my fate to escape blindly?
Do I hide my pride away from these bad dreams
And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening?
Do I let it go and try to stand it
Or do I try to catch them red handed?
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness
Or do I trust none and live life in loneliness?
Cause sunlight burns the skin of sleeping men
I make the right turns but I'm lost within
I put on my daily facade but then
I just end up getting hurt again by myself

(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself
(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself

I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(To anything, watching everything spin)
With thoughts of failure sinking in

If I turn my back I'm defenseless
And to give into fate seems senseless
If I hide my pride and let it all go on
Then they'll take from me 'til everything is gone
If I let them go i'll be outdone
But if I try to catch them i'll be outrun
If i'm killed by the questions like a cancer
Then i'll be buried in the silence of the answer by myself

(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself
(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself

I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(To anything, watching everything spin)
With thoughts of failure sinking in

How do you think I've lost so much
I'm so afraid that i'm out of touch
How do you expect I will know what to do
When all I know is what you tell me to

Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside
Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside

I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(To anything, watching everything spin)
With thoughts of failure sinking in
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(To anything, watching everything spin)
With thoughts of failure from with-

hybridtheory.com Demo

What do I do to ignore what's behind me
Do I follow my fate to escape blindly
Do I hide my pride away from these bad dreams
And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening
Do I let it go and try to stand it
Or do I try to catch them red handed
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness
Or do I trust none and live life in loneliness
Cause sunlight burns the skin of sleeping men
I make the right turns but I'm lost within
I put on my daily facade but then
I just end up getting hurt again by myself

(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself
(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself

I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(Running against you, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in

If I turn my back I'm defenseless
And to give into fate seems senseless
If I hide my pride and let it all go on
Then they'll take from me 'til everything is gone
If I let them go i'll be outdone
But if I try to catch them i'll be outrun
If i'm killed by the questions like a cancer
Then i'll be buried in the silence of the answer by myself

(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself
(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself

I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(Running against you, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in

How do you think I've lost so much
Always afraid that i'm out of touch
How do you expect I will know what to do
When all I know is what you tell me to

Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside
Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside

I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(Running against you, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(Running against me, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure from with-

Super Zero

So
What do you think?

What do I do to ignore what's behind me
Do I follow my fate to escape blindly
Do I hide my pride away from these bad dreams
And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening
Do I let it go and try to stand it
Or do I try to catch them red handed
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness
Or do I trust none and live life in loneliness
Cause sunlight burns the skin of sleeping men
I make the right turns but I'm lost within
I put on my daily facade but then
I just end up getting hurt again by myself

(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself
(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself

I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(Running against you, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in

If I turn my back I'm defenseless
And to give into fate seems senseless
If I hide my pride I'll lie sleepless
And won't be able to cope with my weakness
If I let them go I'll be outdone
But if I try to catch them i'll be outrun
If i'm killed by the questions like a cancer
Then i'll be buried in the silence of the answer by myself

(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself
(Myself)
I ask why
(But in my mind I find)
I can't rely on myself

I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(Running against you, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in

How do you think I've lost so much
Always afraid that i'm out of touch
How do you expect I will know what to do
When all I know is what you tell me to

Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside
Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside

I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(Running against you, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(Running against me, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure from with-

Gallery

• 

  Raw Power

External Links

• By Myself: LPTV