As Though You Never Left at All

Robbin Ahrold, Billy Seidman

    

I dream of you beside me at the rising of the sun
Your crossword just one line away from almost being done

The dog’s asleep, and gently dreaming, halfway down the hall 

It feels as though you never left at all

 

The songbird that you loved to watch, is on the windowsill

Your lavender, and mint, and thyme so fragrant blooming still

The dogwood shades your garden chair where rays of sunlight fall

It feels as though you never left at all

 

You’re gone, but still you’re kissing me in photos on the wall

It feels as though you never left at all

It feels as though you never left at all

 

My business, all those planes and miles, around the world and more
I left you only lonely nights, waiting at the door,
You took your broken heart, moved on, you had to live your life 
I never knew the bargain was your money or your wife

You’re gone, but still you’re kissing me in photos on the wall

It feels as though you never left at all

It feels as though you never left at all

 

I try I fool myself,

Pretending nothing’s changed

But walking through this empty house

So much of you remains

 

You’re gone, but still you’re kissing me in photos on the wall

It feels as though you never left at all

It feels as though you never left at all

​

About the Song

​

Awoke one morning and felt a warm, empty place next to me where my wife slept. (She had gone for coffee.) Her half-finished New York Times crossword puzzle was on her pillow, and our Cavalier King Charles puppy Ginger was still half-asleep snoring in the hallway, unperturbed by the clatter of New York City coming to life in the morning. Started thinking how it would feel if my lifetime partner really had moved on, leaving me alone, why she might have left me, and how that lonely day and many future days might have unfolded. Captured it all that same day in a song. Brought the lyric for the verses to my co-writer and mentor Billy Seidman, who contributed a chorus and a bridge. Almost immediately saw the opportunity for a version in French, and started the translation, working with Denis Thuillier, my co-lyricist. One of the quickest turnarounds from inspiration to finished demo in my repertoire. 

 

Credits

​

Music and Lyrics by Robbin Ahrold and Billy Seidman. Instrumental track by Billy Seidman, recorded at SongArts Studios, New York City, 2017, and vocals by Robbin Ahrold, recorded at Recording Arts Studios, Arlington, Virginia, 2019. 

 

 

© Little Nest of Robbin Songs (BMI), Pleasurecraft Music Publishing (BMI)