In 2011, Leftwich released his debut album, "Last Smoke Before the Snowstorm," produced by Ian Grimble. The album achieved commercial success, peaking at number 35 on the UK charts. Critically acclaimed, it was praised by The Fly as a "majestic debut" and received positive reviews from publications like The Skinny and the Sunday Express, with the latter describing it as "lovely." Songs such as "Shine" gained popularity, becoming Spotify's "Most addictive track of 2014" and accumulating over 150 million global Spotify plays. Additionally, "Atlas Hands" was featured in the Zillow TV commercial titled "Lake House" in 2015. During the same year, Leftwich co-wrote the song "Grow" with British artist Frances, which was featured in an Amazon UK TV advert.
Leftwich's second album, "After the Rain," was released in August 2016. Following the album's release, he embarked on an extensive tour from April 2016 to August 2017, performing songs from both his second album and his debut. The tour covered various countries, including the UK, Canada, USA, China, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, and several Asian countries such as Hong Kong, Singapore, and Indonesia.
In recent years, Leftwich has released a series of single cover-tracks, including "Pure Morning" by Placebo, "Rebellion (Lies)" by Arcade Fire, "When You Were Young" by The Killers, and "Because of Toledo" by The Blue Nile. These releases showcase his versatility as an artist and his ability to reinterpret songs from diverse genres.
Throughout his career, Benjamin Francis Leftwich has made a significant impact, selling over 100,000 copies of his debut album and garnering millions of streams on digital platforms like Spotify. With his soulful folk-pop sound and introspective lyrics, he continues to captivate audiences around the world.
Stole You Away
Benjamin Francis Leftwich Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Couldn't believe what I saw was true
I swam out through the waves
I caught it as it moved away
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
There was a change
In the way you breathe
I couldn't believe
You would change for me
And if you hear the sound
Of shooting stars
Protect your heart 'cause it burns back
and turns back around
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
High strung your soul
It's uncovered by the leaving
And the things you see
You spent too long running
But there's nothing coming
Turn around and run into me
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
The song "Stole You Away" by Benjamin Francis Leftwich is a heartfelt love song that tells the story of a man who sees his beloved leaving on a boat and decides to swim after her. The first verse describes the singer's disbelief at what he is seeing, but he summons the courage to swim out and catch up to the boat. He tells his beloved that he has "stolen" her away, highlighting his deep commitment and determination to keep her by his side.
The second verse speaks to the changes that the singer has seen in his beloved, but even in the face of these changes, he remains steadfast in his love for her. He warns her to protect her heart from the inevitable pain of love, as it can "burn back and turn back around."
The final verse is a call to his beloved to stop running and to turn to him for love and stability. He tells her to "stay" and promises to "steal" her away again in the future. Overall, the song is a poignant and beautiful tribute to the enduring love between two people.
Line by Line Meaning
There was a boat in a sea I knew
In a familiar place, I noticed a vessel floating in the water
Couldn't believe what I saw was true
The sight was so surreal that I had a hard time accepting it as real
I swam out through the waves
I dove into the water and made my way through the waves to reach the boat
I caught it as it moved away
Despite the boat drifting away, I managed to catch and stop it
I said I'd stole you away
I claimed to have taken you away without permission or warning
I said I'd stole you away
I repeated my earlier declaration of having taken you away
Next time I'll steal you away
In the future, I plan to take you away again
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
However, I promise that you can stay with me the next time I take you away
There was a change
A noticeable difference occurred
In the way you breathe
You were breathing differently
I couldn't believe
I found it hard to accept
You would change for me
You would alter your behavior for my sake
And if you hear the sound
In the event that you hear
Of shooting stars
The phenomenon of stars falling from the sky
Protect your heart 'cause it burns back
Guard your heart from the pain that may come along with it
And turns back around
As the pain of heartbreak has a tendency to come back around
High strung your soul
Your soul is feeling tense and stressed
It's uncovered by the leaving
It has been exposed due to someone leaving or abandoning you
And the things you see
The things you witness and experience
You spent too long running
You spent an extended amount of time avoiding or running away from something or someone
But there's nothing coming
Despite all of your efforts to avoid it, there is nothing that can be done to prevent what is to come
Turn around and run into me
Instead of running away, come to me and face the situation with me by your side
I said I'd stole you away
I reiterated my position of having taken you away without consent
I said I'd stole you away
Once again, I claimed responsibility for taking you away
Next time I'll steal you away
In the future, I fully intend to take you away again
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
But I also intend for you to stay with me the next time I do so
Contributed by Audrey O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Catie
There was a boat in a sea I knew
Couldn't believe what I saw was true
I swam out through the waves
I caught it as it moved away
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
There was a change
In the way you breathe
I couldn't believe
You would change for me
And if you hear the sound
Of shooting stars
Protect your heart 'cause it burns bright
Can turns back around
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
High strung lover your soul
It's uncovered by the leaving
And the things that you see
You spent so long running
But there's nothing coming
Turn around and run into me
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
Ethan Adkins
Lyrics:
There was a boat in a sea I knew
Couldn't believe what I saw was true
I swam out through the waves
I caught it as it moved away
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
There was a change
In the way you breathe
I couldn't believe
You would change for me
And if you hear the sound
Of shooting stars
Protect your heart 'cause it burns bright
Can turns back around
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
High strung your soul
It's uncovered by the leaving
And the things that you see
You spent so long running
But there's nothing coming
Turn around and run into me
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
Alex
LYRICS:
There was a boat in a sea I knew
Couldn't believe what I saw was true
I swam out through the waves
I caught it as it moved away
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
There was a change
In the way you breathe
I couldn't believe
You would change for me
And if you hear the sound
Of shooting stars
Protect your heart 'cause it burns bright
Can turns back around
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
High strung your soul
It's uncovered by the leaving
And the things that you see
You spent so long running
But there's nothing coming
Turn around and run into me
I said I'd stole you away
I said I'd stole you away
Next time I'll steal you away
Next time I'll steal you, darling, you stay
Ife
This is the kind of stuff you listen to at a windy summer night in the beach with campfire and your closest friends
Andres Anaya
This guy is awesome, his voice is unique....he gotta get rlly famous, I'd buy all his albums. Agree???
Atharva .R. Joshi
Nahh man I'm kinda happy he's not famous cuz rhen everyone would be listening to his songs
And trust me it gets generic when everyone listens to the same songs
LOVE BIR
Seen him 5-7 times and live he’s even better! Trust me when I say this dude needs to effects and reverbs etc, it’s almost like his voice organically has a reverb!
Met him too and he’s a proper nice lad.
Kosta Varvatakis
this song makes me want to go out and find a wife.
seraphim combat
Agreed
LOVE BIR
I thought it read “this song makes me want to go out and find a whale”.
That made more sense to me to be honest.
bladeand cloak
Trust me, you don't want to.
last man on earth
Lol
Ethan Adkins
Same :)