If You Go Away
ReBeat Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

If you go away, on this summer day
Then you might as well take the sun away
All the birds that flew in the summer sky
When our love was new and our hearts were high
When the day was young and the night was long
And the moon stood still for the night birds' song
If you go away,
If you go away,
If you go away
But if you stay, I'll make you a day
Like no day has been or will be again
We'll sail the sun, we'll ride on the rain
We'll talk to the trees and worship the wind
Then if you go, I'll understand

Leave me just enough love to hold in my hand
If you go away,
If you go away,
If you go away

If you go away, as I know you will
You must tell the world to stop turning till

You return again, if you ever do
For what good is love without loving you
Can I tell you now as you turn to go
I'll be dying slowly till the next hello
If you go away,
If you go away,
If you go away

But if you stay I'll make you a night
Like no night has been or will be again
I'll sail on your smile, I'll ride on your touch
I'll talk to your eyes that I love so much
But if you go I won't cry
Though the good is gone from the world goodbye
If you go away,
If you go away,
If you go away

If you go away as I know you must
There'll be nothing left in the world to trust
Just an empty room full of empty space
Like the empty look I see on your face
I'd have been the shadow of your dog
If I thought you might have kept me by your side
If you go away,




If you go away,
If you go away

Overall Meaning

ReBeat’s If You Go Away is a heartfelt plea to their love to stay, juxtaposed with the acknowledgement of the inevitability of their departure. The opening lines set the tone for the entire song, conveying the sense of loss that the singer anticipates: “If you go away, on this summer day, then you might as well take the sun away”. The imagery of the sun being taken away highlights the singer's belief of their life becoming miserable with the absence of their love.


The chorus is an emotional plea not to leave, emphasising the singer's personal sacrifices: “But if you stay, I’ll make you a day, like no day has been, or will be again”. Here the singer pledges to compensate for all their partner's desires unfulfilled to date.


The second and final verses further highlight the singer's willingness to try everything to persuade their partner to stay. The line, “I'll sail on your smile, I'll ride on your touch, I'll talk to your eyes that I love so much” is a poignant expression of the intensity of the singer's feelings. The song ends with the sad acceptance of the reality of the situation. The line, “Just an empty room full of empty space, like the empty look I see on your face” paints an image of the emptiness the singer anticipates in their partner's absence.


Line by Line Meaning

If you go away, on this summer day
If you leave me on this beautiful day, our happiness will be gone too


Then you might as well take the sun away
If you leave, life will be meaningless, just like the sun gone from the sky


All the birds that flew in the summer sky
When our love was new, everything seemed brighter and more beautiful, like the birds in the sky


When our love was new and our hearts were high
We had a love that was full of hope and passion, when we first fell in love


When the day was young and the night was long
We had all the time in the world to love each other, with long nights and endless possibilities


And the moon stood still for the night birds' song
The beauty of our love was so powerful that the moon seemed to stop and listen


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away
If you leave me behind


But if you stay, I'll make you a day
If you stay with me, I promise to make each day more special than the last


Like no day has been or will be again
Our love will make each day unique and unforgettable


We'll sail the sun, we'll ride on the rain
We'll experience all the wonderful things life has to offer together


We'll talk to the trees and worship the wind
We'll appreciate and respect the beauty of nature around us


Then if you go, I'll understand
If you still choose to leave, I'll accept it, but it will hurt deeply


Leave me just enough love to hold in my hand
If you do leave, just give me enough love to hold onto so that I won't feel completely empty without you


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away
If you leave me behind


If you go away, as I know you will
I know deep down that you will leave me eventually


You must tell the world to stop turning till
My heart will stop beating if you leave, and it will feel like the world has stopped turning


You return again, if you ever do
If you do come back, I will welcome you with open arms


For what good is love without loving you
Without you, my love, life will be empty and meaningless


Can I tell you now as you turn to go
As you're about to leave, can I express my true feelings to you?


I'll be dying slowly till the next hello
I will feel like I'm dying a slow death until we see each other again


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away
If you leave me behind


But if you stay I'll make you a night
If you stay with me, I promise to make each night just as special as the day


Like no night has been or will be again
Our love will make each night unique and unforgettable, just like the day


I'll sail on your smile, I'll ride on your touch
Your smile and your touch bring me so much happiness and joy


I'll talk to your eyes that I love so much
Looking into your eyes is like looking into the most beautiful depths of the universe


But if you go I won't cry
If you do decide to leave, I won't cry in front of you


Though the good is gone from the world goodbye
Without you, my love, everything good in the world will be gone, and saying goodbye will be so difficult


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away
If you leave me behind


If you go away as I know you must
As much as it pains me, I know you'll have to leave eventually


There'll be nothing left in the world to trust
Without you, my love, everything I once trusted will be gone too


Just an empty room full of empty space
The room will be empty and meaningless without you in it


Like the empty look I see on your face
I can see the emptiness in your eyes and it breaks my heart


I'd have been the shadow of your dog
I could have been anything you wanted me to be, even just the shadow of your dog


If I thought you might have kept me by your side
If I thought there was a chance you would stay with me, I would have done anything


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away,
If you leave me behind,


If you go away
If you leave me behind




Writer(s): Rod Mc Kuen, Jacques Brel

Contributed by Matthew G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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