Stewart's music career began in 1962 when he took up busking with a harmonica. In 1963, he joined The Dimensions as a harmonica player and vocalist. In 1964, Stewart joined Long John Baldry and the All Stars before moving to the Jeff Beck Group in 1967. Joining Faces in 1969, he also maintained a solo career releasing his debut album that year. Stewart's early albums were a fusion of rock, folk music, soul music, and R&B. His third album, 1971's Every Picture Tells a Story, was his breakthrough, topping the charts in the UK, US, Canada and Australia, as did its ballad "Maggie May". His 1972 follow-up album, Never a Dull Moment, also reached number one in the UK and Australia, while going top three in the US and Canada. Its single, "You Wear It Well", topped the chart in the UK and was a moderate hit elsewhere.
After Stewart had a handful more UK top ten hits, the Faces broke up in 1975. Stewart's next few hit singles were ballads with "Sailing", off the 1975 UK and Australian number-one album, Atlantic Crossing, becoming a hit in the UK and the Netherlands (number one), Germany (number four) and other countries, but barely charting in North America. A Night on the Town (1976), his fifth straight chart-topper in the UK, began a three-album run of going number one or top three in the US, Canada, the UK and Australia with each release. That album's "Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright)" spent almost two months at number one in the US and Canada, and made the top five in other countries. Foot Loose & Fancy Free (1977) contained the hit "You're in My Heart (The Final Acclaim)" as well as the rocker "Hot Legs". Blondes Have More Fun (1978) and its disco-tinged "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy" both went to number one in Canada, Australia and the US, with "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy" also hitting number one in the UK and the top ten in other countries. Stewart's albums regularly hit the upper rungs of the charts in the Netherlands throughout the 70s and in Sweden from 1975 onward.
After a disco and new wave period in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Stewart's music turned to a soft rock/middle-of-the-road style, with most of his albums reaching the top ten in the UK, Germany and Sweden, but faring less well in the US. The single "Rhythm of My Heart" was a top five hit in the UK, US and other countries, with its source album, 1991's Vagabond Heart, becoming, at number ten in the US and number two in the UK, his highest-charting album in a decade. In 1993, he collaborated with Bryan Adams and Sting on the power ballad "All for Love", which went to number one in many countries. In the early 2000s, he released a series of successful albums interpreting the Great American Songbook.
In 2008, Billboard magazine ranked him the 17th most successful artist on the "Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists". A Grammy and Brit Award recipient, he was voted at No. 33 in Q Magazine's list of the Top 100 Greatest Singers of all time. As a solo artist, Stewart was inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006, and he was inducted a second time into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012 as a member of Faces.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_Stewart
Studio albums
An Old Raincoat Won't Ever Let You Down (1969)
Gasoline Alley (1970)
Every Picture Tells a Story (1971)
Never a Dull Moment (1972)
Smiler (1974)
Atlantic Crossing (1975)
A Night on the Town (1976)
Foot Loose & Fancy Free (1977)
Blondes Have More Fun (1978)
Foolish Behaviour (1980)
Tonight I'm Yours (1981)
Body Wishes (1983)
Camouflage (1984)
Every Beat of My Heart (1986)
Out of Order (1988)
Vagabond Heart (1991)
A Spanner in the Works (1995)
When We Were the New Boys (1998)
Human (2001)
It Had to Be You: The Great American Songbook (2002)
As Time Goes By: The Great American Songbook, Volume II (2003)
Stardust: The Great American Songbook, Volume III (2004)
Thanks for the Memory: The Great American Songbook, Volume IV (2005)
Still the Same... Great Rock Classics of Our Time (2006)
Soulbook (2009)
Once in a Blue Moon: The Lost Album (2010)
Fly Me to the Moon... The Great American Songbook Volume V (2010)
Merry Christmas, Baby (2012)
Time (2013)
Another Country (2015)
Blood Red Roses (2018)
The Tears of Hercules (2021)
Every Time We Say Goodbye
Rod Stewart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We say goodbye
I die a little
Every time
We say goodbye
I wonder why a little
Why you guys above me
Who must be in the know
They allow you to go
When you're near
There's such an air
Of spring about it
I can hear
A lark somewhere begin to sing about it
There's no love song finer
But how strange the change
From major to minor
Every time
We say goodbye
When you're near
There's such an air
Of spring about it
I can hear
A lark somewhere
Begin to sing about it
You see there's no love song finer
But how strange the change
From major to minor
Every time you say honey
There's no love song finer
But how strange
The change from major to minor
Every time we say goodbye
The lyrics to Rod Stewart's "Every Time We Say Goodbye" convey a sense of melancholy and longing. The song explores the emotions that come with the end of a relationship or the departure of a loved one. The repeated phrase "every time we say goodbye" highlights the difficulty of letting go and the pain that comes with separation. Stewart reflects on the fleeting nature of relationships and questions why those in power seem to have so little concern for his personal pain.
The imagery in the song adds to its emotional impact. When the singer is near his loved one, there is an "air of spring" that surrounds them, a sense of renewal and hope. But this feeling is juxtaposed with the minor key that the song often shifts to, indicating the sadness and heartbreak that comes with the end of the relationship. The mention of a lark singing in the background adds to the sense of fleeting beauty, as if the beauty is only present for a moment before it disappears.
Overall, the lyrics to "Every Time We Say Goodbye" are a meditation on the complexities of human relationships and the pain that comes with their ends. The song's emotional depth and clever use of musical contrasts create a powerful listening experience.
Line by Line Meaning
Every time
On each and every occasion
We say goodbye
When we part ways
I die a little
A small part of me dies emotionally
I wonder why a little
I have a nagging curiosity about why we must say goodbye
Why you guys above me
Referring to a higher power or authority in life
Who must be in the know
Who possess the knowledge or answers
Say so little to me
Provide me with little to no explanation or understanding
They allow you to go
Permitting the other person to leave despite my desire for them to stay
When you're near
Being in close proximity to you
There's such an air
A feeling, a vibe
Of spring about it
A sense of renewal and new beginnings
I can hear
Auditory perception of something
A lark somewhere begin to sing about it
A bird beginning to vocalize, reflecting the happiness and joy of the moment
There's no love song finer
Expressing that no other song could better represent love
But how strange the change
An unusual or unexpected difference
From major to minor
Change in tone or mood from joyous and happy to gloomy and sad
Every time you say honey
Indicating that this transformation happens every time you address me by a term of endearment
There's no love song finer
Reiterating the notion that no other love song is better
But how strange
Despite this strong belief, it is still odd that the tone shifts from happy to sad
The change from major to minor
The switch from happy to sad, from upbeat to depressed, from light-hearted to dark-hearted
Every time we say goodbye
Whenever we have to part ways, this shift in mood occurs
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Cole Porter
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind