Round About Midnight
The Nob Hill Boys Lyrics

The Nob Hill Boys's song Round About Midnight is a melancholic blues tune that communicates the emotions of a person who gets sad and restless when the clock strikes twelve. The opening line of the song, "It begins to tell 'Round midnight, midnight," suggests that the singer is familiar with the disorientation and gloom that often accompany the late hours of the night. However, even as they acknowledge the melancholy that comes with the night, they note that they usually manage to hold out until after sundown.

As the song progresses, the singer starts to express their longing for a lost love. They recount the memories that begin to surface as the clock strikes twelve but then note that they cannot bear to stand such memories. The loneliness and emptiness that they feel are compounded by the knowledge that the person they love is no longer with them. They mention that "When a quarrel we had needs mending, does it mean that our love is ending?" indicating that they are still hopeful that they can mend the relationship. However, they admit that "Darling I need you, lately I find you're out of my heart, and I'm out of my mind."

In the last stanza of the song, the singer pleads for the return of the person they love. They long for their love to be safe and sound when old midnight comes around. The line "let our hearts take wings" suggests that the singer is optimistic that their love will be rekindled, and they plead with the angels to sing for the return of the person they love.