After All

Album: You're Not Leaving Here Tonight (1983)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The third single from Ed Bruce's You're Not Leaving Here Tonight album, this peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. Bruce wrote the song with his then wife and manager Patsy. The pair were frequent collaborators and are best known for penning Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson's hit single "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys."
  • The song finds the elderly narrator serenely reflecting back on a lifelong marriage:

    "After all these years after all the joys and tears
    After all is said and done after most of everything we knew is gone
    I still love you."

    Unlike the narrator and his wife, the Bruces' marriage didn't make the distance. After 22 years together, Ed filed for divorce on July 27, 1987 charging Patsy with "cruel and inhuman treatment."
  • On January 28, 2004 Bruce sung "After All" and "The Last Cowboy Song" on the CBS variety show Hee Haw.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Martyn Ware of Heaven 17

Martyn Ware of Heaven 17Songwriter Interviews

Martyn talks about producing Tina Turner, some Heaven 17 hits, and his work with the British Electric Foundation.

Producer Ron Nevison

Producer Ron NevisonSong Writing

Ron Nevison explains in very clear terms the Quadrophenia concept and how Heart staged their resurgence after being dropped by their record company.

Black Sabbath

Black SabbathFact or Fiction

Dwarfs on stage with an oversize Stonehenge set? Dabbling in Satanism? Find out which Spinal Tap-moments were true for Black Sabbath.

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")Song Writing

Director Mark Pellington on Pearl Jam's "Jeremy," and music videos he made for U2, Jon Bon Jovi and Imagine Dragons.

Al Kooper

Al KooperSongwriter Interviews

Kooper produced Lynyrd Skynyrd, played with Dylan and the Stones, and formed BS&T.

Bob Daisley

Bob DaisleySongwriter Interviews

Bob was the bass player and lyricist for the first two Ozzy Osbourne albums. Here's how he wrote songs like "Crazy Train" and "Mr. Crowley" with Ozzy and Randy Rhoads.