“Lay Me Down” by Sam Smith
“Lay Me Down” is a bonafide ballad which focuses on the narrator’s desire to be reunited with a lover who has either passed away or has been separated by distance.
The narrator is consumed with thoughts about this person so much that they feel very empty without them. It appears the departure of this person has brought a lot of sadness into the writer’s life and his greatest wish is to be close to them again.
In the chorus, it becomes clearer that this person may have died, hence the writer’s request to lay by his side. Promising to take care of him also suggests that this lover is in a fragile state, still possibly referring to his death. Ultimately, the singer is so overwhelmed by his emotions that he doesn’t mind dying by the side of his lover just so he can meet them again in the afterlife.
Speaking during a performance at the O2 Academy, Sam Smith revealed that the song was written after he deleted a guy who was unresponsive to his advances from his Whatsapp.
“Lay Me Down” Facts
- Artist(s): Sam Smith
- Writing: James Napier, Sam and Elvin Smith
- Production: J. Napes and S. Fitzmaurice
- Release: February 2013
- Album: “In the Lonely Hour”
Genre(s)
- Soul
- R&B
Chart Performance:
- United States: 8
- Australia: 3
- New Zealand: 2
Different Versions
Among the many singers that have covered this song include Hozier and Jeffery Austin in 2015. That same year, Sam Smith collaborated with American singer John Legend to record another version of the song in support of the charity organization called Comic Relief.
Was “Lay Me Down”released as a single?
It was the last of the five singles Sam released from his “In the Lonely Hour” album. This album also spawned the hit singles “Stay with Me” and “I’m Not the Only One“.
