A goodbye that lives on in the ache of memory and hope in the same breath
When “Until We Meet Again” by Marty Robbins appears on the turntable, it feels like the last lingering glow of twilight before night fully settles. The song appears on Robbins’ 1968 album By the Time I Get to Phoenix. Although it was not among his celebrated chart-topping singles, it occupies a quietly powerful place in his catalogue—nestled among orchestral pop standards and country-tinged ballads, it offers a stripped-down moment of intimacy and emotional gravity.
In the main body of the album’s lush arrangement—where Robbins explores pop standards, nostalgic standards, and original compositions—“Until We Meet Again” emerges as a deeply personal farewell song crafted in collaboration with arranger and co-writer Robert Mersey. The album itself aimed to blend Robbins’s country roots with a broader, more orchestral sophistication, involving background choirs and wide-ranging instrumentation under Mersey’s arrangements.
Musically and lyrically, the song leans not on high drama but on a tender resignation. The opening—“Goodbye my love, goodbye my love”—begins with the simple purity of a lover’s whispered farewell, setting a tone of heart-heavy clarity. The repeated chorus, “This is goodbye, my love / Try not to cry, my love / Kiss me and miss me, love / Until we meet again,” feels less a theatrical goodbye than a gentle promise cloaked in sorrow and longing.
The verses deepen the emotional texture. With lines like “No lips will touch my own / Each night I walk alone / This kiss will be my last / Until we meet again,” the song catches the ache of impending separation—not for a fleeting moment, but for a time of unknown length. The reference to “taps ’til reveille” evokes military life and the loneliness that stays after duty calls one away—though there is no explicit back story tying this to a soldier, the imagery resonates with universal experiences of departure.
Within the broader tapestry of Robbins’s career—marked by his signature western ballads like “El Paso”, dramatic storytelling songs like “Big Iron”, and romantic pop-country tunes—“Until We Meet Again” stands apart for its quiet vulnerability. It does not rely on gunfights or desert landscapes; instead it dwells in the intimate space of the heart, in the fragile, liminal moment of goodbye. For a singer known for vast canvases, here Robbins invites listeners into a small, dimly lit room of longing, goodbye, and hopeful reunion.
Through its modest arrangement and heartfelt delivery, the song reminds that sometimes farewells matter not in their drama but in their stillness. It captures love confronted by inevitable separation, and the fragile hope that separates are temporary—making “Until We Meet Again” a melancholic hymn for those who linger in memory until the next meeting.