It's funny how songs have their own timelines.
People sometimes assume that writing a song is followed fairly quickly by recording it and putting it out into the world. But, at least for me, that's almost never how it works.
I'll usually write a song, then put it away for a while before coming back to it with fresh ears. Given enough time, a song will usually tell you what it still needs. Sometimes it's a single line. Sometimes it's a whole new verse. Sometimes it quietly points out that the chorus wasn't quite as good as I thought it was.
Then there's waiting for the right recording project. Recording, mixing and mastering take time, and release schedules have a way of shifting. By the time a song finally shows up on Spotify, it may have been part of my life for years.
"All Of You" is one of those songs.
It was originally supposed to be recorded during the Everyday Miracle sessions, but we simply ran out of time before we got to it. At the time, I was disappointed. Looking back, I'm really glad it happened that way.
The extra time let me keep living with the song, and somewhere along the way I found a better version of it. I rewrote parts of it, tightened things up, and I think it's a stronger song today than the one I would have released back then.
Interestingly, the song itself ended up reflecting that same idea.
As I kept working on it, I realized I was writing about something I don't hear very often in songs. Most love songs are about falling in love. I found myself wanting to write one about what happens after you've already found your person. After you've seen each other at your best and your worst. After you've shared the highs and the lows, learned each other's quirks, gotten on each other's nerves from time to time, and chosen each other anyway.
Instead of simply saying, "I love you," I wanted the little details to tell the story. The habits. The expressions. The walls we put up when we're hurting. The private moments that only happen after you've shared enough life together to really know another person.
One of my favorite verses captures that idea:
I see the girl without the makeup
Smiling sleepy as we wake up
Unguarded, open-hearted, nestled in my arms
And I see through the tough disguise
The mask you wear, the hurt you hide
I see the truth inside and who you really are
The song also gave me the chance to try something I'd always wanted to do: write a list song. Country music has a long tradition of them, where one observation builds on another until they create a much bigger picture. That felt like the perfect structure for a song about knowing someone deeply enough to love all of them—not just the easy parts.
Maybe it's fitting that a song about love growing deeper over time needed a little more time to grow up, too.
After quite a few years, I'm finally able to share "All Of You." I hope you enjoy listening to it. And if the song reminds you of someone who's seen all of your rough edges, and loved you anyway, I hope you'll share it with them.