Sam Smith, When He’s Gone | Song Review

Award-winning nonbinary pop singer-songwriter Sam Smith strikes gold with “When He’s Gone,” the third single from their fifth LP, Hazel Eyes.

[nx_pullquote]“When he’s walking out on me / He takes everything I need,”[/nx_pullquote] Sam Smith sings, and continues, “My whole world’s broken when he’s gone.” The Academy and Grammy Award-winning nonbinary singer-songwriter makes their point loud and clear on “When He’s Gone”. “When He’s Gone” is the third single and fifth track from their fifth studio album, Hazel Eyes. Smith and Simon Aldred composed “When He’s Gone.” Smith, Aldred, and David Odlum produced it.

“When He’s Gone” feels cool, calm, and collected from the get-go.  It commences with a chill, easy-going groove.  The sound is relatively low-key, with a dash of folk-pop vibes. Sam Smith sings with beautiful, buttery smooth vocals. As always, their tone = chef’s kiss. Adding to the excellence are tuneful melodies, memorable lyrics, and a dope vocal arrangement.  The background vocals are sickening! The first verse is great: “Fills my heart with sorrow, how the hell did we turn down this road?” Well, maybe not so much the feelings Sam is experiencing: “Fills my heart with sorrow, how the hell did we slip down so low?” But, the sound and vibe = SUPERB! The second verse is fancier, featuring additional background vocals.  Matters of the heart still fuel the fire: “I’m the only one for him, this much I believe / If you cut me clean in half, his name, I will bleed.” Oh, snap! Of course, the chorus, excerpted earlier, is the crowning achievement.  Still, the bridge is fun too, led by those rad background vocals.  Once again, Sam Smith strikes gold with “When He’s Gone”. Great vocals, songwriting, tuneful melodies, and production make it a surefire bop!