About The Song
In the profound and storied career of Kris Kristofferson, Love Is the Last Thing to Go, released in 1982 on the album The Winning Hand, emerges as a tender and soulful meditation on the resilience of love amidst life’s trials. Written by Kristofferson and featured on a collaborative project with Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, and Brenda Lee, this ballad captures his gift for weaving raw emotion into poetic simplicity. For those who cherish music’s power to illuminate the heart’s enduring truths, this song is a gentle beacon, evoking memories of love’s quiet strength in the face of loss. Its understated melody and Kristofferson’s weathered vocals resonate deeply with mature listeners, who may recall its release on Monument Records or its timeless resonance in his expansive catalog.
The song opens with a soft acoustic guitar and a delicate piano, produced by Fred Foster with a warm, unadorned intimacy that lets Kristofferson’s voice shine. His baritone, gritty yet heartfelt, carries a poignant sincerity as he sings, “Love is the last thing to go / When everything else is gone.” The arrangement, featuring subtle steel guitar and light percussion, creates a reflective atmosphere, as if shared in the hush of a late-night conversation. For those who first heard it on a 1982 vinyl or caught Kristofferson’s performances during his Highwaymen era, it’s a nostalgic bridge to a time when his songwriting, lauded as “deeply human” in a Billboard review, spoke to life’s joys and sorrows.
Lyrically, Love Is the Last Thing to Go is a masterful reflection on love’s permanence: “When the dreams have all faded away / And the memories turn to gray / Love is the last thing to go.” The verses paint a picture of life’s fleeting treasures—youth, dreams, and time—yet affirm that love remains an unyielding anchor. For older listeners, who may have weathered their own seasons of change or clung to cherished bonds through hardship, the song’s message offers solace, a reminder that love endures beyond all else. Its emotional clarity, as noted on Genius, resonates with the universal human experience, making it a poignant addition to Kristofferson’s legacy of introspective ballads.
Musically, the track is a model of classic country restraint, with its folk-inflected simplicity echoing Kristofferson’s influences like Hank Williams. The Winning Hand album, a star-studded affair promoted via a TV special, reached No. 4 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart, with this song as a quiet standout. For fans who’ve followed Kristofferson’s journey—from Me and Bobby McGee to his 2016 Songwriters Hall of Fame induction—this track is a cherished gem, reflecting his ability to distill profound truths into song. Whether rediscovered on a worn cassette or streaming today, Love Is the Last Thing to Go invites you to hold its hope close and find comfort in its truth, a melody that lingers like love’s unbreakable promise.
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