Marty Robbins -“Completely Out of Love”: A Late-Career Farewell to Passion, Delivered with That Signature Smoothness
There are singers whose artistry lies in sheer vocal power, and then there is the rare breed of vocalist, like the magnificent Marty Robbins, whose power lies in their utter effortlessness. His voice, whether singing a dramatic gunfighter ballad like “El Paso” or a tender Hawaiian melody, possessed a liquid, undeniable smoothness that made every lyric feel personal, whispered just for you. As we turn our attention to the track “Completely Out of Love,” we find a deeply reflective, late-career heartbreak song that serves as a quiet, poignant counterpoint to his more famous, sweeping narratives.
This track, which Marty Robbins himself wrote, was released in January 1981 and featured on his final studio album released during his lifetime, Everything I’ve Always Wanted. The album title itself, and the tone of this song, often spark a bittersweet reflection among his older fans, as Robbins passed away tragically young—less than two years after this release—in December 1982. To listen to his music from this era is to feel the ghostly touch of a beautiful talent nearing its end, though his voice never once surrendered its warmth.
“Completely Out of Love” registered on the charts, reaching a peak position of No. 47 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in 1981. While this was not one of his signature, chart-topping smashes—those were mostly rooted in the 1950s and 60s—its chart presence is meaningful. It demonstrated that even after nearly three decades in the business, and as a new generation of slicker, faster country music began to emerge, the sheer quality and recognizable comfort of a Marty Robbins record could still find its way onto the airwaves and into the hearts of listeners who valued authenticity over trend.
The profound meaning of the song lies in its mature and almost clinical analysis of lost affection. Unlike a young man’s song of fiery jealousy or passionate despair—the kind of intense emotion he captured so perfectly in his earlier works—“Completely Out of Love” presents a quiet devastation. It’s the moment of acceptance that the fire has simply gone out. The narrator isn’t angry or begging; he is mournful because he is detached. The lyrics paint a picture of a man realizing that, despite the formalities of a relationship remaining, his emotional well has run dry. He’s not just “falling out” of love; he is “Completely Out of Love.”
The storytelling behind the song is less about a dramatic event and more about the quiet, internal realization that can happen after years of marriage or partnership. Marty Robbins was known for his versatility, moving seamlessly between Country, Western, Pop, and Rockabilly, but his greatest strength was his ability to embody a character through his voice. In this track, he embodies the man who must confront a painful truth: it’s not that the love is wounded or confused, it’s that it’s finished, and that finality is a crushing blow. His gentle delivery—backed by a smooth Countrypolitan arrangement typical of early 80s Nashville—adds a layer of sad, weary resignation, making the realization feel all the more heavy.
For those of us who grew up with Marty Robbins on the radio, hearing this song is like listening to an old friend share a late-night sorrow. It doesn’t try to dazzle you; it simply shares a truth about the enduring pain that comes from a love that fades slowly, rather than one that ends in a blinding flash. It’s a reflective, deeply felt performance from a master craftsman, one of the last personal statements he would share with the world, reminding us of his unparalleled ability to make the complicated simplicity of the human heart sound like the most beautiful, bittersweet music.
Music Legend