About the song
Willie Nelson’s Funny How Time Slips Away is one of those songs that feels like it has always existed—a timeless meditation on love, loss, and the quiet resignation that comes with the passage of years. First recorded in 1961 by Billy Walker and later immortalized by countless artists, Nelson’s own rendition remains the definitive version, a masterclass in understatement and emotional restraint.
At its heart, Funny How Time Slips Away is a conversation—one half of a dialogue between former lovers who have long since moved on. The narrator, addressing an old flame, feigns casual indifference, but beneath the surface, the ache of lost love lingers. The song unfolds with a conversational ease, as if we’ve stumbled into a chance encounter between two people whose lives once intertwined but have since diverged. “Well, hello there, my it’s been a long, long time,” Nelson sings, his voice carrying the weight of years gone by. There’s an easy familiarity in the words, but also an unspoken sadness, a sense of regret that deepens with every line.
What makes the song so powerful is Nelson’s delivery—his trademark phrasing, that slightly behind-the-beat drawl, the way he lets certain words hang in the air just a little longer than expected. Unlike other versions that lean into a more polished country or R&B sound, Nelson strips the song down to its essence. His vocal, full of quiet wisdom and unforced emotion, transforms the lyrics into something deeply personal, as if he’s lived every word.
Of course, Funny How Time Slips Away is more than just a lament for lost love. It’s a reflection on time itself—how it moves forward whether we’re ready or not, how it erases some wounds but deepens others. The final verse delivers a devastating turn: the narrator learns that his former love is marrying someone new, and rather than openly mourn, he offers a simple farewell: “Guess I’ll see you ‘round… Don’t know when though.” It’s a line that says everything by saying almost nothing at all.
Few songwriters understand the nuances of heartache quite like Willie Nelson. With Funny How Time Slips Away, he captures the quiet dignity of looking back without bitterness, of acknowledging what’s been lost while still moving forward. It’s a song that feels as relevant today as it did over 60 years ago—a testament to Nelson’s genius and the enduring power of a well-told story.
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Lyrics
Well hello there gee it’s been a long long time
How am I doin’ oh I guess that I’m doin’ fine
It’s been so long now and it seems like it was only yesterday
Ain’t it funny how time slips away
How’s your new love I hope that she’s doin’ fine
Heard you told her that you’d love her till the end of time
Now that’s the same thing that you told me seems like just the other day
Ain’t it funny how time slips away
I gotta go now but I’ll be seein’ you around
Don’t know when though never know when I’ll be back in town
But remember what I told you that someday you’re gonna pay
And it’s surprising how time slips away
