Music Review: Emeli Sande "Next To Me"

Emeli Sande

Next To Me

Album: Our Version of Events

Year: 2012

         Emeli Sande can rely on her boyfriend in the absolute “Next To Me.”

         A positive piano opens the single, setting a secure tone. Her boyfriend is sitting across from her at the table, checking his fantasy football scores on the tablet. He exclaims “yes,” drawing her attention. She asks him what happened. He responds he’s in first place. She touches his arm and smiles at him, grateful for the normalcy he brings. Unlike her exes, he isn’t an alcoholic, spending his paycheck at the casino and then coming home in the early morning, slurring and yelling. She doesn’t have to worry about him eyeing another girl while they are out and looking around for him, wondering if they snuck into a corner. While he earns a decent salary as an accountant, he doesn’t have any desire to work for Deloitte or any other major firm. He thinks for himself and respects her, preferring to keep their private life to himself, not turning into their relationship into gossip fodder for the entire office. He’d rather spend his time with her. (“You won't find him drinking at the table/Rolling dice and staying out til 3/You won't ever find him being unfaithful/You will find, you will find him next to me/You won't find him trying to change the devil/For money fame power out of grief/You won't ever find him where the rest go/You will find him find him next to me.”)

            In the chorus, she states they will be together for a long time. (“Next to me, oh/Next to me, oh. next to me/You will find him, you’ll find him next to me.”)

            He’s supportive. If she were to lose her job, he would help her as she searches for another one. In the meantime, if her friends stopped talking to her , thinking she was worthless and her family refused to loan her out any money, he would stand by her. She knows he would be there for her if anything happened to a family member of hers. He would put his around her and hold her.(“When the money’s spent and all my friends have vanished/And I can’t seem to find no help or love for free I know there’s no need for me to panic/ Cause I’ll find him, I’ll find him next to me/When the skies are grey and all the doors are closing/And the rising pressure makes it hard to breathe/When all I need's a hand to stop the tears from falling/I will find him, I’ll find him next to me.”)

          The chorus is sung again.

         He’s protective of her. If a fire were to start in their home, he would get her and make sure she’s safe. He would put his life before hers. He’s a leader and handles himself well in a crisis. He would keep her away from any danger. (“When the end has come and buildings falling down fast/When we’ve spoilt the land and dried up all the sea/When everyone has lost their heads around us/You will find him, you’ll find him next to me.”)

The chorus is sung twice to end the single.

Sande’s grateful, refined vocals are radiant, capable of lighting up a skyline. Her negative experiences have humbled her. She’s waited for a good man for a really long time and she’s proud to have him in her life.

The modest “Next To Me” glows from the inside and out.