Carole King - So Far Away
“So Far Away” is a song written and performed by Carole King that appeared on her landmark 1971 album Tapestry. The song was released as a single in March 1971 and reached number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 3 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart. King wrote the song in 1970 while on tour with James Taylor, experiencing homesickness and missing her children and husband while living the touring lifestyle she had chosen. The lyrics capture a poignant sense of longing and separation, with the memorable line “Doesn’t anybody stay in one place anymore?” becoming what producer Lou Adler called “an anthem of that particular time,” reflecting the restless, transitory spirit of the late 1960s and early 1970s when young people were increasingly leaving settled lives to pursue new experiences.
The recording features a stellar lineup of musicians, including James Taylor on acoustic guitar, Russ Kunkel on drums, Charles Larkey on bass guitar, and Curtis Amy on flute, with King herself on piano and vocals. Lou Adler produced the track, which he later cited as his favorite song on the Tapestry album. Musically, the song showcases King’s sophisticated compositional style, with complex chord substitutions and extensions that create a distinctive sense of tension and release. Interestingly, “So Far Away” was unique for King at the time in that she wrote both the words and music herself, whereas she typically collaborated with lyricists such as her ex-husband Gerry Goffin or Toni Stern.
The song’s impact extended far beyond its initial release. Tapestry itself became one of the best-selling albums of all time, selling 25 million copies and remaining on the charts until 1977, while winning Album of the Year at the 1972 Grammy Awards. “So Far Away” has been covered by numerous artists over the decades, most notably by Rod Stewart in 1995 for the tribute album Tapestry Revisited, whose version charted in several countries. The song was also a favorite of the late Amy Winehouse, who covered it in performance and had it played at her funeral in 2011. The enduring appeal of “So Far Away” lies in its honest expression of the universal human experience of missing someone you love, combined with King’s masterful songwriting and the intimate, organic quality of the recording.
Carole King - So Far Away Lyrics
So far away
Doesn't anybody stay in one place anymore
It would be so fine to see your face at my door
Doesn't help to know you're just time away
Long ago I reached for you and there you stood
Holding you again could only do me good
Oh, how I wish I could
But you're so far away
One more song about moving along the highway
Can't say much of anything that's new
If I could only work this life out my way
I'd rather spend it being close to you
But you're so far away
Doesn't anybody stay in one place anymore
It would be so fine to see your face at my door
Doesn't help to know you're so far away
Yeah, you're so far away
Traveling around sure gets me down and lonely
Nothing else to do but close my mind
I sure hope the road don't come to own me
There's so many dreams I've yet to find
But you're so far away
Doesn't anybody stay in one place anymore
It would be so fine to see your face at my door
And it doesn't help to know you're so far away
Yeah, you're so far away
Hey, you're so far away