‘Smoke & Embers’ by Waylon Wyatt & Willow Avalon - Lyrics & Meaning

Two of country’s most rapidly rising stars might just be singer-songwriter Waylon Wyatt and vintage cowgirl Willow Avalon, and the two of them have teamed up to release a heartbreakingly bittersweet duet.

Taking to Instagram on March 24, Wyatt explained just how ‘Smoke and Embers’ came about, saying: “Willow and I wrote this song together back in NYC when I was there to record a few songs and she just so happened to come by the studio.”

The duet was recorded at the famous Electric Lady Studios, but the city didn’t stop the singers from bringing a country vibe to the record. “We really dug each other’s sound,” Wyatt said, and lucky for us, those two developing sounds were combined into the brand new song, ‘Smoke and Embers’.

Kicking off with an acoustic guitar before Wyatt's gravelly vocals begin the story, it’s looking like we’ll be getting a classic country tale of love and heartbreak.

As a steel bends into the mix and piano chords add another layer, the emotion picks up and the pain deepens. After Avalon enters the conversation, drums are added and the song sweeps forwards.

The strength in Wyatt’s voice combined with Avalon’s signature warble poses for a gently dramatic contrast, giving us two sides of the story. As the heartbreaking repetition of "it’s all smoke and embers now" is decorated with our Georgia girl’s vibrato, the reminder of what’s left behind truly does hit home.

“She’s crying on the phone
Miles between us but she’s still my home
I hear it in her tone
I know she’s gettin’ tired of being alone

They say distance makes the heart grow fonder
But I can’t break her heart much longer"

Our narrative starts with a phone call between the two main characters of this song, and they’re much further apart than they wish they were.

It’s immediately made clear that distance isn’t easy, you can tell yourself all the cliches you need to conjure up some comfort, but ultimately, being apart is exhausting. And for a rising country star, a life on the road might just be a difficult reality.

“So don’t come home
Just stay out
‘Cause there’s nothing left for you here now

Just a memory of a spark
That lit a flame inside my heart

‘Cause it’s all smoke and embers now
‘Cause it’s all smoke and embers now”

It seems like the couple have decided to part ways, and presumably, it was not an easy choice to make.

They might be telling each other that "there’s nothing left for you here now," but memories linger, and each of those sparks have the potential to spread into something much bigger and much brighter.

Is there potential for something to spark up again? Or is it just smoke and embers left behind?

“He’s lying on the phone
Sayin’ baby just a few more shows
And when he comes back home
No he ain’t the man I used to know

Distance makes the heart grow fonder
He can’t break my heart much longer”

This wouldn’t be the first country song we’ve heard about the trials and tribulations of a life on the road.

Avalon’s side of the story sees her struggling with the personal changes and inevitable questions that touring can bring. It might only be "a few more shows" but each one seems to move our story's cowboy further away from his life at home.

Even with the longing that distance brings, Avalon herself is realising that perhaps it can’t carry on that way.

"All our walls are empty
No pictures on the shelf
All we’ve gots are memories
Of before it went to hell

It’s all smoke and embers now
It’s all smoke and embers now"

That’s where the story comes to a close. Ultimately, life as a rambling man becomes too much to bear, the home they built together can’t be a refuge any more.

Those sparks of memories might have set aflame at one point, but being left with too much space, they’ve burnt out all together; all that’s left behind of a messy, passionate, difficult love is smoke and embers.

"We’re so excited for this one" the duo captioned on a joint instagram post of the two country stars posing on the bed of a vintage car, Avalon in her cowboy boots and Wyatt in his trucker hat - some denim tying the two together.

The earliest snippet of ‘Smoke and Embers’ came on March 21 when Wyatt posted a video of him and Avalon sitting at a piano and letting out the emotional story. The excitement for the upcoming release was clear in Wyatt’s short but sweet caption: "Introducing the one and only miss WIllow Avalon!"

With Avalon heading out on tour across the spring and summer, we’re hoping this one will be added to the setlist. Meanwhile, Wyatt is currently on his Til The Sun Goes Down Tour with US dates across April, May and June. This summer, though, the two ‘Smoke and Embers’ singers will be heading over to the UK for solo shows and stops at BST Hyde Park – surely, this will be an opportunity for a live UK debut of the heartbreaking duet?

1, 2, 3, 4…

She’s crying on the phone
Miles between us but she’s still my home
I hear it in her tone
I know she’s gettin’ tired of being alone

They say distance makes the heart grow fonder
But I can’t break her heart much longer

So don’t come home
Just stay out
‘Cause there’s nothing left for you here now

Just a memory of a spark
That lit a flame inside my heart

‘Cause it’s all smoke and embers now
‘Cause it’s all smoke and embers now

He’s lying on the phone
Sayin’ baby just a few more shows
And when he comes back home
No he ain’t the man I used to know

Distance makes the heart grow fonder
He can’t break my heart much longer

So don’t come home
Just stay out
‘Cause there ain’t nothing left for you here now

Just a memory of a spark
Lit a flame inside my heart

‘Cause it's all smoke and embers now
‘Cause it's all smoke and embers now

All our walls are empty
No pictures on the shelf
All we’ve gots are memories
Of before it went to hell

It’s all smoke and embers now
It’s all smoke and embers now
‘Cause it’s all smoke and embers now
‘Cause it’s all smoke and embers now

So don’t come home
Just stay out
Cause there ain’t nothing left for you here now

––

For more on Waylon Wyatt, see below: