Saturday 2 June 2012

Strawberry Fair Forever


Just last year I wandered off to Strawberry Fair. I used to go there every year to catch up with old friends who'd drifted away but got blown back home to Midsummer Common for the fair. You can still meet some of them there, flower children now rather gone to seed. And now Strawberry Fair weekend has come around again. A long time ago I met an old friend (still blooming then and maybe she still is) and the next day wrote her this song.....

I was feeling down
when I went into town
and I ended up at Strawberry Fair,
I was looking around
with the jugglers and clowns
just wishing that I was elsewhere,
I wasn't too far
from the queue for the bar
when I noticed your face in the crowd
Never knew how I'd missed you
but the minute I kissed you
made me feel like singing out loud...

And I can almost taste the home-made wine
Of a bygone afternoon
When everybody's sitting down beside the river
Just picking out an old-time tune.


Meeting you here
must be all of ten years
since we said our goodbyes with a smile,
You with your dreams
and me with my schemes
must have travelled down many long miles.
You'd never believe
some of the people I've seen
and the fools I've met along the way,
But in the end
it's the old time friends
got something worthwhile to say
And I can almost taste the home-made wine
Of a bygone afternoon
When everybody's sitting down beside the river
Just picking out an old-time tune.


Those times were lazy,
times were crazy,
but didn't those times just fly
Since we used to float
on an old river boat
just watching the times roll by.
We lived for each other
like sister and brother
but somehow we let it all fall
And nowadays
you can hear people say
that it wasn't that way at all.

And I can almost taste the home-made wine
Of a bygone afternoon
When everybody's sitting down beside the river
Just picking out an old-time tune.


And now the sun is shining
I'm feeling fine and
the music's beginning to flow,
Tomorrow's Sunday,
forget about Monday,
here's hoping the time'll go slow
We've been here and there
 and collected our share
of memories, babies and lovers,
We've all been dancing
to different tunes
getting out of step with each other

And I can almost taste the home-made wine
Of a bygone afternoon
When everybody's sitting down beside the river
Just picking out an old-time tune.


Take care.


14 comments:

  1. What lovely memories you have John and your song is delightful, lucky lady!!

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  2. Loved the song-you made me feel like I was walking around the fair too : )

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  3. "flower children now rather gone to seed" a good line which I will have to remember. Good weekend to you John.

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  4. Wow, waves of nostalgia. Lovely words, I wish I could hear the tune.

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  5. Youthful memories well captured. I can well relate to the sentiments expressed; we have similar ones of our own. Fortunately, we have been able to recreate much of the same environment in retirement with an entirely new group of friends, although our capacity for "homemade wine" is greatly diminished!

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  6. Beautiful words, a tribute to a friendship that deserves to continue well into the future. I hope you are still in touch with each other.

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  7. Quite a song, John. There are some memories embodied in those lyrics.

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  8. Strawberry Fair ... the perfect setting to meet up with a special old friend .... beautiful and meaningful words.

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  9. Flower children gone to seed... love that thought John!

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  10. This sounds like a fun event. Nice shots!

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  11. ..that's really super-sweet John that you've saved that verse. You might have half-hoped she'd vapourized at the fair again this year; if only! Your photograph shows everyone enjoying taking things easy in the sunshine.

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  12. Strawberry Fair is an evocative name, sounds very reminiscent of times past, lots of memories.

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  13. Special old friends - always in our hearts.

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  14. I am really impressed by anyone who can say the words ' I wrote her this song'. I couldn't write a song to save my life. Strawberry Fair sounds so evocative, bet it was wonderful in the days of flower power.

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