The early morning light falls
on a window in the hall
and she was sittin' in the kitchen
on a chair against the wall
and I think
it mighta been october
I'm not sure
I just knew it was getting colder

She writes a letter to her lover
still asleep beneath the covers
and a leaf outside a window
in the wind just kind of hovered
for a moment
then it started blowing
and like that leave
she was set on going

And she wrote
"I know when you waken
you will find
I've been most unkind
but just as I was
your first love
well, you know Johnny he
he was mine, he was mine
Johnny was mine

I never told you 'bout him
'cause he was in the county pen
for a hold up at a filling station
someone said he killed a man
and lookin' at 9 to 90
took all i had
to leave Johnny behind me

The other day while you was working
I was ironing my shirts
and heard a rumblin' in the driveway
and when i pushed aside the curtains
on the window in the parlor
well, there was Johnny
on the porch
lookin' like a hundred dollars

Well it seemed his lawyer knew the mayor
someone owed someone a favor
and so Johnny got out early
on account a good behavior
and now he makes an honest living
he's got a job somewhere in Boston
and he wants me with him.

Now in Johnny's glove compartment
There's a lease for an apartment
It's a little further north
than i'd wanted
but the road department's
payin' 50 dollars a day
and that' just enough for
me and Johnny and a baby"

And she wrote
"I know when you waken,
you will find
I've been most unkind
but just as I was
your first love
Well, you know Johnny he
he was mine, he was mine
Johnny was mine.

Well there's more to tell you but
I think i hear Johnny's truck
and I'll be halfway up the freeway
by the time you're waking up
and i just wanna say
I'm sorry
so long, good luck
and goodbye Charlie."

And she signed and sealed the letter
and she said goodbye forever
hesitating in the doorway
just to button up her sweater
she shivered
it was colder
now i'm not sure
it must of been october.

And she wrote
"I know when you waken,
you will find
I've been most unkind
but just as I was
your first love
Well, you know Johnny he
he was mine, he was mine
Johnny was mine."


Lyrics submitted by StickityWicket

Johnny song meanings
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    General Comment

    I found the song less heart-wrenching, but also stirring, deeply moving, profound. I felt more equanimity about the characters: the wheel turns, but life goes on. If the (unnamed) woman really is a wonderful as she sounds and Charlie found her; well then then he is a good -a wonderful- man himself and he will find another great woman.

    What draws me to this song is the poetic excellence. It is rare for a great poet and a great musician to be married in the same body. Jeremy Wallace is one. He has so many compelling images in this song:

    it mighta been october I'm not sure I just knew it was getting colder

    [I live in Minnesota, so this is redolent of associations.]

    and a leaf outside a window in the wind just kind of hovered for a moment then it started blowing and like that leaf she was set on going

    [Wow. What a poignant image of her state of pause, reflection and decision -- and the great pun on leaf / leave]

    Oh, I hear "club compartment" as "glove compartment"

    Other songwriter / poets I like are: The geniuses: Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Paul Simon, Bruce Springsteen

    But also Brett Dennon eg Darlin Do Not Fear.

    Darlin' do not fear what you don't really know 'Cause it won't last - your worries will pass All your troubles they don't stand a chance And sometimes it takes more than a lifetime to know Darlin' do not fear what you don't really know

    Johnny Clegg eg The Crossing (Oziyeza)

    A punch drunk man in a downtown bar Takes a beating without making a sound Through swollen eyes he sways and smiles ’cause noone can put him down Inside of him a boy looks up to his father For a sign or an approving eye Oh, it’s funny how those once so close and now gone Still so affect our lives

    I wanted to get lyrics for all these songs, but too much time already.
    Jill Sobule eg The Resistance Song (a reincarnation song) or I Kissed a Girl Bob Seeger eg Against the Wind Richard Shindel eg On a Sea of Fleur de Lis Eddie Vetter eg Society Traci Chapman eg Change Your Life Dar Williams eg Iowa Indigo Girls eg Prince of Darkness Josh Ritter eg Harrisburg Natalie Merchant eg Motherland Slaid Cleaves eg One Good Year James McMurthy eg Charlemange's City Tom Petty eg Down South

    Et cetera. But again time will have its way. Maybe a longer annotated list elsewhere list

    TruthComesFirston July 15, 2009   Link

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