Half Light

In the dimming twilight, you are nearly mine,
Late in the night when darkness falls.
Sing it whispered; sing it quiet;
Sing it just another time.
Still I don't know you at all.
But I have seen you in the fairgrounds:
You were spinning untethered on the merry-go-round,
Boyish joy upon your face.
Yes, I've seen you through the gate,
But still I don't know you at all.
Hey, hey, James, the season’s getting late.
Any day now, the snow will fall.
And what kind of fool would wait
And just stand nearby the gate
Of a boarded-up carnival?
We missed the summer, so we picked the lock.
You kissed me dizzy on the Tilt-A-Whirl.
Spinning and giddy like I'd never been kissed;
Punch-drunk high upon the Hurricane twist
On the night, on the night, on the night I was your girl.
Was it the moonshine or the glow of the carousel
Or somethin’ I found ‘round the winds of time?
Singin’ J. D. and Dylan at the top of our lungs—
“Country Road” and “Forever Young”—
Like holy writ on the tip of our tongues.
Hey, hey, James, the season’s getting late.
Any day now, the snow will fall. (The snow will fall.)
And what kind of fool would wait
And just stand nearby the gate
Of a boarded-up carnival?
To hold it all together is unequivocally absurd.
It's the mission of a madman and a mission of the words.
And maybe, maybe you’re chasing an invisible bird.
Hey, hey, James, the season’s getting late.
Any day now, the snow will fall. (The snow will fall.)
And only a fool would wait
And just stand nearby the gate
Of a boarded-up carnival.
Oh, hey, hey, James, the season’s getting late.
Any day now, the snow will fall. (The snow will fall.)
And only a fool would wait
And just stand nearby the gate
Of a boarded-up carnival.
And I can't open your locks
With all that I've got.
Here comes the snow.
No, I can't open your locks
With all that I've got
And all that I'm not.
So I got to go.
Hey, hey, I've got to go.
Hey, I, I, hey,
Hey-hey-hey, hey-hey-hey, hey-hey-hey.
I gotta go.