My Neighborhood

I thought it was time for another piece of music. This song is off of After the Flood, which is available right over there to your right. The CDs are for sale via CafePress, but I might re-release it under a Creative Commons license, since it is after all 6 years old (and never sold much anyhow!). We’ll see.

That said, CDs do make lovely Christmas presents, if you know someone who’s into blues and folk rock. 🙂

Well, I go walking through my neighborhood alone at night
Past the empty storefronts in my hat, coat and tie
Punk kids might threaten me but I’m too old to die
I’ve been living here for too damn long

People ’round here don’t treat the street with the respect she deserves
Got my first apartment here in 1949
Went to school ’round the corner past the five and dime
Met my wife there bagging groceries while I stood in line
Been living here for too damn long

And it’s not like things haven’t changed
There didn’t used to be the need for a streetlight
Building ‘cross the way burned down a few years back
A good friend of mine, well, he lost his life
But the more things change, the more they stay the same

I’m not about to give up this neighborhood without a fight
These new folks moving in sing new words to the same old songs
I am the neighborhood, and I’m too old to die
I’ve been living here for too damn long…

You can read about how to play the piece yourself on the guitar here including the chord forms, but alas, not the full tablature. This is in standard tuning, so no capo gymnastics here.