Fairground...

Well I happened upon an old fairground
the once bright colors are now weathered brown
the riders have taken the last spin around
the dust has claimed its own

Feel like I’ve been driving
For a year, or maybe more
On this lonely two lane blacktop
Where I’ve never been before

Up ahead, I see a building
Sign says “General Store”
A single gas pump outside
Like a sentry on the door

Stopped to get a coffee
Fill the tank up to the top
The owner said, “Hello, Son
You can call me Pop”

He told me of a fairground
About fifty miles away
The legend says, on Leap Year
All the dead come back to play

"There's a little place, just round the bend
They've always got a room
You may want to stop there, Son
Twenty-ninth is coming soon..."

Half Past Blue...

 I heard my Daddy talking
Bout a place he’d been
They thought that I was sleeping
It was well past ten
It’s something of a legend
But it must be true
The name of this establishment
Is Half Past Blue

The room is very dark
And filled with smoky haze
The Barman’s arms are crossed
He’s got a steely gaze
The lights come on the stage
Just as the last bell rings
The band steps into place
And then a woman sings

It sounded so romantic
To my youthful ears
That memory, still vivid
After fifty years
I’ve been around the world
I’ve had a first hand view
But I’ve never crossed the threshold
Of the Half Past Blue

I’ve seen the sort of things
That authors write about
Like the stories children tell
After the lights are out
I’ve heard it said in whispers
That to go inside
Is to book yourself a passage
On a midnight ride