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The end of summer

Jason Samenow @ 11:00 PM

After Labor Day, for all intents and purposes, summer is over. For many songwriters, the transition to fall is a melancholy time, symbolic of loss. Not that I mean to depress you as you begin your work week (think of the new season as new opportunity and keep fond memories of the summer), but here are some examples from several excellent songs that come to mind:
Nobody on the road/Nobody on the beach/I feel it in the air/The summer's out of reach/Empty lake, empty streets/The sun goes down alone/I'm drivin' by your house/Though I know you're not home...

But I can see you-/Your brown skin shinin' in the sun/You got your hair combed back and your sunglasses on, baby/And I can tell you my love for you will still be strong/After the boys of summer have gone...

- Don Henley, "Boys of Summer"

The show goes on, and the sad-eyed sisters go walking on/Everyone watching all along/The show goes on, as the autumn's coming and the summer's all gone/Still without you, the show goes on ....

- Bruce Hornsby, "The Show Goes On"

Sitting here in Avalon, looking at the pouring rain/Summertime has come and gone and everybody's home again/Closing down for the season, I found the last of the souvenirs/I can still taste the wedding cake and it's sweet after all these years

These are the last words I have to say/That's why this took so long to write/There will be other words some other day/But that's the story of my life

There's comfort in my coffee cup and apples in the early fall/They're pulling all the moorings up and gathering at the Legion Hall/They swept away all the streamers after the Labor Day parade/Nothing left for a dreamer now, only one final serenade...

- Billy Joel, "Famous Last Words"

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