Block Party

To me, block parties are humanity at its best: folks outside sharing food and drink, kids running around, and all of this happening for no particular reason.  This song started with that and expanded into an appreciation for the magic of summer. 

"Block Party"

Instrumentation: guitar, slide

Block party, mid-July

Leftover fireworks paint the sky

Front yard inflatable pools, storm clouds roll by

Kids'll be up late tonight, better kiss the rules goodbye

Mom and Dad are buzzing from a solo cup mystery

The speakers from the Henderson's yard are blasting that pop country

The Murphy kids are sneaking a smoke in the alley

Block party, mid-July, that sounds about right to me

Close off the block, open our doors

Empty our minds, fill up the coolers

Let the kids run wild and the sleep-deprived parents sigh

Block party, mid-July

Front yard fireflies, early August

It's 88 at 8, humidity like a pea soup mist

Grass stains are brush strokes in this unframed masterpiece

It's time to go inside

Summer spills away like water from an untended hose

Saturates my memory, and the nostalgia grows

I watch from my front porch two boys and a girl

Dancing in a sprinkler in the smallest possible world

Close off the block...