BLUE HAT
Sue Demel is a great musician and songwriting teacher at Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. I’ve worked at the school since 1999 and took her class. Her compelling class inspired me to write this story song about a baby blue hat crocheted by my cousin Debbie. It ended up in a discarded “farm clothes” box which is a box of unorganized, layerable, accessories to wear during chores.
The barn across the road was torn down. It was my childhood hideout and a sentimental icon of rural living in my mind. I’m a sucker for a good, dilapidated barn. Watch your back Charlie.
lyrics
Where I grew up, we all put on farm clothes,
Old recycled mismatched caps and jeans,
Orphan sock and mittens made in 4H,
Seed corn caps and jackets used for hauling grain.
All the men were in their farm clothes,
The day they tore that ailing old barn down,
A play ground full of memories of my childhood,
How I'll miss having that old barn around.
Blue hat, blue hat,
Snug and fuzzy true hat,
Hat that makes you smile, makes you cry,
Warm hat, comfort hat,
Helps you follow through hat,
Silly knitted cap to catch your eye.
Helen tied her children together,
A stern German was what she knew to be,
A grandma holds an ancestry together,
Perched herself atop the family tree.
And the picture on the wall is of my parents,
My brother looking handsome and kind,
Life has a way of always moving forward,
But it's a happy time that's concrete in my mind.
Blue hat, blue hat,
Snug and fuzzy true hat,
Hat that makes you smile, makes you cry,
Warm hat, comfort hat,
Helps you follow through hat,
Silly knitted cap to catch your eye.
It's a snug hat, as a rug hat,
Takes you far away hat,
Makes you feel as good as apple pie,
It's a thick hat, it's a slick hat,
I think that is the trick hat,
Sometimes it's really hard to say goodbye.
Original Americana, hint of bluegrass, a dollop of harmony, sprinkle of experimental, dash of humor, speck of
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