McLEMORE'S (F.D. Leone, Jr.) Walked in there first time in aught-four Took a stool by the pinball machine Come to know the owner Jake McLemore Dropping by each day became routine He looked to be about my dad’s age If my dad ain’t died in ninety-three Jake was always adopting strays Like a three-legged dog and me Time seemed to pass a little slower Behind soft country music and bumper pool The world looked a whole lot better From where I sat on that bar stool Pickled eggs and pigs feet in a jar Antique cash register, black dial phone Scratches ‘n’ nicks in a hickory bar Left by those who are never really gone He pointed to a snapshot of some soldiers Leaning on a tank in Iraq “They call my son a hero,” Jake told me “Would’ve preferred if he’d just made it back” Time seemed to pass a little slower … Jake sold out last year with a big payday Bought 26 acres outside Shreveport I don’t drink much anymore and anyway Can’t find a bar like McLemore’s No, there ain’t no place like McLemore’s © 2017 Frank David Leone, Jr./Highway 80 Music (ASCAP). The songs and stories on the Highway 80 Stories website are works of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Category: Songs
“Between Here an Gone”
Pearl Robison comes from a fractured family line going back before the Civil War, and her life has carved a jagged line as well. She is related through her father, Jason Jones Robison (1946- ) to Ruby Robison (1843-1933), who was the sister of Marcus Walsh Robison (1836-1897) Pearl’s great-great-great-grandfather. Ruby Robison was a young prostitute in Shreveport who gave birth to a Civil War soldier’s child, the first Pearl Robison (see songs, “Fannin Street” and “Levi Motts is My Name“).
In 1973 Pearl Robison was born in Conyers, Georgia but we first meet Pearl when she is managing a dollar store in Macon. One January day in 2010, sitting in her car before opening up, she decides to leave town and head west on U.S. 80.
BETWEEN HERE AND GONE (F.D. Leone, Jr.) No one dreams of bein’ manager at Dollar Town But life happens, there’s worse around A stick of spearmint’ll hide whiskey on her breath Might as well open up she’s out of cigarettes Snowed eight inches overnight the air is crystal clear They’ll be buying extra bread and eggs and beer Just sittin’ and thinkin’ in her car out there alone She’s stranded between here and gone She could just drive away free as the breeze Start over somewhere, just leave Don’t matter no more what’s right or wrong She’s stranded between here and gone Checking her makeup she sees a new grey hair She don’ know that woman who returns her stare The day’s first shopper pulls in the parking lot She still has time for one more shot There’s nothing in this town for her to stay She used to find little things that kept that thought away Like goin’ to the Blue Bonnet for a lemon custard cone She’s stranded between here and gone She could just drive away free as the breeze … © 2017 Frank David Leone, Jr./Highway 80 Music (ASCAP). The songs and stories on the Highway 80 Stories website are works of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
“Pearl and Jake”
PEARL AND JAKE (F.D. Leone, Jr.) Snowed all day in Macon when Pearl left for the last time Alabam', Misippy, Luzyana; Georgia felt far enough behind Creosote, cottonseed, Shreveport – hit her like a cinder block Lights of an all-nite diner; Pearl coasted to a stop Jake behind the counter, white apron, little paper hat Slid some coffee before her, quiet as an alley cat Pearl pulled a pint from somewhere, tipped it over her cup Jake lit a cigarette; the sun came up Lovin’ her is what he meant to do Even if it broke his heart in two He played life like a game of horseshoes Ah, but, lovin’ her was what he meant to do Jake bought this diner after selling McLemore’s Pearl was stranded in Macon managing a dollar store They met on Jewella Avenue both lookin’ for a new start Jake gave her some food and his hidden heart Lovin’ her is what he meant to do Even if it broke his heart in two He played life like a game of horseshoes Ah, but, lovin’ her was what he meant to do Jake didn’t want to come home stinkin’ of cigarettes, beer and perfume Five years passed by as he walked from room to empty room Pearl was runnin’ away that first day he met her She’d been leavin’ ever since, Jake finally found a way to let her © 2018 Frank David Leone, Jr./Highway 80 Music (ASCAP). The songs and stories on the Highway 80 Stories website are works of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
“The River and Jake”
THE RIVER AND JAKE (F.D. Leone, Jr.) Long as I can remember When Jake was sad he would go On down to The River With some bait and a pole It’s the place he wants to be When he needs to be alone Jake’s gone down to The River Every day since Pearl’s been gone You can ask him where they’re biting Or what he used for bait Just don’t ask him anything about her That’s between The River and Jake Soon his mind will grow empty With each cast he’ll forget All the worries he brought with him They’ll all fade with the sunset You can ask him where they’re biting … © 2019 Frank David Leone, Jr./Highway 80 Music (ASCAP). The songs and stories on the Highway 80 Stories website are works of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
“Blinkin’ Back a Tear”
Jacob “Christmas” McLemore, as he was known his entire life, was Jake McLemore’s great-great-great-grandfather. There was another Jacob McLemore, “Christmas” McLemore’s grandson, Jacob Mac McLemore (1879-1977), who first got oil fever when he was 15 running off to the 1894 oil strike in Corsicana. Next was Oil City in 1906, where made a killing, lost it, made and lost other fortunes before ultimately dying at the ripe old age of 98 without a cent to his name, but rich in memories which was all he handed down to his great-grandson and namesake, Jake McLemore.
BLINKIN' BACK A TEAR (F.D. Leone, Jr.) Just before his great-grandpa went in The hospital for the last time He told Jake the stories of their kin A life that was all but left behind Clear whiskey, flatfoot dancing at jamborees Frontier women and the men they loved One by one he handed down his memories Jake was eighteen, couldn’t get enough Under a clear blue West Texas sky A bluetick hound layin’ at his feet A single tear in the corner of Jake’s eye He blinked it back from fallin’ down his cheek Owen McLemore was born in 1791 In Tennessee he married Annabel Before she died she gave him seven sons He went to Texas then he went to hell Owen’s great-grandson was Jake’s namesake He made some money chasin’ the oil boom There wuddn’t be nothin’ left for Jake ‘Cept this empty hospital room Under a clear blue West Texas sky … © 2018 Frank David Leone, Jr./Highway 80 Music (ASCAP). The songs and stories on the Highway 80 Stories website are works of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
“Hosston to Bastrop”
HOSSTON TO BASTROP (F.D. Leone, Jr.) I used to make my living driving a log truck Hauling timber for the pulp paper mill Take Highway 2, Hosston to Bastrop Double back and unload at Springhill The paper mill shut down, jobs all dried up That stink it made, naw we sure don’t miss Hear they gonna bring in a cross tie plant Now we can smell them creosote pits A case of beer on a Friday night Fill a washtub with boiled shrimp and ice We sure like get drunk and try to dance We may be way up north but it’s still Louisian’ Gets real hot ’round here in the summer August heat will melt the asphalt Didn’t even hurt Randy Boucher when he got run’d over His head was hard, the road was soft A case of beer on a Friday night Fill a washtub with boiled shrimp and ice We sure like get drunk and try to dance We may be way up north but it’s still Louisian’ Like to take my truck out One-Fifty-Seven Stop at the Shongaloo Dairy Cup Three-Seventy-One to Coushatta, then One to Powhatan Just drive around where my daddy grew up A case of beer on a Friday night Fill a washtub with boiled shrimp and ice We sure like get drunk and try to dance We may be way up north but it’s still Louisian’ Betty Broussard brought her fiddle and bow Someone gave a washboard to Greg Thibodaux We sure like get drunk and try to dance We may be way up north but it’s still Louisian’ © 2017 Frank David Leone, Jr./Highway 80 Music (ASCAP). The songs and stories on the Highway 80 Stories website are works of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Highway 80 Stories 