Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
Okay...this one's long...but another of my favorites. I've posted it on a few different sites, and it has been quite well received. Please take the time to share your thoughts...
Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
Do you know the Blackwell house?
That empty haunting shell
With windows borded and yard overgrown
Imagine the stories it could tell!
Every village needs its legends
Round campfires late at night.
A ghost who walks in chains alone
To stir up nerves and fright...
The Blackwells were and odd sort of clan
That, no one would argue.
Shut out the world, that was their plan,
Turn off their prying view.
Oh, Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
What secrets have you shared
With strangers to your parents
You never should have dared!
The old folks down at Benny's store
Still tell those sordid tales
Of Bradford Blackwell's backward ways
That would make young Jeannie wail.
Through the pines on clear crisp nights
You could often hear the sounds
Of Bradford Blackwell's strapping belt
And the hungry howl of hounds
And below the sounds of anger
Jeannie's sorry, mournful cries
Pleading for her father's mercy
Agreeing to his lies.
Oh, Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
What secrets have you told,
Against your father's wishes
Who knew you were so bold.
Her mother would just turn away
Pretending not to hear
While the dishes would drip dry
Warming in her fear
The wood shed door would slam shut hard
An echo in the night
As Bradford Blackwell dragged his girl
Fists wrapped in hair too tight
The Mrs. would then clean her up
And send her off to bed
Praying to the lord above
That nothing would be said
Oh, Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
Only 12 years old
What horrors hide within your dreams
And burden your poor soul.
Twenty years ago today
Black River swelled real high
Melting ice, a busted dam
And wild waves raging high
The village came together
And saved all that they could
But stubborn Bradford Blackwell
Stayed within his wood.
One hundred acres around him
A deep valley lying low
The river rose around them
Time to reap what he had sown
Oh, Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
Whatever did you do
The day your family disappeared,
All except for you
They found their bodies beaten
On the rocks at Solace Bay
Swollen, blue and broken,
No one forgets that day.
The local paper jumped for joy
When young Jeannie came to town
What a story, oh boy, oh boy!
Big news was going down.
Not a word has she breathed
Since that fateful day.
The angels keep her quiet
Is what the old folks say.
Oh Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
Your strength beyond compare
You fought the devil in the waves
And beat him fair and square.
Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
Do you know the Blackwell house?
That empty haunting shell
With windows borded and yard overgrown
Imagine the stories it could tell!
Every village needs its legends
Round campfires late at night.
A ghost who walks in chains alone
To stir up nerves and fright...
The Blackwells were and odd sort of clan
That, no one would argue.
Shut out the world, that was their plan,
Turn off their prying view.
Oh, Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
What secrets have you shared
With strangers to your parents
You never should have dared!
The old folks down at Benny's store
Still tell those sordid tales
Of Bradford Blackwell's backward ways
That would make young Jeannie wail.
Through the pines on clear crisp nights
You could often hear the sounds
Of Bradford Blackwell's strapping belt
And the hungry howl of hounds
And below the sounds of anger
Jeannie's sorry, mournful cries
Pleading for her father's mercy
Agreeing to his lies.
Oh, Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
What secrets have you told,
Against your father's wishes
Who knew you were so bold.
Her mother would just turn away
Pretending not to hear
While the dishes would drip dry
Warming in her fear
The wood shed door would slam shut hard
An echo in the night
As Bradford Blackwell dragged his girl
Fists wrapped in hair too tight
The Mrs. would then clean her up
And send her off to bed
Praying to the lord above
That nothing would be said
Oh, Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
Only 12 years old
What horrors hide within your dreams
And burden your poor soul.
Twenty years ago today
Black River swelled real high
Melting ice, a busted dam
And wild waves raging high
The village came together
And saved all that they could
But stubborn Bradford Blackwell
Stayed within his wood.
One hundred acres around him
A deep valley lying low
The river rose around them
Time to reap what he had sown
Oh, Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
Whatever did you do
The day your family disappeared,
All except for you
They found their bodies beaten
On the rocks at Solace Bay
Swollen, blue and broken,
No one forgets that day.
The local paper jumped for joy
When young Jeannie came to town
What a story, oh boy, oh boy!
Big news was going down.
Not a word has she breathed
Since that fateful day.
The angels keep her quiet
Is what the old folks say.
Oh Sweet Jeannie Blackwell
Your strength beyond compare
You fought the devil in the waves
And beat him fair and square.
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