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Highland Memories

by Sam Marranca

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1.
The Old Red Pickup Truck 04:12
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Up in the highlands was my granddaddy’s farm Tucked under a ridge between two lakes We’d leave the city life a couple times a year An early start to a weekend, that makes We’d get there before sundown and greet the relatives Then over to the pickup truck we’d go Faded fenders, a cracked windshield and tires long gone flat Tall grass all around, it sat so low To the old red pickup truck my brother and I went Pretending that we were haulin’ hay To the old red pickup truck my memories are spent Imagining she’s still there today In her day my Grandma drove, no license did she have We’d pile in the back to take a trip The clutch would slip on Davis’s Hill, we’d all get out and push Gettin’ to the top took a mighty grip. Before too long the brakes were gone, time had now run out She was parked in the field beside a fence But a new life had started, as a play toy for us kids Stretch a few more years, it sure made sense. To the old red pickup truck my brother and I went Pretending that we were haulin’ hay To the old red pickup truck my memories are spent Imagining she’s still there today The TV show Cannonball was all the rage back then Two truckers a drivin’ down the road Tom was Bud and I was Mack, adventurers we were Fixin’ all the problems people told. But as we grew our interest changed to huntin’ in the bush In the back room all our guns were stored We’d shoot from the chicken coop and pick off all the birds That landed on the roof of that old Ford To the old red pickup truck my brother and I went Pretending that we were haulin’ hay To the old red pickup truck my memories are spent Imagining she’s still there today Imagining I’m still there today
2.
Winter in the Highlands 03:31
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Oh the trees they are looking mighty bare, as the snow begins to settle everywhere And a deer is hanging lifeless by the shed where my dad proudly raises it's fallen head Dried out firewood all stacked in a row, from the cellar to the woodstove it will go Everybody gathers round to feel the heat, boots and socks are dryin' from soakin’ feet And it's winter in the Highlands once again Smoking chimneys and steeples dot the land Just the slightest hint of freshness in the air It's so peaceful and serene when I am there The snowbanks they are piled ten feet high, where the Haliburton school bus goes by and the Ski-doos they’re a streakin’ through the night, headin' for a bonfire's glowing light The ski club in Carnarvon never lasted long but its hills remained for us to sleigh on down And the ice huts out on Boshkung can be seen from the top of the ridge is where I mean And it's winter in the Highlands once again Smoking chimneys and steeples dot the land Just the slightest hint of freshness in the air It's so peaceful and serene when I am there It was peaceful and serene when I was there
3.
Burton's General Store 03:10
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Thinkin’ back to when I was just a little boy I remember somethin’ that really made me pause It’s silver roof clearly seen from Grandma’s old front porch Down the road, around the bend it was Through the wooden screen door, it beckoned us on in Past the Pepsi cooler’s where we went A carousel of comic books, just twelve cents apiece Pocket change certainly well spent Burton’s General Store was our favourite place to go By the jumpin’ Jesus Josie, how we loved it so Burton’s General Store was our favourite place to be Everyone would gather to share a memory Penny candy plentiful, behind the glass display Blackballs and shoestring licorice Kawartha ice cream in the freezer, cones were bigger then Large or small, any way you wish Further back at the meat counter, were samples we did try Weiners and balogna slices too Fresh pig tails for dinner, in pasta sauce they’d go Simmering away all afternoon Burton’s General Store was our favourite place to go By the jumpin’ Jesus Josie, how we loved it so Burton’s General Store was our favourite place to be Everyone would gather to share a memory Now it’s long gone, faded into history
4.
Song for a Farm Boy 03:29
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He was just a young boy at barely nineteen when he left the family farm Tired of the cruelty he never deserved, the old man did him such harm Journeyed far away to the west coast they say doin' all the things he had to do When he finally returned, oh the stories that he earned made me want to go and do them too And little does he know that we care about him so It's sad we don't see him anymore…so sad we don't see him anymore Strong as an ox but gentle as a lamb, an older brother he seemed to me And everything we did, just thinkin' as a kid, I wish they could all still be We'd walk along the side of Highway 35 drinkin' Orange Crush on the way To Benny's Garage where the old truck it was, fixed and ready for another day And little does he know that we care about him so It's sad we don't see him anymore…so sad we don't see him anymore Now time is running on, so many years have gone, who knows when we'll meet up again I hope it's not at somber affairs like in the past, where tears are flowin' in the end We all have a choice to express with our voice, the way we feel about things So when I say my piece, it's a travesty at least of the pain this story really brings So, little does he know that we care about him so It's sad we don't see him anymore…so sad we don't see him anymore…anymore.
5.
My Home Away From Home 03:51
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There’s an old two lane highway windin’ through the hills Northbound to a tiny town where it reaches an old mill Down a dirt road I make my turn, I got here on my own Rhubarb & strawberries, that garden sure has grown Grandpa’s on the tractor Grandma’s washin’ clothes An honest life is how they live at my home away from home I grab my .22 rifle, on back to the bush I go Through the field and across the crick, the path winds to and fro Huntin’ for some cottontail ‘til it’s too dark to see I bag me one just in time, big stew tomorrow for me Grandpa’s on the tractor Grandma’s washin’ clothes An honest life is how they live at my home away from home The lake is warm, the sand is hot, the beach is always fun A bar of soap on a rope, we bathe under the sun Supper time beneath the cedars, wine jugs on the wood Chicken as big as turkey, we eat more than we should Grandpa’s on the tractor Grandma’s washin’ clothes An honest life is how they live at my home away from home There’s a big old pond in the middle of town, homes huddled all around A general store and a school house just a little way’s down An iron bridge to jump off or fish or make believe There’s everything here that you could want, no reason to ever leave Grandpa’s on the tractor Grandma’s washin’ clothes An honest life is how they live at my home away from home
6.
Little White Crosses 03:40
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You might find one at the side of a two-lane highway Or next to a bridge in pretty Minden town Beside a guardrail just outside of Hall’s Lake Or a railway crossing far from where you’re bound And just like mile markers out of sinc, no rhyme or reason known Little white crosses at the side of the road and then you stop to look and read their stories in grass that’s overgrown Little white crosses at the side of the road Doesn’t really matter who you are in this world No one plans on their journey stopping here Guilty or not it comes to an end so quickly And the final resting place is oh so clear And just like mile markers out of sync, no rhyme or reason known Little white crosses at the side of the road and then you stop to look and read their stories in grass that’s overgrown Little white crosses at the side of the road Plastic flowers and Teddy Bears are symbols Personalized by the ones who really care Words of comfort scrolled across a banner To the names of those who’s souls were laid bare And just like mile markers out of sync, no rhyme or reason known Little white crosses at the side of the road and then you stop to look and read their stories in grass that’s overgrown Little white crosses at the side of the road Little white crosses mark the end of the road
7.
This Is Where 03:09
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Gazin' from this mountain top, no higher can I go Leanin' on a big ol' tree observin' what's below There's a lake down to my left, there's a lake down to my right In between, the town I see, such a wondrous sight This is where we'll build our home, the place we wanna be This is where we’ll lay down roots and start a family This is where we'll build our home, designed for you and me This is where we'll live our lives in perfect harmony Maybe a view out front and maybe a view out back We’ll grow a real nice garden as a matter of fact There'll be a covered porch to weather any day And a boat out on the water to ride upon the bay This is where we'll build our home, the place we wanna be This is where we’ll lay down roots and start a family This is where we'll build our home, designed for you and me This is where we'll live our lives in perfect harmony We'll have a ridin’ mower to cut our property And a dog who won't need a leash so he can run free A shed out by the birches to store my fire wood And play guitar and sing my songs, yes I really could This is where we'll build our home, the place we wanna be This is where we’ll lay down roots and start a family This is where we'll build our home, designed for you and me This is where we'll live our lives in perfect harmony This is where we'll live our lives, forever you and me
8.
Twelve Mile Lake 03:20
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I was standin’ on a sandy shore, envisioned a scene from years gone by People swimmin’ and just lazin’ around, it brought me way back to Twelve Mile Lake We’d pack a lunch and go to the beach, across the lumber piles and the sawdust hills Shaggy and Butch, they would run up ahead, it brought me way back to Twelve Mile Lake In my mind we were all back there, and I just want to hold on to then In my mind we were all back there, and I just want to be there again Mr. Delaney, he was drivin’ his boat, towing us kids in a rubber raft A ‘63 Galaxy was parked on the sand, it brought me way back to Twelve Mile Lake Later at night we would build a bonfire, cook some hot dogs and burn ‘em real bad We smelled of smoke but we didn’t care, it brought me way back to Twelve Mile Lake In my mind we were all back there, and I just want to hold on to then In my mind we were all back there, and I just want to be there again We all want to be there again.
9.
Hummingbird 03:33
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Summertime’s a comin’ gentle breezes flow Summertime’s a comin’ anticipation grows Summertime’s a comin’ I’m waiting patiently For you hummingbird to see In a coat of emerald green so smartly you’re bound In a coat of emerald green you hover all around In a coat of emerald green you’re here to get your fix Drinkin’ from my sweet water mix Hummingbird I see you along Highway 35 Hummingbird I see you underneath the tall pines Hummingbird I see you by the Red Umbrella Inn Dancing everywhere you’ve been I watch you hummingbird darting here and there I watch you hummingbird flutter everywhere I watch you hummingbird play follow the leader Landing on my bright red feeder Hummingbird I’m starin’ in a dream-like state Hummingbird so lovely won’t you take my bait Hummingbird if only you will just agree To open your wings for me Cold winds a blowin’ to warmer climes you’ll fly Cold winds a blowin’ many miles through the sky Cold winds a blowin’ ‘cross the mountains you’ll go Migrating to the south, you know? Hummingbird I see you along Highway 35 Hummingbird I see you underneath the tall pines Hummingbird I see you by the Red Umbrella Inn Dancing everywhere you’ve been Come and visit me again
10.
It Ain't The Same No More 05:29
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Historic, old farmhouses crumblin’ to the ground Once wide open spaces, now there’s little to be found Service centres and convenience stores replacin’ old traditions Swimmin’ holes been ruined too through land acquisitions The old town I remember ain’t the same no more Things I did way back then are gone forever more, gone forever more Two cent pop bottles we found at the side of the road Cash ‘em in at the General Store, pockets lined with gold Ditches now filled with plastic, no incentive to turn ‘em in Litterin’ all the highways, where do we begin The old town I remember ain’t the same no more Things I did way back then are gone forever more, gone forever more The natural spring water source ain’t natural any more Shut down by the Ministry, get it from the water store Sign says “Under Quarantine, full of E-coli You can’t drink the water or you’re gonna die!” The old town I remember ain’t the same no more Things I did way back then are gone forever more, gone forever more Peaceful lakes and rivers once teemin’ with wild life Listen to the call of the loon, echoin’ his strife They come on personal watercraft makin’ lots of noise Upsettin’ all the local folk with their spoiled rotten toys The old town I remember ain’t the same no more Things I did way back then are gone forever more, gone forever more Graveyards show the pioneers who settled on this land Little did they know back then, the wrongs of modern man Old back roads that bear their names, creeks and waterfalls Blasted away with dynamite, now lead to shopping malls The old town I remember ain’t the same no more Things I did way back then are gone forever more, gone forever more gone for-ever more, gone forever more

about

These 10 songs were written to commemorate my time spent growing upin the 50s, 60s and 70s at my grandparents farm in Carnarvon, ON withmy two brothers and my aunt and uncle (who were actually our age). I thought I would capture these memories in song to share with youso you could share them with others.

credits

released July 23, 2019

All songs written by myself, Sam Marranca. Special thanks to Nick Ginn at School House Studios and my sons Dan and Darren for their instrumental and vocal accompaniment, as wellas my wife Olga Marranca and Maggie Sulc for their guest vocals.

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Sam Marranca Hamilton, Ontario

Sam Marranca is a singer/songwriter from Hamilton, Ontario

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