From the recordings Along The Way and Along The Way (an 11 Track Album) . . . Hover Over Any Song Title To Pre-View a Track
I wrote this song at the age of 17 for my first love, sometime shortly after high school. Since I played music by ear, I didn't know "the rules" about chord arrangements, so I intentionally set out to write a song that had more than the typical 2 to 4 chord song structure. I wanted to break any rules and the predictability of where I might go next in my chord progression. I believe the goal was achieved with this song. At the time of writing, I only played guitar, but my head heard the piano parts. Not knowing how to play piano, it was tricky to get this tune outside of my head and down to a reel-to-reel (yes, we recorded music on reel-to-reels back in the day). The 2nd goal on this song was the lryics, which I intended to speak directly to a departing love.
Lyrics
Along the Way
ALONG THE WAY I HOPE YOU’LL THINK OF ME
AND HOW WE TOUCHED EACH OTHERS’ LIVES
REMEMBER WHAT I SAID
ALONG THE WAY SHOULD THERE COME A CLOUD
A STORMY WIND OR A CHANGE IN WEATHER
I WILL BE THE FASTEST MOVIN’ TRAIN
I WILL BE YOUR SHELTER FROM THE RAIN
SHOULD YOU EVER NEED A HAND ALONG THE WAY
THERE WILL SURELY BE
THOSE WHO’LL TELL YOU ANYTHING
TO TAKE YOUR LOVE FOR FREE
ALONG THE WAY YOU JUST WATCH YOUR STEP
CAREFUL NOT TO HURRY INTO
ANYTHING THAT’S LESS THAN WHAT WE HAD
I NEVER EVER WANT YOU TO BE SAD
WON’T YOU THINK OF WHAT I’VE SAID ALONG THE WAY
( L E A D )
BY THE TIME YOU ARE OLD AND GRAY
THINKING ONLY IN THE PAST
DON’T FORGET A PROMISE THAT I MADE
TIMELESS LOVE HAS NEVER KNOWN AN AGE
WON’T YOU THINK OF ME AT TIMES
ALONG THE WAY
© 1987 Linda Mckenzie, Addagirl Music (ASCAP)