I had a band in the mid-60s that was my first introduction to amplification and it expanded my writing style a bit. This song came out of that, but it was uptempo and quite a bit different. I rewrote the song years later because I loved singing the refrain. Not sure who this could have been about. Possibly Judy Perlman.
Lyrics
Back Then
Back then before the aces were dealt
Back then before we knew what we felt
Despite the nightmare of reality
We danced suspended in our fantasy
It’s only natural now that we should be
A little frightened of a light where none can see
What are we gonna do when it ends
My friend
Everything we had back then.
Back then before perfection did cease
Back then two stormless orphans at peace
You grasped my spirit in your lover’s grip
And then you’d melt under my fingertips
We never worried ’bout our separate trips
Until that question forced its way between our lips
What are we gonna do when it ends
My friend
Everything we had back then.
Back then stealing a moment of time
Back then when we were partners in crime
Countless tomorrows that will not unfold
Just like a church bell that will never toll
The space between us I could not control
Although I reached across it vainly for your soul
What are we gonna do when it ends
My friend
Everything we had back then.