"LifeLongLove" is a collection of songs that will unspool the saga of how JackBrown met a girl half a lifetime ago and how he almost blew a perfect thing.

The setting:   Our guests arrive in about an hour.  She’s throwing a big party.  And I mean BIG.  All the arrangements have been made and now we’re getting dressed.   I'm in the walk-In closet.  It's smells of old leather and the faintest whiff of ancient Polo cologne still clinging to the fabric of rarely worn shirts.  There's a tennis can that contains about 15 pounds of change.  I watch her as I'm getting dressed.  She’s over there at the bathroom sink primping like I’ve seen her do a hundred times before.   Literally hundreds of times.  Not exaggeration.  Years. So many years.  That familiar way she cocks her head to look at herself out of the corner of her eye so she can apply her makeup in the mirror.

What am I going to say when everyone is gathered and I have their attention? What COULD I say?  I’m certainly NOT going to talk about the moment I almost wrecked this whole thing.  How close it came to falling apart before it even started. No, I’ll just spin a yarn, like I always do.

LifeLongLove (my story in 15 Chapters) #geezerrock

This song kicks off "LifeLongLove" -- a collection of songs that will unspool the saga of how JackBrown met a girl half a lifetime ago and how he almost blew a perfect thing. The chronicle starts here. Chapter 1:  Where Do I Begin?

Setting: A walk-in closet. Smells like leather & old Polo. The big anniversary party starts in about an hour.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
i’m gonna tell a story and it’s a good one too 
i think the time has come 
to sing about me & you, you & me 
how we came to be 
i wanna tell the tale and put all the good stuff in 
but where do i begin? 

after all this time it’s hard to remember now 
just how this whole thing started 
how it came about so long ago, many years ago 
we’ve got an old love story that needs a fresh new spin 
so where do i begin? 

so i’m thinking back to our early days 
but the memories are in a haze 
what was i like before we met? 
well, it’s been so long that i forget 

i know that it’s not over, our best is yet to come 
but i think it’ll do us good to remember where we came from 
i’m going back, way way back 
i’m gonna tell our story and feel it all again 
I’ll be smart and use my art to chart out my heart 
and I’ll start with the part before you come in 

that’s where I’ll begin 
so let’s just dive right in 
now it’s time to 
begin . . .

======
Next Up Chapter 2:  Reminiscing about the first time I ever seriously considered the possibility of . . . you know . . . love.

Where Do I Begin? (Chapter 1 of LifeLongLove)

This is Chapter 3 in my collection of songs called LifeLongLove.

Setting: We are in high gear with last-minute party preparations. They’ll all be here soon. But I’m somewhere else in my head — rummaging around my past and wondering, how did I become the sort of person who would be celebrating a big milestone moment like this anniversary? Wasn’t always like this. Ah yes, college. In the dorm. The first rumblings of romance. 
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
okay, here’s the opening scene 
sophomore year, my first week 
a girl gives me the eye 
and the sparks begin to fly 

so we start to run around 
try to find some common ground 
but the more that we hang out 
the more i start to doubt 

she looks great but underneath 
this gorgeous girl is a drama queen 
she’s the type who always gets her way 
and she’s got a part she wants me to play 
but do I wanna be 
her romeo? 

oh she’s got a certain charm 
probably someday be a star 
she puts it on display 
like ‘all the world’s her stage’ 

and at first i’m way impressed 
with how she looks (and all the rest) 
but then it dawns on me 
this could become a tragedy 

she looks good but underneath 
this pretty girl is a drama queen 
and my only role in her little show 
is to sit around basking in her golden glow 
so do I wanna be 
her romeo? 

(do i?  would parting really be such "sweet sorrow"?  "hark, what light through yonder window breaks . . . up?")

so my feelings break open like a thunderstorm 
in the final scene I’m knocking at her door 
i say, “i’ll put this in a way you can get: 
honey, you’ll never be my Juliet! 
‘cause i don't wanna 
be your Romeo”
= = = = =
Next Up -- Chapter 4:  Then I Dated a Songwriter.

Romeo? (Chapter 3 of LifeLongLove)

This is Chapter 2 in my collection of songs LifeLongLove.

Setting: The big anniversary party starts in about an hour and I should be getting ready but here I am reminiscing about another party long long ago. I see myself holding a 16oz. red plastic SOLO cup that's half full of flat beer. Smell of smoke from the bonfire. My buddy Ray  (I'll tell you all about him some other day in my “Flashback” playlist) displays a rare moment of seriousness by posing some surprising questions . . . 
= = = = = = = = = = = =

i was 17 when my best friend came to me and said 
“do you think that some day you’ll fall in love? 
will you end up getting married, pushing babies in a carriage? 
can you ever see yourself all grown-up?” 

and i said: i don’t think about it but i could live without it 
who says that’s how life is supposed to go? 
i know you believe that “love is all you need” 
‘cause you listen TOO much to the radio 

you’ve heard too many love songs 
they’re filling your head 
you’ve heard too many love songs my friend 
i’m not ready yet 

i won’t be tied down 
i won’t lose myself 
my life won’t be bound 
to someone else 

think of all those cheesy movies and silver screen beauties saying, 
“now that I’ve found you, my life’s complete” 
we know it’s fabricated or at least exaggerated 
they’re selling the same old lame fantasy 

you've heard too many love songs 
they can’t all be true 
you’ve heard too many love songs, my friend 
it's fine for you 

but i won’t be tied down 
i won’t lose myself 
my life won’t be bound 
to someone else 
i don’t wanna drown 
in some wishing well 
my life won't be bound 
to someone else 

i sound like i’m a cynic but hang on just a minute 
it was all a future scene that i couldn’t see 
i never said ‘never’ but, love? come on whatever 
it was last thing on my mind when i was 17 
when i was 17

= = = = = 
Next up:  Chapter 3 in which I continue rummaging around my past looking for clues as to how I got here . . . Ah yes, college. In the dorm. The first rumblings of romance.

Too Many Love Songs (Chapter 2 of LifeLongLove)

This is Chapter 4 of of my collection of songs: LifeLongLove. 

Setting: Our guests arrive in less than an hour -- but I’m still strolling down this romantic memory lane. I'm remembering another near-miss when i dated a songwriter. The following went down in the music building on campus. I can practically smell the rehearsal room we were in - old baloney sandwiches, instrument polish and dust on the strings of the out-of-tune piano. 
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

you just looked in my eyes and said, 
“it seems like something’s wrong” 
so now you’re off to write 
another heart-breaking song 
and i’ve seen this before 
you get bored so you start this tug-of-war 
this phenomenon is a little odd 
it’s . . . it’s relational sabotage 

i just looked in your eyes 
and the penny finally dropped 
yeah, it’s taken awhile but now I'm catching on 
you tear things apart, you make it hard 
so you can suffer for your art 
but it’s a crock, yeah it’s a con 
it’s relational sabotage 
‘cause you’re the type 
who needs some drama every night 
yeah, you go and pick a fight 
so you can write about love gone wrong 

oh you sing about pain and rejection and hurt 
but all your inspiration leaves me in the dirt 
and it’s easy to see 
it’s not me who’s to blame for this misery 
you bring it on and then camouflage 
your relational sabotage 
‘cause you’re the type 
who needs some drama every night 
yeah, you go and pick a fight 
just so you can write about love gone wrong 

now you wanna make up 
well that’s tough ‘cause i have had enough 
i swear to god, you gotta stop 
this relational sabotage 

okay, alright 
you want some drama here tonight? 
you can write another song 
about love going wrong 
because now i’m gone 
go and write another song 
about love going wrong 
because now i’m gone
= = = = = 
Next Up -- Chapter 5:  Crushed.  No more near misses.  When it hit it hit like an asteroid cratering into the earth.

Then I Dated A Songwriter (Chapter 4 of LifeLongLove)

This is Chapter 5 in my collection of songs called LifeLongLove.

Setting: The shop was called “The Asteroid”. Out of this world. The smell of cheap incense. Posters and stacks of CD’s like some kind of altar. Racks of vintage vinyl LP’s waiting to be flipped through. The power&possibility of it all was intoxicating.   (note to younger listeners:  in the olden days you actually had to go to a PLACE to buy music)
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
i walk through the door at the record store 
and i see her there 
the girl who runs the place has such a face 
that i stop and stare 
she’s so attractive 
one look and i am crushed 
she’s radio-active 
rock & roll pixie dust 
she could change my life from Lo-Fi to stereo 

oh no -- she is way too much 
oh no -- don’t wanna say too much but 
one look at her and i am crushed 

i try to catch her eye but i’m feeling shy 
and i blow my chance 
so i look for my disc but i have to risk 
just one more glance 
she’s so attractive 
i sneak a peek and i am crushed 
she seems distracted 
i don’t how we’ll hook up 
but if it’s meant to be, i’m gonna meet this dynamo 

oh no -- she is way too much 
oh no -- i can’t say too much ‘cause 
my tongue is tied and my heart is crushed 

she walks up to me and i get to see 
her pop-rock smile 
the cd in my hand is her favorite band 
she says, “I like your style” 
she’s so attractive 
one word and i am crushed 
we interact 
and i think i see her blush 
now it's the first time in my life 
i feel like i could play Romeo 

oh no -- girl, you are way too much 
oh no -- forgive me if i say too much but 
one look at you and i was 
crushed

= = = = = =
Next Up - Chapter 6:  What's It Gonna Take?

Crushed! (Chapter 5 of LifeLongLove)

I wrote some songs!  Here are 14 of ‘em. They are my attempt at using guitars and some original high-energy rock music to tell my story . . . one "chapter" at a time.  I sincerely appreciate YOU taking a listen —and please don’t forget to the check out “Behind This Track” button for the lyric’s, stories and other tasty tidbits.  Thanks! - JB, Jan. ‘25
#geezerrock

Crushed! (Chapter 5 of LifeLongLove)

JackBrownNYC (storytelling rock&roll) #geezerrock