5090 by FAWM: "The Estate Sale"

The Estate Sale

Liner Notes

#country #sentimental #pedal steel #biab
My talented buddy Joe was the runaway winner of the gold in July's lyric contest on the Muse Songwriters site with this one and I thought it might work well with an old-school country treatment. Composed it on acoustic guitar but then leaned hard on BIAB for the instrument tracks. It's pretty damn long, but there was a lot that needed to be said in a sort of story song like this and it seemed like any faster tempo would spoil the mood. We're open to hearing differing opinions on that, though.

Lyrics

The Estate Sale
Lyrics by Joe Ryan
Music by Jeff Walker

The yard sign read "Estate Sale.... today from 8 till 4"
Exact change please and all sales final posted on the door
Curiosity got the best of me and I had nowhere to go
So I took a stroll through the souvenirs of people I don't know

Bookcases filled with his DVD'S all about World War II
I counted over 200 but I probably missed a few
A garage full of wood shop tools where he made toys for the kids
I imagined the smile he must have had with every one he did

(Ch)
Treasures from their 50 years together
Memories like pictures in a frame
Now on sale for pennies on the dollar
To strangers who will never know their names

Cast iron pans where she fried Sunday chicken
Boxes filled with her Llado figurines
Needle point cushions she made for the grand kids
20 years of Readers Digest magazines

The dress that she wore on their 50th anniversary
Elegantly laid across their master bed
Her garden tools for those spring time flowers
Waiting in a bucket for the seasons ahead

Repeat Chorus

(Bridge)
Maybe 20 years from now
When I'm quite old and frail
My house will fill with strangers
To browse my life on sale
My collection of Hemmingway novels
My fishing rods and reels
"Will you take 20 bucks for this one"?
They always want a better deal

Break

(Out)
Be grateful for the things you have and stop your chase for more
Some day "your" yard sign will read "Estate Sale today from 8 till 4"
Yeah some day your yard sign will read"Estate sale today..........
From 8 till 4

Comments

@newukenewyork 2w

Classic country vibes, professional sounding track with great vocals. I wouldn't take the tempo faster. Nice storytelling!

@slusk 4w

Great story, conveys the emotions. Great delivery.

@paul_pedersen 5w

I had a thought about this yesterday, but couldn't remember the artist or the song title. A little research (and luck) today and I was able to get the details. Quite a few years, a Canadian country artist named Fred Eaglesmith wrote a song called Thirty Years of Farming. The topic is the same as yours, but he did it in a bluegrass style. Actually, a number of bluegrass groups have taken the song into their repertoire.

I had not heard the original till today. I became aware of it at a monthly jam session I used to go to. So, for interest's sake, here it is: https://youtu.be/b2ShIpjJd5Q

@paul_pedersen 5w

Can I leave a one-word evaluation?

Wow!

The lyrics paint a complete and perfect picture and the music matches. So, wow!

@nancycunning 5w

Such a beautiful portrait of a long regular life. At first I thought a slower tempo might work, but then I got into the idea of life moving along at a fast clip. I thought about the possibility of the last section being addresses to a partner and becoming I’m gratefuk for the things we have. Honey, we don’t need much more. Some day too soon our sign will read…

@mikeb 6w

Wow, such a poignant tale when told this way. Having just had my mother's house cleaned out, it hits home. The traditional country style suits it well with Jeff's deep melody.

@greengrassgirl 6w

Love all the details in the story; I think we can all relate. What a wonderful collab, giving us the best of both of you.

@jerrypettit 6w

You and I are both big BIAB fans--and this arrangement reminds me that so much of the time "less is more". Lately, I've been, I believe, probably overdoing my arrangements and going for a "wall of sound". This song of yours is nice and simple and perfect. Terrific lyrics, too--great collaboration! ❤️

@davidtaro 6w

Beautifully written lyrics. Aside from the universality of the subject matter I think it’s all the small and specific details - the WWII DVDs, the Llado figurines, the Readers Digests - that really bring the thing to life. The old school country works because there’s a melancholy, yearning and almost sentimentalism in it which is the perfect fit for the words. Brilliant delivery on the vocal, which is like the final piece in a very fine jigsaw. Well done to both of you 👏👏

@coolparadisoMod 6w

well.you were right. fine lyric, you know it when you are listening for the next line. grear country delivery. a very fine song.

@billwhite51 7w

This is the perfect tempo for the song, and you sing it so well. The length didnt bother me at all. I enjoyed every second of the song... but if you wanted to shorten it for commercial reasons, I would cut the chorus before the btidge and end the song with the chorus after the bridge, and dispense with the breal and the outro.

@sbs 7w

Chills!! Beautifully written and your vocals, of course. Really nice music choices. Gotta play this one for my husband - he’s a sucker for the crying steel. And a big fan of yours!

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The Estate Sale

Liner Notes

Lyrics

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