Sometimes in winter
I gaze into the streets
And walk through snow and city sleet behind your room
Sometimes in winter
Forgotten memories
Remember you behind the trees with leaves that cried
By the window once I waited for you
Laughing slightly, you would run
Trees alone would shield us in the meadow
Making love in the evening sun
Now you're gone, girl
And the lamp posts call your name
I can hear them in the spring of frozen rain
Now you're gone, girl
And the time's slowed down till dawn
It's a cold room, and the walls ask where you've gone
Sometimes in winter
I love you when the good times
Seem like memories in the spring that never came
Sometimes in winter
I wish the empty streets
Would fill with laughter from the tears that ease my pain
~ Steve Katz (Blood, Sweat & Tears)
There's a blizzard in the Northeast, and even though I am not there, I am predisposed to stressing about it from afar. So with the first day of spring only five days away, winter is still on my mind. And I find myself curious as to why so many songs about winter are on my list of favorites. I suppose it has something to do with the proclivity of Northerners to seek warmth and comfort in fireplaces, blankets, soups and chowders, hot chocolate, furry pets, and large oil bills. A thousand miles away from the storm, I still want to crawl under the covers with a good book and a purring cat.
"Sometimes in Winter" first appeared on Blood, Sweat & Tears' second album, curiously titled Blood, Sweat & Tears, in 1968. It won a Grammy for Album of the Year in 1970 due to its long run in popularity. But my memory tells me that I knew the song as the B-side to the band's big hit, "Spinning Wheel" (or maybe it was "And When I Die") on a 45 rpm. I fell in love with the song and with Steve Katz' voice in equal measure. Not only does the song transport me to my college dorm room, but the imagery places me smack in the middle of a grey winter city scene.
Of course, the song is a heartbreaker. Aren't they all?
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